The brutal slaughter of hostages, including children, in Beslan sounds a red alert that governments around the globe should never let up, not at any time, in any place, on their cooperation against terrorism. 

In a statement after the Beslan terrorist attack, the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Standing Committee proposed a comprehensive convention to be set up on the fight against terrorism.

The school siege in Beslan was just another chilling reminder that the flames of terror are continuing to blaze, and that victory in the war against it is long way away.

It doesn't seem to matter what the world does to clamp down on this evil -- if anything, it seems to have gained momentum since September 11.

The Bali nightclub blast in Indonesia, the hostage crisis in the Moscow Theatre siege, the train bombing in Madrid, Spain, and the surge of other terrorist acts in the past few years demonstrate the existence of this evil intent to kill innocent people around the world.

There is a greater and more urgent need for the international community to act against it, now.

The legislative framework of international cooperation against terrorism is, at best, fragmented and incomplete. So it was heartening to see the Assembly call for a comprehensive European Council Convention on the evil.

The convention intends to include a definition of terrorism and terrorist acts. Terrorist offences cannot in any way be justified as politically motivated.

There is no justification for terrorism; it is simply a crime against humanity.

It is abhorrent and must be fought with all legal means.

The Assembly strongly supports the European Council's plan based on three cornerstones: boosting legal action against terrorism; safeguarding fundamental values; and addressing the causes of terrorism.

Knowledge of the causes of terrorism will help de-fertilize the soil from which it grows.

The world should carefully explore terrorism's breeding grounds while probing effective means to counter it.

Only by getting rid of its root causes can terrorism be stemmed and finally eradicated.

(China Daily September 9, 2004)