SINGAPORE, Oct 20 — Singapore officials have been given access to Mas Selamat Kastari, the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) terrorist group’s regional leader now detained in Malaysia, the Singapore Parliament was told yesterday.
“Malaysia authorities have given our security officers access to Mas Selamat. He was, however, uncooperative during the interview, and refused to talk. So at this point, the Internal Security Department's assessment is that he remains defiant,” Senior Minister of State (Law and Home Affairs) Ho Peng Kee disclosed.
But security agencies of both countries remain in close communication with each other, he said, in reply to a question by Christopher de Souza (Holland-Bukit Timah GRC) on whether the authorities here had access to the terrorist.
Ho added, however, that given Mas Selamat's past record, “we must be realistic about what we can extract from a hardcore terrorist like him, in particular on the details of his escape”.
“He may not reveal everything. Indeed, even if he does eventually talk, we may have no way of confirming with certainty everything that he says,” he told the House.
He had said at the outset that Singapore understood Malaysia's need to hold Mas Selamat for further investigations in order to neutralise any potential security threat — specifically the plots he was hatching while hiding in Johor.
Mas Selamat, who escaped from the Whitley Road Detention Centre in February last year, was reportedly planning attacks on Singapore when he was recaptured this April by the Malaysian authorities.
Ho also said the Internal Security Department had not decided on a request by Mas Selamat's family members for the release of their travel documents.
Their passports were seized in 2005 because of immigration offences committed while in Indonesia when Mas Selamat was on the run.
“Their passports and identity cards were also seized for security reasons, as Mas Selamat's wife was a member of the JI's women's group,” he said.
Responding to de Souza's question on the terrorism threat level, he said that Singaporeans must remain vigilant in spite of the recent successes in regional security operations.
These include the capture and death of terrorists — including Malaysian Noordin Top in Indonesia — and the uncovering of terrorist plots and weapons.
While these successes had improved the regional security situation, the threat from terrorism to Singapore and the region remained.
There are terrorists still at large, recruitment continues, and recent security operations have uncovered plots, weapons and explosives.
“One concern is that terrorist elements might even be driven to launch more attacks out of desperation or revenge,” he said.
“We should also not underestimate their capability to regroup and the possibility that a new charismatic, and equally violent, leader will emerge to take Noordin's place.”
The key challenge in fighting terrorism is the violent jihadist ideology, he said, adding that countries had to take a firm and unequivocal stand against this.
There were indicators which suggest that groups like Al-Qaeda may be re-establishing ties with regional terrorist elements like the JI, he said.
Their collaborations were responsible for the 2002 Bali bombings, attacks in Jakarta and plots in Singapore.
Ho said Singapore remained on the terrorists' radar and they would look for opportunities, including taking advantage of high-profile events being hosted here, to maximise publicity.
Reminding Singaporeans that security is everyone's responsibility, he added: “We have a long way to go before this threat can be considered eliminated or reduced.” — Straits Times
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