|
FOUR Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) soldiers sit under a temporary tent pitched on a rocky beach, watching over 50 kelong platforms in the waters off Lim Chu Kang Road.
From their vantage point, they can see fellow soldiers patrolling the waters in two SAF boats, stopping passing vessels and taking down the particulars of the people on board.
There are other signs of a tight security presence in the area: a Police Coast Guard vessel, a police car, an SAF truck and other soldiers have been deployed along the quiet stretch, from cemeteries to floating fish farms.
The area is one of more than 29 coastal landing places being watched closely, in case escaped terrorist Mas Selamat Kastari attempts to flee Singapore via such landing spots, some of which are secluded.
Among the others are quiet parks fronting the sea in West Coast Road and Punggol, and the Changi Point Ferry Terminal, a bumboat ride away from Pulau Ubin and Pengerang in Johor.
Police have visited the area to hand out posters of the 47-year-old head of the Jemaah Islamiah network in Singapore, who escaped from the Whitley Road Detention Centre last Wednesday.
According to kelong owners in Lim Chu Kang, the police and the SAF have been keeping a round-the-clock watch on the area since last Friday.
Patrols are conducted along the coast when the sun goes down, said fish farmer Sim Ah Tee, 58. He said in Mandarin: 'Usually, the police boat comes once in a while but, for the past few days, it has been anchored here all the time.
'There is no way anyone can run away from Singapore with such tight security.'
Another kelong owner, Mr Edmund Ching, 33, said he received a visit from the police last Friday, and was given a poster of Mas Selamat.
'We were also told to contact the authorities if we see anything suspicious or anyone swimming across. We were also told to look after our belongings and boats,' he said.
Similar security operations were in full swing at West Coast and Punggol.
At West Coast, for example, police officers on bicycles were seen putting up notices on trees, at shelters, and in toilets and eateries along the coastline.
At the Changi Point terminal, assistant pier master Chan Khin Foh of Quin Right Enterprises, a private company which maintains the checkpoint, said there has been a change in police operations.
Previously, he said, police officers left the area at 7pm, but now, they are there 24 hours a day.
He noted one other change: 'The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority officers are wearing bullet-proof vests. This never happened before.'
Police also reminded about 30 bumboat operators not to leave their keys in their boats, and gave them posters of MasSelamat.
Dr Rohan Gunaratna, an international terrorism expert, told The Straits Times yesterday that Singapore's border control security is of the 'gold standard'.
He said: 'No borders can be foolproof. However, the Government moves in quickly to close any gaps or loopholes whenever they are identified.'
When asked about wooden boats that may elude radar detection, he added: 'Some boats have lower signatures than others, but the Government has put in many other platforms to detect such intrusions.'
arlina@sph.com.sg
vijayan@sph.com.sg
To take a look at the stepped up sea patrols, click for our free video news.
| 
