Author: Reme Ahmed
Publication: The Straits Times
Date: May 31, 2004
Reformed Malaysian fanatic speaks
of dangers posed by charismatic leader claiming divine sanction
Kuala Lumpur- Mr. Zabidi Mohamed
is an author and a former court magistrate. But he was previously better
known as the man who was a fanatical senior leader of a religious cult
for 18 years.
The cult itself had a following
that extended into South-east Asia-in Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia.
Mr. Zabidi was detained under a
security law when police swooped on the mystical Al-Arqam group in 1994.
But today, he is a reformed man
who is warning people against blind faith and offering suggestions on how
to counter the extremist threat from militant groups.
When the 41-years-old speaks about
the dangers of giving one's all to charismatic leaders who claim divine
sanction, he is talking from experience.
"Before the followers of a group
turn fanatical, they are guided into believing the cause by charismatic
leaders with sweet promises," he said in an interview.
"People want short-cuts to becoming
good Muslims, just like they want to become instant millionaires. So groups
like Al-Qaeda exploit this weakness by saying the fastest way to
heaven is through its jihad," he said.
Mt. Zabidi was the legal adviser
Arqam whose chief Asaari Mhammad claimed to regularly receive instructions
from Prophet Muhammad in dreams.
Thousand of his followers believed
this.
The group attracted attention, because
many Malay professionals became its members, and controversy as its teachings
persuaded members to run away their families would not accept its
teachings.
Many members gave up secure jobs
to live in Arqam communes across the country, working for a pittance
while running Asaari's businesses. These included small factories, provision
shops, schools and clinics.
Asaari today lives in banishment
on Labuan island, under police supervision, and the group has broken up.
Mr. Zabidi became a turncoat
when he realized that Asaari's claims contradicted Islamic teachings, and
he began to write about the dangers of the cult.
"Some people were angry with me
for writing the book. But I regretted what I had done in the past, so I
wrote it as a way to cleanse my sins," he said.
The father of 11 has also returned
to his law practice.
His first book, Tersungkur di Pintu
Syurga (Sprawled at Heaveb's Gate), was published in 1998. It sold 40,000
copies - a rare feat for a local non-fiction book, where selling 5,000
copies is a big achievement.
The book exposed Asaari as a fraud
and called on former members to return to Islam.
Mr. Zabidi's second book on the
Anwar Ibrahim issue did not do that well, but his third book could be another
winner as it has sold 7,000 copies in the past five months.alone, he said.
Titled Maunah, Kebenaran Yang Sebenar
(Maunah, The Naked Truth), it reveals the untold story behind a militant
group that shook the government.
Few people had heard of the Al-Maunah
cult until 2000, when 15 of its members led by its chief, Mohamed Amin
Razali, stole a cache of weapons from two army bases in Perak.
Amin taught a mystical brand of
Islam. A self-proclaimed "Mahaguru", Amin asked then prime minister Tun
DR Mahathir Mohamad to resign to pave the way for an Islamic administration.
Amin and his gang have since been
dealt with in the courts, and given death or life on life sentences.
Said Mr. Zabidi: "It can be
seen from these incidents that while intelligence work might uncover obvious
militant groups like Al-Qaeda, the groups that follow the mystical school
of Islam could do more damage when they strike."
In the same vein, he said, members
of fanatical groups like Jemaah Islamiah could be reformed if its senior
members were first reformed.
Mr. Zabidi did exactly just that
when he and a few other senior Arqam leaders helped Malaysian religious
officials to reform the others.
"It takes a thief of know a thief.
I know their lingo and their concerns," he said.
Muslims must be wary about the blindly
following only one religious teacher, he said.
"Mix around and never say: this
is the leader that brought me back to Islam. So he is my only guide. That
is the way to disaster."
