KUALA LUMPUR: The government has attributed its hugely successful programme on de-radicalising terrorists in the country to the electronic monitoring device (EMD).
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the use of EMD had contributed to 97.5 per cent success rate in rehabilitating them.
He said terrorists undergoing de-radicalisation would be strapped with EMD for a certain period of time for the authorities to monitor their whereabouts.
“Through the EMD, we can monitor if they meet up with their old friends or see if they go somewhere else beyond the permissible area,” he told reporters at the third Counter-Terrorism Financing Summit at Bank Negara today.
The summit was organised by Bank Negara in partnership with Australia’s financial intelligence agency Austrac, and Indonesia’s Pusat Pelaporan and Analisis Transaksi Keuangan.
Zahid said EMD also ensured that terrorists could not communicate with their friends, who might be influenced by terror activities.
He said soft approach with the involvement of ulama, psychologists and family members was also used to de-radicalise the terrorists.
“Family members are brought in to engage with the detainees so that there will be assimilation and love to help (in the rehabilitation),” he said.
Zahid assured the public that the authorities were monitoring terror offenders closely and that there were specific mechanisms to keep them in check.
He said 289 terrorists underwent the de-radicalisation module between 2001 and 2012, and 282 of them were disengaged from terrorist activities.
Zahid said it was also important to prevent movement of terrorists across borders.
“Therefore, border control has been strengthened through an integrated approach, involving multi-discipline enforcement agencies and enhancement of immigration-related mechanisms such as the Advanced Passenger Screening System, and enhanced security features of all travel documents.”
The summit started on Monday and ends tomorrow.
Present were Australian Minister for Justice Michael Keenan, and Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs of Indonesia General Wiranto.