Noordin Md Top is dead. A Malaysian. A Jemaah Islamiah member. Terrorist. Armed. Shot dead. By Indonesian police. In an ambush. Dead before judicial process. Media frenzy.
A Singapore leader congratulated the Indonesians. He is glad because there is one less terrorist and the aura of magical invincibility surrounding Noordin is erased.
The Home Minister of Malaysia used the media moment to draw attention to Malaysia’s success at rehabilitating militants: “What he did was wrong. We don’t condone what he did. I am sad that we did not get to rehabilitate him, like we have done with many others, including Jemaah Islamiah militants. . . I am sad because a life is a life.” YB Hishammuddin also noted that Malaysia had no part in the raid which led to Noordin’s death, and that the government would help the family bring the body back to Malaysia. [The Star, 16 Sept 2009]
Noordin, 41years, once a lecturer in a Malaysian University, left behind a wife, a son aged 10 and two daughters aged 8 and 9 years. Noordin abandoned his family about eight years ago and went off to kill many in Indonesia in the name of Islam.
What caused Malaysia to generate Noordin and other militants? Since Noordin’s impact is on society at large, I expect the government would previously have set up a multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-disciplinary commission to answer the question and recommend solutions to prevent Malaysia from generating and exporting militants. I was surprised the Minister did not refer to such a commission. Is he silent because
(a) such a commission was never appointed or
(b) he is ignorant of it or
(c) he prefers to act on his own instincts or
(d) he is more interested in surveillance, incarceration and rehabilitation than in prevention?
How does Malaysia rehabilitate Jemaah Islamiah (JI) detainees? What resources and processes are used to rehabilitate detainees? How are these resources qualified? Why are they not directed to framing charges and prosecuting the detainees in open courts?
Assuming “deviationist Islamic teaching” is the root cause of terrorist inclinations among JI members, and since in Malaysia Islam is the prerogative of the states, I wonder how the Home Ministry assures that JI detainees are “rehabilitated” by state-sanctioned religious teachers, e.g. if a detainee is from the state of Johor, will his “rehabilitation team” be Johor state-sanctioned? I recall some jurisdictional questions being raised in the case of Revathy, a mother from Negeri Sembilan whom the Selangor Islamic authorities attempted to “rehabilitate.”
If the Home Ministry thinks Hindraf detainees are motivated by Hinduism, how does the Home Ministry decide who will rehabilitate Hindraf members? How about Buddhists, Christians, Daoists, Sikhs? What if their motivation springs from the UN Declaration of Human Rights?
I too am saddened that a life has been lost. I hope the police in Indonesia will conduct an investigation into Noordin’s death to assure the public that they did not use inappropriate force.
I am doubly saddened that due to abuse of due processes we are often denied the opportunity to learn from past mistakes. In Malaysia, we are accustomed to custodial deaths, death by police shoot-outs and the use of the Internal Security Act.
If Noordin had been captured alive, I hope he would not have died in custody – if he had, I know Malaysia would not have the moral right to challenge the Indonesian authorities: a fact which sadly eludes our hapless Home Minister. I hope Noordin’s guilt would have been proven in open court, and that he would have been punished accordingly. The deterrent value of Noordin’s conviction and punishment has been lost; but there are still lessons to be learned from his life and death – lessons which will make us a better society.
YB Hishammuddin said the Government would help Noordin’s family bring the body back. I hope the same level of help is provided to the families of any Malaysians who die abroad. I hope the Home Minister and the media will speak more about how Malaysians are helping the family through this sad period. I hope the Home Minister will form a commission to determine why Malaysia is generating and exporting terrorists – and how we can stop doing so.
The Micah Mandate is a Christian-based public interest advocacy ministry that seeks a transformation of our nation through justice, mercy and humility.
