VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - The humanization program that Indonesia's National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) has applied to rehabilitate terrorists could be adopted as a reference by other ASEAN member countries, a terrorism expert said.

"ASEAN needs to make a breakthrough in its counterterrorism measures. Under Commissioner General Rycko Amelza Dahniel's leadership, BNPT has commenced it by applying the humanization program," Al Chaidar said.

The humanization program that the BNPT implements in its deradicalization measures needs to be prioritized owing to its effectiveness in the fight against ideological violence, he said.

From an anthropological perspective,  ideological violence could only be weakened and eliminated by humanizing humans, he argued.

Many scholars and researchers have even approved the program to address crimes against humanity, including terrorism, said Al Chaidar, who is also a lecturer at Malikussaleh University's Department of Anthropology.

"This humanization program has been approved as a priority for dealing with various crimes against humanity by many scientists and researchers," he said.

Indonesia's 2023 ASEAN chairmanship can serve as momentum to strengthen the humanization program that BNPT has implemented in its deradicalization measures, he said.

The humanization program has been delayed for a long time. "It is time to implement it precisely. Scholastics have been ready to help internationalize it," he added.

According to Al Chaidar, terrorist cells have the potential to grow in the Southeast Asian region. Therefore, ASEAN does need breakthroughs for its counterterrorism measures.

"The terrorist groups will appear at any time if they are supported by state patrons to become non-state proxies," he said. (antaranews)