Singapore’s Labour Chief, Chan Chun Sing says he is extremely concerned to hear about the discovery of a radical cell comprising foreign workers in Singapore.
Mr Chan’s statement comes in the light of the announcement by the government that 27 Bangladeshi nationals had been arrested by the Internal Security Department for terror links.
26 of them have been repatriated back to their country while one more is currently serving a jail sentence for other offences in Singapore.
Positive Contributions
SG Chan stressed that the majority of foreign workers here contributed positively to the growth and development of the nation.
“As such we must be careful not to let the actions of these radicalised foreign workers taint the positive contributions of other law-abiding foreign workers who live harmoniously amongst us. As such we must strengthen our efforts to integrate foreign workers and guard against ostracising them”, stressed the Labour Chief
Mr Chan also added that it was critical that Singaporeans do not allow the incident to affect the strong ties shared with fellow Muslim Singaporeans.
That is because religious harmony is a cornerstone to the unique heritage of Singapore.
Warned SG Chan, “The greater the threat to split our social fabric, the more we must reach out and embrace each other as Singaporeans. Let us all stay calm and focus on working together to always stay vigilant against such threats”
The Migrant Workers' Centre also hopes that the incident will not tarnish the reputation of hardworking and law-abiding migrant workers in Singapore, regardless of their nationality or religion.
“More importantly, we should all rally together to ensure that the safety and security of our country is our top priority. Everyone has an important role to play and the MWC is committed to do its part in helping migrant workers integrate into our society. Let us all work together to keep our home safe”, says MWC on its Facebook Page.
Also issuing a statement on his Facebook page was Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim.
He said, “I hope we will remain united and not resort to discriminating foreign workers here. The actions of a few cannot determine how we treat others who have worked so hard to build our homes, schools and hospitals. All of us, regardless of race, language or religion, have a role to play. With solidarity and strong bonds of trust, I am confident we can overcome these threats as one people”
About the Case
The Internal Security Department says the 27 male Bangladeshi nationals working in Singapore, were planning to take part in extremist activities in other countries, including Bangladesh.
No terrorist acts were planned in Singapore.
The 27, were working in the construction industry in Singapore.
They were arrested under the Internal Security Act (ISA) between Nov 16 and Dec 1, 2015.
