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South Africa's concerned that it's an al-Qaeda refuge
That South Africa was "very concerned" that the country was viewed as a refuge. On whether foreign al-Qaeda operatives were recruiting locals, Kasrils said it was quite possible that those seeking refuge would try to link with "home-based communities". On whether the government was concerned about the high number of foreign students studying at local madressa, he said: "South Africa is a country where Islam has been studied for years. There are eminent theologians living in South Africa." On whether those who were hiding in South Africa posed a potential threat, he said: "We are not complacent that it can't happen here. Terrorism can't be predicted."Kasrils did not rule out the possibility that al-Qaeda leaders "may want to strike a country's presence in South Africa which they regard as an enemy". The minister urged the media to be "very, very wary of scaremongering". Kasrils said he and other cabinet colleagues had recently met about 30 Muslim clerics and civic leaders in Pretoria. Among the issues discussed was draft legislation on terrorism, now renamed the protection of democracy bill. "We allayed their fears to quite a considerable degree. We said it was not aimed at anyone in the country, save those who wanted to overthrow constitutional order." Kasrils did not rule out the bill being amended in the National Council of Provinces, which is currently dealing with the measure. Posted by: Dan Darling 2004-10-04 |
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