W

hile remaining on alert for potential terrorist attacks, the government said on Thursday that the country was safe for foreign travelers.

The statement was made in response to the Australian government'€™s decision to update its travel advisory to warn citizens of imminent attacks in Indonesia.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Agus Rianto said the police force had received intelligence on potential attacks and had escalated efforts to raid local militants.

He said the police had arrested dozens of terrorist suspects following the fatal attack on Jl. MH Thamrin in Central Jakarta last month.

'€œThroughout the country, the government and its people have been working together to prevent any possible terrorist attacks and you can feel it in how our citizens have been going about their daily activities normally. Of course other countries have the right to issue [travel advisories]. We can also show how safe our country is,'€ Agus said.

The police raided a military-style training camp for suspected radicals in Mount Sumbing, Central Java, last Saturday, although most men arrested that day were released.

A Terrorism Law revision is underway to strengthen measures to thwart militant groups'€™ propaganda.

Australia warned that terrorists might be '€œin the advanced stages'€ of preparing attacks in Indonesia and advised travelers to take precautions, just days after a similar warning about neighboring Malaysia.

'€œRecent indications suggest that terrorists may be in the advanced stages of preparing attacks in Indonesia,'€ the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said in an updated travel advisory, which specified locations such as Jakarta, Bali and Lombok.

The advisory did not raise the overall threat level, which is at '€œexercise a high degree of caution'€, and noted that the department continued to '€œreceive information that indicates that terrorists may be planning attacks in Indonesia, which could take place anywhere at any time'€.

It said travelers should be particularly careful in places with low levels of security and at possible terrorist targets, listing previous attack sites such as nightclubs, bars, cafes, restaurants, international hotels, airports and places of worship.

Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said Jakarta respected the Canberra advisory but added that the situation was under control in Indonesia.

'€œIndonesia is very safe and the government is maintaining security,'€ Pramono said.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said Indonesia always maintained its alertness to anticipate any potential threats, independent from warnings such as Australia'€™s travel advisory.

'€œAustralia has the right to do so because, in certain situations, Indonesia also carries out the same measure [a travel advisory] for its citizens,'€ Retno said.

The ministry'€™s spokesperson Arrmanatha Nasir said the travel advisory should not be translated into a higher degree of precautionary measures.

Arrmanatha added that Indonesian and Australian authorities had been communicating intensively, underlining that '€œno information or indications regarding terrorists'€™ activities are left unshared between authorities of the two countries'€.

Terrorism expert Al Chaidar told The Jakarta Post that many radical groups across the country were in fact ready to commit attacks but were limited by funding.

'€œRadical groups in Indonesia are actually prepared to conduct similar attacks to the one at Sarinah [on Jl. MH Thamrin] as long as they receive donations because funding is one of their main obstacles. Another obstacle that prevents radical groups from launching attacks is the fact that many have been torn apart due to disagreements over support for the Islamic State,'€ he said, referring to the movement that the Sarinah terrorists supported.