JakartaPost-Oct 22
The police are on alert, facing the possible spread of radical groups to Southeast Asia region, including Batam, with the stabilizing conditions in the Middle East after a peace agreement between Israel and Palestinian resistance group Hamas. Batam, Rempang and Galang (Barelang) City Police chief Sr. Comr. Zainal Arifin said the alertness had been materialized in several anticipative measures, such as tightening the supervision of migration gateways in coordination with the Batam Immigration Office, although no specific threat was identified. “Barelang City Police are always actively conducting coordination and dialogue with the Batam regional office of the Religious Affairs Ministry, the Batam branch of Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and Batam Preachers Association,” Zainal told The Jakarta Post on Saturday. “If there is any indication [of exposure to radicalism], we work with the Religious Affairs Ministry and MUI to provide enlightenment by ulema, who have better religious knowledge.” According to Zainal, police alertness is based on migration and dispersion theory, which purports that foreign terrorist fighters may return to their countries of origin when radical groups lose their territories or that when a situation is stabilized, they may spread to other regions. While the Gaza Peace Summit brought hopes of peace, the Indonesian security apparatus are also observing its impacts, including the spread of groups who may have lost their bases of operation. “Considering our closeness with member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation [OIC]. If there is conflict in an OIC member state, it will have an impact on our country,” said Zainal. Read more at:
