Terrorism high on C'wealth agenda

"Terrorism will be discussed," Commonwealth spokesman Joel Kibazo told AFP in London before flying out for the start Friday of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) summit in Nigeria's capital Abuja.

The Commonwealth brings together Britain and its former dominions, colonies and protectorates, plus Mozambique.

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The November 20 suicide bomb attacks on the British consulate and HSBC bank in Istanbul in which 30 people died, including three Britons -- one of them the British consul general -- will cast a lingering shadow over the summit.

Britain suspects the involvement of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network in the coordinated attacks, the worst on British targets since the Iraq war.

But Kibazo said: "Several Commonwealth countries have suffered terribly from terrorism."

"Let's not forget the first al-Qaeda bombs were in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998 -- two Commonwealth countries," Kibazo said of the twin attacks on the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam which killed a total of 224 people.

There were also many Commonwealth nationals among the 202 killed in the Bali bombings in Indonesia in October 2002, including 88 Australians -- more than any other nationality -- and 26 Britons.

In the wake of the September 11 attacks in the United States in 2001, the Commonwealth set up a panel to coordinate anti-terrorism efforts in its 54 member states.

The Committee on Terrorism -- comprising the foreign ministers of the Bahamas, Britain, Canada, India, Malaysia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and Tonga -- will report on its progress during the three-day Abuja summit.

"The Commonwealth can't do everything. It's not very well funded -- so they will focus on niche areas where they can actually make a contribution," said Richard Bourne, a Commonwealth expert at the University of London.

As well as sharing expertise in police training, the committee has sought to tackle the problem of money laundering.

"This effects a number of small states, not only places like Tuvalu, Vanuatu or Tonga in the Pacific, but offshore dependencies like the Cook Islands, and of course British overseas territories in the Carribean, not to mention Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man," Bourne said.

Extremist groups and individuals are suspected of channelling funds to groups like al-Qaeda, often using a discreet system of transfers through money changers and lenders who operate outside of the banking system.

The committee has also provided assistance to smaller and less developed Commonwealth members to help them meet UN anti-terrorism obligations.

"There is some cooperation between some of the intelligence services in the Commonwealth, but I don't think that's terribly widespread," Bourne said.

Security in Abuja has been stepped up following reports in the British press in October that Queen Elizabeth II may be targeted by al-Qaeda when she opens the summit.

"Obviously one doesn't talk about security in detail, but it's fair to say they are ready," Kibazo said.

Bourne added: "Nigeria is wanting to use this (summit) as an advertisement for its return to democracy and the fact that it's capable of doing things. So I think they will be trying absolutely their utmost to pass the test."