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Outlawed Gafatar group may cause social tension, violence: BNPT
Outlawed: A senior member of the banned Fajar Nusantara Movement (Gafatar) speaks at the organizationâs national meeting
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Outlawed: A senior member of the banned Fajar Nusantara Movement (Gafatar) speaks at the organizationâs national meeting. The National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) warned on Wednesday that Gafatar could trigger social friction, which may lead to violence, as it contradicted mainstream Islamic teachings acknowledged by the government. (Tempo) (Gafatar) speaks at the organizationâs national meeting. The National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) warned on Wednesday that Gafatar could trigger social friction, which may lead to violence, as it contradicted mainstream Islamic teachings acknowledged by the government. (Tempo)
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span class="caption">Outlawed: A senior member of the banned Fajar Nusantara Movement (Gafatar) speaks at the organization's national meeting. The National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) warned on Wednesday that Gafatar could trigger social friction, which may lead to violence, as it contradicted mainstream Islamic teachings acknowledged by the government. (Tempo)
The National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) has said it is concerned that the outlawed Fajar Nusantara Movement's (Gafatar) activities might trigger social friction, which could lead to violence, although the agency was not worried about terror threats.
BNPT spokesperson Irfan Idris said that Gafatar, established in 2012, was not proven to have committed terrorist acts. The presence of the organization, however, had affected Islam in Indonesia, he said.
'Gafatar did not carry out any physical terror threats. However, it is obvious that this movement has threatened religious beliefs. Gafatar has terrorized Islam in Indonesia because it is far from the mainstream Islamic teachings acknowledged by the government,' Irfan said as quoted by kompas.com on Wednesday.
He further said that the BNPT had long monitored the organization, which continually changed its name. The agency was regularly spreading information on the dangers of Gafatar in its base areas to prevent the movement from growing further, he added.
'But we don't yet have exact data on the number of Gafatar followers in Indonesia. Information we have received says that this movement has continued to recruit followers,' said Irfan.
He said the BNPT was implementing preventative measures, such as routinely holding dialogues with community members and providing insights about the organization through education channels.
'So, people will not instantly accept its ideology if they are approached by the organization's members,' said Irfan.
Earlier, Home Minister Tjahjo Kumolo said Gafatar was not registered with the ministry as an official organization. It was suspected that the organization was connected to recent reports of the disappearance of a number of people across Indonesia.
'We have monitored the organization via the ministry's directorate general of politics and found that at the national level, Gafatar is not registered as an official organization,' Tjahjo said on Tuesday. (ebf)(+)
