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97. Becoming Members, Becoming Mujahidin: Understanding Indonesian Terrorism in the Age of ISIS. Sponsored by the Indonesian East Timor-Leste Studies Committee (ITLSC)

Fri, March 17, 12:45 to 2:45pm, Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel, Floor: 2nd Floor, Dominion Ballroom South

Session Submission Type: Organized Panel

Abstract

How and why do Islamist extremist organizations choose to deploy their members into a specific localized communal conflict? What motivates Indonesian Muslim men to join Islamist extremist groups like Jemaah Islamiyah, Mujahidin KOMPAK and ISIS? How is ISIS redefining the traditional role of women in jihad? What role does masculinity play in the decision to become foreign fighter?

Utilizing original fieldwork, the four papers on this panel will unpack these critical questions in the study of Indonesian terrorism. Schulze’s paper explores the strategic thinking and ideological frames of reference undergirding the decision by Jemaah Islamiyah and Mujahidin KOMPAK to send fighters to Ambon during the Maluku conflict. Chernov Hwang’s paper compares the processes of recruitment, indoctrination and induction across Jemaah Islamiyah, Mujahidin KOMPAK and ISIS in order to ascertain why and how Indonesian Muslims are joining these communities. The papers by Noor Huda Ismail and Navhat Nuraniyah both look at the role of gender within jihad. Nuraniyah analyzes the shifts in the role of women within Islamist extremist movements from traditional passive support roles in Jemaah Islamiyah to dynamic active roles as fundraisers, propagandists, and recruiters in ISIS. Noor Huda Ismail’s paper highlights the role of masculinity in shaping the decision to become a foreign fighter, utilizing cases from the Afghan jihad, the Moro conflict and most recently, the Syrian conflict. Taken together, these papers illuminate trends in individual and group level decision-making within Indonesia's diverse Islamist extremist community.

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