Islamic radicalization in the Maldives: An analysis of the role of religious networks and proliferation of different religious narratives

The Maldives is experiencing a rise in non-violent and violent forms of Islamic radicalization as well as the task of dealing with returning Jihadists. Despite paucity of existing literature on the subject and the sensitivity of the subject at the national level, this study attempts to explore the role of religious Non-government Organizations (NGO's) and proliferation of different religious narratives in creating an enabling environment for the penetration of radical interpretations of Islam. Thus this study uses a simple qualitative research method to analyze how these factors contribute to radicalization of vulnerable individuals in the Maldives. The findings of the study reveals that in the context of the Maldives, fragmentation of religious narratives, lack of balancing counter-arguments against radical ideologies, lack of monitoring of content with extreme views and relevant action against local religious networks disseminating such views creates an enabling environment for radical religious ideologies to flourish.