International Journal of Interreligious and Intercultural Studies (IJIIS) ISSN: 2654-2706, Volume 2, Number 2, October 2019 TRANSNATIONALISM AND TRANSNATIONAL ISLAM IN INDONESIA WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON PAPUA Ridwan Centre for Muslim States and Societies (CMSS,)The University of Western Australia (UWA), Australia <[email protected]> Abstract Papua has experienced the threat of communal harmony between Christians and Muslims regarding the transnational Islam advent in Papua. The Tolikara Incident in 2015 and the latest one the banning of building the minaret of the Al-Aqsha Mosque in Sentani in 2018, to a certain degree, were part of transnational Islam influence in the region with a majority non-Muslim population. The presence of transnational Islam cannot be separated with the emergence of the public sphere in the country after the demise of the Suharto regime in 1998. This paper will explore transnational Islam in Papua by reviewing previous study and discourse on transnational Islam in Indonesia. At the outset, the author will delve literature review on transnationalism and transnational Islam globally. Afterward, it will discuss the presence of transnational Islam, especially Salafi of Jafar Umar Thalib (JUT) in Jayapura and Keerom that has created tension and hostilities within Muslims communities, as well as toward non-Muslim. No doubt, Salafi faction of JUT has tried to promulgate or disseminate radical Islamic teaching through dakwah (propagation) and other activities that threaten Papua Land of Peace (Papua Tanah Damai). As a result, their presence has gotten resistance from some Islamic mass organisations and non-Muslims. Keywords: Transnationalism, Salafi, Papua Land of Peace, Religious Conflict Introduction in the mosque. Unfortunately, these A mosque manager (takmir) at teachings of Islam have created tension Masjid Raya Baiturrahim Jayapura between fellow Muslims. Due to City told me that some Salafi-Wahabi the frequent discussions of bidh’ah preachers had taught Islamic teachings (innovations) of other Islamic groups, 42 Ridwan the takmir eventually “expel” them existed at least as long as imperialism, out from the mosque. This story above Piscatori has argued that it is only since is heart-shattering and hardly ever the 1970s that theorists of political publicly discussed. science and international relations have Furthermore, the above story taken an interest in transnationalism’s shows the phenomenon of the presence impact on nation-states: “The obvious of transnational Islamic movements common supposition was that nation- in Papua has triggered tensions with states were the decisive components of other Islamic organizations (and non- international affairs” (Piscatori cited in Muslims), especially in Jayapura City. Masud 2000, p. xiv). This needs to be studied seriously In the early 1970s, Keohane and because there is still little study about Nye (1971) drew attention to the it. Therefore, this paper will examine new processes that were resulting in the transnational Islamic movement multidirectional linkages across state in Papua by taking a case study of boundaries. In the early 1990s, the Salafi faction a la Jafar Umar Thalib. term transnationalism was introduced I will start this paper with a study of in anthropology, sociology and Transnational Islamic terms and its cultural studies to describe phenomena brief development in the world and associated with global transformation Indonesia. occurring around the world (Vertovec, 2003, 2009). Discussing Transnationalism and The increased interest in Transnational Islam transnationalism as a topic of study The term transnationalism is not has been tracked by Gustavo Cano new, but today it is more widely used (2005). Cano examined the Social in the field of social sciences. Randolp Science Abstract Database and found Bourne used the term for the first time that almost two-thirds of the articles in his (1916) article “Transnational that mentioned “transnationalism” or America,” to mean the articulation of “transnational” were published between his “visionary new form of pluralism” 1998 and 2003. The expansion of the (Nichols, 2009, p. 217), as well as study of transnationalism coincides with “cosmopolitanism” as part of the study the increased study of globalisation of transnationalism in international (Vertovec, 2009, p. 2). Stiglitz (2002, relations that focus on border-crossing p. 9) defines globalisation as “the actors or networks (Malet and closer integration of the countries Anderson, 2017, p. 4). and peoples of the world which has Even though, as Masud observes, been brought about by the enormous the phenomenon of transnationalism has reduction of costs of transportation 43 Transnationalism and Transnational Islam in Indonesia With Special Emphasis on Papua and communication, and the breaking that include persons and organisations down of artificial barriers to the flows that share common world views, of goods, services, capital, knowledge, purposes, interests, and practices which and (to a lesser extent) people across they communicate and act across borders”. In defining transnationalism, national borders and jurisdictions” Keohane and Nye (2000) emphasize (Juergensmeyer, 2005, p. 193). So, the terms “interdependence”, the definition is a cultural other than a “globalisation,” and “globalism”. political definition of transnationalism. Interdependence and globalization refer In this context, transnationalism is to “an increased sense of vulnerability applied to religion as well. to distant causes” (P.105). Meanwhile, However, studies on globalism means “a state of the world transnationalism have not devoted involving networks of interdependence much attention to religious phenomena at multicontinental distances” (p. 105). in political science and international In a similar vein, Hannerz (2000) relations. James (2017) noted that emphasised a distinction between transnational studies scholars have globalisation and transnationalism, generally ignored the role of religious pointing out that the latter refers to organisations. These studies mainly actors who are individuals, groups, focused on economic globalisation, movements, corporations, rather than political processes, migration issues, states as corporate actors as in the case terrorism, violence, organized of globalisation. However, when the crime and culture. Thus the study of processes of globalisation evolve and religious movements in the context deepen, “transnationalism” provides of transnationalism and consequently a good explanation of world politics on international relations has been carried out by an increasingly wide somewhat confused because religion range of non-governmental social forces and international relations are based organised across sovereign boundaries on two different assumptions. James (Mandaville 2010). In the same vein, (2017, p. 8-9) maintains, “First, Roudometoft (2005, p. 113) argues Western modernity is premised on that transnationalism involves “several the understanding that the world of layers ranging from the construction of government and international relations transnational spaces to the formation of is basically a secular one; second, transnational communities”. religion has always had a universalistic By recognising that tendency to operate beyond national transnationalism has a broad meaning, borders”. This is probably because I chose transnationalism in this paper the international relations literature referring to “communities of outlook dealing with transnational linkages and 44 Ridwan penetration mainly focuses on political Islam and Christianity are examples of and economic security (Haynes 2001, p. transnational religious communities, 146). both of which existed before the According to Yasmeen (2005, p. emergence of secular states. Christianity 45), study of International relations and Islam grew as world religions that has ignored the role of religion because developed throughout the world because since the end of World War II, the of colonisation, conquest and the dominant approach in the discipline, growth of worldwide trade. that is realist paradigm approach had In a similar vein, Werbner (2003, p. prioritised national interests between 897) showed that religious movements the state and political entities. In this have never been constrained by regard, religion and culture have no international boundaries, by arguing place in world politics. The rise of “Sufism and Christianity spread as neo-liberal ideas in the late 1970s, proselytizing religions, preceding as which recognised the relationship of well as following Muslim and European transnationalism between state and imperial expansion into Asia and society did not change the situation, Africa”. According to Juergensmeyer where religion still has no a place in the (2003, pp. 7-8), “they are ‘religions of discipline of international politics. expansion’ despite their geographical Transnationalism and Religion and cultural roots being in one locality”. Scholarship on transnational This reemerged as politically important religion can be traced back to the late from the late 20 century, invigorated 1990s. Rudolf and Piscatori (1997, p. by globalization and the accompanying 1) observe: “Religious communities are communication revolution. among the oldest of the transnationals: Studies of transnationalism and Sufi orders, Catholic missionaries, and religions have developed in many Buddhist monks carried words and regions and are not limited to Islam praxis across vast spaces before