Asean leaders to sign accord on terror clampdown

Southeast Asian leaders are to sign an accord committing their nations to helping each other extradite and prosecute terror suspects, a regional official said yesterday.

The ASEAN Convention on Counter-Terrorism, which will be presented to leaders at next month’s summit, is an initiative of the Philippines, which has launched a huge manhunt for two alleged Bali bombers and Jemaah Islamiyah members in its southern jungles.

"As drafted, it would be a legally binding agreement," said MC Abad, a spokesman for ASEAN Secretary General Ong Keng Yong.

Among other things, it would oblige member nations "to extend mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, including extradition or prosecution of perpetrators of terrorist acts," he said.

It would also identify "criminal acts of terrorism" in accordance with UN protocols, he said.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The central Philippines city of Cebu is to host the ASEAN leaders’ summit next month. Leaders of its key trading partners, except US President George W. Bush, are expected to attend a separate meeting.

ASEAN nations, notably the Philippines and Indonesia, have been plagued by terrorist attacks from the Jemaah Islamiyah, which is the Southeast Asian arm of the al-Qaeda network, as well as by homegrown militant organizations.

The two fugitives being sought by the Philippines, Dulmatin and Umar Patek, are accused of key roles in nightclub bombings in Bali, Indonesia in 2002 in which over 200 people, mostly foreign tourists, were killed.

The US government has offered up to $11 million for their capture. — Paolo Romero, AFP