Ex-cult member reflects on life inside banned Malaysian sect

“No one cares” about children, the former al-Arqam member tells BenarNews amid a child-abuse scandal surrounding the banned sect and its offshoots.

Benar News, Malaysia/October 8, 2024

By Syahrin A. Aziz and John Bechtel

The man who grew up in al-Arqam recalled how happy he felt to be indoctrinated in the sect’s teachings before Malaysia banned it and offshoots for practicing what was deemed a deviant interpretation of Islam.

Al-Arqam and a company started by members of the sect are the focus of a child-abuse scandal and criminal investigation that has rocked this majority-Muslim Southeast Asian country since allegations against it came to light in mid-September.   

As of Tuesday, over 660 children have been rescued by authorities from welfare homes operated by Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings (GISBH) – the company linked to the sect. Police have also detained at least 350 people in connection with allegations that minors were sexually abused or abused in other ways at the group homes.

Ashaari Muhammad, the late founder of al-Arqam, which the Malaysian government banned in 1994, referred to himself as a prophet.

According to the ex-member, who is now in his early 40s, followers were taught to believe that “we couldn’t use our intellect” because people with intellects were “considered corrupt.” Going on vacation or on shopping sprees were viewed as corrupt pastimes.   

“When we were inside, we were happy because we were indoctrinated with those beliefs,” the man told BenarNews in an interview.

The ex-sect member asked that he not be identified because he feared that others would see him as an enemy to Islam and it would be permissible to do anything against him.

The text of this interview has been edited for length and clarity. This report also features videos with segments from an audio-recording of the interview.

BenarNews: How did you become involved with al-Arqam?

Former sect member: [I] was born and raised in Arqam. Then when Arqam was banned, I was no longer involved. Later, Rufaqa was established. I was among the first to join. Then Rufaqa was banned.

I followed Global Ikhwan. When Global Ikhwan was banned, it was changed to Global Ikhwan Holding (GISBH).

[I]t’s all the same. Arqam is Rufaqa, Rufaqa is Global Ikhwan, just changing names, just shedding skin. But in reality, the methods are all the same, and even, toward the end, they became more and more deviant.

When we were inside, we were happy because we were indoctrinated with those beliefs. One of the doctrines that was heavily emphasized to followers was that we couldn’t use our intellect. Anyone who used their intellect was considered corrupt.

… [W]e only needed to follow the leader’s instructions. At first, we felt happy because we thought this was the real truth. We believed this was the righteous group, the only correct group at the end of times.

… Actually, it hasn’t changed from the beginning. That was their doctrine, which is that this is the only righteous group at the end of times, and life outside, when you see people going on trips, going on vacations, shopping, all of that is considered a corrupted, worldly life.

… But over time, not that we got fed up, but the longer we stayed, we began to see that something was off. That is, there was too much pressure about money. They really wanted money, to accumulate wealth, to run projects here and there, but the followers were left struggling. From a young age, they had to live in charitable homes, teenagers had to work without pay, and even adults had no salary.

… By the end, we thought, Hey, the prophet wouldn’t be concerned with Malaysian politics. What about politics in Africa? What about Muslims in other places? Would the prophet only think about Malaysian politics in the end times, about who becomes prime minister and who doesn’t? It was during that time that we started to think and open our minds.

BN: Did al-Arqam have schools or an educational system? How did the system change when al-Arqam became Rufaqa and later GISBH?

FSM: Education within Arqam did exist at one point. In the earlier days, Arqam had some education and teachers. But when it transitioned to Rufaqa, there were no proper teachers. … Why didn’t the teachers come? They weren’t being paid. How could the teachers come if they weren’t getting paid? The teachers who wanted to teach had to find money to pay their own rent.

At the same time, as more people joined Rufaqa, the children weren’t given proper education. These kids are now adults and part of Global Ikhwan. Now, they are supposed to become teachers for the new generation, but what can they teach when they themselves didn’t receive proper education?

BN: How did you feel when you learned al-Arqam had been declared deviant?

FSM: When Arqam was banned, it felt like we were in a completely foreign world – shocked, experiencing all sorts of surprises. We were living in the outside world, but we didn’t really miss the Arqam era.

… But when we entered the Rufaqa era, things had changed. Rufaqa was more focused on establishing an Islamic state and trying to make founder Ashaari Muhammad the prime minister of Malaysia, and it was all about collecting money.

Over time, this continued, and even Global Ikhwan followed the same path. There were no more studies, no Fardhu Ain classes and no proper religious lectures. There were no more gatherings to study religious texts or traditional learning sessions.

And even if the children are abused, there’s no one to help, no one to back them up because their parents are in Global Ikhwan themselves; they wouldn’t report to the police about their child being abused since the parents themselves don’t care about the children.

… No one cares. They know that the caretakers won’t be punished because they have completely handed over their responsibilities to the organization. The parents don’t look after their children, and the children don’t know who to report to. There’s no one to go to for help, whether it’s the police or the hospital.

BN: Were you aware of any abuse of children in charity homes under GISBH’s care?

FSM: No, I wasn’t aware. However, we weren’t shocked when this issue arose after we stopped following Global Ikhwan. But we weren’t surprised about it because we understood the situation within the organization. They were indeed entrusted 100% to the caregivers, and whatever the caregivers wanted to do, no one could intervene or care.

BN: Are politicians, prominent individuals or well-known figures involved in GISBH?

FSM: … Right now, they really like to cozy up to political figures. They actually have no connection or influence in politics, but they like to get close to politicians. Why? Because they want recognition, they want to look good, and they want to make politicians feel sympathetic toward them. So, they gain sympathy and become close friends with these people.

What do they use that for? To engage with the outside community. They show that they have good relationships with politicians and important people, and also use it to convince their followers not to leave.

BN: How do you see the future of GISBH after many of its leaders were arrested?

FSM: I think this time GISBH will be banned, that’s the first thing. Secondly, I think the action this time will be much stricter because this has happened many times before. So, the government doesn’t want to let this continue any longer.

BN: Why don’t you want to be identified during your interview?

FSM: I can’t do a video interview because of the extremism of this deviant teaching. This fanaticism makes them willing to do anything and it’s not necessarily that they want to, but their minds have been controlled by the indoctrination of fanaticism. The leaders, for example, they might take actions unconsciously, meaning not directed by anyone, but they themselves feel it.

For example, they believe this is the true congregation, the congregation of Imam Mahdi. So, when someone tries to disturb or disrupt this group, they see that person as an enemy of Islam, and to them, it’s permissible to do anything.

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