Malaysia’s holistic rehabilitation for terrorism detainees, including education and reintegration, has proven effective and gained international recognition
KUALA LUMPUR: The Royal Malaysia Police’s holistic approach to rehabilitating terrorism detainees has proven highly effective, according to Deputy Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay.
He cited a 2003 operation involving 13 Malaysian teenagers linked to the Jemaah Islamiyah group in Pakistan as a key example.
Ayob Khan explained that despite a US request to detain the youths at Guantanamo Bay, Malaysia chose a different path.
The Special Branch worked to repatriate and detain the teenagers under the Internal Security Act while providing comprehensive rehabilitation programmes.
“After several rounds of discussions with Pakistani security forces in Islamabad, they finally agreed to hand over the 13 Malaysian citizens to be brought back to Malaysia,” he said in a Facebook post.
The group, known as the Al-Ghuraba cell, were children of JI members sent to Pakistan for studies and military training in Afghanistan.
They returned to Malaysia on 9 December 2003 under Special Branch escort.
Upon their return, they were issued Detention Orders, Restriction Orders, or released unconditionally. Those sitting for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examination were provided with tutors.
Four of them excelled in their exams and entered local public universities, with one continuing at a private college.
The rest are now engaged in various businesses or are self-employed.
Ayob Khan attributed the rehabilitation success to preventive laws like the ISA.
He stated that the Special Branch’s programmes for terrorist detainees are among the best regionally and globally.
Many foreign enforcement agencies have visited Malaysia to learn from its methods and approaches.
The initiative demonstrated Malaysia’s commitment to addressing terrorism threats through rehabilitation and reintegration.
