ASIAN AFFAIRS ON TERRORISM by Abdullah Badawi Prime Ministre of Malaysia
1. We live in uncertain, if not depressing, times. The optimism that swept through the region for much of the last decade has given way to sober reflection in many quarters. Many key indicators - political, economic as well as security - are showing a downward trend. We are tinkering dangerously with the norms and institutions that underpin global and regional order, doing it serious damage. Worse, some of us are doing this without even seeming to care about the consequences so long as our narrow national interests are perceived as being met. The tragedy of it is, the interests are not in reality being met, and all, including the innocent and the bystander, will pay - and pay dearly. 2. We can of course, still point to a few things that are going right. The worst of the financial crisis that swept through much of East Asia appears to be past. Domestic reforms have made tangible progress in most countries. Critics of globalization who were once dismissed as ignorant heretics and apologists for the weaknesses of their own systems are now given the respect they deserve. The dangers of unfettered, uncaring globalization are now acknowledged everywhere, they are acknowledged even by the erstwhile globalization fundamentalists. Even more gratifying is that some quarters which paid little more than lip service to efforts to alleviate some of the worst excesses of globalization are now stirring themselves to do more, if only because they think this is one way to mitigate the conditions in which terrorism thrives. 3. We are also relieved that the Al-Qaeda infrastructure is virtually smashed in Afghanistan though leading remnants including perhaps Osama himself remain active. Elsewhere too relentless pressure is being applied upon the Al-Qaeda network. Nearly every country in the world has rightly joined in the campaign against the scourge. My country is very much a part of this campaign, and we continue to play a leading role. We play this role both on our own and in cooperation with our neighbours in the region. Countering terrorism is nothing new to us. 4. There is, too, a welcome realisation in Islamic countries that their religion is being distorted and hijacked by militant extremists, and that effective measures need to be taken to fight this abomination, or succumb to it. The biggest victim of this abomination has been the Muslim world itself, not the West. 5. Closer to home we are elated with the positive developments in Myanmar. We hope they presage the emergence of a democratic political process in the country, and that the outside world engages fully with it in full realisation of the difficult issues involved for all parties. Political change has never been simple or easy for any country. It was never simple or easy for many of the countries of Asia either. Those of us who are impatient with the pace of future developments in Myanmar should be sobered by our own respective national experiences. Let me note here too that as far as outside factors for the recent changes in Myanmar are involved, it was quiet, patient diplomacy that finally won the day, not brute force or loud intervention. 6. These are some of the things that appear to be going right in the region and elsewhere. But they pale in comparison with the many more things that appear to be going wrong. The prevailing global order is being altered by the cumulative impact of these developments. The emerging structure appears even less pretty than the old, and less desirable to the majority of the countries and peoples of the world. As usual, many in the world will wake up too late to realise the full impact of current developments, and be moved to act only when it is too late. By then they will be told by the powerful and their friends to do the “wise” thing, that is accept the fait accompli, because there is little that can be done about it. 7. Let me elaborate. The Al-Qaeda infrastructure in Afghanistan is smashed, but its network elsewhere remains largely intact. Much more importantly, the anger and the grievances which breed movements like the Al-Qaeda have grown in the aftermath of September 11. They have grown not only because we have failed to address the root causes, but also because some of our actions in the aftermath are aggravating the situation further rather than alleviating it. 8. If we continue along this path the terrorist threat will grow. It will not diminish. Beefing up surveillance and strengthening security measures can never provide adequate protection. Arming ourselves to the teeth is no answer either. No armour however thick, no ordinance however powerful, no weapon however smart, can provide sufficient intimidation. It is just a matter of time. Modern society is vulnerable at a thousand points. Its defences are easily breached by those driven by a burning cause, and with nothing to lose. 9. The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is spinning out of control. Violence is begetting violence as terrorist actions are resorted to by both, or should one say, many sides. Israel is employing state terrorism to occupy and further expand illegal occupation of Palestinian land. The Palestinian extremists, bereft of tanks and attack helicopters but bounteously endowed with home-made bombs and eager volunteers, are responding by employing terrorism to force Israel to withdraw from occupied land. 10. Afghanistan is still in intensive care. While the camera continues to focus on the largely fruitless military operations against suspected remnant Al-Qaeda positions and the sprucing up in the capital, the real and continuing tragedy of Afghanistan goes mainly unnoticed and uncared for. As is too often the case in such instances, many countries have blatantly reneged on promises of assistance for reconstruction after the widespread destruction caused by the bombing on the country. Millions continue to be hungry, homeless, displaced and destitute in the cratered countryside. There is anarchy and warlord rule in many provinces. The situation is reminiscent of the conditions that made a desperate populace welcome the austere justice of Taliban rule six years ago. Under the Taliban, Afghans led a brutish existence. Their lot continues to be mercilessly brutish today. 11. On the South Asian subcontinent, two nations are on the verge of going to war with one another for the third time in the last fifty years. Both have nuclear weapons. Neither will win. But the consequences will be catastrophic for both countries as well as the region. 12. Some tell us that the decision to attack Iraq has already been taken. It is now, apparently, only a question of time. What has been provided as evidence of an Iraqi programme for weapons of mass destruction has not satisfied the international community, but the decision apparently, is to go ahead with or without international approval, and with or without a United Nations mandate. 13. Let there be no doubt. An attack on Iraq will have profound consequences both within the country and in the region, especially if it is carried out without credible grounds and bereft of the legitimacy accorded by international law. 14. Many nations are also not doing enough to address the conditions that breed instability, unrest, militancy and terrorism in their countries. Legitimate political aspirations are denied, democratic space is lacking, and socioeconomic conditions continue to be desperate. When people have no other avenue for redress, they will take up arms and embark on a path of violence. This kind of phenomenon has occurred in may countries, from France in the eighteen century to South Africa in the last. 15. In Muslim countries, or countries with large Muslim populations, not enough is being done to prevent the religion from being subverted by militants to serve their own narrow ends. Jihad, or struggle, is a much abused concept, and is employed to justify violent action even against innocent civilians. Hate against the establishment and non-believers is being propagated in countless madrasahs or religious schools in some countries. 16. Developments in the Asia Pacific region have not been all positive either. We lost many months of possible progress towards reconciliation in the Korean peninsula when the sunshine policy was scuttled early last year for reasons that are still not clear. Since then additional requirements have been imposed upon Pyongyang, and the rhetoric against the North Korean government has become steadily more strident. In fact, those who do not know better could easily come to the mistaken conclusion that the last thing some of us want to see is a political settlement. 17. The Cross-Straits issue has deteriorated significantly too. Tensions have been raised by unnecessarily provocative statements and actions in the last few months. The problem in this is that it is so easy to undermine sentiment, and so difficult to repair the damage. We will need to manage this issue with all due caution and sensitivity. 18. I can point to other negative developments in the global and regional strategic situation too, but I prefer to now focus on some of the challenges confronting us in these difficult times, four to be precise. 19. The greatest challenge, I believe, is leadership. The world, this region, look to new leadership from the powerful states. We need global powers with global vision and with global interests at heart. Powerful states that pursue very narrow interests do not attain global leadership. They forfeit it. 20. We look to leadership that is committed to global norms and international law. We look to powerful states to set the example and that lead by example. States that do not respect the norms and laws that they themselves helped to invent, or comply only when it is convenient, will not only forfeit the right to global leadership, they will lose the moral authority to enjoin upon other states to respect these same norms and laws, and to discipline them when they do not. They become no different from these other states that flout international norms and international law. To borrow a term popular in some countries now, they lose “moral clarity”. 21. We look to global leadership that fully supports and fully participates in global institutions that are dedicated to the promotion of peace and prosperity. We expect the major powers to uphold the principles of the United Nations charter and help the United Nations fulfil its promise and purpose. 22. We expect leadership that champions global equity - leadership that promotes the king of globalization that benefits the majority of the peoples of the world. Leadership committed to policies that reduce the ranks of the poor and the marginalized. 23. The second challenge confronting us is clearly the need to counter terrorism against innocent civilians, and counter it with full commitment and effectiveness. Different states are faced with different threats and different challenges. Their priorities can be different, and rightly so. The priority for Argentina for instance would be recovery from the economic crisis. It overshadows every other concern. In Venezuela the overriding issue is political stability following a failed coup to overthrow the president. Many developing countries are confronted with enormous problems of poverty, unemployment, disease and even political instability. 24. But none of these understandably higher national priorities need prevent us from working individually and collectively to eliminate terrorism that straddles borders and girdles the globe. International terrorism, even if directed against specific countries and their interests, becomes a common problem when terrorists use our territory, our financial institutions, our philanthropic bodies, and our political, ethnic or religious organisations to plan, support or launch terrorist attacks. 25. Malaysia is fully engaged in the current global campaign against international terrorism. We believe the world must be made safe from this scourge of all humanity. We work on our own and with our neighbours in Asean. We are a leading and a moderating influence in the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC). We abide scrupulously by UN resolutions. We cooperate fully with the United States following the September 11 attacks, which we have condemned unreservedly. Just last month we entered into a bilateral declaration on cooperation to combat international terrorism with the United States. We view this as a major step forward in enhancing our cooperation with the United States and hope that this will provide the impetus to strengthen our commitment to jointly fight terrorism. 26. We believe vigilance, sound intelligence, effective protective and preventive security measures, denial of funding and other support, and punitive action against terrorist elements, are critical elements of a successful counter-insurgency campaign. Malaysia will do all it can to further enhance capacity and cooperation in this field. 27. A successful counter-terrorism strategy however, cannot be confined to punitive or deterrent action alone. When the threat is small and is limited to the lunatic fringe of society punitive measures may be all that is needed. But when terrorism springs from massive discontent and mass perception of manifest and blatant injustices, punitive action alone will not work. It will only intensify the anger and the rage, and swell the ranks of potential terrorists. Terrorist attacks are merely the weapons of the terrorists. Defending against these weapons alone will not suffice. We need to find out why war is being waged by these groups. 28. To successfully defeat terrorism we have no choice but to address the root causes. The issues which terrorists use to mobilise support will have to be neutralised. This will often necessitate reform, concession and compromise. This was the lesson we learned early in our long but successful campaign against the communist terrorists in this country. This is also the lesson from the other countries too, from South Africa to Sri Lanka. 29. The root causes of course differ from movement to movement. Terrorist movements can arise because ordinary people rebel against political oppression, genocide or foreign occupation. Terrorism can have its roots in economic hardship, the desire to change systems of government by force, or the will to secede. Often terrorism exploits ethnic or religious themes to give it character and legitimacy and to enhance appeal. 30. What makes terrorism abhorrent is not necessarily the cause. In some cases the cause may be noble - such as liberation or independence. It is the methods employed by the terrorists that we object to. Hijacking planes and crashing them into buildings; attacking trains and buses and places of worship; killing innocent men, women and children; wanton destruction of the homes and property of defenceless villagers and forced takeover and settlement of their land - these are some of the terrorist acts we find evil and unacceptable. 31. But terrorism cannot be eliminated without addressing root causes. Brute military force backed by other security measures may subdue terrorist elements for a while, but they will come back to fight another day because the conditions that created them remain. In this regard, I would like to inform you that at the recently concluded Asean Ministerial meeting on terrorism, for the first time, addressing the root causes of terrorism was included in the joint communiqué for further action among Asean members' countries. Malaysia views this as a positive development in the approach governments must take to fight terrorism. 32. In the present war against international terrorism all eyes are on terrorist groups originating in the Arab and Muslim world. The most prominent reason for their existence and support cited by the West in particular, and then taken up by the rest, is the lack of democracy and poor governance in the relevant Arab and Muslim countries. Globalization’s uneven benefits and grinding poverty are also cited sometimes. 33. These factors no doubt contribute to terrorism. They breed resentment and hostility and encourage militant inclinations. But they do not explain why the international terrorists then pick other targets, not their own governments. No terrorist leader, not a single captured terrorist, has also ever said that the evils of globalization were what drove him to join international terrorist movements. 34. What is it then, that enabled the Al-Qaeda to recruit so many members and supporters, especially in the Arab and Central Asian region, and forge links elsewhere? Put simply, it tapped Arab anger. It exploited Muslim rage. And the issue which most angers Arabs and Muslims is the Palestinian issue. It is the perceived injustices committed by Israel, and the foreign political and military support that enables to commit them. 35. The bulk of Arabs and Muslims are now prepared to accept an Israeli state forced upon them by the West, and established on what was Palestinian land. But they cannot accept Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory beyond the 1967 border. They cannot accept the sinister and sustained, 30-year campaign to expand illegal settlements at the expense of the Palestinian population they evict. In other words they are reacting like any self-respecting people would do, like all of us would do, if it were our land that was occupied by a foreign force. They also demand the same rights that we would exercise including the right to defend their land by all necessary means. 36. Muslim anger is also fuelled by the impunity with which Israel ignores and flouts U.N. resolutions, and the protection it receives in the world body from friends that prevent any enforceable sanctions being imposed upon Israel to induce withdrawal. They note with cynicism the sanctions that are imposed with ease and enforced with passion on other countries for lesser crimes. 37. International terrorism that springs from this source cannot be quelled without resolving the Palestinian-Israeli issue. An eminently fair and balanced basis for settlement is provided in the latest Arab peace plan. It envisages an Israeli state and a Palestinian state demarcated by the 1967 border and living in peace with one another. If this is not acceptable to Israel nothing ever will. So long as a negotiated settlement seems impossible and Israel refuses to withdraw, Arab and Muslim anger against those perceived to be responsible will remain, and movements like the Al-Qaeda will find ready recruits and supporters. It is therefore important that the international community and the United Sates in particular work credibly and vigorously towards achieving an early political settlement. 38. The third challenge I would like to talk about is the challenge of China. China has become a matter of some concern to many countries, especially after its accession into the W.T.O last year. China is difficult to ignore. One in every two persons in the Asia Pacific region including the United States lives in China. Its economy is worth US$1.6 trillion, and is currently growing at one-fourteenth its size each year. In PPP terms it is half the size of the US economy and one and a half times the size of the Japanese economy. The Asean economies combined are only one-third of the Chinese economy. 39. Southeast Asia economies including my own country Malaysia are particularly worried. Much of the FDI that they used to receive is going to China. In the year 2000 more than half the total FDI inflow into developing countries went to China. Many Asean economies are concerned about losing competitive edge in strategic sectors like manufacturing. China’s stability, huge potential market, rising purchasing power, cheaper labour and other production costs, and falling tariffs, are giving the country massive advantage over many others. 40. These concerns are real and justified. But I would like to suggest that enormous though the China challenge is, equally enormous is the China opportunity. Countries that fail to recognise this are only denying themselves. China will be the new growth engine for much of East Asia. China’s imports are expected to double within the next five years, and 60 percent of them are likely to come from East Asia. Reduced tariffs will open the huge China market to the outside world even more. 41. China is in great need of infrastructure development. There are enormous opportunities here for all of us. As the people of China become more affluent, they will not only consume more, they will also travel more. The region and the world can take full advantage of this to lure the Chinese traveller. Last year more than 12 million Chinese travelled abroad, compared to only 5 million just five years earlier. 42. I believe we must fully participate in China’s development, and seek to prosper ourselves even as China prospers. 43. The fourth challenge that I would like to touch upon is the challenge of making the Asia Pacific region a safer, more tranquil place. Thankfully East Asia today has more peace than Africa, Europe, West Asia or South Asia. But this should be no cause for complacency. As I noted earlier, there has been a steady deterioration of the flashpoints of the region, namely the Korean Peninsula and the Cross-Straits issue. 44. In addition, hawkish attitudes prevail. Hostility towards China often increases, for no apparently satisfactory reason. Like any other country, China will be forced to respond, to the detriment of our regional harmony. 45. Military stakes are also being raised dangerously in the region and around the world. Military expenditures in some countries have skyrocketed, forcing others to raise their own as best they can. Nations that once admonished others who increase spending on arms and stigmatised them as bad and as threatening an arms race, are now engaged in precipitating their own. We accumulate weapons of mass destruction even as we condemn others for doing so and seek to strip them of the same. 46. This military enhancement is to be regretted all the more because it is being indulged in by countries that already tower above all others in terms of military capacity. Nations with the most sophisticated weapons in the world are unsatisfied. They seek even more advanced and lethal systems. Nations with the farthest military reach are seeking to extend them even more, and prodding their allies to join the scheme. 47. This approach is wholly unnecessary. It is militarising the Asia Pacific landscape further. Overwhelming military power will not solve all problems or yield the security we seek. It will not deter or protect against terror. Instead it merely aggravates suspicion and tensions between countries. 48. There is thus fresh urgency for the major powers in the region to demilitarise approaches to security building in the region. Regional security will be better served if there is a serious effort to temper belligerence and moderate pressures on other countries. There will be greater promise for peace on the Korean Peninsula if talks are imbued with a less antagonistic and more conciliatory atmosphere. Relations between China and Taiwan would not be as problematic if there was less provocation and instigation, including by third parties. There will be greater amity in the region if we scale down unreasonable ideological zeal, and cease distorting and reducing virtually every issue to a contest between democracy and authoritarianism. 49. Examining issues dispassionately and objectively is never easy. Governments find it particularly difficult to do so and often find themselves constrained in expressing their views frankly. Kuala-Lumpur - June 2002 | ||||
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