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| Southeast Asia |
| Gunaratna urges Indonesia to ban JI |
| 2005-10-03 |
| A leading counter-terrorism expert on Sunday urged the Indonesian government to declare the Jemaah Islamiyah an illegal or terrorist organization and to strengthen its counter-terrorism legislation as part of efforts to prevent further terror attacks. According to Channel NewsAsia reports on Sunday night, Dr Rohan Gunaratna, who is based in Singapore, said he believed that Al-Qaeda's regional arm, the Jemaah Islamiyah, is the only one with the capability to launch terrorist attacks like the ones in the Indonesian resort island of Bali, and the threat by the group is far from over. He insisted that the group's capabilities have been disrupted in the wake of Sept. 11, but their intention to attack has not. Stressing the need for the Indonesian government to do more, he said that the Indonesian government has not proscribed or designated JI as a terrorist group, and the key is not only to remain on high alert but to pro-actively hunt and target and dismantle JI. Meanwhile, the expert said the group's threat to the city state was always there but the Singapore government was doing all the right things. Singapore has condemned the Bali bombings, and so far it has no confirmed reports of any Singaporean casualty. On Monday, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is scheduled to meet Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Bali for informal talks which will focus on bilateral and regional issues, including the fight against terrorism and ways to strengthen security cooperation. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |