Asia-Pacific police to boost ties in anti-terror drive

Asia-Pacific police to boost ties in anti-terror drive

The Jakarta Post, Kuta, Bali

As the threat of terrorism continues to haunt the region, police
from 22 Asian and Pacific nations are holding a two-day meeting
in Kuta, Bali, to boost coordination and information-sharing in
the global campaign against terrorism.

"We will share our experience in fighting terrorism and will
try to find ways to prevent a similar event (terrorist attacks)
from taking place in the future," National Police chief Gen. Da'i
Bachtiar said on Monday, the first day of the two-day Conference
on Police Response to Terrorism.

Police officers from Australia and the United States are
attending the conference.

"Indonesia has a great interest in this meeting as we want to
improve our ability to detect terrorism," Da'i was quoted by the
Associated Press as saying at the opening ceremony.

Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, has been hit by
series of terrorist attacks blamed on regional terrorist network
Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), which has close links with international
terrorist network al-Qaeda set up by Osama bin Laden, the prime
suspect of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in Washington and
New York. JI is believed to operate in Indonesia, Malaysia,
Singapore, the Philippines and Thailand.

Scores of suspected JI members have been arrested in the
Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore. Indonesian courts have
convicted 29 militants for the October 2002 Bali nightclub
bombings.

In Bali, police commanders will share experiences on how to
investigate terror cases using high-tech equipment such as
sophisticated explosives detectors.

"Terrorism relies on international networks. Some groups come
and go. (New) groups, of which we have no knowledge, can appear,"
Da'i said.

Bachtiar also said that Jakarta would soon establish a
specialized antiterror office with 24-hour, seven days a week
hotlines, enabling Interpol officers worldwide to request
information about suspected terrorists.

He stressed that the establishment of a joint intelligence
secretariat on terrorism in Jakarta would benefit the country in
fighting international terrorism.

"The existence of such a secretariat will make it a lot easier
for police and the government to track down and find out any
information on local and international terrorist networks," he
said.

The idea to establish the joint secretariat, which would
involve officers from the Indonesian National Police (INP) and
the Australian Federal Police (AFP), will be further discussed in
February when ministers from both countries convene a conference
on combating terrorism in Bali.

"This (the joint secretariat) is still at the conceptual level
and will be brought up at the conference," he said.

During the Bali bombing investigation, officers from the INP
and the AFP displayed an exemplary level of cooperation and
coordination, which led to the arrests of at least 33 members of
the terrorist network responsible for the attack, in which at
least 202 people were killed, including 88 Australian nationals.

Da'i played down concerns that the existence of such body in
Jakarta would provide foreign parties with access to mount
unfriendly intelligence operations against Indonesia.

"We should not worry that we will be monitored by other
countries. On the contrary, we will gain a lot of advantages by
having the joint secretariat here in Indonesia," he assured.

Meanwhile, Interpol executive director Willy Deridder hoped
that the conference could strengthen long-term cooperation among
the participating members.

"Interpol will support and assist any activity that aims at
conducting experience- and information-sharing on methods of
combating terrorist networks," he said.