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STATEMENT BY

H.E. SYED MOHAMAD HASRIN AIDID

PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF MALAYSIA TO THE UNITED NATIONS

 

ON AGENDA ITEM 111:

MEASURES TO ELIMINATE INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM

 

AT THE SIXTH COMMITTEE OF THE
76TH SESSION OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

 

NEW YORK, 7 OCTOBER 2021

 

 

 

 

 

Madam Chair,

At the outset, let me congratulate you on your election as Chair of the Sixth Committee. We are confident that you and members of the Bureau would be able to steer the proceedings of the Committee in an able and efficient manner.

2.         My delegation wishes to align our statement with that made by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on behalf of the Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the Islamic Republic of Iran on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the Kingdom of Cambodia on behalf of the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). We also thank the Secretary General for his report A/76/201, which allows all of us to be updated on various measures undertaken by Member States and international organisations in countering terrorism.

 

Madam Chair,

3.         Malaysia joins other delegations in strongly condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations irrespective of where, when or whomever commits it. It is a concern that no place on earth is truly safe from terrorism. The hideous crime has reared its ugly head far too many times and affected too many lives across the globe.

4.         Against this alarming backdrop, the fight against terrorism should be done in a concerted manner, through the United Nations as well as regional and bilateral initiatives. On this, Malaysia is truly supportive of all pillars of actions contained in the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (GCTS), and further welcomed the consensus adoption of resolution 75/291 on the Seventh Review of the GCTS on 30 June 2021.

5.         Further to the GCTS, Malaysia continues to focus its primary counter-terrorism efforts on preventive and prescriptive measures. Malaysia has responded positively to the international call for cooperation to combat terrorism by strengthening its legal framework to implement the 20 international counter-terrorism conventions and protocols. Our efforts are further strengthened through cooperation with foreign law enforcement authorities in their investigations and criminal prosecutions of alleged terrorists and their activities. Malaysia is now a party to 11 of the international counter-terrorism conventions and protocols. At the regional level, Malaysia is a party to the ASEAN Convention on Counter Terrorism (“ACCT”). In countering terrorism, Malaysia has convicted offenders for various offences related to terrorism as prescribed under Chapter VI A of the Penal Code, and will continue to prosecute offenders for acts of terrorism.

6.         Malaysia shares the concern that the COVID-19 pandemic may exacerbate an already complex, evolving and increasingly localised terrorism threat. Measures imposed to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic such as the movement control orders may have negatively impacted the operational activities of terrorists but have also inadvertently exposed the general public to the danger of online radicalisation and recruitment.

7.         Malaysia continues to reiterate the importance of winning the “hearts and minds” in the psychological war against terrorism. The Southeast Asia Regional Centre on Counter-Terrorism (SEARCCT) continues to engage with youths through counter-messaging initiatives. Malaysia also remains vigilant to the emerging threats of cyber-attacks against critical national infrastructure and of bioterrorism.

8.         Deradicalisation is a key element of Malaysia’s counter-terrorism and violent extremism strategy. Apart from facilitating the recovery and reintegration into mainstream society of militant detainees, deradicalisation programmes have the potential to reduce the further spread of militant propaganda which poses threat to the social stability be it at the national and international levels.

9.         Malaysia’s initiatives in this regard are aimed at addressing the problem of radicalism due to religious misconceptions, with the specific purpose of rehabilitating and subsequently reintegrating militant detainees into society. From January 2020 to August 2021, 246 terrorist deradicalisation and rehabilitation programmes have been conducted with the involvement of the Malaysian Prison Department. Apart from that, 83 counter-terrorism community outreach programmes had been carried out throughout Malaysia.

10.       Malaysia has also responded positively to UN reporting mechanisms such as the Counter-Terrorism Committee pursuant to Security Council resolution 1373 (2001) and the 1540 (2004) Committee. From 21 to 25 March this year, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) completed the virtual component of its hybrid visit to Malaysia. Through open and constructive discussions held with CTED, we examined the progress achieved by Malaysia since the 2006 visit by CTED. These include our robust anti-money-laundering/countering the financing of terrorism (ALM/CFT) framework, formation of an integrated security force to respond to terrorist threats, and launch of a large-scale “Smart Cities” project involving the private sector and civil society organisations that aims to prevent, protect against and respond to security threats, including against critical infrastructures, “soft” targets, and urban open spaces. Malaysia’s comprehensive prison-management policy to counter terrorist recruitment in prisons was also recognised by CTED. Additionally, Malaysia is looking into several initial priority recommendations by CTED to address remaining issues of concern, such as in areas of ICT and counter-terrorism, and the role of women and gender in countering terrorism and violent extremism. We look forward to receiving CTED for the physical component of the hybrid visit soonest the COVID-19 situation in Malaysia has stabilised.

11.       My delegation further acknowledges the benefits of the various conferences and meetings that were held throughout the year by the relevant UN agencies and bodies dealing with counter-terrorism efforts. We commend the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) for bringing to the fore important discussions on the multiple dimensions of the threat and challenges in countering terrorism, as well as for utilising virtual means to conduct trainings given the uncertainties due to the pandemic. Malaysia has participated with great interest in these discourse and trainings.
Through SEARCCT, Malaysia looks forward to collaborating with the UN Counter-Terrorism Centre (UNCCT) to organise a national in-depth workshop at the end of this month that is designed for law enforcement and criminal justice officers whose work entails gathering online information on terrorist threats, investigation and prosecution of terrorist activities.

12.       We also welcome the convening of the Second UN Counter-Terrorism Week by the UNOCT, including the Second UN High-Level Conference of Heads of Counter-Terrorism Agencies of Member States, held in June this year. We appreciate the enriching engagements and discussions throughout the week, including the examination of the impact of new and emerging technologies on counter-terrorism. We look forward to the convening of the inaugural Global Congress of Victims of Terrorism later in December.

 

Madam Chair,

Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT)

13.       Malaysia remains flexible and supportive to the issue of convening a high-level conference under the auspices of the United Nations. We reiterate that the Conference would serve as an important way forward to address the challenges handicapping global counter-terrorism efforts, and its convening should not hinge on the conclusion of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT).

14.       Malaysia continues its support for the Sixth Committee to establish a working group to finalise the conclusion of the CCIT. We also support all dialogue and efforts to resolve outstanding issues during the intersessional period.

 

Madam Chair,

15.       It has been nearly five decades since this item was first included in the agenda of the twenty-seventh session of the General Assembly in 1972, during which the Ad Hoc Committee on International Terrorism was established. The fact that this item remains to be included in the successive sessions until the present proves that despite the commitment of the international community, the scourge of terrorism remains very much prevalent.

16.       Malaysia reiterates its commitment to work within the United Nations framework in the efforts to prevent and eliminate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Although much work remains, rest assured of Malaysia’s cooperation in discussions at this General Assembly as well as our commitment to see a world free from terrorism.

Thank you.