No meddling in anti-terrorism campaign: VP<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Vice President Hamzah Haz argued against participation by
\nforeign countries in the effort to crack down on terrorist groups
\nin Indonesia, saying that the Indonesian Military (TNI) and
\npolice should be allowed to deal with the issue.<\/p>\n
\"I do not think we need foreign intervention unless the
\nIndonesian Military (TNI) and police are no longer able to
\nresolve the problem,\" Hamzah said after Friday prayers at the
\ncomplex for the Presidential Security Guard in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Hamzah stopped short of hinting how the TNI and police would
\ntackle the terrorist issue, however.<\/p>\n
Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, has come under
\nstrong international pressure to deal firmly with militant
\nreligious leaders believed to have links with international
\nterrorist cells.<\/p>\n
Neighboring countries Singapore and Malaysia have specifically
\nmentioned Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir as having links to
\nOsama bin Laden's al-Qaeda terrorist network. Indonesian
\nauthorities, however, have so far refused to arrest him, citing
\ninsufficient evidence.<\/p>\n
Last month, Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew said that leaders of
\nregional terrorist groups were still unchecked in Indonesia.
\nMeanwhile, U.S. intelligence reports have similarly suggested
\nthat dozens of al-Qaeda operatives have found sanctuary in the
\narchipelago after being pushed out of Afghanistan in the
\ninternational war against terror.<\/p>\n
Both the TNI and police, however, maintain that there are no
\nterrorist groups operating in Indonesia, fueling speculation that
\nthe country is harboring terrorists.<\/p>\n
USA Today reported on Thursday that the U.S. was planning to
\nsend troops to Indonesia to fight against suspected terrorist
\ngroups.<\/p>\n
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell denied the report on
\nFriday, though, stressing that his country would never send
\ntroops uninvited to an ally like Indonesia, or any other friendly
\ndemocracy for that matter.<\/p>\n
\"The real question is, are we planning, as USA Today said
\ntoday, American involvement in Indonesia? No. With respect to
\ndemocratic nations that are friends of ours, we only go where we
\nare invited,\" Powell told The Australian Financial Review in a
\nrecent interview.<\/p>\n
Hamzah appealed to the international community for
\nunderstanding with regard to Indonesia, and to provide a
\nbreathing room for the country to resolve its own internal
\nproblems.<\/p>\n
\"We have to pay our debts, so give us a chance to take care of
\nour own domestic affairs, and put forward our national
\ninterests,\" said Hamzah.<\/p>\n
Accusing Indonesia of being a haven for terrorists, he added,
\nwould only worsen the country's situation.<\/p>\n
Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda also said on Friday that it
\nwould be unfair to blame a country for harboring terrorists,
\nsimply because one or two of its citizens have been arrested for
\nalleged links to terrorist groups.<\/p>\n
\"Some U.S. and Egyptian citizens have also been arrested for
\ntheir links to terrorist network -- does it make them terrorist
\ncountries?\" Hassan told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
The Foreign Ministry issued a statement that Indonesia would
\nnot accept foreign intervention in dealing with terrorism, adding
\nthat Jakarta fully understood that there was no intention for any
\nother country to do so.<\/p>\n
Lisa Anderson, a professor of political science at Columbia
\nUniversity in New York, said on Friday that the U.S. would keep
\nup its pressure on Indonesia, unless Jakarta did something to
\nprove that it was not a sanctuary for militant religious groups.<\/p>\n
Speaking at a public lecture organized at the Paramadina
\nUniversity in Jakarta, Anderson said that the U.S. was very
\nconcerned with terrorist attacks, and that it was pursuing its
\neffort dealing with terrorism.<\/p>\n
She also acknowledged that U.S. pressure could also easily
\nhamper bilateral relations between Indonesia and Washington.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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