KUCHING: Deputy Home Minister Datuk Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar will meet regional intelligence and security officials in the month ahead to discuss border issues, ranging from the smnuggling of weapons and drugs to human trafficking.
The meetings were partly prompted by the spate of high profile shootings that have gripped the nation recently.
"We believe there is weapons smuggling at the Thailand-Malaysia border. We need to strengthen prevention measures along the border. We hope to reduce the smuggling," Junaidi told reporters here.
Next Monday, Wan Junaidi is meeting S.A. Ibrahim of India's Intelligence Bureau. He took charge of important agency on Jan 1 this year.
"He is an expert in border control. Following that meeting, I'll be going to Kelantan to see for myself the level of security along the border. Some areas of the border are marked by a river. You can literally throw stuff across."
Wan Junaidi said more scanners would be installed at immigration and customs checkpoints along the border.
"The cost is big, but when it comes to national security, we will not compromise because we need to up our detection rate. The ministry hopes funds will be made available in the next Budget," he added.
In September, Wan Junaidi will attend meetings in Brunei and Laos on similar issues with emphasis on the illicit drugs trade.
"Drugs smuggling is a big problem. There are gangs fighting over territory to sell drugs.
"So a lot of problems, which are also related to the recent shootings, involved drugs.
"We can't solve these problems ourselves. We need collective action between the regional countries. We'll also talk about human trafficking at the meetings, because Malaysia and Singapore, having better economies, are always going to be attractive to others," he said.
On a related matter, Junaidi said talks were underway with the Indonesian government to ensure better border control between Sarawak, Sabah and Indonesia.
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