RI must swiftly act against terrorists: Businessmen

A'an Suryana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The business community urged the government on Monday to take swift action against terrorists to contain the damage caused by the Bali bomb attack to the country's economy.

Businessman Sofyan Wanandi said the government must quickly arrest the perpetrators of the bomb blasts, which killed more than 180 people, mostly foreign tourists.

Aburizal Bakri said the Bali tragedy should serve as a wake-up call for the government that the country urgently requires an antiterrorism law.

Sofyan, the chairman of the Indonesian Committee for Economic Recovery (KPEN), said a swift resolution of the Bali bombings would give investors confidence that Indonesia was able to deal with terrorists.

"The government must stop quarreling and blaming each other and work quickly to arrest the terrorists. International investors are waiting for us to resolve the case immediately," Sofyan said prior to a meeting between the government and investors.

More than 20 leading foreign and domestic investors attended the meeting, arranged by Coordinating Minister of the Economy Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti to talk about the Bali attack and explain the actions being taken by the government to contain the damage to the country's economy.

Dorodjatun presided over the one-hour meeting.

Sofyan said swift action against the terrorists responsible for the Bali attack was necessary to contain the damage to the tourist industry, the backbone of Bali's economy and an important engine in the country's drive to recover from the economic crisis.

Sofyan also warned that the attack would ruin investor confidence. "It will be difficult to restore investor confidence. Bali has been praised as a safe haven before the weekend terrorist attacks."

Should the government fail to resolve the case immediately, Sofyan warned, the feared mass exodus of investors would finally happen.

Aburizal said the Bali attack should provide the government the momentum to complete the draft of the antiterrorism bill and submit it to the House of Representatives for quick debate.

If passed into law, the bill would provide the government the legal grounds to act against terrorists, he said.

Tough action is necessary to ensure the country's stability and the safety of the Indonesian people, as well as domestic and international investors, said Aburizal, the chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The government has been drafting the antiterrorism bill for several months, but Cabinet members appear to be far from reaching an agreement on the bill.

In response to the businessmen's concerns, Dorodjatun said the government was working to apprehend the terrorists behind the Bali bombings and would soon complete the antiterrorism bill.

The coordinating minister also said that the government would provide airplanes to transport victims of the bombings back to their countries and would establish a telephone hot line for victims to contact their families.

The government also will cooperate with the business sector and international event organizers to ensure that conventions and conferences scheduled for Bali next year can go ahead as planned, he said.

Aside from a tourist resort, Bali is also popular for convention, conferences and exhibitions.

Among the big conference scheduled to be held on the island in the near future is the Pacific Asia Travel Association conference, scheduled for next year and with more than 2,000 attendants expected.