War on terror needs more UN seats for Islam: Juwono

War on terror needs more UN seats for Islam: Juwono

A'an Suryana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A major restructuring of the United Nations Security Council, to
include more Muslim countries, would be beneficial in the global
war against terrorism, international relations professor Juwono
Sudarsono said on Tuesday.

Juwono, from the University of Indonesia, proposed that, in
order to enhance the world's effectiveness in combating terror,
the UN Security Council needed to reserve more seats for
predominantly Muslim countries as non-permanent members.

"Muslim countries, which have so far been under-represented in
the Security Council, must be incorporated in the council to
boost the global war against terrorism," Juwono told reporters
after addressing a seminar on terrorism here.

The seminar, held in commemoration of the 57th Anniversary of
the United Nations, entitled Shared Responsibility in Combating
Terrorism: Post Bali Tragedy.

Juwono suggested that the security council add five countries
to its existing 10 non-permanent members, with a priority for
those five seats to be given to predominantly-Muslim countries or
regions which were under-represented in the Security Council.

"Nigeria, India, Indonesia, Egypt or Brazil would be ideal to
fill the additional seats," said Juwono, saying that the five
were also prominent in terms of population.

The council has five permanent members with veto rights and
has played a very active role in the world's security affairs.
Its decisions often bind all UN member countries.

The five permanent members are the United States, France, the
United Kingdom, Russia and China. The 10 non-permanent members
(currently, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Colombia, Guinea, Ireland,
Mauritius, Mexico, Norway, Singapore and Syria) are voted in
every two years, based on continental and regional groupings as
well as their overall contribution to international peace and
security.

Juwono said the restructuring would provide a sense that
Muslim countries were involved in the war against terrorism.

The involvement of Muslim countries in the war against
terrorism would also enhance their commitment to it, he added.

"Besides, it would ease suspicions that Muslim countries, and
developing countries, were reduced to peripheral roles on the
Security Council," said Juwono, a former minister of defense.

The permanent membership is stipulated in the UN's 1948
founding charter, and it would require some effort to change the
charter.

The five UN Security Council permanent members indeed control
huge financial and military resources, and therefore, indeed
wield influential power in international relations.

In order to curb the domination by the permanent members in
the decision making process in the Security Council, the rest of
UN members must take strategic steps, including to wage a
campaign to erode the permanent members' exclusive veto rights,
he said.

"For example, a new regulation must rule that the veto rights
could only be taken if there is approval by three-fourths of the
members of the UN," Juwono proposed.