The Challenge of Millennial Santri as the Front Guard to Protect the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia

Bearing the status of santri at this time is very difficult. Not everyone is able to survive studying religion with Kyai in Islamic boarding schools.

Various trials, the twists and turns of life have become daily food for students, so they are not easily discouraged in the face of harsh realities, personal problems, the environment, even within the nation and state.

Apart from being religious, santri are also nationalists and sensitive to the environment, because they know that they love their country more than their faith. So that the love for the homeland for students is ingrained.

History of the Role of Santri in Indonesia

History records that the role of santri in Indonesian independence was very large. It is undeniable that Ulama, Kyai and Santri have always been pioneers, protectors and unifiers in state problems. Currently, the challenges of students are more severe than in the past.

As stated by the first President of Indonesia, Ir. Soekarno, "Fighting against the invaders is easier, it is still difficult to fight against one's own nation".

From Bung Karno's individualized organization customized structure above, it can be analogous to the santri, fighting against other people is easier but fighting lust and laziness in oneself is very difficult.

In recent years, the Indonesian Minister of Youth and Sports (Menpora), Imam Nahrawi, through his policies has always held official programs for santri such as: Entrepreneurial Santri, Student Scholarship, Menpora Cup Santri, and others.

Santri are so cared for, privileged and in the Javanese term "Diopeni", because in fact the Minister of Youth and Sports has also been a santri.

In addition, President Joko Widodo set October 22 as the day of santri, and it was reported that the government would equate Islamic boarding school education with formal education.

This is a golden opportunity for students in Indonesia to contribute more to the country, because the potentials of graduates from Islamic boarding schools are more reliable in the future.

 Who Are the Real Millennial Students?

Millennial Santri are santri who were born in 1996-a and above or can be said to be people who study religion from a Kyai today. In addition to religious knowledge, students must be able to master other sciences, including technology.

Millennial students are required to have an entrepreneurial spirit so that they can become new entrepreneurs who can support the Indonesian economy. Today's technology has crossed the boundaries of the world. All humans easily access the desired content.

How sad when students do not take part in using technology. Why is that? In addition to being proficient in religious knowledge, the toughest challenge today is learning to master the world of technology. When technology and social media are only controlled by people who in fact do not know the science of religion, it will become a reference that can mislead people, influence one's idealism and even lead to radicalism.

Millennial Student Challenges in the Future

The future will all rely on technology. For pesantren that are still salafi, they still maintain their characteristics, but don't forget that students still have to master technology so they don't falter.

If there is a balance in the life of the santri, then being asked about any worldwide problems, they will be able to answer and master it by heart. For this reason, the problem experienced today is that students must master technology, because today's war is not a battle of physical strength but war through social media.

For example, several months ago, there was a lot of slander, hoax news, and so on through social media. This problem is a serious problem for the government that must be stopped and minimized starting from ourselves. Hoax news can cause division between brothers, between neighbors, between people, between nations and can even break between countries.

Millennial Santri Must Be the Frontline in Combating Hoaxes

There are several countries that have been broken up due to being carried away by hoax news, including Vietnam and Poland.

The amount of content that causes hoaxes can harm and mislead many people. Currently, there are more contents that shift the Islamic creed and heretical teachings.

Many new ustadz and clerics appear on social media whose origins are unknown, making it confusing to sort out a teaching.

For ordinary people whose level of Islam is still minimal, they can be fooled into studying religion because they learn through social media.

Therefore, from now on, students in Islamic boarding schools must be at the forefront to save the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) from divisive issues.

There are thousands to hundreds of thousands of students in Indonesia. They are more qualified and superior in the field of religion than ustadz and social media clerics. But why did they lose their popularity compared to the new ustazd and clerics?

Maybe it's because of the tawadhu' reason that has been embedded in the students or they don't really have the intention to preach on social media or maybe they haven't mastered the technique to do it.