Illegals threat to security: State Sec
Published on: Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Kota Kinabalu: The Malaysian Government regards illegal immigrants as a security threat to the nation and the waters off Sabah as one of the major entry points of illegal immigrants to Malaysia. "An estimated 100,000 to 150,000 illegal immigrants from Indonesia and the Philippines are in Sabah," said State Secretary Datuk Sukarti Wakiman, in his keynote address at a seminar on "Maritime Security in Sabah Waters and Beyond", Tuesday.The speech was delivered by Director of Research, Maritime Institute of Malaysia (Mima), Prof. Dr Capt Mohd Ibrahim Hj Mohamed.
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Sukarti said the ever-present threat of piracy, kidnappings and terrorism to Sabah forced the enforcement authorities to take a different approach to maritime security.He cited the two kidnappings in Pulau Sipadan (2001) and Pulau Pandanan in 2002 as severe examples of those threats which changed the focus of the national maritime security preparations from traditional to non-traditional threats in this region."For example, Sabah's sea route has been identified as the main route used by criminals and smugglers to sneak into Sabah and whose presence could be a threat to the State's security and prosperity. "Another case in point is that diving sites at the islands and coastal areas off eastern Sabah have been identified as not safe to tourists because of the high threat of kidnapping by terrorists and criminals," he said, adding there were also incidents of foreigners kidnapped from the east coast off mainland Sabah.
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Some findings indicated that piracy in Sabah waters were closely linked to the separatist groups in the Southern Philippines, he said. "The major factor contributing to piracy cases off Sabah is social-political resentment, for example, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) that is fighting for independence over the Sulu Sea uses piracy as a legitimate way of financing the separatist movement," Sukarti said.
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Besides that, the movement of people between Sabah and the southern Philippines is also a major security issue faced by the enforcement agencies.Towards this end, Sukarti said the State's reasonably long coastline, which borders the South China Sea, Sulu Sea and Sulawesi Sea, needs to be continuously monitored and safeguarded from these illegal maritime activities."Thus, the Malaysian security forces have a bigger role in enforcing security against these transnational threats in the area."Meanwhile, he also called for the adoption of a comprehensive security mechanism between the littoral states of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines to reduce and eliminate these threats, without the involvement of the extra-regional powers."Is it timely to pursue the concept of trilateral patrols and 'eyes in the sky' in this maritime domain?"The degree of seriousness to combat these threats varies from littoral state to littoral state (but) at the same time the three littoral states are fragile in interpreting each threat because of the need to protect their nation's building and prosperity."This fragility is a cause for concern as the potential for intra-states' tension and usher instability among respective states. (But) in essence the littoral states are committed to ensure security and development prevail in the maritime domain through political, economic and military means," Sukarti pointed out.He also highlighted a major issue concerning the maritime security beyond Sabah waters, especially in the South China Sea (SCS), which is rich in oil and gas, and is a major portion of Malaysia's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)."This concern is entering a new dimension due to geo-politics and increased interest by extra-regional powers based on two factors," he said, adding the security architecture in the SCS was a challenge to the regional community because of China's ascending role in Asian security and economic affairs and the US' desire to maintain its status of regional preponderance.The SCS provides shipping routes connecting Northeast Asia with Southeast Asia and the Middle East, which is the world's second busiest international sea lane, conveying about one-fourth of the global crude oil products worth USD155 million.The other factor Sukarti mentioned concerns energy security in the SCS, which is a priority issue facing regional states in order to maintain stability and prosperity in the region."In this regard we need to strengthen our efforts and commitment."As part of our effort in supporting the concept of Confident Building-Measures (CBM) in this region, Malaysia has not only established bilateral agreements and multilateral declarations on maritime security with most Asean countries, but also participated in multilateral exercises with extra-regional powers like Australia, Great Britain, New Zealand and the US."Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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