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Riau Islands Gearing For Greater Islamization
by Kazi Mahmood
JAKARTA, May 21 (IslamOnline) - Riau Islands, situated off the borders of Malaysia and Singapore, has decided to make good of its new autonomy status granted by the Indonesian government.
Riau is one of the richest provinces on the Indonesian archipelago, producing 30% to 40% of the republic's gross national product (GNP), derived from the exploitation of oil and gas.
Most of the oil and gas are found on smaller islands in Riau. One such island is Bengkalis, recently visited by IslamOnline as part of a trip to Muslim dominated areas in the South East Asian Region, or ASEAN.
The island of Bengkalis has strategic and political importance in the Malacca straits and is seen as a launching pad for the Islamization drive in Riau.
Run by Syamsul Rizall, the administrator of the island, Bengkalis is currently gearing itself for more integration towards Islam and its socio-economic and political principles.
In one of his vibrant speeches to the younger generation of Bengkalis citizens, Rizall said the island probably was the "richest island in the Riau province."
He added that the region would know certain transformations that will be inspired by the aspirations of the people of Bengkalis. Tiny Bengkalis has a population of less than one million, 90% of whom are Muslims of the Hannafi and Shafi school of thought.
The apparently less developed island of Bengkalis, a gateway to Indonesia via the Malacca straits, has been one of the less troubled regions in the highly sensitive and restive Indonesian republic.
The student movement on the island, however, is as aggressive as those in Jakarta, Medan and Sulawesi, with one difference. The students do not protest against local leaders.
IslamOnline was given a broader outlook of development plans for Bengkalis, which was once the icon of a successful Islamic government based in the city of Siak, a few kilometers away from the island.
Muhammad Isa Selamat, a prolific Muslim writer of Islamic books dealing with the psychological and philosophical aspects of Islam, said the islands have a huge potential for development.
"Riau Islands, with Bengkalis at the forefront, has always been a leading region in Islamic affairs and governance. The past of this region is rich in events and happenings that speak for themselves," he told IslamOnline in an exclusive interview.
"The region is rich in oil and gas. Yet it is largely under-developed and the Muslims, after 50 years or so of independence and association with the Indonesian republic, still does not have much economic influence in the islands," Isa Selamat said.
The writer has recently launched his first political book in Bengkalis. Press reports from Bengkalis say the book is bound to create a sense of outrage and that reactions will be contentious towards the Java-based central government in Jakarta.
"The idea is not to create a revolution, the intention is to mobilize the youth on the island to speak out and seek what they really want for themselves," he said.
Isa Selamat said his book contained ideas on how to bring about a greater share of Islamization in the Bengkalis region first, then to promote such ideas throughout the Riau Islands.
The island intends to create more Islamic schools, such as the Yayasan Pesantren Darul Aiman, an Islamic organization supported by Isa Selamat and the administration in Bengkalis.
He said the school would be synonymous to the standardization of Islamic principles and ideas in the local primary and secondary schools in Bengkalis.
Isa Selamat also said Bengkalis had a vast potential to develop new forms of tourism and business activities solely based on Islam.
In the interview with IslamOnline, Isa Selamat said he is writing more books to press for reforms in Riau. He added that such reforms must bear in mind the Islamic aspects of the life of the islanders.
"Bengkalis will be the center point of the revival of Islam in the islands of Riau. It will be a long process of development but it will be done. This is part of the aspirations of the people of Riau, and definitely that of Bengkalis," he commented.
Isa Selamat is one of a number of potential candidates to run the island's administration in the coming future, sources from Bengkalis said.
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