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Minister says prevention key to stop spread of terrorism
NU Online · Selasa, 19 Oktober 2010 | 00:21 WIB
Jakarta, NU Online
A broad deradicalization program was needed to tackle terrorism because law enforcement measures alone were simply not enough, the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs said on Monday.
Speaking at the opening of international seminar in Nusa Dua, Bali, about cooperation in counter-terrorism efforts, Djoko Suyanto said a focus on repressing and punishing terrorists had failed to prevent the spread of radical ideas.r />
“Radical acts based on a particular belief or ideology are telling us that, despite law enforcement that focuses on punishments, repressive action is not effective and cannot stop terrorism,” he said.
The government was in the process of revising its strategy on combating terrorism, Djoko said, because the threat had not abated.
“Deradicalization is far more important,” he said. “I believe prevention will be more effective in reducing terrorism.”
Djoko said terrorist attacks were a recurring issue in Indonesia, with the Philippine Embassy bombing in 2000, the Bali bombing in 2002, the JW Marriott Hotel bombing in 2003, the Australian Embassy bombing in 2004, the second Bali bombing in 2005 and the twin suicide bombing at the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in 2009.
And despite successes in arresting and prosecuting hundreds of terrorism suspects, radical groups were still active in recruiting new members, he said.
“Counter-terrorism should be more than just about law enforcement,” he said, adding that radicalism and overseas funding for local terrorist cells also needed to be addressed.
The head of the new National Anti-Terror Agency (BNPT), Ansyaad Mbai, agreed with Djoko, saying that acts of terrorism could not be answered through punitive action alone. “As long as the radical ideology still exists, terrorism will always occur,” he said.
Ansyaad said that soon after the BNPT was established by the president, it immediately went to work on ways to temper radicalism by cooperating with senior religious figures and Islamic boarding schools.
“This is important because terrorism is not based on religion, but radical acts that are done in the name of religion,” he said.
The most important part of the deradicalization program, Ansyaad said, should be changing the mind-set of radicals who believed those different from them were wrong and therefore should be eliminated.
“We must be able to do this in a nonviolent way, by showing them that it is possible to live side by side in peace as taught by all religions,” he said.
Regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah has been largely sidelined by effective crackdowns by the National Police, but experts have warned the group has now fragmented into smaller radical cells that continue to coordinate attacks against the state. (jg/dar)
A broad deradicalization program was needed to tackle terrorism because law enforcement measures alone were simply not enough, the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs said on Monday.
Speaking at the opening of international seminar in Nusa Dua, Bali, about cooperation in counter-terrorism efforts, Djoko Suyanto said a focus on repressing and punishing terrorists had failed to prevent the spread of radical ideas.
“Radical acts based on a particular belief or ideology are telling us that, despite law enforcement that focuses on punishments, repressive action is not effective and cannot stop terrorism,” he said.
The government was in the process of revising its strategy on combating terrorism, Djoko said, because the threat had not abated.
“Deradicalization is far more important,” he said. “I believe prevention will be more effective in reducing terrorism.”
Djoko said terrorist attacks were a recurring issue in Indonesia, with the Philippine Embassy bombing in 2000, the Bali bombing in 2002, the JW Marriott Hotel bombing in 2003, the Australian Embassy bombing in 2004, the second Bali bombing in 2005 and the twin suicide bombing at the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in 2009.
And despite successes in arresting and prosecuting hundreds of terrorism suspects, radical groups were still active in recruiting new members, he said.
“Counter-terrorism should be more than just about law enforcement,” he said, adding that radicalism and overseas funding for local terrorist cells also needed to be addressed.
The head of the new National Anti-Terror Agency (BNPT), Ansyaad Mbai, agreed with Djoko, saying that acts of terrorism could not be answered through punitive action alone. “As long as the radical ideology still exists, terrorism will always occur,” he said.
Ansyaad said that soon after the BNPT was established by the president, it immediately went to work on ways to temper radicalism by cooperating with senior religious figures and Islamic boarding schools.
“This is important because terrorism is not based on religion, but radical acts that are done in the name of religion,” he said.
The most important part of the deradicalization program, Ansyaad said, should be changing the mind-set of radicals who believed those different from them were wrong and therefore should be eliminated.
“We must be able to do this in a nonviolent way, by showing them that it is possible to live side by side in peace as taught by all religions,” he said.
Regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah has been largely sidelined by effective crackdowns by the National Police, but experts have warned the group has now fragmented into smaller radical cells that continue to coordinate attacks against the state. (jg/dar)
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