November 5, 2001	Monday	haba’an 18, 1422

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (Brunei) Nov 4: Leaders of 10 Southeast Asian nations adopted Sunday a joint statement condemning terrorism “in the strongest terms” and agreed to cooperate to combat it following the September 11 terror attacks on the United States.

The declaration was agreed at a working dinner on the eve of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) annual summit among Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The statement, headed “Joint Action to Counter Terrorism” made no reference to the US retaliatory attacks on Afghanistan which have been criticised by predominantly Muslim nations Indonesia and Malaysia.

“We unequivocally condemn in the strongest terms the horrifying terrorist attacks in New York City, Washington DC and Pennsylvania on September 11 and consider such acts as an attack against humanity and an assault on all of us,” the statement said.

More than 4,500 people from some 60 countries were killed in the attacks.

The ASEAN leaders also called for a review and strengthening of national mechanisms in the region to combat terrorism through enhanced cooperation among “frontline” law enforcement agencies.

Asked whether the wording in the statement was strong enough to reflect ASEAN’s determination to tackle terrorism, Singapore’s Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said: “I’m quite pleased with it.”

ASEAN secretary-general Rodolfo Severino said the exchange of views on terrorism among the leaders during the working dinner “was quite interesting.”

The leaders in their statement urged the United Nations to play a “major role” at the international level in combating terrorism.

The United States has come under pressure to seek United Nations backing and coordination for its self-declared war on international terrorism.

Russia and China are among countries which have called for greater UN participation in the fight against terrorism amid unease over the affect on civilians of the US-led air strikes.

During a series of ASEAN meetings in Brunei to prepare the leaders’ declaration, Indonesia and Malaysia spoke up against the US-led retaliatory air strikes against Afghanistan which they charged were killing innocent people without stamping out terrorism.

Singapore and the Philippines however backed the strikes on Afghanistan.

The ASEAN group operates by consensus.

The Taliban hardline Islamic regime in Kabul is accused by the US of harbouring Osama bin Laden, the main suspect in the September 11 attacks on New York’s World Trade Center and the Pentagon in Washington.

The ASEAN leaders will hold their formal talks on Monday before meeting their counterparts from Japan, China and South Korea as part of their annual dialogue.

MALAYSIA FAVOURS UN LEAD: Malaysia is pushing for the United Nations to lead the war against terrorism and remains opposed to the US-led bombing in Afghanistan, foreign minister Syed Hamid Albar said Sunday.

Syed Hamid said Malaysia’s position had received favourable response from several other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), whose leaders are meeting here for annual talks.

He said other ASEAN member states felt “there should be cooperation in combating terrorism in a comprehensive manner at regional or international level under the auspices of the UN.”

Syed Hamid said the US-led air strikes should stop immediately since the bombings would not flush out the terrorists who staged the attacks in the United States on September 11.

“Using the arsenal of war has not brought out the terrorists. It has created humanitarian problems. Innocent civilians suffer,” he said.

Syed Hamid said if the US bombing — which had been going on for the last four weeks — was long and drawn out, it would have deep and far reaching political and economic consequences.

“We feel the bombing and war will not solve the problem of getting the terrorists,” he said.

Asked if ASEAN had reached a common position to urge the US to stop the bombing, Syed Hamid said: “Each individual country is making its own position.”

Singapore and the Philippines have backed the US-led military strikes in Afghanistan but the region’s biggest Muslim nations — Indonesia and Malaysia — have criticised the attacks, which have exacted heavy casualties among civilians.

Syed Hamid said Malaysia hoped that ASEAN would continue to be a strong body playing an important role in international affairs and would work together for a common objective to ensure economic growth.

The seventh ASEAN summit will be the first meeting of all the Southeast Asian leaders since the September terror attacks in the United States.

ASEAN comprises Brunei, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam.—AFP