Thaindian News

UNITED NATIONS (BNO NEWS) — A United Nations (UN) on Friday announce that a UN-backed workshop on counter-terrorism in Southeast Asia focused on information exchange and building capacity in South-East Asia.

Participants in the workshop, which concluded on Friday in Bali, Indonesia and was organized by the UN Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force Office (CTITF) in partnership with the Government of Indonesia, also explored ways of expanding the involvement of civil society and implementing the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in Southeast Asia.

The workshop emphasized that cooperation on counter-terrorism has a strong foundation in both the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) regional counter-terrorism framework and the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, adopted unanimously by UN Member States in 2006.

Participants discussed the continuing threat of terrorism despite considerable success in dismantling terror networks through cooperation, and stressed the need for the international community to strengthen, sustain and support capacity-building efforts for counter-terrorism programs in the region.

Recommendations from the Bali workshop, which are non-binding, included the proposal to develop broader approaches to counter-terrorism by involving more governmental departments, such as education, development and finance ministries, as well as civil society organizations and groups representing victims of terrorism.

“Don’t forget the victims of terrorism, because they are they face of terrorism,” said Jean-Paul Laborde, chairperson of the CTITF.

Other requirements identified by delegates are effective and responsible community policing, the implementation of educational curricula that promotes tolerance and builds capacity for non-violent conflict resolution, and the protection of human rights as a fundamental basis for countering terrorism.