THE NEW YORK TIMES, Sunday, February 24, 2002
TERROR GROWS IN ASIA
U.S. Special Forces aiding Philippine troops in their battle against Islamic guerillas
won't have far to go should America turn its attention to another Asian terror base:
Indonesia.
That day may not be far off.
The huge archipelago, with a population of 200 million (85 percent Muslim), is home to
at least two al Qaeda point men: Abu Bakar Bashir and Riudan Isamuddin. Both have
been identified in Singapore and Malaysia as key figures in plots to blow up U.S.
targets overseas.
So far, President Megawati Sukarnoputri's government has done next to nothing to
corral these thugs. On the contrary: It seems to tolerate happily at least three al
Qaeda training camps in the country.
And it's hardly a secret that elements of Indonesia's army are linked to paramilitary
groups like Laskar Jihad, whose claim to fame is massacring Christians in the
Molucca islands and on Sulawesi.
Laskar Jihad, by the way, shares Osama bin Laden's Wahhabi creed. Its trained
fighters alone number at least 7,000.
The Bush administration must make it clear that Indonesia's continued failure to act
against al Qaeda-linked terrorists risks unpleasant consequences.
Indonesia is an artificial country. Many of its regions want - and perhaps deserve -
independence. Its leaders must understand that in this new age, when America
remains set on eradicating terror, shake-ups happen.
Regime changes, too.
Yes, Indonesia is geostrategically important: Most of Asia's oil comes through the
Straits of Molucca on its way from the Middle East.
And Washington has its hands full - with still-intact al Qaeda cells, Afghan warlords,
the Philippines, the "axes of evil" . . . The White House has no interest in creating
new enemies.
Still, existing enemies must be confronted.
America's overriding mission is now to stop terrorists before they wreak more havoc.
Washington will do whatever it takes to complete that mission.
And nations that ignore the new imperatives do so at their peril.
Copyright © 2001 The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.
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