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Listening to the voices of convicted terrorists’ wives
Wives of terrorists know the risks of their husbands' beliefs and struggle, but never expected the hardship of life when their husbands are in prison.
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Center of attention: Sri Murdiyati (center), the wife of terrorist Abu Dujana, carries her daughter as she is interviewed by reporters at the National Police Headquarters in Jakarta, June 19, 2007. (AFP/Ahmad Zamroni )
Sidar is the wife of Hamas (not their real names), a “neo-Jamaah Islamiyah” former terrorist convict from Semarang. Hamas, now 44, had been involved in Jumaah Islamiyah (JI) actions since he studied at Al-Mukmin Islamic boarding school in Ngruki, Surakarta in 1993-1995. The boarding school was cofounded by Abu Bakar Ba’asyir, a former JI leader who was released from prison in 2021.
Sidar and Hamas married in 2000 through taaruf (arranged marriage) and have five children.
Before the marriage, Sidar was a murrabiyah (teacher/preacher/activist) of JI. Unlike Hamas, who swore a baiat (oath), Sidar, like other JI women, is not obliged to perform baiat. The reason is women do not have an obligation to perform jihad outside the home; their jihad is manifested by fulfilling their obligations as wives.
After the marriage, Hamas became more active in JI. In 2002, when their second child was born, Hamas went for a “jihad” in Poso, Central Sulawesi. In 2005, the family moved to Hamas’s hometown, Ungaran in Central Java, to take care of his ailing mother.
Hamas became even more active in JI in 2006, taking the responsibilities of cadre development and intelligence, while Sidar gave birth to their third child. Hamas often left home for dakwah (preaching).
