The Advertiser (Australia)
Tuesday, July 21, 2009

By Alexander Downer

The struggle against Islamic terrorists in Indonesia is long and hard - it is a struggle for the long term.

IF YOU believe in God, say a prayer for all our staff at the Australian Embassy in Indonesia. Staff died in 2004 when the Embassy was attacked by terrorists, in a plane crash in 2007 and now an Austrade officer has been killed.

It's been quite a while since terrorists have launched attacks in Indonesia - three years. For those living outside Indonesia, you could be excused - at least until last Friday - for thinking terrorism has come to an end there. But if you had been in Indonesia over the past few weeks, as I was, you'd know the threat remained. Western hotels were strongly protected with all the latest security paraphernalia.

I went with a friend to the Ritz-Carlton - one of the hotels which was bombed last week - to have a coffee about two months ago. The hotel had all the security of an international airport. It was protected with concrete blocks a little like those used along Dequetteville Tce during the V8 races.

Our car was stopped by security guards before we arrived at the entrance, the boot was opened and inspected, guards used a mirror on a stick to check under the car and as we walked into the hotel we passed through a metal-detector. This was not a sign that the Indonesian police and intelligence services thought the terrorist threat had passed.

Equally, Australian authorities in Indonesia are heavily protected with bomb-resistant materials on their buildings and bullet-proof cars. The Ambassador has permanent, close personal protection from the Indonesian police.

The fact is, Indonesia has done a good job fighting terrorism but as we have been harshly reminded, it hasn't solved the problem.

These attacks in Jakarta are not just random attacks. Two obvious facts prove that. The bombs were all detonated within a fairly short time and the targets were all symbols of Western influence in Indonesia. Remember, the Marriott Hotel has been attacked before. So has the Australian Embassy and night clubs and restaurants in Bali; all Western symbols.

As with the first Bali bombings, Friday's operation was planned meticulously. That suggests experienced people were behind it with a clear knowledge of everything from bomb-making to the penetration of the extensive security at five-star hotels.

All this points to an attack by the loose affiliation of Islamist extremists known as Jemaah Islamiah. Several of its leaders have been arrested or killed in recent years, but obviously not all of them. The most important detainee is a man known as Hambali who was the link between Jemaah Islamiah and al-Qaida. He's now in Guantanamo Bay. But another JI mastermind, Noordin Top, is still on the run and it's a small number of people like him who are almost certain to be behind Friday's atrocities.

The irony of Friday's attack is that the Indonesian authorities, supported by Australia in particular, have done an excellent job trying to close down terrorist cells in Indonesia. Much-improved intelligence has led to plans being disrupted and lives saved. Importantly, the Indonesian Government has very successfully disrupted the links between JI and the broader international terrorist networks such as al-Qaida.

Above all, the Indonesians have turned public opinion against these extremists. As recent elections in Indonesia have shown, support for the more Islamist political parties has all but evaporated. The three major presidential candidates were all at the more secular end of the political spectrum and the winner, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, won in a canter without pushing any overtly Islamist messages.

WHAT Friday's bombing proves is it's very hard in a country of over 200 million people to close down every person who is a murderous fanatic. But it doesn't prove that Indonesia's counter-terrorism strategy has been a total failure.

It's important to understand what the people who launched Friday's attack want to achieve. Until this year, every terrorist attack was accompanied by howls that it was all the fault of George W. Bush, and here, the fault of the former John Howard-led government.

Well, at last you know - that was political nonsense. George W. Bush's presidency is well and truly over and President Barack Obama has reached out to Islam in a series of beautifully crafted speeches. What is more - and this is worth thinking about - Indonesia has been one of Barack Obama's homes in the world and his election there was greeted with a sense of elation.

In Australia, John Howard has been replaced by Kevin Rudd and a Labor government and Australia has withdrawn its combat troops from Iraq. Last week's terrorist attack was not the fault of the Rudd Government. Nor were earlier terrorist attacks in Indonesia the fault of the Howard Government. These people are not motivated by who is in the White House or the Lodge - they're driven by a blind faith in a bizarre ideology.

Essentially they want to destroy modernity, democracy and Western influence. In its place, they want to establish an extremist Islamic society somewhat akin to what the Taliban ran in Afghanistan. You know, no education for women, no new technology like TVs or DVDs and an interpretation of Sharia law which includes stoning to death women who commit certain crimes.

The terrorists want to destroy any Western presence in Indonesia, cause economic collapse and undermine democratic institutions. And you can't underestimate the determination of zealots.

For Australia, the message of last Friday is clear. We must continue to support Indonesian police and intelligence in their fight against the extremists. But there's another message. This struggle against Islamist terrorists is long and hard. To give up and think that a few nice speeches by Barack Obama will make it go away is naive.

Alexander Downer was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1996 to 2007.