SINGAPORE: Ramping up security at campuses following the revelation of school attack plots may bring a sense of safety and assurance in the immediate short term, but may inadvertently normalise a culture of fear among students, experts said.
While physical security has a role, preventing students from slipping into radicalisation is just as important, said experts. This includes developing open communication channels with trusted adults with whom they can clarify doubts when they come across dangerous content or face difficulties.
On Monday (Jul 27), the Internal Security Department (ISD) said that it had detained three teenagers who were self-radicalised online, with two of them plotting to carry out attacks in schools.
One boy, 14, drafted a 21-page manifesto detailing the attack plan and admitted to authorities he would have carried out the stabbings. He was arrested weeks before he was due to carry out the attack, in what ISD called a “close shave”.
Associate Professor Razwana Begum, head of global security and strategy at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, said: “Schools must remain places where students feel safe, but also where they continue to feel trusted.
“We should be careful not to unintentionally create environments that resemble high-security facilities unless the threat assessment clearly warrants it.”
She said that equally important to physical security measures are trusted relationships between students and adults, accessible counselling support, threat assessment capabilities, and a school culture where concerns can be raised early.
Ms Shahrany Hassan, founder of local non-profit The Whitehatters that facilitates community dialogue, said that while schools need robust security plans, she would be “very cautious about turning schools into heavily fortified spaces”.
“If students have to walk through metal detectors every morning, that inevitably changes how they experience school. It subtly sends the message that school is a place where danger is expected rather than the exception,” she explained.
“We have to be careful not to create an environment where fear becomes normalised.”
Assoc Prof Razwana noted that while ramping up physical security measures may provide reassurance for some parents, particularly in the immediate aftermath of such incidents, it should not be a sole consideration.
“Physical security has a role, but it should complement, not replace, the broader work of building resilient and connected communities,’ she said.
Ms Shahrany said that the school community is well placed to notice changes in those who are slowly being radicalised. Notably, students often notice changes in their friends long before adults do, while teachers spend hours with their students daily.
They can intervene and make a real difference long before security measures ever come into play, she explained.
In the case of the 14-year-old, someone in his school had noticed his signs of radicalisation and alerted the authorities.
Senior Minister K Shanmugam said on Monday that “you can’t turn every school into a garrison” and that there was a need to balance security and free movement.
