Cops, explosives and Islam in Malaysia

“‎The greatest danger of a terrorist's bomb is in the explosion of stupidity that it provokes.”

- Octave Mirbeau

The terrorist attack in Puchong, first dismissed by the police and then confirmed as a foreign Islamic-influenced attack on Malaysian citizens, is a culmination of botched propaganda and lapses in our security apparatus. It is also a troubling sign that the state’s security apparatus is bogged down in the internal squabbles of Umno and the partisan conflict of the greater Malaysian political landscape.

As reported in the Australian media earlier this year, the Australian government issued a travel advisory for its citizens of possible terrorist attacks in Malaysia, citing retaliative measures by Islamic State (IS) sympathisers. This was the efforts of intelligence sources and various other joint interagency counter-terrorism investigation following a revenge video posted by IS in response to efforts by the Malaysian authorities in curbing their activities in the country.

Katibah Nusantara​ (Malay Archipelago Brigade) posted a video claiming, “If you catch us we will only increase in number but if you let us be, we will be closer to our goal of bringing back the rule of khalifah [caliph]… We will never bow down to the democratic system of governance, as we will only follow Allah's rules."

Inspector-general of police (IGP) Khalid Abu Bakar in a cavalierly manner dismissed threats from IS saying, "He [Syrian-based Malaysian IS representative Mohd Rafi Udin] only dared to threaten the police because he is far away. Why don't you come back?” I would argue that this is an almost criminally negligent taunt, akin to shouting fire in a crowded movie theatre.

There was also the usual state revisionism at play when the IGP claimed, “That is why I made it my focus this year to monitor social media. It is not to go into some private conversation, but to ensure all these (are kept in check),” which is complete bull manure because the focus was on monitoring the opposition to the extent of the creation of a special task force to monitor “seditious” speech by the opposition and opposition-leaning members of the public.

Furthermore, the IGP also trotted out the old idea of ghettoising non-Islamic entertainment outlets when he said, “This is why prior to this, I had suggested state governments concentrate entertainment centres in one location, so that it would be easier for authorities to monitor them.”

Anyone familiar with the narratives of Islamic clergymen in this country would recognise that this kind of rhetoric serves the purpose of alienating the mainstream non-Malay polity from their Muslim Malaysian brethren, thereby fostering patriotism by isolation sentiment amongst the Malay polity.

This of course does not take into account the various “Muslim” entertainment outlets in the heart of the capital run by Indonesian expatriates and other foreigners that also serves as intelligence gathering apparatuses for various regional intelligence services...