SECURITY AWARENESS AMONG SHOPOWNERS IN TOWN CENTRES AND STUDENTS IN SCHOOLS (Measures to improve)

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SECURITY AWARENESS AMONG SHOPOWNERS IN TOWN CENTRES AND STUDENTS IN SCHOOLS:

(Measures to improve): 10.

Mr Arthur Fong asked the Minister for Home Affairs, in light of the high human traffic flow found in major town centres which have well developed transport facilities such as bus interchanges and MRT stations - for example Toa Payoh, Bedok, Clementi and Jurong East - what is being done to (i) improve the awareness of shopowners in the area of security and prevention against terrorist related activities; and (ii) take advantage of the school holiday season to educate and increase security awareness among students in our schools.

Mr Wong Kan Seng: Sir, continuous efforts are being made by the Police to raise the community's vigilance in fighting terrorism. This outreach effort employs a three-pronged approach. Firstly, we raise general security awareness through the mass media. In fact, that is the most important means. Secondly, we reach out to both the grassroots leaders and the community at large through security briefings and seminars under the Community Safetyand Security Programme (or CSSP in short). Thirdly, we engage groups of special interest (such as the private security industry and the managements of key installations and hotels) to encourage them to adopt measures that enhance the physical security of their premises. This initiative to increase physical security has also been applied to owners of soft targets, such as nightspots and entertainment outlets.

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Neighbourhood shopkeepers also form another segment of the community which the Police have reached out to. Most recently, the Police, together with the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC), the Federation of Merchants Association, and the Retail Promotion Centre, organised a "Neighbourhood Retail Security Conference" on 18th October 2004 at the HDB Hub. In addition to crime prevention messages, the conference emphasised the need for the shop owners to be vigilant and to act as the eyes and ears of the security agencies. This conference reached out to about 250 neighbourhood shop owners and was very well received. Similar forums will be conducted so that the Police can reach out to the rest of the retail industry.

On the question of engaging students to increase security awareness, the Neighbourhood Police Centres (NPCs) have established good working relationships with the schools and the Police's outreach efforts are mostly conducted during the school term. Security awareness programme or education for students has been an ongoing process undertaken by the Neighbourhood Police Centres to reach out to the schools within their areas of coverage. The Neighbourhood Police Centres have also been working closely with the schools and together, they have been organising security awareness programmes in schools in conjunction with the Community Safetyand Security Programme. These activities are carried out throughout the year.

An example of such initiatives is the forum organised by the Inter-Racial Confidence Circle Committee of Southwest Community Development Council. About 300 tertiary students and community leaders were invited to learn from experts from the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies (IDSS) on terrorism prevention and share their views on how

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best to encourage the community to stay vigilant towards terrorist threats.

The Police will continue to engage specific groups such as students, neighbourhood shop owners, and other groups (in response to changes in terrorist tactics) as well as the general public to raise the awareness against terrorism, as well as stress the need for vigilance in ensuring the safety and security of Singapore .