Oral Answer to Parliamentary Question on radicalised individuals

Oral Answer to Parliamentary Question on radicalised individuals, 19 July 2010

Mr Christopher de Souza :

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs (a) what has been done in Singapore to counter the continuing threat of jihadist radicalisation; (b) whether there are sufficient measures in place to prevent radical individuals from teaching in local mosques and other Islamic institutions; and (c) what more can be done to prevent such radicalisation.

A/P Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim:

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs in view of the increasing availability of, and ease in accessing, terrorist-related information on the Internet and other channels (a) what are the Ministry's plans in managing self-radicalisation amongst Singaporeans; and (b) how can Singaporeans help in tackling this issue.

DPM and Minister for Home Affairs, Mr Wong Kan Seng:

Jihadist radicalisation has become a global phenomenon of concern, and Singapore is certainly not immune from it. Some radicals, including many members of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist group, are actively indoctrinated and recruited by extremist groups. Others, like Muhammad Fadil Abdul Hamid, are radicalised in the course of their individual quests for answers to personal religious and ideological questions, which unfortunately led them down a misguided and dangerous road towards deviant teachings that advocate violence.

Self-radicalised individuals are no less dangerous to society than those indoctrinated by extremist groups. Such individuals include Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Christmas Day bomber who tried to set off a bomb on an aircraft flying to Detroit, and Faisal Shazad, who tried to set off a bomb in Times Square, New York. Both started out as self-radicalised individuals and because they were unchecked, went on to establish links with terrorist groups which facilitated their bid to undertake militant jihad. Fortunately in both cases, their bombing attempts were unsuccessful. Had they succeeded, the outcomes would have been horrific.

To counter the spread and influence of jihadist ideology in Singapore, we must take a multi-pronged approach. We must not allow radicals to spread their ideas here. Our mosques and other Islamic institutions must be vigilant, and keep a close watch on individuals who teach, preach or conduct activities at their premises. Foreign religious teachers and speakers need to obtain a letter of support from MUIS before the Ministry of Manpower will grant them an Employment Pass or a Work Pass to teach or give speeches on religion here.

Muhammad Anwar Jailani’s case has shown that attention must be paid to religious teachers who preach and instruct others. Local Islamic institutions and Muslims should only engage properly qualified teachers accredited under the Asatizah Recognition Scheme, which MUIS introduced in 2005. More and sustained publicity for this scheme is needed to raise awareness, so that Singaporeans know to check the list of accredited persons before engaging a religious teacher. MUIS will also explore other ways, including legal options, to ensure that Islamic institutions do not engage or allow unaccredited individuals to conduct religious activities.

ISD has also worked with MDA to reach out to bookstores to ensure that they do not carry extremist literature, whether in paper or electronic form. These efforts will be stepped up and firm action against errant distributors and retailers will be taken.

Terrorists are increasingly exploiting the Internet as an effective means to propagate their radical ideology, promote their cause and recruit potential operatives. To extend their reach, their messages have been posted online in different languages, including English.

There have been suggestions that the Government should block these radical websites. However, this would be a futile exercise. The architecture and reach of the Internet make it practically impossible to interdict all radical websites. Moreover, there are several thousand such sites and the number continues to grow. If we bring down one website, it can easily resurface under another name or in another jurisdiction. To be effective, we would not only have to block terrorist websites, but also popular social networking platforms like YouTube and Facebook, which would clearly not be practicable. The same Internet that empowers ordinary individuals unfortunately also serves radicals.

Since we cannot expect to perfectly shield Singaporeans from exposure to jihadist ideology, education is critical to inoculate our society against jihadist ideology.

For many years now, ISD has held briefings and talks to schools and community groups, to share its concerns about radicalisation. The Religious Rehabilitation Group (RRG) too has used public talks, forums, media interviews and written articles to alert the general Muslim public to the falsehoods of jihadist ideology. Several other Muslim leaders and organisations have also initiated and organised community counter-ideology programmes. The common goal of these efforts is to help Singaporeans who chance across radical teachings in the guise of religion to see through the falsehood and not be led astray. These community efforts are a positive development and we hope even more community organisations and leaders will step forward to do likewise.

As for Muslim Singaporeans who may be radicalised while pursuing studies overseas, MUIS will strengthen its capacity and resources to reach out to them, and hopefully convince them not to enrol in radical institutions where they are at risk of being subverted by radical ideas. This would include more measures to advise on the choice of schools, as many commentators in the media have suggested, and stationing officers overseas to keep in close touch with young Muslim Singaporeans studying there, to ensure that they are rightly guided, supported and remain connected to Singapore’s development and contemporary issues.

Singaporeans themselves must play their part to help loved ones turn away from the path of radicalisation. They must not turn a blind eye or be unwilling to heed warning signs. Fadil and Muhammad Thahir bin Shaik Dawood had let people close to them know that they were interested in militant jihad, and these people had noticed that they were surfing radical websites. However, none of them sought help from the religious or government authorities. Instead, they brushed aside Fadil and Thahir’s jihadist talk as not serious. Had they contacted the authorities at an earlier stage, things might have turned out quite differently for Fadil and Thahir, and the two of them might not have had to be detained or placed on Restriction Orders.

Early intervention is the best way to save a relative or friend from the road to radicalisation. It gives him the best chance to be guided back to the correct path. This is the socially and morally responsible thing to do; it should not be seen as betrayal, because such action helps both the individual and our society. We should not be paranoid. But as a community, we need to be discerning enough to distinguish mere “viewpoints” from “something more sinister”, and have the moral courage to seek help from MUIS and the government authorities when required. Not reporting suspicious warning signs could not only hurt innocent lives, but also strain communal and familial relations if the individual becomes thoroughly radicalised and does something disastrous. Reporting warning signs is thus a necessary first step towards countering radicalisation in our midst, and I can assure you that no further action will be taken if it turns out to be a false alarm.

As for the concern about disunity in the society and community, over the years since we uncovered the JI in 2001, Singaporeans – Muslims and non-Muslims alike – have stood together in our efforts against terrorism. Non-Muslim Singaporeans have not looked with suspicion at fellow Singaporean Muslims because they understand that the JI members and self-radicals are just a few misguided individuals. Muslim Singaporeans have also undertaken many proactive measures to address the problem of radicalisation. I believe that there is good reason to be confident that Singaporeans will be resilient and will continue to stand together against the ever-evolving terrorist threat.

19 July 2010

Reply by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence to Parliamentary Question on Deployment of Malay or Muslim Servicemen in the SAF

Mr Speaker Sir, as I stated earlier, investigations have shown that Muhammad Fadil was a solitary individual who took the wrong path.

This specific case therefore will not affect the way MINDEF deploys Malay or Muslim servicemen in the SAF.

The role of Malays in the defence of our nation and in the SAF, and the associated challenges and dilemmas we face, are difficult and sensitive issues for our multi-racial, multi-religious society. They have confronted Singapore since our early days of nation-building. The Government has on several occasions discussed them in this House, as well as with Malay community leaders. Over the years, we have all been able to work together in an honest, realistic and practical manner to make progress together as fellow Singaporeans.

The SAF is a microcosm of Singapore society, and race relations within the SAF reflect those in our broader society. Thus as Singapore has made steady progress towards racial and religious integration, so has the SAF. Malays serve today in many more places and roles in the SAF than before - in the Commandos, Engineers, Artillery, and as Pilots and Sea Soldiers. As Malay educational standards have improved, a higher proportion of Malay enlistees are fulfilling the educational prerequisites to be selected for commanders' training. Indeed, more Malays are now serving their full-time national service as commanders. And among our regular Malay servicemen, some have risen to hold senior and sensitive Command and staff appointments. In each case, it is because the individual serviceman has the required qualifications and merit, and is the most suitable person for the job.

Nevertheless, in an age of jihadist terrorism, race and religion remain salient issues. Events around the world as well as continuing incidents in our immediate neighbourhood remind us that it will be a long time before the threat from jihadist terrorism subsides. Singapore - including the SAF - will need to watch this international context, and continue to manage our own racial and religious issues sensitively and pragmatically, so as to safeguard our racial and religious harmony. The SAF will not let individual incidents, in particular those which impinge on sensitive racial and religious areas, cause distrust or suspicions among us, and negate the progress we have so painstakingly made. When we acknowledge the real problem that we face and tackle it together sincerely and practically, we can strengthen understanding, trust and confidence among our communities in Singapore, and thus make further progress together.

Our best approach is for the SAF to decide on appointments and advancements based on the qualifications and merits of the servicemen, so long as they are committed to Singapore, dedicated to the SAF, and capable of doing the job. By assessing each person according to these criteria, we can recognise the commitment, contributions and abilities of our servicemen, who come together to serve in the defence of our nation.

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