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Headline Wan Junaidi realistic on security MediaTitle The Sun Date 08 Apr 2014 Language English Circulation 300,512 Readership 650,000 Section National Color Full Color Page No 16 ArticleSize 392 cm² AdValue RM 6,971 PR Value RM 20,913 Wan Junaidi realistic on security the seamless movement of people tracking the group, the gunmen from southern Philippines to have moved out of their base on Sabah's east coast has been going Tawi­Tawi island off Semporna to on for decades and to compound Jolo. the problem, many of them were And as per their standard °i' AZMAN UJANC born in Sabah but are considered operating procedure, we can expect stateless. calls to be made to intermediaries i DON'T see why people should They easily assimilate with the soon for the usual demand of take issue with remarks by locals and with arms being ransom. Deputy Home Minister Datuk smuggled in this often contributes But an expert in Philippine Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar to kidnappings and other crimes. conflicts, Dr Shamusddin L. Taya of over the insecurity of the remote The armed intrusion into Lahad Mindanao, who is also a visiting diving islands off Sabah which have Datu in February last year that senior lecturer at Universiti Utara Malaysia, said it was unlikely that over the years been easy targets for resulted in 10 policemen being slain this group was involved in this kidnappers from the Philippines is a case in point just across the watery border. Sabah hit headlines in 2000 latest incident as it pointed more to Wan Junaidi is being realistic. when 21 tourists were abducted the work of gangsters who were, using the notoriety of the Abu These resorts are ubiquitous and from Sipadan island by Abu Sayyaf far­flung; it's humanly impossible rebels. Sayyaf to demand for ransom. to totally prevent kidnappings of "As the Abu Sayyaf no longer Sipadan is one of the best diving has. a prominent leader, it is easier tourists against the backdrop of a spots in the world and is on par porous border and the existence of with Australia's Great Barrier Reef. for the gangster group to claim many armed groups in the restive links to the outfit," said After protracted negotiations, it Shamsuddin. southern Philippines. was almost six months later that the "If it were up to me, I would say victims were released in the Abu It is a fallacy for anyone to believe that just because the Sabah these resorts on small, isolated Sayyaf stronghold of Jolo, islands should be closed. No one Eastern Security Command sometimes dubbed "the kidnap (ESScom) was set up last year can guarantee the safety of these capital of the Philippines". places when they are situated far And this was done after millions shortly after the Lahad Datu intrusion, the popular diving off the coast," said Wan Junaidi on of dollars in ransom was reportedly Friday. resorts, which attract tourists paid by governments whose especially from China, are safe. His comments came two days citizens were kidnapped by the after yet another kidnapping, this GSSCom does manage to make time involving a female tourist group. them safer or prevent more armed Abu Sayyaf relished the incidents from happening at best by from China and a Filipina hotel publicity generated worldwide for employee who were snatched from being the coordinator of security months during the Sipadan crisis operations by various enforcement the Singamata Reef Resort off and allowed many journalists into agencies. Semporna. their lair in Jolo, including my then I worked for four years in Sabah In November last year, a Bernama colleague, Jackson Taiwanese tourist was shot dead at in the early i98o's. Reporters Sawatan. Pom Pom island off Semporna and covering piracy in the state's east While journalists managed to coast in those days were familiar his wife kidnapped. She was only gain easy access to their hideout, released 36 days later, again after with the long coastlines. die gunmen seemed to be left I had on some occasions been untouched by the security forces some hefty ransom was paid. taken on board by the marine police and according to Jackson, Shamsuddin believed such patrolling the waters off Semporna it was common then to kidnappings were rampant because after a ferry carrying dozens of see a 17­year­old riding a of the possibility of gangsters in passengers was hijacked and the bicycle in the streets cahoots with corrupt Filipino victims taken across the carrying an M­16 rifle. police and military personnel border before being Jackson later wrote a This means the problem is far released. book on his experience more complex than just the routine Some Facebook and covering the hostage efforts of ESSCom, the police and WhatsApp users said Wan crisis. Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Junaidi was "taking the The top leader of Al­ Agency (MMEA) to keep these easy way out" in Qaeda­linked Abu gunmen at bay. addressing a serious security Sayyaf, Ghalib Andang, A senior ESSCom official told breach in Sabah's east coast while better known as me the MMEA carried out routine others are saying it is not an excuse Commander Robot, was patrols near the Singamata resort for those in authority to "wash their killed with 22 others that was the scene of the latest hands off" the problem with a lame when police stormed a kidnapping. excuse. maximum security On die night in question, a patrol had left the area around 10pm but It is not an issue of taking the prison near Manila on March 15, easy way out or of washing your the gunmen struck half an hour 2005 to end a prison mutiny. later. hands. It is far­fetched to suggest Wednesday's kidnapping of the that it is. And to indicate how daring the two women was also linked to the To put the issue in perspective, gunmen were, the resort is just five Abu Sayyaf. According to police minutes' boat ride to a marine Headline Wan Junaidi realistic on security MediaTitle The Sun Date 08 Apr 2014 Language English Circulation 300,512 Readership 650,000 Section National Color Full Color Page No 16 ArticleSize 392 cm² AdValue RM 6,971 PR Value RM 20,913 police base. lucrative business. screening. Esscom alone should not Resort owners and tourists must The resort operators might want be blamed. Everyone must be learn lessons from all these to revisit the feasibility of their concerned about security." incidents and put their safety above operations in remote areas. their obsession for diving. Wan Junaidi sent this text to me: The bottom line is that for the "Resort owners must take some Azman Ujang is a former editor­in­ gunmen and those working in responsibility not to hire anyone chief of Bernama. Comments: cahoots with them, kidnapping is a without a security and crime [email protected].

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