QURAN-READING CLASSES RUN BY JEMAAH ISLAMIYAH (Counselling of attendees and family members)

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan asked the Minister for Home Affairs whether his Ministry has (i) identified those children who attended Quran-reading classes run by the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) to talent-spot and recruit future members; and (ii) made arrangements for these children and their family members to be counselled and helped from being led astray by the JI.

The Minister for Home Affairs (Mr Wong Kan Seng): Mr Speaker, Sir, the Jemaah Islamiyah established a unit called "Tarbiyah Rasmiyah", which means Official Education Unit, around 1992. The unit was tasked to organise religious classes and, subsequently, also children's camps. These activities were, however, stopped after 1998 when the Jemaah Islamiyah began to narrow its focus towards preparing the adult members for operational functions. This is when the training for the Jemaah Islamiyah members in Malaysia also began to include an increasingly more military-type curriculum.

The Jemaah Islamiyah's religious classes and camps were not conducted under the banner of Jemaah Islamiyah. They were open to all and not confined only to children of Jemaah Islamiyah parents. The camps, which were called "Tamrin Kanak Kanak", which means Training for Children, began in 1995/96, and participation was sought through advertisements in the Berita Harian and by word of mouth. There was also at least one camp organised for teenagers between the ages of 13 and 15.

The Internal Security Department investigations have not shown that the religious classes and the camps were used to indoctrinate the children with the Jemaah Islamiyah ideology. The religious classes for children centred on Quran reading, and the activities of the camp included the usual youth adventure learning activities, such as abseiling, "flying fox", swimming, archery and physical exercises.

The Internal Security Department is aware of some of those who attended these religious classes and camps, but not all. Although the classes and camps were not used to purvey the Jemaah Islamiyah ideology, they were used as opportunities to talent-spot potential JI members from among the participants and their parents. The Internal Security Department's investigations have discovered that in one camping trip, Jemaah Islamiyah fiah ayub, which means cell leader, Khalim bin Jaffar, used the bus ride conveying the camp participants to an activity site as a cover to video the Sembawang Road and Pakistan Road areas where they believe American servicemen and their families stay. These are the Americans who the JI observe as frequent users of the shuttle bus service to Yishun MRT which was a target for a plan of attack which Khalim conveyed to the Al-Qaeda in 1997. Sir, there is no cause for parents to be unduly alarmed just because their children had attended the Jemaah Islamiyah religious classes or camps some years ago. They and their children will also not be implicated as Jemaah Islamiyah members or supporters simply because of this. If they still have any concern, they can contact the Internal Security Department.