Officers from the Emergency Response Team, Tanglin Division and Ground Response Force from Toa Payoh Neighbourhood Police Centre during a counter-terrorism exercise, on Aug 6, 2016 (Source: http://www.straitstimes.com) Hanoi (VNA) – Singapore on February 27 proposed a new bill to deal with terror attacks by preventing people in the area from taking photos or videos of the incident and communicating about police operations.
According to the city-state’s Strait Times newspaper, the proposal, which is part of a Public Order and Safety (Special Powers) Bill 2018 introduced in parliament, would apply to journalists and carry punishments such as fines or prison.
Police would be allowed to issue a "communications stop order", following the approval from the home affairs minister, the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement.
People are required to stop filming or spreading videos and pictures of an incident area, and to stop communicating text or audio messages about security operations happening there. Failure to comply, after the order is issued, will be an offence.
The ministry said information leaks to terrorists could endanger the lives of security officers and people caught up in the attack.
The terrorist threat facing Southeast Asia is growing as foreign fighters return to the region. Given this fact, regional defense ministers have pledged to boost multilateral cooperation to counter terrorism.-VNA
