No kidnappings, for instance, took place the whole of last year and there has been no repeat of the 2013 incursion into Sabah by armed Sulu residents. And despite the Islamic State’s stated wish to target Malaysia, there has been no major terrorist attack. The report also noted the increased allocations to the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom).
Prime Minister Najib Razak had allocated RM250 million to Esscom, including RM50 million for coastal surveillance radar, under Budget 2018.
Esscom was set up soon after the 2013 attempt by about 200 men loyal to the Sultan of Sulu to reclaim Sabah for the sultanate ended with 68 deaths. It is tasked with the security of the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (Esszone), a 1,700km-long special security area along the east coast of Sabah that borders crime-prone southern Philippines.
“We are happy to say that no acts of piracy and kidnapping happened in the Esszone so far this year thanks to the vigilance of our troops and cooperation of citizens,” its chief Hazani Ghazali told FMT recently.
“We don’t compromise with the state’s security, so we are doing everything we can to increase our capabilities to tackle elements of crime and terrorism that approach our country. Our secret is that we frequently train and rehearse so that when the time comes, we’re ready for action. That is why we constantly keep our troops at the leading edge of combat capabilities,” he added.
This new defence architecture covers ten districts along the eastern coast, which are patrolled by police officers, army personnel, and members of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.
The report in The Diplomat noted that more police stations and detention centres had been built in Sabah, and naval capabilities upgraded.
It said if militants were present on any notable scale within Sabah, they were lying low in the face of the enhanced security measures put in place.
It added that the authorities had refuted any suggestion that local Muslim communities were harbouring Islamic fighters from the southern Philippines.
“So far, the knock on effects of the instability to Malaysia’s east appear to have been limited, and Sabah’s tourism industry continues to thrive. The economic benefits derived from a stable environment make the region’s power brokers all the more determined to avoid a deterioration of security akin to Mindanao.”
It said the authorities in Sabah know they must exercise continual vigilance amid fears of terrorist infiltration driven by the risk of fighters returning not only from Mindanao, but also from the Middle East as Islamic State loses territory there.
Islamic State’s lingering regional ambitions remain a threat.
“Due to its geographical position, Sabah will remain at risk despite the best efforts of the security forces and law enforcement agencies. Its long and heavily indented coastline along with its proximity to the impoverished and lawless islands of the Sulu archipelago, awash with armed Islamist groups, will continue to make Sabah an attractive gateway for militants intent on not only resurrecting past territories, but with eyes on carving out new ones.”