SE Asian nations tighten security after Jakarta blast
SE Asian nations tighten security after Jakarta blast
Agence France-Presse, Kuala Lumpur/Bangkok/Manila
Southeast Asian nations have beefed up security in their
countries amid fears of possible terrorist attacks following a
bomb blast that ripped through a luxurious Jakarta hotel.
Malaysia has tightened security at its ports, marine police
said on Wednesday.
The tighter security measures include patrolling isolated
waterways and closely checking all cargo ships and their crew,
including identifying their political ideologies and religions,
Marine Commander Muhamad Muda was quoted as saying by the Bernama
news agency.
"Previously, the marine police only concentrated on the
waters, now we will also focus on the ports," he said.
The measures were necessary to check if ships carried any
hazardous materials and explosives that could be dangerous if
they landed in the hands of terrorists, he said.
"The strict security is also due to the increasing number of
merchant ships using our ports," he said.
Thailand on Wednesday ordered its national agencies to beef up
security in the wake of the Jakarta hotel car bombing and said
soldiers and civilians would also be used in a bid to keep the
kingdom safe.
Deputy prime minister overseeing security Chavalit
Yongchaiyudh said he had told agencies to up their focus on
security.
"Violence is now higher particularly in our region and we
could not care more. I have ordered every agency to be more
strict on security. We promise every agency will be stricter on
security," he told reporters.
"For keeping security tight, we won't use only police
officers, but also soldiers and civilians," he said, declining to
elaborate.
"We will do our best. We also have volunteers who have been
trained... to inform authorities (about suspicious actions). Now
we have to keep watch on the situation," he added.
Last month Thailand said it stepped up security around foreign
embassies, schools and tourist zones in light of intelligence
reports warning of a terrorist attack.
In June, Thai police smashed an alleged plot to bomb embassies
and tourist spots in the kingdom. Authorities arrested three Thai
Muslims suspected of belonging to the regional terror group
Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) and of planning the bomb attacks.
The three men -- a doctor, an Islamic teacher and his son --
are accused of conspiring with a Singaporean JI member to launch
the attack during October's APEC Summit, when leaders from 21
nations will gather here.
Philippine embassies in Southeast Asia, particularly in
Indonesia, have been ordered to boost their security after a
deadly bomb attack in Jakarta that claimed up to 14 lives, an
official said on Wednesday.
"Our embassy on Jakarta is on high alert. We have increased
security there. We advise (diplomatic personnel) to take extra
precautions," Foreign Undersecretary Franklin Ebdalin said.
Other embassies in the region had also been instructed to
tighten security, Ebdalin said, adding that "terrorists could
strike anywhere, even in the least vulnerable places."
He remarked that the embassy in Jakarta already had special
security arrangements with Indonesian authorities following a
bomb blast outside the Philippine ambassador's home in Indonesia
in August 2000.
The blast killed two people and injured 21 others, including
ambassador Leonides Caday. Indonesian authorities arrested a
suspect whom they said carried out the attack in retaliation for
Philippine military operations against local Muslim rebels.
Fears of new attacks in the region were renewed after the bomb
blast outside the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta on Tuesday which
the Red Cross said claimed 14 lives and left 152 others injured.
Muslim extremists are widely suspected to have been behind the
attack.
Philippines Foreign Secretary Blas Ople said the terrorists
were "sadly mistaken if they think that such attacks will weaken
the common resolve of nations to fight terror".