Distinguished Co-chairs,

The Foreign Minister of Indonesia, H.E. Pak N. Hassan Wirajuda,
The Foreign Minister of Australia, H.E. Pak Alexander Downer

Excellencies,
Delegates,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you Co-Chairs for convening this meeting in Bali. You could not have chosen a more appropriate setting. I’d like to thank the hosts for the sumptuous lunch and gracious hospitality, which is not a legend but a reality.

At the outset I wish to thank our partners in ASEAN for presenting to you what we in the Southeast Asian region are actively doing collectively in responding to the challenges of terrorism. This is ASEAN regional cooperation in action.

I also thank the ASEAN Secretariat for its contribution contained in the brochure entitled, “ASEAN’s Efforts to Counter Terrorism.”

I also acknowledge the APEC Secretariat Paper on APEC’s contribution to regional and international efforts to combat terrorism.

Having worked closely with both organizations in my previous life, I know how much work is put into coordinating such an activity as cooperation in counter-terrorism. Thank you, ASEAN and APEC Secretariats.

My presentation therefore will focus on our national efforts—policies and activities—to address the very real and immediate threat of terrorism and other transnational crimes in the context of our membership in ASEAN, APEC, and other regional organizations.

Introduction
Since 1995, the Philippines has been a major player in the fight against terrorism after Philippine authorities uncovered three terrorist plots, namely:

1. an attempt to assassinate the Pope in Manila during his visit in 1995;

2. a conspiracy to bomb US airliners in Asia called Operation Bojinka; and

3. a plan to recruit pilots to hijack US jetliners in the continental United States and slam the planes into government and commercial buildings.

The evidence gathered by Philippine authorities subsequently led to the arrest and conviction of the mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

Aware of the likely impact of terrorist attacks on foreign investments, the Philippines in 1996 hosted the first ever international conference on counter-terrorism in Asia.

Since then, important progress has been made, but unresolved conflicts and the rise of extremism have provided new breeding grounds for terrorism. A terrorism expert likened terrorists to entrepreneurs who bring together 3 M’s: mission, money, and market share.

No matter how we characterize terrorists, one thing is clear: terrorists can cross borders at will, while governments cannot.  A government’s ability to protect its citizens is limited by the degree in which some other government would be willing and able to extend assistance. Terrorists operate in a borderless world, but enforcement and countermeasures are constrained by these borders.

Thus, defending ourselves demands unprecedented international cooperation. Just as terrorists work together to move men, material, and money across borders, coordination among us is essential to prevent terrorists from taking advantage of national borders and perhaps any loophole between national authorities and, yes, within some countries.

Counter-terrorism cooperation in the region

The war on terrorism in Southeast Asia has continued apace, and governments in the region deserve credit for the arrests of more than 200 JI members in the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, and Thailand. JI is not a large organization. The fact that it is now focusing on soft targets such as tourist venues may indicate institutional weakness.  But it would be foolish to underestimate their capabilities to launch devastating terrorist attacks across the region.
 
The UN Counter-terrorism Committee (CTC) has determined that regional co-operation is fundamental to the fight against terrorism. In March 2003, regional and sub-regional organizations committed themselves to share their expertise on regional cooperation on counter-terrorism activities, recognizing that they had a unique contribution to make in helping their members to implement UN resolution 1373, through capacity-building to combat terrorism on a regional as well as a national level.

Cooperation in ASEAN

Significantly, on 5 November 2001, the ASEAN Leaders adopted the ASEAN Declaration on Joint Action to Counter Terrorism, which recognized terrorism as a profound threat to international peace and security and “a direct challenge to the attainment of peace, progress, and prosperity of ASEAN.”

A Work Programme, adopted in May 2002, to Implement the ASEAN Plan of Action to Combat Transnational Crime includes a Terrorism Component.  The Work Programme has six strategic thrusts: information exchange, cooperation in legal matters, cooperation in law enforcement, institutional capacity-building, and extra-regional cooperation.

In addition, ASEAN senior officials are also looking at the feasibility of a regional convention to combat terrorism, and a regional mutual legal assistance treaty.

In January this year, ASEAN’s ministers in charge of combating transnational crime met, for the first time, with their counterparts from Japan, China, and the Republic of Korea, the so-called ASEAN+3 countries, to discuss how to effectively tackle transnational crime, including terrorism, through capacity-building efforts and information sharing. ASEAN is also working closely with India, the U.S., and the EU in the money-laundering, law enforcement, diplomatic, legal, and intelligence fields. Bilaterally, we are working on a rapid reaction mechanism with the EU.

At the recently concluded FEALAC Ministerial Meeting in Manila, 32 Foreign Ministers of Asian and Latin American countries mentioned that drug trafficking has been used as a means of financing terrorist groups. In fact, we all know that international organized crime often finds it profitable to supply the demand for illegal weapons, narcotics, trafficking in persons, and so-called “safe” havens in their unholy alliances throughout the world.

 Cooperation in the ASEAN Regional Forum

The events of 9/11 gave the ASEAN Regional Forum a "shot in the arm," by giving it a new focus. In addition to several declarations by the ARF Ministers on forging a common stance against this scourge, several workshops and seminars on the prevention of terrorist attacks, consequence management, and counter-terrorism financing have taken place under the ambit of the ARF. The ARF Ministers also established in 2002 an Inter-sessional Meeting on Counter-terrorism and Transnational Crime (ISM on CT-TC) to provide a vehicle for the interaction and networking among law enforcement officials as well as tackling the practical  (i.e., operational) concerns of counter-terrorism.  The inaugural ISM, which was co-chaired by Malaysia and the United States, tackled border control and travel document security.  Next month, the Philippines will be co-chairing with our neighbor Russia the Second ARF ISM on CT-TC, with a special focus on transport security as it relates to counter-terrorism. I would like to take this opportunity to invite participants to that meeting.

 Cooperation in APEC

The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum was originally conceived to focus on trade liberalization and facilitation matters.  But 9/11 prompted APEC to face terrorism, as it directly challenged APEC's goals of free, open and prosperous economies.  Thus, an APEC Counter Terrorism Task Force (CTTF)—ably chaired by Indonesia—was formed to coordinate the implementation of the APEC Leaders' Statement on Fighting Terrorism and Promoting Growth. The Task Force assists APEC economies to identify and assess counter-terrorism needs, coordinates capacity building and technical assistance programs, cooperates with international and regional organizations and facilitates cooperation between APEC fora on counter-terrorism issues. The key priorities in APEC include: the Secure Trade in the APEC Region (STAR) initiative to secure and enhance the flow of goods and people through measures to protect cargo, ships, international aviation, and people in transit; halting the financing of terrorism; promoting cyber security; the energy security initiative; and protecting the health of communities.  In support of the STAR initiative mandated by the APEC leaders, the Philippines hosted the APEC High Level Meeting on Maritime Security Cooperation last year, linking regional efforts to maritime security concerns of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Last October, APEC Leaders committed at Bangkok to take all essential actions to eliminate the severe and growing danger posed by the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems, as well as the terrorists’ acquisition and use of Man-Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS).

 Sub-regional cooperation

At the sub-regional level, the Leaders of the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) had their first Summit last year where they emphasized the need to ensure the safety and security of the growth area to enable their economic initiatives to prosper. Defense Ministers of the four countries met to brainstorm on ways and means to reduce, if not totally eradicate, incidents of trans-border crimes within the sub-region.

Complementing this initiative is the Agreement on Information Exchange and Establishment of Communication Procedures signed in May 2002 by the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Cambodia, Thailand, and Brunei recently acceded to the Agreement. In accordance with the Agreement, Manila hosted in 2003 the Multilateral Simulation Exercise, which produced the proposed Terms of Reference of the Joint Committee and Communication cum Liaison Center.

While I have stressed the international and regional nature of the terrorist threat, and outlined the regional and sub-regional response to it, inevitably much of the war against terrorism takes place within national boundaries. Allow me now to briefly discuss measures undertaken by the Philippine government to fight this evil menace.

Philippine counter-terrorism campaign

As a matter of national policy, the Philippine Government considers terrorism a criminal act and adopts a no-compromise policy toward terrorists.

Prior to 9/11, successive Philippine administrations initiated a number of moves to curb terrorism among other security threats.  These moves included the creation of counter-terrorism coordinating mechanisms like the Peace and Order Councils at various levels of government, the establishment of think tanks, such as the Philippine Center on Transnational Crime, to increase knowledge about the threat of transnational crimes including terrorism.

At this point I wish to welcome the initiative to establish the Indonesian Center for Law Enforcement Cooperation in cooperation with Australia. The Center, whose establishment was announced this morning, aims to enhance the operational expertise of regional law enforcement personnel in dealing with transnational crime. It is our hope that our own Philippine Center on Transnational Crime could establish linkages with the Indonesian Center, specifically on activities that would impact at the local level—that is, even villages.

In the wake of the September 11 attacks, the Philippines was one of the first countries to join the worldwide coalition of nations that committed itself to combat terrorism.  To implement this commitment, President Arroyo initiated a 16-Point Counter-Terrorism Program, which highlighted the participation of local and national government in clearing the country of terrorists and criminal coddlers as well as strengthening of the peace process between the Philippine government and secessionist and rebel groups.

The government’s 16-point counter-terrorism program has been clustered into a “Three-Tiered Defense System,” which is now being adopted by the whole system of government in the Philippines.

The Three Tiered Defense Plan is as follows:

 - Tier 1 of the Defense Plan: “Strengthening intelligence.” The first tier of the defense plan addresses the need to know the enemy and identify their potential targets. This requires police-military and community partnership.

 - Tier 2 of the Defense Plan: “Target Hardening.”  The second tier of the Defense Plan addresses the need to make it difficult for the terrorists to succeed in their targets; and

 - Tier 3 of the Defense Plan: “Consequence Management.” The last tier of the Defense Plan addresses the need to effectively convey to the public the government’s anti-terrorism strategy.

We have strengthened our legal framework as well to allow the intelligence sector and law enforcement agencies to better perform their duties.  Moreover, the Philippines has signed and ratified all 12 international conventions on terrorism.

Conclusion

Co-Chairs, international cooperation in combating terrorism has been unprecedented.  We have contributed to the global coalition through the arrest of leading terrorists in the region.

But much remains to be done. The end to terrorism will be long in coming and will demand that the countries in the region develop their capability and capacity for continuing efforts at preventing, suppressing, and eliminating terrorism and terrorist-related activities.

While we are determined to limit the ability of terrorists to carry out terrorist acts or find refuge, and eventually to eradicate terrorism, bilaterally and multilaterally, these terrorists are as determined to wreak fear and havoc in our societies.

We hope that at the end of this meeting, new initiatives in exploring further specific collegial efforts to combat our common enemy will be forged.

In conclusion, I would like to echo the sentiment expressed by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan when he said that we must make clear, by word and deed, not only that we are fighting terrorists, but also that we are standing, indeed fighting, for something – for peace, for resolution of conflict, for human rights, for development.

Thank you.