Radicalization through social media or the Internet (currently) requires more attention, considering that...most of the perpetrators were victims of radicalization via social media or the Internet.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud MD and Australia’s Cyber Security Minister Clare O’Neil discussed the latent threat of terrorism at the “9th Australia-Indonesia Ministerial Council Meeting (MCM)” on Tuesday.

"In the Southeast Asian region, terrorism and radicalism still pose serious threats,” the Indonesian minister said at the meeting held in Melbourne, Australia, according to a statement issued the same day.

He emphasized that terrorism is a latent threat, driven by ideological, political, and social conflicts, thus, cooperation between Indonesia and Australia is required at various levels to eradicate the threat.

“Various terror groups affiliated with ISIS and Al Qaeda still have the potential to disrupt regional stability," he said.

During the meeting, the two ministers also talked about Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTF), online radicalization, the radicalization of women and the younger generation, as well as the progress of efforts made to combat terrorism and violent extremism.

“Radicalization through social media or the Internet (currently) requires more attention, considering that most of the terror attacks are carried out by lone wolves, (and) most of the perpetrators are victims of radicalization via social media or the Internet," Mahfud said.

Furthermore, Indonesia and Australia have collaborated well in combating terrorism and violent extremism through various forms of bilateral, regional, and multilateral cooperation, he added.

At the sub-regional level, the two countries co-chaired the “Sub-Regional Ministerial Meeting on Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Security.”

The countries that took part in the meeting were Indonesia, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.

Indonesia and Australia also co-chaired the “Senior Official Counter-Terrorism Policy Forum (SOCTPF) Meeting.”

The first and second SOCTPF meetings, held in 2021 and 2022 respectively, had resulted in high-level principles regarding the protection of children associated with terrorism and violent extremism.

"I really laud this outcome and I expect that the results of the SOCTPF meeting can be approved by ministerial and high-ranking official representatives at the sub-regional meeting, which we (Indonesia and Australia) will hold on March 16 (2023),” the Indonesian minister added.

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Translator: Putu Savitri, Uyu Liman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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