KOTA KINABALU: Sabah’s ongoing dusk-to-dawn sea curfew which ends on Tuesday (Aug 23) has been extended for another 14 days to Sept 7.
This is the 193rd time the curfew will be extended since it was first implemented on July 16, 2014.
Sabah Commissioner of Police Commissioner Datuk Idris Abdullah said residents in the areas covered by the curfew were required to stay at home from 6pm to 6am while outsiders were not allowed to enter the curfew zone.
The curfew covers areas up to three nautical miles off Sandakan, Beluran, Kinabatangan, Lahad Datu, Kunak, Semporna and Tawau.
Comm Idris said the lingering threats from cross-border criminals including from kidnap-for-ransom (KFR) groups necessitated the extension of the curfew.
The curfew, he said, was to ensure Malaysian waters were not intruded by terrorists or criminals from southern Philippines and subsequently ensure the safety of international researchers or foreign tourists visiting islands in Sabah.
He said their intelligence sources found that KFR groups as well as the Abu Sayyaf group were still attempting to enter the country’s waters and carry out kidnapping activities as well as other cross-border crimes.
“The curfew will allow security forces to look after the safety of people who travel at sea and those living in the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (Esszone),” he said in a statement on Monday (Aug 22).
“It will also allow us to enforce and monitor the movement of vessels as well as create a sense of security and confidence among chalet operators and fishermen through the omnipresence of security vessels enforcing this curfew,” he added.
Comm Idris said he had also given the authority to the respective district police chiefs to issue permits to any applicant who fulfils necessary requirements to conduct fishing activities or ply water routes in the curfew areas.
The curfew was enforced following a spate of kidnappings that saw the beheading of Sarawakian Bernard Then Ted Fen and the killing of several others, including a policeman and tourists.