To prevent radicalism, da'wah must target millennials

Jakarta, NU Online
The rector of the State Islamic University of Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta, Prof. Yudian Wahyudi, said moderation in religion echoed by the Ministry of Religious Affairs must target the millennials. He assessed that millennials were still adrift in understanding religion, so they were very easily infiltrated by radical understanding.

Moreover in this political year, many religious views were politicized to influence the millennials. Therefore, millennial generation needs to be dealt specifically.

"The moderation in religion must be targeted to millennials because these days religion is used for politics too," Yudian said on the sidelines of the National Working Meeting of Ministry of Religious Affairs at Shangri La Hotel, in Central Jakarta, recently.

He was quoted by Republika.co as saying that in the midst of the community itself, moderation in religious was actually quite good in Indonesia, especially in circles such as NU and Muhammadiyah, who have always been pro to the Republic Indonesia.

"However, it leaves an empty space filled with swing voters, namely young people who are more easily provoked by 'non moderate groups' because young people still have aggressive souls," Yudian said.

He assessed that millennials were very easily influenced by agitative movements or tended to incite, either through writing or lectures.

"When there's a group that often produce hoaxes, they are more easily tossed around and it escalates ahead of presidential election. So, there is a politicization of religion there," Yudian said.

He added, the group that supported the Chaliphate system in Indonesia was dissolved following a court's order. However, he said, the enthusiasts of the system were still existing.

According to him, it was likely that those people were the one which currently trying to infiltrate the millennials with a non moderate views.

"These people are probably the ones behind the story of hoaxes and so on," he explained. (Masdar)