August 6, 2004

Posted to the web August 5, 2004
Standard Correspondent

Nairobi

Kenya needs to radically change her banking laws, registration of persons and the issuance of identity cards and driving licenses to effectively fight terrorism.

Director-general of the National Security Intelligence Service (NSIS) Brigadier Wilson Boinet says the processes of issuing personal identification documents such as birth certificates need to change.

He was speaking during the official opening of the first Regional Counter Terrorism Conference at the Mt Kenya Safari Club, Nanyuki.

The conference, which is organised by the Government and brings together 15 African countries, was officially opened by Vice-President Moody Awori.

Countries participating at the forum are Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Zambia, Madagascar, Comoros, Somaliland, Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia, D R Congo, Djibouti and hosts Kenya.

The countries are represented by senior security intelligence chiefs who are trying to develop a counter-terrorism strategy for the region.

Saying terrorism is an intelligence war, Boinet called on African countries to generate intelligence and share it among themselves as equal partners.

He said by developing a common terrorism strategy, African countries will be able to alert each other over terrorist threats, and assist each other to detect and disrupt impeding terrorist attacks.

Boinet said terrorism is a global problem, adding that there were eight known terrorist groups, "even though as I address you someone may be forming others".

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