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Policy reviews on privacy, freedom of expression needed to fight terrorism: Singaporean official

Xinhua, April 11, 2016 Adjust font size:

Terrorism has come to an age when countries need to review their policies on the right to privacy, the encryption of communications, and freedom of expression, said Singapore Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan during the 10th Asia-Pacific Program for Senior National Security Officers (APPSNO) on Monday.

The theme of this year's APPSNO is National Security Revisited. The theme permits a review and revisit of many important domains discussed at previous editions of APPSNOs that have a continued impact on national security.

Balakrishnan said under the threats of terrorism, there must be a balance between freedoms, rights and national security, so that the security agencies are able to deter threats and aggression, and for appropriate political responses.

"What goes on in cyberspace has real impact on the real world, and the sooner we get to grips with these difficult policy issues, the better. Because we need to get the balance right. We need to get politics right, and we need to get operational responses right," he said.

Noting that terrorist organizations such as al-Qaida and Islamic State have been widely using new media to communicate, persuade, inspire and mobilise on an international scale, he said terrorists are using religion and ideology "merely as a vehicle or lever" to pursue political objectives.

"It should not surprise us that it has led to a sharpening of exclusive identities and a reaffirmation of the temptation to resort to violence, both physical violence or even political violence, as people search and emphasise and reaffirm identities imagined or real," said Balakrishnan, who added that everyone should make the best use of the new technology, and have a serious discussion about getting politics right to secure the safety of society.

Organised by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies' Centre of Excellence for National Security, APPSNO is specifically for senior government officials from the Asia-Pacific and beyond with responsibilities for national security matters.

Over 70 national security practitioners and scholars from 25 countries such as China, Chile, New Zealand and Norway attended the event, which runs from April 11 to April 15. Enditem