SAF, HOME TEAM STEP UP SECURITY MEASURES AHEAD OF NDP

Terrorism is a long-term threat that is ever-evolving, but Singaporeans must not allow it to paralyse their daily lives, said Defence Minister Dr Ng Eng Hen.

Dr Ng was speaking to the press at the National Stadium on 8 Aug, during a visit to view the preparations and safety measures in place, ahead of the National Day celebrations the next day.

As part of the visit, Dr Ng met personnel from the Command and Control Group 2 (CCG2) and the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Explosives (CBRE) Group. The CCG2 coordinates the security and contingency operations between the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and the Home Team, while the CBRE Group carries out bomb sweeps before the stadium's lockdown ahead of the National Day Parade (NDP).

Cooperation and coordination

"Each wave (of terrorism) will have different characteristics so we will have to respond accordingly," Dr Ng explained. For instance, while the Al Qaeda's organisation was structured, with cells that could be infiltrated and eradicated, Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) was more amorphous and it used social media to target lone wolves from around the world. This resulted in isolated attacks by foreign fighters with links to ISIS outside of Iraq and Syria.

Referencing the recent plot by militants in Batam to attack Marina Bay with rockets, Dr Ng noted that the suspects had links to personalities from Katibah Nusantara, an ISIS-linked fighting unit in Southeast Asia that was involved in the Jakarta bombing earlier this year.

"This is the reason why, in recent years, you will have noticed that I spoke during international meetings and both bilaterally, multilaterally, within Southeast Asia, within ASEAN, and internationally. We had placed considerable focus on information-sharing and setting up multilateral arrangements to reduce the momentum that these initiatives from extremists were conducting," said Dr Ng.

He added: "Intelligence is a key in the fight against terrorists. You cannot be everywhere all the time and in a high-ready state. It's unsustainable."

To guard against these changing threats, Dr Ng highlighted the Defence and Home Affairs ministries' coordinated efforts in strengthening all-round defence: "We have been preparing and when I say 'we' I mean the SAF, MINDEF and the Home Team have been preparing against non-conventional threats such as the terrorist threats since the 3G (3rd Generation) transformation. We had beefed up our defences in the air and the sea, and on land."

He added: "At the heart of the SAF's counter-terrorism efforts (is the) High-Readiness Core, which is the Special Operations Task Force, the Army Deployment Force, the Island Defence Task Force, the Air Defence Task Force and the Maritime Security Task Force." Recognising the need to further beef up defence capabilities in urban warfare, Dr Ng said that the SAF would be planning more exercises in urban settings.

Stepping up NDP security measures

With the NDP just a day away, Dr Ng explained that the SAF and the Home Team had stepped up defences on land and in the air and sea. For instance, in addition to the usual bomb sweeps, the area around the parade would be gazetted as a special event's area. Exclusion zones would also be set up for security agencies to carry out checks on personnel entering the area.

On top of these, as part of the layered defence in place, the Republic of Singapore Navy and the Police Coast Guard (PCG) have increased the number of ship patrols in the area. The PCG and the Immigration and Checkpoint Authority have increased checks on vessels entering Singapore and passing through the Strait of Singapore. And the Maritime Port Authority have introduced no-entry and no-anchoring zones in areas identified as possible attack-launch points.

Air defence capabilities have also been stepped up against possible aerial attacks.

All these measures are being put in place for the duration of NDP 2016.

In closing, Dr Ng alluded to his SAF Day interview, reminding Singaporeans: "We have to be alert and successful all the time, but terrorists only have to succeed once."

Nonetheless, he called on all Singaporeans to stay united and not allow the fear of the terrorist threat to tear apart the nation's social and economic fabric: "If an attack gets through, how will Singapore and Singaporeans respond?... Will it paralyse us? Or will we respond with resilience and robustness and say 'Let's get on with it' like other countries have done, when the ultimate test for us is upon us? And it will define whether we are robust and resilient or we (will be) easily intimidated - cowards paralysed by fear."