Understanding ISIS
The ideological narrative propagated by ISIS is a political movement with the calculated use of social media. Terrorism poses a great security challenge to the world, and Singapore is not immune to the threat. Therefore, a united strategic response by the international community is urgently needed to counter extremism.
This was the underlying message put forth by panellists during the Tembusu Forum titled “ISIS & Islam” on 16 February, which sought to better understand ISIS as a religious, political, military and terrorist organisation. The thought-provoking forum at Tembusu College, University Town drew a crowd of more than 300 students and guests, including former Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Zainul Abidin Rasheed.
Speakers included Assistant Professor Mohamed Bin Ali from the Studies in Inter-Religious Relations in Plural Societies Programme at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) at Nanyang Technological University; Dr Jolene Jerard, Research Fellow and Manager (Capacity Building) at the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research under RSIS; and Dr Nazirudin Mohd Nasir, Deputy Director of the Office of the Mufti at the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore. The session was moderated by College Rector Professor Tommy Koh, who also holds appointments as Chairman of the NUS Centre for International Law and Ambassador-At-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Prof Koh chose the topic of the forum as he felt that it was important to better understand ISIS, especially since Singapore is also a target country
Asst Prof Mohamed, whose research areas include Islamic Jurisprudence, Islamist ideology, religious extremism, inter-religious relations and rehabilitation of Muslim extremists, touched on the terrorist group’s lack of legitimacy. “ISIS has claimed to have established the Caliphate, calling themselves the Islamic State, and this is a tactic used to lend legitimacy to the group and garner support from Muslims everywhere in the name of Islam…but it’s important to note that the Islamic State is neither Islamic nor a state,” he emphasised. Explaining ISIS’ appeal, he noted that many youths join ISIS for various reasons such as wanting a sense of belonging, an obligation to other Muslims, and the attraction of becoming a “martyr”. He also stressed the importance of curbing religious extremism, particularly in the next generation. “I believe prevention before radicalisation is better than rehabilitation after indoctrination,” he said.
Dr Jerard, an expert on terrorist groups in Asia, illustrated the trends of the ISIS narrative, which includes an increasing use of social media for recruitment and radicalisation, along with a loose network of operatives and growing threat of foreign fighter returnees. She also highlighted the substantial power ISIS wielded and the wealth it has managed to accumulate. “A private sector firm doing the number crunch pointed to approximately three trillion dollars in assets, far surpassing many groups in the past,” she said.
Responding to a comment from the floor questioning the ability of a counter-narrative to discredit ISIS ideology, Asst Prof Mohamed reiterated that locally it was important to educate not only ISIS supporters, but also ISIS sympathisers and those who believe in the establishment of an Islamic governance in Singapore, in order to curb extremism.
The forum drew a positive response from the audience with many guests eager to engage the panellists further on the topic
Prof Koh concluded the discussion on a reflective note, saying “Islam has been hijacked for political objectives. All religions are religions of peace.”
Year 1 NUS Arts and Social Sciences student Joelle Loy felt that the forum provided a good basic background of the issues from multiple perspectives. “The point about the increasing use of social media was something we as youth could definitely relate to,” she added.
The Tembusu Forum is a regular series that engages distinguished individuals in informed discussions about important global, national and regional issues with the aim of engaging undergraduates and raising awareness.
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