The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit opened in Manila yesterday as French security forces were storming a building in the Paris suburbs in search of the suspected mastermind of the deadly terrorist attacks on Nov. 13 in the city.
The raid, with a suspect arrested and a woman blowing herself up with a suicide belt, was conducted as French police pursued what appears to be a network of the Islamic State operating in several countries in Europe. The group had earlier also claimed responsibility for downing a Russian plane over Egypt. The claim has been confirmed by Moscow, drawing a vow from Russian President Vladimir Putin to hunt down the perpetrators anywhere on the planet.
The plane crash was reportedly the main reason Putin begged off from attending the APEC summit in Manila. That tragedy, plus the continuing threat in France, should put terrorism on the agenda of APEC, where several member economies including the Philippines face terrorist problems.
On the eve of the summit, the Abu Sayyaf beheaded a Malaysian hostage in Sulu reportedly after negotiations for ransom collapsed. Attending the APEC summit, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak confirmed the execution and condemned it.
France, one of the world’s top travel destinations, is considering a three-month state of emergency and is calling for a global response to terrorism. The call deserves to be heeded.
In several countries over the past decade, extremist violence has taken a toll not only on travel and tourism but on all economic activities. The terrorist threat is adding to the ranks of the extremely poor and the unemployed, preventing the achievement of human development goals. Terrorism prevents businesses from flourishing and threatens the global economy. Groupings such as APEC cannot push an economic agenda without taking concerted action against the terrorist threat.