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ASEAN Building Anti-Terrorist Front
JAKARTA, Sept 20 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The Philippines National Security Council (NSC) on Tuesday approved Speaker Jose de Venecia's proposal to create an anti-terrorist front in East Asia with Malaysia and Indonesia.
The NSC says it will be part of the global campaign planned by the United States against terrorism in line with the international coalition it is building.
The council took up the proposal at a meeting called by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to assess the situation resulting from the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.
Malaysia and Indonesia signified their intentions to join the front, saying they were also victims of terrorist attacks in the recent years. Malaysia is currently cracking down on a shadowy Malaysian Mujahidin Movement (KMM), while Indonesia has to deal with internal independence seeking groups.
Other violent acts in Jakarta, and several cities in Indonesia, have also been imputed to whom the government labels "terrorists".
The Philippines said it was also a victim of "terrorism" and revealed that four of the alleged hijackers last week in the U.S. had visited the country.
Jose de Venecia said the tri-nation agreement among Manila, Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur would be "sufficient to represent East Asia in the global antiterrorist coalition the United States intends to lead."
The Philippines stated that initial diplomatic consultations with Malaysia and Indonesia would be conducted immediately.
The agreement could have an "immediate practical and symbolic" effect for the Philippines by "isolating" the Abu Sayyaf and "outflanking adventurism moves being contemplated by extremists in other Muslim-led organizations."
The proposed agreement calls for a sharing of intelligence on activities, tighter control of the three countries' borders to stop the flow of weapons and terrorists and occasional joint peacekeeping operations.
De Venecia proposed extending the agreement later to include Brunei, Singapore and Thailand, and eventually the entire Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Philippines Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes said the threat of terrorism in the country has not waned, due in part to the Abu Sayyaf, and should not be taken lightly since the support from Osama bin Laden had not been cut off.
Bin Laden and his al-Qaeda group are the main suspects in the U.S. attacks.
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), however, urged the government Wednesday to exercise wisdom in its decision to support the U.S. in retaliating for the attacks.
"The real issue is: how shall we cooperate and be involved? In terms of gravity, we might line up some alternatives. Shall we limit ourselves to fighting terrorism in our midst? Shall we allow the use of former U.S. military bases? Shall we send medical teams? Probably the most serious alternative would be: should we send troops to fight?" asked Bishop Orlando Quevedo, a CBCP spokesman.
"I do not pretend to give a specific answer. Instead I suggest a process by which all the above alternatives are weighed in decision-making," he added.
With additional reporting by Kazi Mahmood
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