PUTRAJAYA: The government is on constant watch over jihadist movements that are seeking to recruit young Malaysian youths.
Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said his ministry and the Education Ministry are monitoring the issue closely, seeing that Malaysia has been under serious threats from these jihadist movements.
Khairy said: "We are monitoring this, so we can keep tabs on the movement that is trying to recruit our young people. We must convince our youths that this (taking up arms) is not a way to pursue the ideals that they have."
Acknowledging that he understood the urge among Muslim youths in contributing to the Muslim world, he said waging war was not the solution.
"If they have certain ideals about the Muslim world and going on a war for jihad, this is not the solution, and they need to look at other means to contribute to the community," he told reporters after attending the launching ceremony of Perdana Fellowship Programme.
Asked why was jihadist movements so appealing to the youths, Khairy said they could have seen it as an outlet for contribution.
"It is important for us to tell them that there are many ways to contribute to the Muslim world. We have to shift the narrative from one of a jihad that is based on terrorist activities, based on war, to the true jihad which is education, economic empowerment and capacity building," he said.
The police has been on high alert over the past month following several news reports claiming that Malaysians have joined armed conflicts in the Middle East.
It was also previously reported that some 30 Malaysians have joined the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militant group to fight in Iraq and Syria. The men were recruited via social media and small religious discussion groups.
The authorities are also looking for an Islamic studies lecturer from Universiti Malaya (UM) and also four others on suspicion of being recruiters for Islamic terrorist organisations.
