1. We, the ASEAN Ministers responsible for transnational crime issues, gathered in Kuala Lumpur from 20th to 21st May 2002 for the Special ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Terrorism under the Chairmanship of the Honourable Dato� Seri Abdullah bin Hj Ahmad Badawi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs of Malaysia;
2. We recall the initiative taken by ASEAN to combat transnational crime in the 1997 ASEAN Declaration on Transnational Crime adopted at the Inaugural ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime (AMMTC) in the Republic of the Philippines and the 1999 ASEAN Plan of Action to Combat Transnational Crime adopted at the 2nd AMMTC in Myanmar;
3. We recall the 2001 ASEAN Declaration on Joint Action to Counter Terrorism adopted at the 7th ASEAN Summit in Brunei Darussalam to advance ASEAN�s efforts in the global struggle against terrorism;
4. We unequivocally condemn acts of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and underscore the urgency for a cohesive and united approach to effectively combat terrorism;
5. We strongly emphasize that terrorism must not be identified with any religion, race, culture or nationality;
6. We reaffirm our commitment and support to undertake the fight against acts of terrorism committed wherever, whenever and by whomsoever without discrimination and with due respect to religion, race, culture and nationality;
7. We note with concern the close links between transnational crime and terrorism, and that this lends greater urgency to our efforts to combat transnational crime;
8. We dedicate our efforts and resources towards implementing practical measures underlined in the 2001 ASEAN Declaration on Joint Action to Counter Terrorism;
9. We recognize that the sovereignty, territorial integrity and domestic laws of each ASEAN Member Country shall be respected and upheld in undertaking the fight against terrorism;
10. We recognize the right of individual ASEAN Member Countries to continue pursuing practical preventive measures to address the root causes of terrorism;
11. We commit to counter, prevent and suppress all forms of terrorist acts in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and other international law, especially taking into account the importance of all relevant UN resolutions;
12. We commit to follow-up on this Communique by entrusting the Senior Officials to execute the Work Programme on Terrorism to Implement the ASEAN Plan of Action to Combat Transnational Crime approved on 17th May 2002 in Kuala Lumpur which is deemed to be an integral part of this Communique and to review its progress at subsequent meetings of the ASEAN Ministers responsible for transnational crime issues. The Work Programme includes, among others, programmes on:
· exchange of information,
· compilation and dissemination of relevant laws and regulations of ASEAN Member Countries,
· compilation and dissemination of bilateral and multilateral agreements and information on relevant international treaties where feasible,
· development of multilateral or bilateral legal arrangements to facilitate apprehension, investigation, prosecution, extradition, inquiry and seizure in order to enhance mutual legal and administrative assistance among ASEAN Member Countries where feasible,
· enhancement of cooperation and coordination in law enforcement and intelligence sharing, and
· development of regional training programmes;
13. We note with appreciation the projects and initiatives to be undertaken as follows:
· training by Malaysia on intelligence procurement in relation to terrorism,
· workshop by Malaysia on psyops and psywar in relation to terrorism,
· workshop by Indonesia on combating international terrorism,
· logistical support by Singapore for training on bomb/explosives detection, post-blast investigation, airport security and passport/document security and inspection in relation to terrorism,
· offer by Singapore to facilitate a dialogue session at the upcoming ASEANAPOL meeting to discuss practical measures and explore avenues of cooperation against terrorism,
· designation of principal contact points in all ASEAN Member Countries on counter-terrorism matters;
14. We task the Chairman of the Annual SOMTC to continue to liaise with all ASEAN Member Countries, with the assistance of the ASEAN Secretariat, on the successful implementation of the Work Programme;
15. We laud the signing of the Agreement on Information Exchange and Establishment of Communication Procedures between the Republic of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Republic of the Philippines in Kuala Lumpur on 7th May 2002 under which the Parties to that Agreement will cooperate among themselves to combat transnational crime, including terrorism;
16. We express our deepest appreciation to the Government of Malaysia for the warm and generous hospitality accorded to us and our respective delegations.
Adopted this 21st day of May 2002 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.