National tragedy

National tragedy

The writing had been on the wall this past year or so that
international terrorist groups were planning to attack Indonesia,
targeting not only Indonesians, but also foreigners.

Warnings had come from governments in Singapore, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Australia and the U.S. about Indonesia being a
hotbed for terrorist groups to operate, and consequently a
potential target after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks
on New York and Washington.

Indonesia's response to these warnings was found wanting, and
certainly not very reassuring, such that the U.S. and Australian
governments constantly issued advisories cautioning their
citizens when traveling to Indonesia.

Putting aside the question about the Indonesian government's
deficiency in dealing with the threat of terrorism, Saturday
night's blast near a crowded club in Kuta, Bali, was a horrific
act, one that has no justification at all. This paper wishes to
express its deepest condolences and sympathy to the relatives and
friends of all victims of the incident. This was an act of
cowardice and the perpetrators must be condemned for it.

Let's hope the authorities, having failed to protect the lives
and safety of victims, will do a better job in apprehending the
perpetrators quickly. It's the very least that the Indonesian
government could do, besides assisting the distraught relatives
and friends of victims to deal with the trauma and begin to heal
the wounds. Indonesia owes this much to the international
community.

It now seems almost certain that this is the work of
terrorists, be they local or international. The fact that three
bombs exploded almost simultaneously -- another in Manado (North
Sulawesi) and yet another in Denpasar (Bali) near the residence
of the U.S. consulate -- leaves no doubt about the motive for the
attacks.

Few people had anticipated, or had refused to believe, that if
terrorists were to strike in Indonesia, they would choose Bali.
In retrospect, if the intention was to cause maximum damage,
including killing innocent Western tourists, Bali was the obvious
choice. It just goes to show that you cannot predict what goes on
in the minds of terrorists.

The Bali bomb blast is bound to damage the reputation and
credibility of the Indonesian government, especially in the light
of its lackluster response to the constant warnings from other
foreign governments about terrorist activities in the country.

There are bound to be many other repercussions that the entire
country will have to deal with now. The holiday island of Bali,
for sure, must now brace itself for the prospect of economic
devastation. Already, Australia has told its citizens to stay
away from the island.

Could the attacks in Bali have been prevented? That is hard to
say, but Indonesia's entire attitude toward the threat of
terrorism was so lax that it raised serious questions about the
government's commitment to fight the threat, and consequently, to
protect the lives of the public, both Indonesian and
foreign.

We don't believe that the arrest of Muslim cleric Abu Bakar
Ba'asyir -- whom Singapore and Malaysia have identified as the
leader of a regional group with aspirations to turn Southeast
Asia into an Islamic state -- would have prevented Saturday's
attacks.

Ba'asyir, if anything, has been a diversion or even a decoy.
While we have all debated his role in Jemaah Islamiyah, and
whether or not to put him under arrest on suspicion of terrorist
activities, the real operatives, whoever they may be, were
quietly plotting the attacks.

What is most deplorable is our whole attitude toward the
threat of terrorism since it became an international issue in the
wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. Until Saturday night's blast, very
few people in Indonesia had taken the threat of terrorism
seriously. This goes not just for the government, the politicians
and major political parties, but also the public, including the
media.

Just about every single warning that has come from foreign
governments was treated with disdain, as most people here
continued to believe, and to insist, that there were no
international terrorists operating in this country. Instead of
acting on these warnings, officials and politicians were willing
to exploit the issue to whip up nationalist or religious
sentiment for their own short-term political gain. And the media
duly reported them.

This kind of response has consistently been shown by Indonesia
since the Sept. 11 attacks. It was wrong because it diverted our
attention away from the real problem, which is the threat of
terrorism.

For much of the time since Sept. 11, Indonesia was in denial
when most other countries in the region were taking the steps
necessary to counter the terrorist threats. When the government
finally decided to tell the public about the presence of
international terrorists in the country two weeks ago, it
unfortunately failed to make its case sound convincing enough to
the public, such that it did not get the support it needed to
make its campaign against terrorism effective.

Besides, it came much too late. Had the government treated the
threat of terrorism more seriously from the beginning, and then
got the public fully behind it, perhaps, just perhaps, the bomb
blast in Bali might have been prevented.

Now, we have to brace ourselves for the many domestic and
international repercussions. Besides condemnation, we can expect
more serious action that will hurt our political and economic
standing. We do not know even half the story yet.