Nations cannot keep silent on threat of terrorism: PM Lee

ANTALYA (Turkey) — Terrorism is a transnational problem, and countries cannot keep silent and hope attacks will pass them by, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Mr Lee, speaking at a Group of 20 (G20) working dinner on the global challenges of terrorism and the refugee crisis on Sunday night, said Singapore has taken the threat seriously with preventative detention, inter-community dialogues and tightened border security. But efforts within Singapore alone will not fully deal with the terrorism threat.

“Terrorists cross borders freely, and therefore, no country can defeat this international threat alone,” said Mr Lee. “Each country must do its part domestically, but countries also have to work together internationally. The fight belongs to all of us and we have to be willing to step up and stand up in solidarity with each other against the terrorists. We cannot avoid this problem, much less solve it by hiding or by keeping silent, hoping that the scourge will pass us by, on the other side.”

The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) — which has claimed responsibility for recent attacks in Paris and Beirut — is a threat that is close to home, noted Mr Lee, with South-east Asia a key recruiting ground for ISIS. Hundreds of fighters from the region have joined in the fighting in Syria.

In Singapore, the authorities knew of close to a dozen more people who wanted to go to Syria to fight. Some succeeded, but others were detected in time, Mr Lee added.

A terrorist attack does not just inflict physical harm, but also tears at the social fabric. “We are a multiracial society. If we ever suffer a terrorist attack, the harm is not just the physical damage and loss of life but the fear, the suspicion, the breakdown of racial and religious harmony of our society, and our social fabric would be rent apart,” he said.

The problem must be dealt with at the ideological level, and the “social fabric from which they could spring”. “We regularly hold closed-door dialogues with community leaders of all races and religions. We speak candidly, we brief them on the intelligence that we have, we acknowledge issues and we work together to tackle them in order that we can build mutual trust and confidence.”

Singapore also uses the Internal Security Act to detain suspected terrorists before they act. “But we don’t just lock them away and throw away the key. We strive to rehabilitate the detainees,” Mr Lee said.

In Singapore, about 70 people have been detained for terrorism-related actions since the Sept 11, 2001 attacks in the US. About three-quarters have been rehabilitated and released. Singapore also shares intelligence and information on terrorist threats with other countries, and has taken part in the anti-ISIS coalition’s efforts.

Separately, Mr Lee also shared Singapore’s SkillsFuture lifelong learning vision at the summit, noting that the key to preparing workers for the future is getting people to see upgrading skillsets as “a way of life”, noting the short-term risks and longer-term challenges faced by the global economy. CHANNEL NEWSASIA