Article

2003-12-19 Southeast Asia

Singapore to work closely with RI against terrorism

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Posted by Fred Pruitt 2003-12-19 00:08|| || Front Page|| [11131 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 I agree Indonesia had virtually no interest in policing Islamic militants before the Bali bombing, but do you really think they are a weaker link than Malaysia? My take is that the Indonesian government thought of all the Christian killing, etc. (e.g., the Aceh issue) as acceptable losses to keep the Islamic militants complacent. After the Bali bombings, the government recognized the miscalculation and took immediate steps to eliminate the threat (e.g., the current military action in Aceh, which up to that time was moving toward autonomy under a âpeace accordâ).

The great majority of Indonesians, perhaps especially those in the government, do not share the radical Islamofacist view of JI. In contrast, I think a much greater percentage of the government in Malaysia is sympathetic to JI. For that reason, Singapore really has to watch out. However, Singapore is quite good at internal and external security (one of the few countries to ever benefit from being under one-man rule).

Posted by cingold 2003-12-19 10:38:37 AM|| 2003-12-19 10:38:37 AM|| Front Page Top

#2 Megawati Sukarnoputri
I guess his parents lived near a power plant?

Posted by Dar 2003-12-19 11:34:10 AM|| 2003-12-19 11:34:10 AM|| Front Page Top

#3 Her parents. Sukarnoputri = daughter of Sukarno(leader of Indon from independence in 1949 to his death in 1965 "The Year of Living Dangerously") More or less a princess - like all them Nehru-Gandhis in India.

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-12-19 1:58:19 PM|| 2003-12-19 1:58:19 PM|| Front Page Top

#4 Yep--I'm an idiot... I read more of the articles linked to her name after I posted my feeble attempt at being witty. Live 'n' learn...

Posted by Dar 2003-12-19 2:15:36 PM|| 2003-12-19 2:15:36 PM|| Front Page Top

#5 Dar: [*rimshot*] that's all you get....

Posted by Alaska Paul 2003-12-19 2:27:44 PM|| 2003-12-19 2:27:44 PM|| Front Page Top

#6 Dar - forgiven :) we all make mistakes - Id like to go back and see that movie again, with WOT perspective.

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-12-19 3:48:48 PM|| 2003-12-19 3:48:48 PM|| Front Page Top

#7 Liberalhawk,

The movie (which I think provides a fairly balanced, if entertaining, view of those times) deals with a reporter (played by Mel Gibson) who goes to Indonesia right before a fairly serious attempted communist coup of the country and lives through those times. The movie underscores some of the deep seated problems of that country, many of which remain to be addressed, but does not really flesh out the attempted coup and how it was suppressed. The coup plotters took out (i.e., killed) virtually all the military leadership in Indonesia, but missed Suharto. The story is that Suharto escaped over the wall of his house and saw them killing his kid as he fled. He rallied the troops and purged the country of all communists following that . . . and of anyone accused of being a communist . . . and of anyone who could have been accused of being a communist . . . and of . . .

His rather crushing (pun intended) victory is what gave him the power to become president of Indonesia following the coup, and the power to introduce nepotism and to exert a most pervasive control over all sources of revenue (often resulting in familial gain). Sukarno lost favor because he had been friendly with the communists, or so the story goes. Now Suharto and his family are out, and the Sukarno family back in. Oh well, at least these are known commodities. The islamofascist problem is more recent than the events described in the movie, but the movie gives a good overview of the culture into which the fanatics are trying to graft their poison.

Posted by cingold 2003-12-19 4:30:47 PM|| 2003-12-19 4:30:47 PM|| Front Page Top

06:04 Mark Hart
15:33 ed
12:56 Daniel King
23:58 PBMcL
23:54 Les Nessman
23:37 OldSpook
23:09 Gasse Katze
22:56 Gasse Katze
22:55 Super Hose
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22:47 Alaska Paul
22:41 ed
22:40 Vic
22:39 Super Hose
22:30 JP
22:20 Super Hose
22:18 Super Hose
22:11 Super Hose
22:10 Matt
22:06 Glenn (not Reynolds)
21:56 True German Ally
21:55 Super Hose
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21:47 Glenn (not Reynolds)