[Kabar-indonesia] Ba'asyir Denounces Jihad? A Tactical Shift, Not a Strategic One

[Joyo at aol.com]

Counterterrorism Blog
November 6, 2006

Ba'asyir Denounces Jihad? A Tactical Shift, Not a Strategic
One

By Zachary Abuza

Much is written about Abu Bakar Ba'asyir's public
denouncements of jihad. The first came in a statement to
reporters when he was released from prison in mid-June 2006.
The most recent one came this weekend in a sermon in a
mosque in Kediri, East Java province. According to the
Indonesian state news agency, Antara, Ba'asyir urged his
followers to go abroad to wage jihad, though without
explaining why. "If you want to go on jihad, do not do it
here [Indonesia], but in the southern Philippines or even in
Iraq." He reiterated something that he had said in the past,
that the Bali bombers were legitimate jihadis, but their
jihad was "not at the right time or place." He concluded by
saying, "Therefore I ask [Mujahidin Congress of Indonesia]
MMI followers not to imitate them because (their actions)
are harmful. They miscalculated."

Has Ba'asyir, who previously endorsed jihad against the
West, embraced Osama bin Laden's fatwah against America, and
who, as the amir of Jemaah Islamiyah could very well have
used his authority to stop the annual bombings, really
committed himself to non-violence? Ba'asyir did not condemn
the actions of the Bali bombers on moral or theological
grounds, but on timing. Likewise, he is endorsing violent
jihad in places other than Indonesia.

Why not Indonesia? Most likely, Ba'asyir is trying to keep
himself out of prison. This was a large public sermon and we
know little about what he is saying in private. Though
released in June 2006, Indonesia has been under diplomatic
pressure for his release and other remissions of JI members.
Since then, he has publicly espoused a program of dawah to
achieve his goal of establishing an Islamic state. He has
also been active in expanding the Mujahidin Congress of
Indonesia's network across the archipelago and enhancing
their social services. Like many within JI, there is a
feeling that the annual bombings of soft Western targets
while still being jihad, has been counter-productive because
it has led to harsh crackdowns and arrests of key members. A
tactical shift, but not a strategic one.

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Joyo Indonesia News Service
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