Authorities in Singapore showed signs of fear after the Marriott bombing in Jakarta

By Kazi Mahmood, IOL Southeast Asia correspondent

Kuala Lumpur, August 7 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - The Singapore authorities may beef up its security following the bombing of the U.S.-run JW Marriott Hotel, which left at least 10 dead on Tuesday, August 5, making security on the tiny Island a highly expensive affair, Singaporean newspapers reported on Thursday, August 7.

Security experts told the Straits Times of Singapore that the car bomb at the Jakarta’s JW Marriott Hotel could just as easily have been set off in Singapore, forcing the authorities to take extra steps to secure embassies, clubs, malls and other public areas.

Security experts in Singapore urged the authorities to take stronger steps and go further in beefing its security systems in order to fan-off possible attacks on its soil despite reports that the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) is severely crippled and probably inactive in Singapore itself.

Acknowledging that the alleged JI terror network is severely crippled with most of its influential members either in jail or on the run and in hiding in the wilderness, authorities in Singapore showed signs of fear after the Marriott bombing in Jakarta.

Authorities in Singapore believe the tiny Island off the southern coast of Malaysia remains a potential terrorist target because of its close links to the U.S. and because it successfully destroyed Al-Qaeda and JI networks on the Island.

The Republic, home to American and other foreign multi-nationals and a transit point for U.S. navy vessels, has been relentless in the anti-terror fight, said the Straits Times, which also reported that it was the JI that claimed responsibility for the Marriott blast.

'Staging a terrorist attack on Singapore will be a big boost for the morale of the JI which has taken a bad beating from Singapore,' one analyst told the Straits Times.

Although Singapore has crippled JI's network, the group remains active regionally and its second and third-ranked operatives can plan and function even if senior leaders have been arrested, Institute of Defense and Strategic Studies analyst Andrew Tan told the Times.

Singapore is however not prepared to go to extreme length in beefing up its security to the extent of jeopardizing its trade and tourism industries, another analyst told IslamOnline.net.

“The tiny Island depends largely on tourism and export trade, which are the main Gross National Income earners for the country,” said Hamdan Hasnan, who owns a security firm dealing in high-tech security gears.

Singapore’s ports, the country’s third largest income earner, are currently staggering in the wake of a resurgence in Malaysia’s cargo and export handling in its recently refurbished and modernized ports in Johore and Penang, he said.

Johore’s port of Tanjung Perlepas has overshadowed Singapore’s port which is currently no longer the number one container transit area in this part of the world.

The analyst told IOL that beefing-up security also means tight control on arrivals and departures at airports, ports and points of entry into the Island.

“All these measures are costly and time consuming and since Singapore depends largely on the time factor, reinforcing security will only drastically reduce the flow of transactions, will irritate people and slow down business and transportation in and out of the Island,” said Hamdan.

Wake-Up Call

Singapore, clearly shaken up by the blast at the Marriott hotels in Jakarta has also announced it will have to focus towards tightening security in “soft” targets such as hotels and shopping centers.

Its authorities said that although measures have been in place since the Bali bombing of October 12, the Marriott blast is a wake-up call to keep security alertness at a high level.

The country may beef up its online and offline live camera systems at hotels and shopping complexes and other sensitive and popular areas, which will incur additional investment in security and alert systems by both the public and private sectors, a senior member of a security firm dealing in Internet based security services in Kuala Lumpur told IOL on condition of anonymity.

“It is possible that the Singapore authorities beef its security in those ‘soft’ targets with sensitive detection devices or bomb scanners, or it can also use satellite technology and try to use heat sensors or bombs in such areas,” he said.

However, these gadgets are extremely costly and to cover an Island like Singapore will be a huge affair, thus leaving the Singapore authorities with an open field where terror can strike easily, said Hamdan.

Representatives from local and foreign institutions and businesses and those in charge of facilities frequently visited  by the public were cautious about revealing details of what measures were in place in the wake of the Marriott blast, the Straits Times reported.

“But they said it has prompted them to reinforce the high level of alertness they had already been keeping,” wrote the paper, which quoted one security specialist as saying that 'When your neighbor’s house is burgled, you check your own locks to see what needs to be fixed.'

Analysts in Singapore said that one challenge for the authorities now is increasing public awareness without creating panic or fostering a mood that will impact on the country's social fabric as well as the economy.

“This is almost impossible to achieve, as publicizing the dangers of a terror attack on the Singaporean soil will definitely influence the economic indicators of a country which is just picking up from the effects of the SARS,” said Hamdan.

It will be tough to ensure that visitor confidence is not undermined and in the same time ensure that security is at its best, said another security expert to IOL.