Malaysia, Singapore to Set Up High-Level JWC to Combat Drugs

SINGAPORE, June 27 (Bernama) -- A ministry-level Joint Working Committee (JWC) will be set up under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Drug Enforcement Cooperation between Malaysia and Singapore. Malaysia's Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said the JWC would chart the direction for joint efforts between the operational agencies in both countries to combat the drug scourge. "We are building on something that already exists, for example the Police Forces, the Intelligence services, narcotics divisions. The ministries have already had a strong relationship on security before but here for the first time, we are cutting across the different agencies of both countries. "So I think is the way forward," he said when speaking to the Malaysian media after the signing of the MoU here on Tuesday. Earlier, when responding to questions from the media at the ceremony, Singapore Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs Teo Chee Hean said the JWC would be led by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs of Singapore and the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Home Affairs of Malaysia. "Initially we have agreed that we should focus in the area of drugs, and from there we can see what other avenues that we want to explore for cooperation between both ministries," Teo said. Teo and Hishammudin signed the MoU on behalf of both home ministries at Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs. Also present was Malaysia's High Commissioner to Singapore, Md Hussin Nayan. When asked on the time frame to set up the JWC, Hishammuddin said he hoped it would be in place before the end of the year. Hishammuddin said that the signing of the MoU could serve as an example to other countries to engange in similar cooperation, particularly in combating transborder crimes. "Today, it is in the context of drugs, tomorrow if all goes well it could include weapons smuggling, human trafficking, leading of sensitive information on the Internet which pose a risk to national security and other transborder crimes that might not have been thought of by any quarters before. "So I think it is a historical understanding but it is also based on the realisation that the world is very small and globalisation has required us to work closer together and across agencies and ministries to overcome transnational crimes. "I am already looking forward to the future (and) I would like to see this (MoU) to be translated as regards to relationships between Malaysia and Singapore, I would like to see this relationships translated at the Asean level and may be I would like to see it translated it into Asean+3 (Japan, China and Korea and China)," he said. Hishammuddin said if this template was used at all levels of interaction, it would give more meaning and significance in dealing with global crimes which included terrorism. -- BERNAMA