Here’s an interesting and somewhat encouraging story in the Straits Times about political Islam in Indonesia, that suggests the Islamist parties are having a hard time selling the 230 million people of Indonesia on shari’a law and an Islamic state—and that their cause is further undermined by their reluctance to renounce the thugs and killers in the “military wings” of their parties: Terror hurts Islamist parties in Indonesia.

The growth of political Islam in a nation in a democratic transition has its downsides too. Political Islam comes not with one voice, but several.

While most use the voice of peace, some use the voice of violence or, worse still, resort to violent practices.

While Islamic radicalism represents a tiny minority in the political Islam movement, it is vocal and therefore attracts publicity that often makes it seem much more powerful than it is.

Prior to the devastating bomb attacks at two Bali night clubs in October last year that killed more than 200 people, Islamist parties vehemently refused to acknowledge the role played by the radical Islamist groups.

Islamist politicians, including vice-president Hamzah Haz and the chairman of the People’s Consultative Assembly, Mr Amien Rais, even came to the defence of radical groups when rumours initially surfaced of their role in the bomb attacks.

Their support slowly waned once it was established that the attacks were conducted by people associated with JI. Similarly, the Indonesian authorities have tracked subsequent bombings at a McDonald’s outlet in Sulawesi in December last year and the Marriott Hotel in Jakarta in August to the same group.

While Islamist parties and their leaders have publicly condemned these terrorist attacks, they have been reluctant to denounce openly the organisations or the individuals who had, at one time or another, been their allies in political Islam.