DATE=1/21/2000
TYPE=EDITORIAL
TITLE=EDITORIAL: DE-FINANCING TERRORISM
NUMBER=0-08613
CONTENT=
THIS IS THE ONLY EDITORIAL BEING RELEASED
FOR BROADCAST 01/21/2000.
Anncr: The Voice of America presents differing
points of view on a wide variety of issues. Next,
an editorial expressing the policies of the United
States Government:
Voice: Terrorist groups often try to raise money
in countries where they are not active, but where
their sympathizers can take advantage of ordinary
people's misplaced generosity. Claiming to raise
funds for peaceful purposes, front organizations
turn the money they get over to the terrorist
groups they are secretly working for.
The United Nations International Convention for
the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism is
intended to make this more difficult. Nations
that become a party to the convention are required
to make it a crime for anyone to provide or
collect funds for terrorism. They must also
extradite or prosecute offenders and cooperate in
investigating and preventing the financing of
terrorist activities.
The United States was among the first countries to
sign the convention. It is a critical advance in
counter-terrorism policy. As Secretary of State
Madeleine Albright said, "It is wrong to finance
terrorist groups. . . . Every nation has a
responsibility to arrest or expel terrorists, shut
down their finances and deny them safehaven. . . .
Our purpose is to weave a web of law. . .that
will. . .deny them the mobility and sustenance
they need to operate."
While all states criminalize acts of terrorism,
few have prohibitions on the financing of
terrorists. Supporters of terrorist groups ranging
from Hizballah in Lebanon to the Tamil Tigers of
Sri Lanka to the Armed Islamic Group in Algeria
and the Kurdistan Workers Party in Turkey have
been adept at raising money, supposedly for
humanitarian or educational purposes.
The U-N convention will improve efforts by
governments to prevent financial assets from being
used to help terrorists. If necessary, assets can
be seized or frozen. Individuals involved in
channeling money to terrorists can be arrested.
If they are not tried in the country where they
are apprehended, they must be extradited to a
requesting state to stand trial.
Fighting terrorism requires international
cooperation. Most of the world's states are aware
that they are vulnerable. By promoting a
collective effort to confront a common problem,
the U-N is helping to stop this international
scourge.
Anncr: That was an editorial expressing the
policies of the United States Government. If you
have a comment, please write to Editorials, V-O-A,
Washington, D-C, 20237, U-S-A. You may also
comment at www-dot-ibb-dot-gov-slash-editorials,
or fax us at (202) 619-1043.
20-Jan-2000 15:12 PM EDT (20-Jan-2000 2012 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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