Wibisono heads APEC's terrorism task force

Wibisono heads APEC's terrorism task force

Agencies, Singapore

A senior Indonesian diplomat, Makarim Wibisono, has been
appointed to head a counter-terrorism task force of the Asia-
Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, the group's
secretariat said on Saturday.

Wibisono, 57, a former Indonesian permanent representative to
the United Nations (UN), said the task force will coordinate
efforts by APEC and other international organizations to combat
the terrorist threat.

"It is my expectation that the APEC Counter Terrorism Task
Force will act as a liaison body to generate synergy between APEC
and other international organizations confronting terrorism," he
was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the Singapore-based
APEC secretariat.

"Several APEC member economies have experienced first-hand the
pain and horror of terrorism, and all 21 APEC members are
committed to confronting the terrorist threat," Wibisono
said.Wibisono's country, Indonesia, was the target of a deadly
terrorist attack in October last year when a bomb attack on
twonightspots on the resort island of Bali killed 202 people,
most of them foreign tourists.

The explosion has been blamed on the Jamaah Islamiyah, a
Southeast Asia-based group with alleged links to al-Qaeda, the
global terror network of Osama bin Laden.Wibisono said among the
priorities of the task force was to draw up measures to protect
international shipping and aviation as well as choking terrorist
finances.

The first meeting of the task force will be in Khon Kaen in
Thailand next month, the statement said.APEC is the main forum
for promoting trade and investment in theAsia-Pacific region.

APEC's 21 economies encompass 2.5 billion people and make up
half the world's trade.It groups Australia, Brunei, Canada,
Chile, China, Hong Kong,Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New
Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia,
Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and
Vietnam.