Govt seeks public support in war on terror<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Badly stung by continuing negative publicity about its
\napproach to terrorism, the government went on the offensive on
\nMonday, stressing it was doing all it could to fight the
\nterrorist threat.<\/p>\n
Coordinating Minister for Political Affairs Susilo Bambang
\nYudhoyono assembled 10 Cabinet members and Indonesian Military
\n(TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto to brief Indonesia's main
\nmedia organizations about the seriousness of the government's
\ncounter-terrorism efforts.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's position has been clear and consistent, Susilo
\nsaid at the briefing held at National Police Headquarters. \"The
\ngovernment is committed to stopping, containing and fighting
\nterrorism.\"<\/p>\n
The government had followed up on all intelligence supplied by
\nforeign governments, and had taken all the necessary steps
\nconsistent with its commitment, he said.<\/p>\n
However, he said the government could not take legal action
\nagainst suspects solely based on intelligence information.<\/p>\n
He underlined President Megawati Soekarnoputri's warning that
\nin fighting against terrorism, the government should not engage
\nin acts of terror itself.<\/p>\n
The government planned to introduce a bill on terrorism to the
\nHouse of Representatives soon which, if enacted, would give the
\nauthorities greater power to deal with such threats, he added.<\/p>\n
Present at the briefing were Coordinating Minister for the
\nEconomy Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti, Coordinating Minister for
\nPeople's Welfare Jusuf Kalla, Minister of Home Affairs Hari
\nSabarno, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda, Minister of
\nDefense Matori Abdul Djalil, Minister of Justice and Human Rights
\nYusril Ihza Mahendra, National Police Chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar,
\nTNI Chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto and State Minister of
\nCommunication and Information Syamsul Mu'arif.<\/p>\n
Absent was the chief of the National Intelligence Agency
\n(BIN), Lt. Gen. (ret.) AM Hendropriyono, who has led the
\ngovernment's campaign against terrorism since it became a major
\ninternational issue in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks
\nin the United States. Hendropriyono was in the Middle East.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's campaign, unlike that of its neighbors, has been
\nlow key and largely limited to intelligence operations. The
\ngovernment is wary of the negative response that might come from
\nthe predominantly Muslim population if it acted without evidence
\nagainst radical Islamic groups.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, Susilo and fellow Cabinet members plan to brief
\nreligious leaders on the same issue, signifying a fresh approach
\nto the government's handling of terrorism, one that involves
\ngreater public participation, and probably more transparency.<\/p>\n
At Monday's briefing, media representatives were shown a
\ndocumentary video of young men undergoing military training and
\nreceiving their weapons afterwards, and a demonstration of an
\nattack on a house.<\/p>\n
Da'i said the document was part of a collection found in the
\npossession of Seyam Reda, a German national of Arabic descent
\narrested this month on suspicion of terrorist activities.<\/p>\n
\"We have no idea where and when the video was shot. But we're
\ninvestigating,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Critics have accused the government of being ambivalent in
\ndealing with the threat of terrorism.<\/p>\n
On the one hand, there are those who criticized the government
\nfor failing to arrest radical Islamic figures whose names have
\nrepeatedly come up during the investigation of terrorist suspects
\nin Malaysia and Singapore. On the other hand, there are those who
\ncriticize the government for giving in easily to international
\npressure.<\/p>\n
The latest case involved an article in Time magazine in which
\nAmerican intelligence suggests an imminent strike on American
\ntargets in Indonesia on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attack.<\/p>\n
Time said the report was based on a confession made by Omar
\nal-Faruq, who was deported by Indonesia and apparently arrested
\nby the U.S. authorities. The report said Faruq was the local
\noperative of al-Qaeda, the organization blamed for the Sept. 11
\nattacks.<\/p>\n
The report created a furor here, with politicians and
\nreligious leaders accusing the magazine of spreading
\ndisinformation propaganda for the U.S. government.<\/p>\n
Susilo said the government received the same report quoted in
\nthe magazine, and had treated all the information as intelligence
\nthat needed further investigation.<\/p>\n
\"The Indonesian government does not have to respond to Time's
\nreport,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Susilo said the government had obtained approval from the
\nUnited States for a joint questioning of al-Faruq.<\/p>\n
\"Politically, we would like to say that Indonesia's interest
\nin the questioning of Omar al-Faruq is very crucial and the U.S.
\ngovernment has agreed with this request,\" he said.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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