Child abuse probe: How Malaysian conglomerate GISB managed to stay under the radar

KUALA LUMPUR: Three weeks after police launched a raid on welfare homes in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, rescuing 402 children who allegedly had been exploited and abused, the case continues to send shockwaves through Malaysia and dominate headlines.

Some of the children were reportedly sodomised by their guardians and taught to sexually abuse each other.

On Oct 3, the Royal Malaysia Police announced that it had frozen a total of 206 accounts linked to Malaysian conglomerate GISB Holdings (GISBH), valued at more than RM1.35 million (US$31,9791) to date. 

Police chief Razarudin Husain also said that various assets, including cars, watches and various animals had been seized. 

GISB has come under continued fire for its links to the welfare homes and a number of its senior executives have been arrested. 

These include its chief executive Nasiruddin Mohd Ali, whose remand was extended, along with 24 others, on Sep 30. 

A 23-year-old teacher and caretaker of a home was last week also sentenced to 10 years' jail for abusing several boys under his care.

But as developments continue, some are questioning the time it took to probe into GISB and whether the company has been riding on its image as a successful multimillion dollar Muslim enterprise to evade its alleged wrongdoings. 

The Sultan of Selangor on Sep 21 expressed his disappointment over what he described as a lack of effective action taken against GISB and appeared to single out religious authorities. 

"We must accept the fact that the delay in handling this issue highlighted the weaknesses in monitoring and enforcing laws by religious organisations against charity homes and religious schools linked to GISB," said a statement from the Selangor Royal Office.

"The organisation's network is so vast that this issue has become serious and out of control."

Experts believe concerns about potential religious backlash hindered efforts to address activities of the group, which is believed to have close links to Al-Arqam.

The Islamic sect was banned by Malaysian religious authorities in 1994 for deviant practices. 

CALLS FOR ACCOUNTABILITY GROW 

Despite the recent actions by the authorities, experts and prominent figures have spoken out about the perceived delayed response, especially considering the longstanding awareness of the issue.

On Sep 23, civil group G25 raised the fact that police had already been involved in investigation with the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) since 2019.

“We are shocked that it has been over five years since issues surrounding GISB have been known to the authorities without any move to shut them down while investigating,” said G25, which is made up of a group of influential Malays, in a statement.

JAKIM has acknowledged that action began in 2019, with closed-door meetings involving the National Council of Islamic Religious Affairs, the Attorney-General’s Chambers, and a special gathering of national security agencies in 2022. 

But criminologist Geshina Ayu Mat Saat of Universiti Sains Malaysia said that despite the meetings, workshops and other engagement with GISB members that had been conducted multiple times over the years, intervention had failed. 

“This clearly evidenced that such intervention efforts had failed and more serious action needed to be taken. It didn’t need to be so prolonged that children continued to be victimised over years whilst the interventions were being made. 

“It should have been a swift rescue mission right from the start, taking out vulnerable children from even hints of suspicious conditions into protective custody. Even a delay of hours could be traumatic for victims,” she told CNA. 

Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution said on Sep 30 that a total of 592 children have been rescued so far while 359 GISB associates were detained as part of the ongoing investigation. 

On the same day, he added that the intelligence gathering process had taken some time before action was taken. 

Mr Razarudin has denied suggestions that the authorities had taken too long to act against the group. 

“We did not leave it like that. And JAKIM also didn’t just leave it. We tried to get as much information as we could (before taking action),” he said on Sep 23.

The police have opened up 80 investigation papers on the group under various legal frameworks including the Child Act 2001, the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007, and the Penal Code.

CNA has reached out to JAKIM for comment. 

FROM SUBVERSIVE POLITICAL FORCE TO BUSINESS FORCE 

Mr Aizat Shamsuddin, the founder of Initiate.my - an initiative to promote tolerance and prevent violence - believes that the government under Dr Mahathir Mohamed from 1981 to 2003 perceived Al-Arqam as a significant threat, due not only to its deviation from state-sanctioned Sunni Islam but also as a potential subversive political force. 

“The group’s substantial influence across both urban and rural Muslim communities, coupled with its economic independence, sparked fears about its potential to mobilise opposition against the government.

"This concern marked Al-Arqam as one of primary targets during Mahathir’s opponent crackdown in the 1990s,” he said. 

GISB was established in 2010 as an offshoot of the Al-Arqam group that was also involved in various businesses.    

Mr Aizat believed that the business network that expanded both locally and internationally had thrived under the #BuyMuslimFirst (BMF) campaign, allowing it to avoid detection by the authorities. 

“There was an obsession with the BMF campaign that it is possible that criminal or bad elements were overlooked. As long as they were a Muslim brand they should be supported blindly. 

“The good governance or good business conduct of business didn’t seem to matter. Until today, you still see people talking about how a Muslim business is being sabotaged,” he said.    

According to a report by business portal Malaysian Reserve in August, GISB group is reported to have assets totalling around RM325 million globally, with a network of 415 business outlets across 20 countries in Asia, Europe, Africa and Australasia.

The group was also reported to have an annual revenue of RM187 million. 

The Islamist Party of Malaysia (PAS) information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari for one had questioned why the top members of GlSB had been allowed to meet Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim last April.    

“This raises serious questions about the role of religious authorities in monitoring such movements. Why were they able to have meetings with important government leaders, including the prime minister?,” he said on Sep 23. 

Other politicians that have been reported to have been pictured with the group included Dr Mahathir and former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin.   

Sisters in Islam - a non-governmental organisation - said in a Sep 25 statement that there were still many who attempted to shift the narrative of the issue by arguing the need to protect Muslim businesses, promoting blind loyalty and distorting Islam for personal gain. 

“How have we reached a point where such blatant abuses are excused in the name of faith or business? This isn’t about Islam; it’s about people hiding behind religion to justify their wrongs,” it added. 

ONLINE WHISTLEBLOWERS EXERTED PRSSURE 

According to Mr Aizat, online whistleblower channels have played a pivotal role in bringing these issues to light and exerting public pressure for action.

One of these channels was the Pusat Kajian Ajaran Sesat, which had started posting about GISB on Facebook and TikTok in August.

Prior to that, Mr Asri, who is also an Islamic scholar, had spoken up on the group.

In a lecture on Sep 12, he suggested that the lack of action on GISB might have been due to several factors, including some parties unwilling to take risks or because of individuals lacking the will to resolve the issue.

He also claimed that reports had been made with the authorities, including JAKIM.

In a Facebook post on Sep 6, Mr Asri urged the authorities to investigate allegations of cruelty and violence that were linked to the group.  

In a video that was uploaded onto his Youtube channel on Aug 16, he had said that a team from another state had presented to the Perlis Fatwa Committee the activities of an organisation that had restaurants and marts among others. 

Without mentioning names, Mr Asri said the organisation was a cult that had thousands of followers and indulged in questionable practices. 

“I asked why they didn’t report this to the authorities. They replied that if they made a report, the authorities would deny the accusations and say everything was alright,” he said, adding that people would support the organisation because of their Muslim credentials.   

GISB sent Mr Asri a notice of demand on Aug 27, demanding that he apologise for his comments.    

In the early hours of Sep 11, the police conducted simultaneous raids on several charity homes in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, rescuing more than 400 children.

Since then, the police have stepped up their action in phases, conducting raids all around the country. 

Dr Mohd Izhar Ariff Kashim, an Islamic Jurisprudence lecturer at University Kebangsaan Malaysia, told CNA that JAKIM did not have the power to conduct raids and arrests, with only the police and the religious authorities of the states allowed to do this.  

When asked about allegations made by Dr Asri, Dr Izhar said he did not know what had been presented to JAKIM.

“There are many processes and procedures that must be adhered to. The state authorities would need time to conduct their investigations ... while the police also have their laws and procedures as well,” he said, adding that time was needed to conduct investigations and that the fanaticism of the members made it tougher.

Dr Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid, a political science professor at Universiti Sains Malaysia who has conducted extensive research into GISB in the past, believed that the action against the group has been excessive, especially in labelling them a group that encouraged homosexuality and sodomy.   

He said that similar cases of sexual abuse have been reported in other institutions such as government-run homes and hostels but there have not been calls for them to be closed.  

“Yes, there are a few cases but why has it blown up to the extent that you want to paralyse the whole movement to the extent that everything in their communes have been confiscated?,” he said. 

He said that if they were guilty of several things such as not paying taxes and not paying their workers, they should be charged in court for their crimes. 

Mr Ismail Yahya, a former Terengganu chief Syariah judge, told CNA that he disagreed with the action taken against GISB.

“I can only say this is all for political mileage. I cannot say anymore,” he said.   

MOVING FORWARD

Mr Aizat of Initiate.my said that authorities must rigorously scrutinise the business licences of the organisation and its associated network. 

He said that it is crucial to verify that their business practices adhere strictly to legal standards, particularly in areas such as hygiene, labour rights free from exploitation, and financial flows that do not support illegal activities. 

“This examination should be approached with caution; a blanket ban on the entire business network could be counterproductive, given the financial dependency of certain subsidiaries and workers. Therefore, a targeted review coupled with the implementation of stricter monitoring measures is essential,” he said.  

Dr Geshina, who is also a psychologist, said that in-depth periodic audit and monitoring should be conducted on the group. 

She said that there may be people who unwittingly become part of a criminal syndicate or victims due to their ignorance, social or family grooming, or lack of understanding. 

“The thing with cults is the nature and scope of grooming that works to develop blind belief and trust despite irrefutable evidence that is denied, disbelieved, or ignored by members. Central to many cults is the belief in a divine element in certain individuals, like the cult leader(s),” she said.

“This blind belief and devoutness could have already caused harm to members and may continue to cause harm even after leaving the group. As the development of devoutness involves an entire psychosocial, language, and economic grooming process, the change into a healthier sense of self and being will need a lot of time and effort.” 

Police believe that the group has about 10,000 followers nationwide.

G25 meanwhile said that the authorities must act decisively to prevent future incidents and restore public trust in the systems designed to protect the people. 

“This should begin with the immediate setting up of the royal commission of inquiry for this case. Any inaction or delayed action on this matter would only tarnish our image internationally,” it said. 

Dr Mohd Izhar said that everyone has a role to play to prevent any deviant groups from emerging again in the future.

“Malaysians, especially the Muslims, need to make reports of any deviant group to the authorities in the future. It is a joint effort and everyone needs to help one another instead of placing the blame on one another,” he said.