The Straits Times, Monday October 14, 2002
Blasts show need for crackdown
By Robert Go
STRAITS TIMES INDONESIA BUREAU
JAKARTA - Indonesia has just learnt the hard way that there is no smoke without fire.
After months of denying charges that it has become a fertile operating ground for
terrorists bent on killing and instilling fear in people, President Megawati
Sukarnoputri's government should now have all the proof it needs. Saturday night's
blasts and fires in the sprawling archipelago's 'Island of the Gods' claimed the lives of
about 180 people and seriously wounded 300 more, many of them foreign tourists.
The attack in Bali highlights the fact that Indonesia is the region's weakest link in the
war against terror, and the need for Jakarta to get cracking on possible radical
elements and prevent future similar attacks.
Already, top government officials have vowed a crackdown against perpetrators and
pledged more cooperation with other countries in the global anti-terror effort.
Perhaps a speedy passage can be expected for an anti-terrorism Bill which has been
debated at length by legislators and government officials since last year. The
newly-proposed Security Council could also be given real power to evaluate evidence
and recommend the arrest of leaders of radical groups, including Muslim extremists.
Analysts have said that it is high time Ms Megawati take charge and drum up political
support for the arrest of radical Muslim leaders, even though an Islamic backlash from
segments of the population may be imminent.
Consultant Bara Hasibuan said: 'The blasts were a wake-up call for all of us. There is
a serious terrorist problem. This cannot be ignored anymore. There is no reason to
deny this problem anymore.
'Ms Megawati should be able to build some sort of political consensus, and the
security apparatus should start cracking down on terrorists.'
The international community would support Ms Megawati should she decide to get
tougher. Several leading legislators, including those representing rival political parties,
have already indicated that they, too, would play ball.
Mr Alvin Lie, from Dr Amien Rais' National Mandate Party, said: 'Legislators and
politicians should set aside personal politics, and not confuse terrorism with Islam.
'And the government should be given the go-ahead and real power to fight terrorism.
They can mobilise the political elite into a consensus behind Ms Megawati as she
reformulates our security and anti-terror strategies.'
But the Bali blasts present more than just a security and terrorism problem.
Indonesia's economy is at stake too, because tourist-dependent Bali is certainly now
in jeopardy.
Mr Aburizal Bakrie, head of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce Kadin, said:
'Tourism has been one of our key industries. Now it is in shambles. The damage to
our reputation and our economy is very serious and will require years to repair.'
Tourism-industry experts have said that they are expecting potential tourists to avoid
Indonesia, precipitating a dramatic plunge in tourist-arrival figures from the current 5
million a year.
Analysts have also argued that religious and ethnic strife, which has fuelled conflicts
in the provinces of Maluku, Aceh and West Papua, could strike Bali.
The blasts open up the possibility of rising problems in relationships between the
predominantly Hindu island and Muslim majority in other parts of the country. Already,
sources in Bali are expressing anger directed at the Javanese political elite and
fundamentalist Muslims.
The word on the streets of the disaster-struck island is that Balinese Hindus would
wage a war against Islam on the island, if sufficient evidence emerges that
fundamentalist Muslims were indeed behind the blasts.
One source in the government said: 'This could bring Ambon to Bali. The attack has
brought focus to differences between Bali and the rest of Indonesia. The big worry is
that separatist ideals could now take hold in Bali.'
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