Written Reply to Parliamentary Question on Measures to Safeguard Security and Increase Awareness and Preparedness of Congregants and Staff of Religious Institutions to Scenarios Concerning Chemical or Potentially Hazardous Substances

Question:

Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs in light of recently reported incidents of unknown substances scattered or splashed on certain religious institutions, what are the measures in place to help safeguard the security and increase the awareness and preparedness of congregants and staff of our religious institutions, particularly in response to scenarios concerning chemical or potentially hazardous substances.

Answer:

Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law:

1.   The Police engage community stakeholders, including religious organisations, on crime prevention and security awareness as part of their community engagement efforts.

2.   Religious organisations are members of local Safety and Security Watch Groups (SSWGs). The Police conduct crime risk assessments on premises together with building managers and give advice on crime prevention measures. This may include the adoption of useful technologies to enhance their security measures, such as the installation of CCTV cameras. The Police also organise training, seminars, and workshops for SSWG members. At these sessions, industry speakers and relevant agencies share best practices on topics such as building safety and security, psychological resilience, emergency preparedness, and business continuity planning.

3.   The Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) helps religious organisations build their crisis response capacity as part of the SGSecure movement. Efforts include the dissemination of a security advisory booklet specially tailored for religious and community organisations. The security advisory booklet covers a broad range of issues from identifying security threats, planning for crisis management, to responding to various security scenarios. The scenarios include threats from chemical or hazardous substances.

4.   MCCY encourages religious organisations to assess their crisis readiness and identify operational gaps by completing a self-assessment checklist. The Police also conduct ground deployment exercises with stakeholders, such as religious organisations, to validate their contingency response plans and ensure their readiness in the event of emergencies.

5.   The Ministry of Home Affairs and MCCY will continue to work together with our stakeholders to increase the crisis preparedness of religious organisations.