Singapore's Position on Kidnapping of 200 Girls by Rebels in Nigeria

Mrs Lina Chiam asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs whether Singapore has any bilateral ties with Nigeria and, if not, whether Singapore has taken any steps at the international level to support and assist the Nigerian Government for the release of the 200 Nigerian girls kidnapped by rebels more than three months ago.

The Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M) (for the Minister for Foreign Affairs): Mdm Speaker, Singapore and Nigeria established diplomatic relations on April 1970. Our ties with Nigeria are very good. I recently met the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Prof Viola Onwuliri, when we hosted several African Foreign Ministers whom we invited to Singapore.

Mdm Speaker, the hon Member, I believe, is referring to the incident on 14 April 2014 when Boko Haram, a Nigerian militant Islamist Group, abducted more than 200 girls from a school. The incident captured worldwide attention. More than 50 of the abductees managed to escape but the rest are believed to be still in captivity.

We sympathise with the plight of the abductees and their families. We strongly condemn the abduction of innocent girls. Singapore has not been approached by the Nigerian Government to render assistance. We also do not have the same capabilities as the US, UK or France, which had earlier provided intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support to the Nigerian government.

Mrs Lina Chiam (Non-Constituency Member): I would like to ask the Senior Minister of State a supplementary question. Will the Singapore Government do anything to help the Nigerian girls? This is a global moral obligation. Could we do something to help them, or what can the Government do in this case? Any suggestion?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: We should be mindful about being proactive in offering assistance. This is also to respect our bilateral partners. When I met the Nigerian Minister of State, she did not broach the matter. I think we should respect that.