Small number of Indonesian domestic workers radicalised while in Hong Kong, report warns
Study from Jakarta-based think tank says community must do more to support isolated individuals in the city
A security think tank has claimed that about 45 Indonesian domestic workers have been radicalised and linked with Islamic State while living in Hong Kong.
The study was published on Wednesday by the Jakarta-based Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict, which has produced several reports on conflicts in Southeast Asia, and concluded that a search for a sense of community in an unfamiliar environment, a rise in religious outreach, and personal troubles had spurred the helpers to support the extremist Islamic State.
The report stated that, given the size of the Indonesian community in the city, the number of domestic helpers who turned to extremism was “tiny”.
“Some of these women were drawn in by jihadi boyfriends they met online,” said Nava Nuraniyah, an analyst with the institute. “But some joined IS as a path to empowerment.”