Terrorism, an act of horror

Terrorism, an act of horror

A spate of recent bomb blasts have scared Indonesian people,
maimed citizens, claimed hundreds of innocent lives and brought
about suffering to the bereaved.

In the meantime, the Indonesian government, particularly the
Indonesian police and Army seem to have been unable to protect
its innocent, debt-strapped citizens against the acts of
terrorism.

It's not wrong to say that Indonesia is weak in performing its
duties with regard to security matters so that this country needs
assistance from other countries that can give security feelings
to its people against protracted terrorist acts in Indonesia.

We do hope that the bomb blasts in Bali and Manado will be the
last to happen in Indonesia.

Indonesian citizens and the Muslim people here love peace.
Many people have called Indonesia a lair of terrorists. Such
statements are not to be disregarded as we have witnessed lots of
bomb explosions that have killed our people and foreigners.

Some have speculated the blasts were intended to topple the
Megawati administration or to disintegrate this country. We do
not give a damn about what lies behind the bombing. What matters
is that bombing and killing of people is an act of terror.

Some speculate the bombing is a game that the CIA might be
playing. Should it be true, the Agency could be sanctioned and
sued by Australia, Germany, France and Sweden whose citizens were
killed in Bali on Oct. 12, 2002 for its acts of terrorism.

The CIA will not risk losing its international credibility,
but something for sure is that the credibility of the Megawati
administration is severely tarnished both at home and abroad.

We do not want our politicians, clergymen and mass
organizations to say that Indonesia is no lair for terrorists or
has no terrorists.

I did not see as many bombs explode during my visit to Korea,
Malaysia and Thailand in October 2002.

We, all members of the Center for Information and Environment
Management of Indonesia (PIPLI), would like to express our
deepest concern over the bomb blasts in Bali, the one and only
island that offers cultural and religious objects in the country.

ILHAMY ELIAS

Center for Indonesian

Environment Information

and Management

Jakarta