Channel NewsAsia, Sunday October 2, 2005, 10:17 PM
Declaring JI a terror group is starting point in fight against terror:
Dr Gunaratna
SINGAPORE : The Indonesian government must declare the Jemaah Islamiyah an
illegal or terrorist organisation and put in place strong counter-terrorism legislation if it
is to prevent further terror attacks.
This is the view of leading counter-terrorism expert Dr Rohan Gunaratna who is based
in Singapore.
Al-Qaeda's regional arm, the Jemaah Islamiyah, has been fingered as the most likely
group behind this second Bali blast.
Dr Rohan Gunaratna believes they are the only ones with the capability - and the
threat is far from over.
He said: "JI is very keen to attack 3 categories of targets - symbolic, high prestige
and strategic targets. And they usually prefer to attack economic and Western
targets. It is likely that they will attack either in Jakarta or any other location where
they can attack a US target or the target of an ally or a friend of the US."
In his view, while their capabilities have been disrupted in the wake of September 11,
their intention to attack has not.
The modus operandi has merely changed from one big attack to several small and
medium scale attacks, as was seen in the latest blasts in Bali.
And because their organisation and infrastructure has remained intact, they remain a
threat.
Dr Gunaratna said the Indonesian government must do more.
He said: "The Indonesian government has not proscribed or designated JI as a
terrorist group. It is perfectly legitimate for you or for me to disseminate propaganda,
raise funds and recruit people for JI. The key is not only to remain on high alert but to
pro-actively hunt and target and dismantle JI."
"The government needs to ensure that the best brains are put in the right places and
that they have a proper counter terrorism agenda - this means investing in developing
counter-terrorism legislation, that means investing in proper counter terrorism training
and finally in developing high grade, high quality intelligence."
Otherwise, Dr Gunaratna warned the trend was for the emergence in Indonesia of a
terrorist movement - one led by the JI but with many other groups working with JI.
On whether Singapore could be a target, Dr Gunaratna said the threat was always
there but the Singapore government was doing all the right things.
He said: "Singapore is a key target. Right now, I would say that Singapore is at the
4th level of threat, after the US, Australia and Britain. I think that it is important for the
Singapore government to maintain the vigilance and the good work it has done to
protect Singapore. At the same time, Singapore must continue to harden its targets
overseas and must also try its best to reduce the regional temperature significantly." -
CNA /ch
Copyright © 2005 MCN International Pte Ltd. All Rights Reserved
|
