Sabah, a safe haven for foreign terrorist fighters

IDEALLY LOCATED between Indonesia and the Philippines, Sabah has become a safe haven for foreign terrorist fighters (FTF) driven away by security forces of both countries.

Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) commander DCP Datuk Ahmad Fuad Othman said besides being a transit point for FTF to shuttle between Indonesia and the Philippines, Sabah is also their hideout.

“When they get attacked by either the Indonesian or Philippines security forces, they flee to Sabah to hide. However, the situation is under control. We work closely with our counterparts in both countries and share intelligence. We have hunted down and arrested many FTF who took refuge in Sabah. A number of them have also been charged in court,” he told the Sun.

Ahmad Fuad said FTF had chosen Sabah as a safe haven and transit point as it is geographically ideal for them. He said it is an arduous task to thwart the entry of the FTF completely, but Esscom forces are constantly on the lookout for them.

A foreign news portal reported recently that Sabah had emerged as a preferred location for Indonesian militants to enter the southern Philippines to carry out their terrorist activities.

Quoting an unidentified source, it said travelling through Sabah had become the favoured option for FTF as other routes, like from Manado, north of Sulawesi in Indonesia, to Davao, southern Mindanao in the Philippines, had proven unreliable.

According to the article, the militants would go from Tawau in Sabah to Sandakan or Semporna to take boats – legal or illegal – to Tawi Nunan or Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines to join terror groups there or learn to make improvised
explosive devices.

International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation Counter-Terrorism expert assistant professor Dr Ahmad El-Muhammady said immigrants, who pass through Sabah on their way to the Philippines, do not pose a serious threat as they treat the state as a location for economic gain.

“The presence of immigrants from the Philippines and Indonesia is not unusual and has existed for decades. When we look at historical factors, there is no such thing as international boundaries for the immigrants as they have been coming in and out of Sabah for a very long time to trade and seek employment. Many are also married to locals,” he said.

He added a majority of foreigners come to Sabah to conduct business, for entertainment and consider it their source of income.

“However, there exists a small fraction from the southern Philippines, such as the Abu Sayyaf militant group, that carries out criminal activities. There are also those who try to lure locals into unwanted activities.”

Ahmad said Malaysia has beefed up security at the borders of Sabah but the vast borders and coastline of the state can leave it vulnerable to immigrants slipping through undetected. (Charles Ramedran / The Sun Daily)