Radicalism Movement in Higher Education in Indonesia: Students’ Understanding and Its Prevention

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Date: Sun, 1 May 2022, 22:39

Subject: KJSS: Decision on Manuscript ID KJSS-2022-0008 To: <[email protected]>

Cc: <[email protected]>

01-May-2022 Dear Dr. Achmad:

Manuscript ID KJSS-2022-0008 entitled "Radicalism movement in higher education in Indonesia: Students’ understanding and its prevention" which you submitted to the Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences, has been reviewed. The comments of the reviewer(s) are included at the bottom of this letter.

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Reviewer(s)' Comments to Author:

Reviewer: 1

Comments to the Author

As much as possible minimize the repetition of descriptions and analysis, especially in the introduction. The author has not demonstrated novelty in this manuscript, especially the urgency of this study. Then, the author also has not shown the

literature review and the location of the analysis gap in this study. The analysis is not in-depth, the analysis should be sharpened by comparing the studies that have been done. Authors need to enrich sources from reputable international journals and consider adding other institutions, such as Medan State University. So far, Medan, the island of Sumatra, is a safe city when compared to the island of Java.

Reviewer: 2

Comments to the Author REVIEWER NOTES:

1. Abstract: The research background does not describe the phenomenon of radicalism in universities. It seems that the author does not distinguish between terrorism and radicalism. The spread of ideology through cadre organizations, lectures in mosques, magazines, etc., is carried out by radical groups who are not necessarily terrorists because not all radical groups are involved in terrorism.

Terrorist groups usually recruit not openly but through underground movements. All

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2. Introduction: has not adequately portrayed the phenomenon of radicalism in higher education. The literature review conducted is mostly on terrorism issues in general, not specifically in universities. It would be better if the phenomena raised were some specific examples of radicalism in universities.

3. Overall, the contents of the article have not been inlined with the title of the article or abstract, especially regarding: how is the strategy to break the chain of radicalism in universities? how to prevent radicalism by lecturers, in what way? What competencies should lecturers have to prevent student radicalism? So far, what is the lecturer's understanding of radicalism? how is it possible that they can provide students with an understanding of radicalism, its dangers and how to prevent it if there is no picture of how the lecturers know about radicalism? This article only describes students' understanding of radicalism and the factors of radicalism.

4. Discussion: the author has explained the students' understanding of radicalism but the analysis needs to be deepened. However, the author has not explained and analyzed the strategy to break the chain of radicalism, and efforts to prevent

radicalism in universities, both in the form of policies against radicalism (deradicalization) and the efforts made by lecturers.

5. Conclusion: the conclusion does not reflect the content of the article, so there is no connection between the title and the content of the article.

6. Reference: it is still necessary to add a number of articles published in the last 3 years especially about terrorism and radicalism in universities

Reviewer: 3

Comments to the Author

Overall this is an exciting topic to explore as it addresses global issues. However, a few areas need to be improved as follows.

1. Various parts of the introduction need shreds of evidence to support the claims, e.g., "The campus also has detectors."

2. The introduction should be well structured and lead readers towards the study's objectives or the article.

3. Method and action are unclear and lack enough information. The author should explain the process of "sequential methods" of research objectives, respondents' sampling and selection process, and interviewing criteria.

4. The author should also explain the process of constructing the research

instruments and interview guides and how to ensure quality, such as the validity and reliability of the research instruments.

5. The results and analysis should also be linked to literature and theoretical framework.

6. Page 11, lines 8-9, it is unclear who "this person" is.

7. The analysis and discussion lack a clear theoretical foundation that contributes to the field of knowledge.

Section Editor's Comments to Author:

Section Editor: 1

Confidential Comments to the Author:

(There are no comments.)

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Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences. year. Vol(No): xx–xx.

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Kasetsart J. Soc. Sci. year. Vol(No): xx–xx.

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Research Article 4

Radicalism movement in higher education in Indonesia: Students’ understanding and its 5

prevention 6

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Nurman Achmad*, R. Hamdani Harahap^†, Muhammad Ikhwanul Ihsan 8

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Anthropology, Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, 10

Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan, Sumatera Utara 20222, Indonesia 11

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Article history:

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Received 14

Revised 15

Accepted 16

Available online 17

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Keywords:

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de-radicalism, 20

higher education, 21

radicalism, 22

student 23

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*Corresponding author.

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E-mail address: [email protected] (N. Achmad).

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†Co-first authors.

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E-mail address: [email protected] (R. H. Harahap).

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Abstract 1

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This study seeks to discover the phenomenon of radicalism movement in higher 3

education and the students’ understanding of this issue along with the prevention that can be 4

done by universities. This study used an mixed method design. In collecting quantitative data, 5

an online close-ended questionnaire was distributed to 500 students from five well-known 6

universities in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Furthermore, interviews and focus group 7

discussions involving students and lecturers were carried out. The results of this study show 8

that students' understanding of radicalism is still diverse so it makes students vulnerable to 9

being exposed to radicalism. In an effort to slow down the radicalism movement, the activeness 10

of the lecturers can open the students’ minds to encounter radical ideology. Then, the 11

universities must periodically seek to spread religious teachings in an open atmosphere and 12

emphasize moderation and decrease the radicalism movement.

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Introduction 15

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The phenomenon of radicalism in Indonesia is still an exciting topic and continues to 17

hot issue due to its existence as a severe problem in many circles. The term radicalism is 18

commonly related to the subject of terrorism in Indonesia, particularly in the form of bombings 19

in various regions that have claimed many lives and had a considerable impact on the social 20

lives of Indonesians. At the very least, there have been over 20 bombings since 2001. Of course, 21

the many manifestations of radicalism or violence listed above do not happen by themselves.

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The phenomenon of radicalization in Indonesia was inspired by the socio-political 23

conditions which have been trapped in the wave of radicalism for more than 20 years of the 24

reformation era. This is in line what Hamzah (2019) mentions that this phenomenon does not 25

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appear spontaneously, but it is through long process. This is the culmination of “radicalization,”

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a process in which the commitment and use of violent means in political conflict increases 2

(Della Porta & LaFree, 2012). Moreover, radicalization was carried out by several Islamic 3

activists who were politically alienated and experienced discrimination and were angry with 4

state policies (Bartlett & Miller, 2012). In Indonesia, radical groups have a good movement 5

structure by establishing new organizations and massively recruiting young people.

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Sometimes, radicalism is associated to religion (Usman, Qodir, & Hasse, 2014). In circles of 7

scholars who study the revolutionary Islamic movement, it is suspected that radicalism is part 8

of a wave of violence and terror whose embryo has existed since the early 1980s, then increased 9

in the 1990s, and peaked after the fall of the Suharto’s regime. The most apparent impact of 10

radicalism is the formation of politicization within religion, where religion is compassionate, 11

most easily ignites fanaticism, becomes the loudest fan to carry out various very harsh actions, 12

both in social life between individuals and groups (Laisa, 2014).

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One of the people’s concerns is radicalism that has targeted students as the educated 14

young generation. It is urgent since young generation is the future of the country. It is expected 15

that students possess patriotic, tolerant, and loyal to the country (Andrian, 2018). Setara 16

Institute states that students at ten well-known Indonesian state colleges have been exposed to 17

radicalism. Those universities include the University of Indonesia, Syarief Hidayatullah State 18

Islamic University, Bandung Institute of Technology, Sunan Gunung Djati State Islamic 19

University Bandung, Bogor Agricultural Institute, Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta State 20

University, Brawijaya University, Airlangga University, and Mataram University. Another 21

news that added to the impression of exposure to the campus world was conveyed by R 22

Ryamizard Ryacudu when he was still the Minister of Defense at that time who stated that 23.4 23

percent of Indonesian students were exposed to radicalism (Abdi, 2019). In addition, Asriani 24

(2019) conducted a research dealing with radicalism in State Islamic Universities in Indonesia.

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She clarifies that the factors that cause the easy spread of radicalism in universities are first, 1

the desire to make changes quickly using violence, secondly disbelieve in others, and thirdly 2

interpreting jihad in a limited way. However, she discovers that the spread of radicalism in the 3

four universities was not extreme, even though its influence among students was relatively 4

small.

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Basri and Dwiningrum (2019) look into the potential for radicalism to grow in higher 6

education. It was found that there was radical potential among students at the Balikpapan State 7

Polytechnic (located in Celebes island), which was formed through the actions of external 8

organizations off campus. In addition, it was also found that there were student interactions 9

with external campus organizations that had the potential to form student radicalism in the 10

campus environment.

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Students as a preparatory generation who will color the development of advanced and 12

modern civilizations need comprehensive knowledge about radicals. The campus is tasked with 13

producing national cadres who are developed, civilized, and free to compete. On-campus, 14

students are educated to be nationalist and religious. To avoid radical thoughts, students and 15

campuses need to introduce the urgency of knowledge and students' views on radicalism, at 16

least at the campus level. Student activities are reflected in their behavior and life while on 17

campus. Student activities as early as possible can be appropriately managed to convey moral 18

messages and become student habits properly. The ideological factor is one cause of the 19

emergence of radicalism in Indonesia. The student environment with radicalism on campus can 20

occur anytime; this can happen from communication factors between students and other 21

networks.

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Students are one of the academic societies that can flex the belief of others that radical 23

movements only attract uneducated people, but radicalism is also considered to have infected 24

students. This study attempts to see the phenomenon of radicalism movement in higher 25

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done by universities. This study is worth-conducted due to the growth of radicalism in 2

numerous universities in Medan City has gotten little notice as a cosmopolitan area. This brings 3

the novelty of the research and makes it necessary to be explored.

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Methodology 6

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This study used a mixed method design. In line with the research objectives and data 8

collection, a set of online close-ended questionnaire was distributed to respondents who were 9

the subject of this study to obtain the quantitative data. The respondents were 500 students 10

from five well-known universities in Medan, namely Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera 11

Utara, Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara, Universitas Islam Sumatera Utara, 12

Universitas Medan Area, and Universitas Sumatera Utara. Each respondent represents a 13

scientific and social department that helps see possible differences in understanding radicalism 14

so that it is accessible in terms of analysis or categorization. In addition, the selected 15

respondents must also represent several student organizations with Islamic religious roots.

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In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted to gain qualitative 17

data. The researcher determines who would be interviewed to get the information he wants to 18

find from this founding more intensely. The questions asked to the informants deal with 19

radicalism in higher education which were designed to answer the research questions. A focus 20

group discussion (FGD) was conducted with students, lecturers, and experts (scholars) whose 21

their research deals with radicalism and terrorism. This was done to obtain more information 22

related to students’ and lecturers’ understanding of radicalism. This provides sufficient detail 23

to allow the work to be reproduced.

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Results 1

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Radicalism in Universities: Students and Lecturers’ Understanding and its Factors 3

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From the results of distributing questionnaires to 500 respondents consisting of five 5

leading universities in North Sumatra, namely Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera Utara, 6

Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara, Universitas Islam Sumatera Utara, Universitas 7

Medan Area, and Universitas Sumatera Utara, it was found that radicalism was related to acts 8

of violence, non-tolerance, and fanaticism with a yield of 59 percent. The reason that radicalism 9

is a malicious activity is seen in the Ambon case, which claimed many lives. Furthermore, 10

regarding non-tolerance, just as a logic, people who commit violence and want to win alone in 11

their minds are people who do not tolerate anything. Intolerance is disrespect for the thoughts 12

and opinions of others, and tends to think about oneself. Attitudes like this can damage 13

tolerance between harmonious people. In that case, it illustrates that in Medan, the development 14

of radicalism is still flourishing, even though it has a slightly different character from other 15

regions. Is it necessary to carry out radicalism? Of the 500 respondents, 48 percent said it is 16

essential to do radicalism, and 52 percent said radicalism was unnecessary.

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What causes this radicalization? We pose five questions to the participants (students 18

and lecturer) in interview and FGD about radicalism's various elements. The first question asks 19

how many people believe that economic concerns are at the root of radicalism. They decided a 20

little if it was indicated that economic issues drive radicalism. It is undeniable that the economic 21

dimension has dominated society’s demands for education today; educational institutions 22

whose graduates can easily find work are in high demand; this is not wrong or even 23

unreasonable; however, educational institutions must respond appropriately, because public 24

considerations rely on the dimensions of now and now with a limited scope, whereas 25

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educational institutions must also consider the dimension of anticipation. In the second 1

question, the researcher asks students how much they agree with the notion that 61 percent 2

education causes radicalism.

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In this case, efforts are needed to enable higher education institutions to become 4

pioneers in the development and development of integrated human resources in order to meet:

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(1) the needs of citizens who are ideally oriented toward education through the creation of an 6

educationally conducive environment; (2) pragmatic-oriented community needs through the 7

readiness to educate humans that can be absorbed by the business world according to their 8

respective specifications; and (3) the development of a dynamic academic spirit that can 9

become a vehicle for socializing values, norms, and independent attitudes. This can be done by 10

boosting the active role of the lecturers.

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In the third question, because this research was conducted on students and to see their 12

understanding comprehensively, the following question related to the factors underlying 13

radicalism is the statement of agreement on the attitude of impatient youths as an influencing 14

factor. The results from the field found that students agreed that the impatience factor was one 15

of the factors for young people to take radical actions.

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In the fourth question for understanding the factors that influence radicalism, a 17

statement is made to what extent they agree that the factors that influence radicalism are factors 18

due to free democracy. It seems that most students agree that the free democracy factor causes 19

radicalism. This was proven by 57 percent of students who answered this. In this case, freedom 20

in a democracy is abused by a few people who spread issues that contain messages of 21

radicalism. Issues that arise later can gradually influence the views and behavior of readers.

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Not only among students, but also the academic community, including lecturers at Higher 23

Education. It can be proven that after the suicide bombing incident in Surabaya (13–14 May 24

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2018), there was widespread discussion among the public about the increase or persistence of 1

radicalism on the campuses of State Universities in particular.

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These discussions and debates started with statements that were widely circulated on 3

social media from several lecturers — including professors — who seemed to approve of the 4

suicide bombings. According to them, the Surabaya suicide bombings were aimed: first, to 5

corner 'Muslims; second, in order to obtain an increase in the budget for the eradication of 6

terrorism; and third, as a transfer of the issue of efforts to replace national leadership in the 7

2019 presidential election. There are also lecturers and professors of state university who 8

support or provide justification for understanding and practice who want to form an Islamic 9

da'wah or caliphate. At the same time, this thought and practice, both directly and by 10

implication, rejected the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia and Pancasila.

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The last question is related to understanding the factors behind radicalism, namely the 12

statement of agreement about the lack of religious knowledge that causes people to commit 13

acts of radicalism. Based on this statement, students agree that spiritual knowledge is the cause 14

of radicalism. The data shows that 60 percent answered agree with this statement.

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Religiosity: It’s Role to Prevent Radicalism 17

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It should be emphasized here is the religious concept used in this study. In general, what 19

is meant by religiosity is a religious attitude or appreciation. In a more specific context, 20

students’ religiosity in this study is the attitudes, perceptions, and appreciation of Muslim 21

students towards the teachings of Islam that they receive, both in understanding and behavior 22

(religious rituals and socio-political attitudes). Of course, it becomes interesting when this 23

research is carried out in various regions, from big cities that are very cosmopolitan.

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There are many similarities and also found differences or, more precisely, the 1

uniqueness of each individual. Some of the similarities that were found were as follows: (1) 2

the diversity of educational backgrounds, religious affiliations, and organizational affiliations 3

of most informants were the result of the experiences (social, religious, and in particular 4

political contexts) of individuals who were not linear; (2) the majority of informants tend to 5

maintain their normative religious attitudes or views and tend to be textual, although they are 6

still open to receiving new things; and (3) Informants also predominantly state that their 7

religious learning process is not only obtained in college or school, but also from the internet 8

and other online media, including social media which young people currently love.

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Most informants admitted that they carried out practical prayers such as prayer and 10

fasting well, especially obligatory prayers as young Muslim activists. Some claim to carry out 11

sunnah worship, such as rawatib sunnah prayer and sunnah fasting on Mondays and Thursdays.

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There were also confessions among some activists who said that their worship was still 13

“pervasive,” both obligatory and especially sunnah. In general, they admit that they have not 14

come to be called “the pious.” The reason is, they realize that there are many things in Islam 15

that they cannot do. Many informants said that being good and pious can be done by us and 16

others, and even people who are non-Muslims can be holy in their religious understanding. In 17

addition, holiness is not only our own (in the sense of an individual) but can also be owned by 18

other people, fellow Muslims, even though its expression may vary.

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Discussion 21

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What exactly is ‘radicalization’? There is no universally accepted definition in 23

academia or government. The concept of radicalization is not solid and evident as many seem 24

to take it for granted. Above all, it is incomprehensible on its own. The Group of Violent 25

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Radicalization Experts formed by the European Commission in 2006, tasked with analyzing 1

the state of academic research on violence, noted in 2008 that radicalization is a context-bound 2

phenomenon of excellence (Schmid, 2013).

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Many researchers conceptualize radicalization as a process characterized by an 4

increased commitment to and violent means and strategies in political conflicts. From this point 5

of view, radicalization entails a change in perceptions towards polarizing and absolute 6

definitions of a given situation and the articulation of increasingly ‘radical’ aims and 7

objectives. It may evolve from enmity towards certain social groups or societal institutions and 8

structures. It may also entail the increasing use of violent means.

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It is difficult to conclude otherwise that ‘radicalization’ is a problematic concept by 10

such heterogeneous definitions. Along these lines of thought, Peter Neumann once described 11

radicalization as 'what happened before the bomb went off. While concisely put, Neumann's 12

observations do not help much in analytical terms. Due to the lack of a superior approach to 13

achieving an adequate understanding of the concept (Neumann et al., 2008).

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The data results prove that radicalism is not yet fully understood by students. Because 15

this is slightly different, Mahmudati said, radicalism is a thought or attitude with four 16

characteristics. First, intolerant attitudes and disrespect for the opinions or beliefs of others.

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Second, the exclusive attitude is a closed attitude and tries to differ from the habits of the 18

people. And whosoever is in the heavens and the earth; he is the Lord of the sky and the world.

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Fourth is a revolutionary attitude, namely the tendency to use violence to achieve goals. The 20

term radicalism is purely a western product often associated with fundamentalism in Islam 21

(Mahmudati et al., 2014). In western tradition, Islamic fundamentalism is often exchanged for 22

other terms such as “Islamic extremism” as mentioned by Gilles Kepel or “radical Islam”

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according to Emmanuel Seven, and there are also the terms “revivalism,” “integral,” or 24

“Islamism” (Rohimin, 2006).

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The features and spectrum obtained in the Medan conducted against 500 respondents 1

from 5 well-known universities in Medan are not the same as what Noorhaidi (2013) 2

formulated when explaining the spectrum/variants of Islamism in his research report Narrative 3

and Identity Politics. Noorhaidi uses Islamism as an analytical term which he thinks contains 4

five spectrums or variants (Noorhaidi, 2013).

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Halfway through the group membership phase, the endurance shield is turned around.

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Radical groups make the person resilient to the influence of de-radicalization from outside the 7

group. Radicals getting on campus should be a serious concern (Doosje et al., 2016). When 8

viewed throughout 2017, cases of terrorism were increasingly occurring. The dynamics and 9

patterns of distribution that are different from previous years have made every level of society 10

more alert and responsive, including students.

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Netizen talked about the video on Youtube containing the oath of Indonesian students 12

on the IPB campus to establish the Khilafah. The video, uploaded on March 30, 2016, shows 13

3,500 students from various campuses holding a national symposium at the Dramaga IPB 14

Campus, Bogor. The students who attended took the oath with outstretched hands in the style 15

of ISIS, led by a man from the stage. One of the points of the promise is to establish a state 16

with Islamic law, which contains the following:

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“We will continue to fight tirelessly, to uphold Islamic sharia under the auspices of the 18

Khilafah Islamiyah state as a complete solution to the problems of Indonesian society.”

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This viral video makes us aware that radicalism is now indiscriminate. It is no longer 20

targeting people in certain status conditions but also attacking young people in education.

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If this continues, we will only see the harmony between religious communities, diversity, 22

and Pancasila values as stories from the past. If that happened, how sad and terrible. The 23

campus can no longer be skeptical or indifferent to the circumstances around it. Believe it or 24

not, shadows of radicalism often appear in our campus environment.

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Reporting from kompas.com, Irfan Amalee, Director of Peace Generation, said that radical 1

indoctrination is carried out in various ways, including:

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1. Radical groups use political narratives. Students experiencing an identity crisis or 3

are upset because they see injustice are quickly pushed to wage jihad. This can be seen through 4

the assumption that students and the academic community perceive various issues of radicalism 5

that have led to acts of terrorism in Indonesia.

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2. Radical groups use historical narratives, namely teaching historical values that do 7

not generate wisdom but the value of revenge. History educators must make this one of their 8

extensive homework.

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3. Radical groups use psychological narratives; violent figures are heroes. In short, 10

consider violence as a solution to solve problems.

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4. Radical groups use religious narratives or verses to recruit new members. The verse 12

fragments that the children and the teacher did not sufficiently understand made it easier for 13

young people to join radical groups. And, this method is the most effective way of recruiting.

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The entry of radicalism through religious narrative shows the vital role of spiritual and 15

national education. The problem faced by the younger generation, including intellectuals or 16

students, is a matter of identity. They tend to be confused about choosing between religion or 17

national interests. They do not understand national identity, which includes religious rights as 18

citizens. For this reason, radicalism can easily slip into the campus realm.

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Considering that the ideology of radicalism is closed, exclusive, and sectarian, it is 20

necessary to cooperate with all parties and sectors to eradicate the spread of radicalism. It needs 21

improvement in education, both systems, and policies. It is essential to increase openness in 22

education, especially in religious teaching. The efforts that can be made to prevent the spread 23

of radicalization in universities are to provide proportional religious learning facilities to 24

students, especially for those who have a passion for learning religion, even though they do not 25

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have a strong religious background. This is intended so that students do not learn from sources 1

or radical groups. In addition, the campus must periodically seek to spread religious teachings 2

in an open atmosphere and emphasize moderation.

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Conclusion 5

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The understanding of radicalism has not yet reached a firm point, and radical actions 7

do not automatically become terrorist acts. However, three levels of radicals can lead to a 8

terrorist act. Terrorism groups have focused on recruiting new members from educated circles 9

such as college students. To prevent student exposure, an introduction to campus life is 10

necessary. Radical groups indoctrinate using political narratives, historical narratives, 11

psychological narratives using religious records, or verses to recruit new group members. The 12

verse fragments that the children and the teacher did not understand well made it easier for 13

young people to join radical groups. So, the active role of the lecturer is to help prevent this by 14

approaching students. In addition, the campus must periodically seek to spread religious 15

teachings in an open atmosphere and emphasize moderation.

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Conflict of Interest 18

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We declare that this research was funded and the detail of the funder has been written 20

in the acknowledgment.

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Acknowledgments 23

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This research was funded by the Directorate of Research and Community Service of 1

the Directorate General of Research and Development Strengthening of the Ministry of 2

Research, Technology and Higher Education by the Research and Community Service Funding 3

Fiscal Year 2019.

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References 6

7

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d9nh 10

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Asriani. (2019). Radikalisme pemahaman keagamaan pada mahasiswa Muslim di Perguruan 15

tinggi agama Islam di Provinsi Lampung [Radicalism of religious understanding in 16

Muslim students at Islamic universities in Lampung Province]. LP2M UIN Raden Intan 17

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18

Bartlett, J., & Miller, C. (2012). The edge of violence: Towards telling the difference between 19

violent and non-violent radicalization. Terrorism and Political Violence, 24(1), 1–21.

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Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences. year. Vol(No): xx–xx.

1

Kasetsart J. Soc. Sci. year. Vol(No): xx–xx.

2 3

Research Article 4

Radicalism movement in higher education in Indonesia: Students’ understanding and its 5

prevention 6

7

Nurman Achmad*, R. Hamdani Harahap^†, Muhammad Ikhwanul Ihsan 8

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Anthropology, Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, 10

Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan, Sumatera Utara 20222, Indonesia 11

12

Article history:

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Received 24 January 2022 14

Revised 29 May 2022 15

Accepted 6 June 2022 16

Available online 17

18

Keywords:

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de-radicalism, 20

higher education, 21

radicalism, 22

student 23

24

*Corresponding author.

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E-mail address: [email protected] (N. Achmad).

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†Co-first authors.

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E-mail address: [email protected] (R. H. Harahap).

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Abstract 1

2

This study seeks to discover the phenomenon of the radicalism movement in higher 3

undertaken by universities. This study used a mixed method design. In collecting quantitative 5

data, an online close-ended questionnaire was distributed to 500 students from five well-known 6

universities in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Furthermore, interviews and focus group 7

discussions involving students and lecturers were carried out. The results of this study show 8

that students' understanding of radicalism is still diverse, so it makes students vulnerable to 9

being exposed to radicalism. In an effort to slow down the radicalism movement, the activeness 10

of the lecturers can open the students’ minds when encountering radical ideology. Then, the 11

universities must periodically seek to spread religious teachings in an open atmosphere and 12

emphasize moderation and decrease the radicalism movement.

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Introduction 15

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The phenomenon of radicalism in Indonesia is a worrying concern and continues to be 17

a major issue due to its existence in many circles. The term radicalism is commonly related to 18

the subject of terrorism in Indonesia, particularly in the form of bombings in various regions, 19

that have claimed many lives and had a considerable impact on the social lives of Indonesians.

20

At the very least, there have been over 20 bombings since 2001. Of course, the many 21

manifestations of radicalism or violence listed above do not happen by themselves.

22

The phenomenon of radicalization in Indonesia has been inspired by the socio-political 23

conditions which have been evolving for more than 20 years in the era of reform. This is in line 24

with what Hamzah (2019) mentions, that this phenomenon does not appear spontaneously, but 25

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it is through a long process. It is the culmination of “radicalization,” a process in which the 1

commitment and use of violent means in political conflict increases (Della Porta & LaFree, 2

2012). Moreover, radicalization has been carried out by several Islamic activists who were 3

politically alienated and experienced discrimination and were angry with state policies (Bartlett 4

& Miller, 2012). In Indonesia, radical groups have a good movement structure by establishing 5

new organizations and massively recruiting young people. Sometimes, radicalism is associated 6

with religion (Usman et al., 2014). In circles of scholars who study the revolutionary Islamic 7

movement, it is suspected that radicalism is part of a wave of violence and terror whose embryo 8

has existed since the early 1980s, then increased in the 1990s, and peaked after the fall of the 9

Suharto’s regime. The most apparent impact of radicalism is the formation of politicization 10

within religion, where religion is compassionate, most easily ignites fanaticism, becomes the 11

loudest fan to carry out various very harsh actions, both in social life between individuals and 12

groups (Laisa, 2014).

13

One of the people’s concerns is radicalism that has targeted students as the educated 14

young generation. This is an urgent concern since the young generation is the future of the 15

country. It is expected that students are patriotic, tolerant, and loyal to the country (Andrian, 16

2018). Setara Institute (2019) mentions that students at ten well-known Indonesian state 17

colleges have been exposed to radicalism. Those universities include the University of 18

Indonesia, Syarief Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Bandung Institute of Technology, 19

Sunan Gunung Djati State Islamic University Bandung, Bogor Agricultural Institute, Gadjah 20

Mada University, Yogyakarta State University, Brawijaya University, Airlangga University, 21

and Mataram University. Other news that added to the impression of exposure to the campus 22

world was conveyed by R Ryamizard Ryacudu when he was still the Minister of Defense, who 23

stated at that time that 23.4 percent of Indonesian students were exposed to radicalism (Abdi, 24

2019). In addition, Asriani (2019) conducted research dealing with radicalism in State Islamic

25 26 ^Deleted:

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Universities in Indonesia. She clarified that the factors that cause the easy spread of radicalism 1

in universities are first, the desire to make changes quickly using violence, secondly 2

disbelieving in others, and thirdly interpreting jihad in a limited way. However, she discovered 3

that the spread of radicalism in the four universities was not extreme, and its influence among 4

students was relatively small.

5

Basri and Dwiningrum (2019) looked into the potential for radicalism to grow in higher 6

education. It was found that there was radical potential among students at the Balikpapan State 7

Polytechnic (located in the island of Celebes), which was formed through the actions of 8

external organizations off campus. In addition, it was also found that there were student 9

interactions with external campus organizations that had the potential to form student 10

radicalism in the campus environment.