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Govt calls for public partnership to counter terrorism
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President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo gets off a golf cart, accompanied by Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto and Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung at the State Palace in Jakarta on Nov. 3. (Antara/Puspa Perwitasari)
Efforts to fight terrorism will be ineffective without the help of citizens across the country, a minister says.
Therefore, the public’s role is crucial to back law enforcers in identifying individuals or groups that pose a threat to the unity of the country.
“[Counterterrorism] is not only the job of law enforcers. All citizens can get involved by filing reports of activities aimed at impeding [communities’ initiatives],” Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto said on the sidelines of the sixth World Peace Forum in Jakarta on Thursday evening.
Wiranto emphasized the role of the public to help stop “intruders” from promoting terrorism during a planned large-scale demonstration against inactive Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja "Ahok" Purnama on Friday. He also pointed to the vulnerability of Indonesia becoming a battle ground for radical groups as a constitutionally secular state with the largest Muslim population in the world.
“Staging a rally to express opinions in public is legal. Promoting terrorism or radicalism is not,” Wiranto said. “Terrorism is deviant because this ideology destroys and encourages killings”.
Jakarta is expecting around 50,000 people from various cities to take part in the rally to demand the prosecution of Ahok over allegations of blasphemy. The anti-Ahok rally was arranged by the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) and its supporters across the archipelago. (dmr)
