Member of Commission I DPR RI, TB Hasanuddin, assessed that what happened to Ustaz Abdul Somad in Singapore was a form of implementing their country’s sovereignty.
“That is possible in international laws and regulations. So one form of applying to maintain sovereignty is having the authority to refuse a foreigner to enter the country’s territory,” said TB Hasanuddin at the Senayan Parliament Complex, Wednesday (18/5/2022) .
The PDIP politician also believes that the narrative about UAS being deported must be straightened out.
“We need to explain in the immigration rules, what the Singapore government is doing is not removing it from its territory, but refusing at the border to enter Singapore’s slot territory,” he said.
This, according to him, cannot be intervened by other countries, because it is purely Singapore’s authority.
“He may have the right to ask Singapore through the nearest Singapore representative, which is in Jakarta. He can ask for clarification, why I entered your country and then I was rejected,” he said.
“I see, and later Singapore through its representatives will provide an explanation, and it may also be clarified again if there are things that are not right,” he said.
When asked about the Singapore Ministry of Home Affairs statement that UAS often spreads narratives of division and extremism, TB Hasanuddin did not want to answer.
“I think this way I can’t have another opinion, because that’s the attitude of a country. We have to respect that country,” he concluded.
Previously, the Singapore government finally opened its voice regarding the ban on UAS entering Singapore’s territory through a statement from the Ministry of Home Affairs (Kemendagri) Singapore on Tuesday (17/5/2022).
The statement is written in three points which explains the chronology to the reason for the Singaporean authorities forbidding UAS from entering Singapore’s territory.
In the first point, it was explained that the Ministry of Home Affairs of Singapore ensured that Ustadz Abdul Somad Batubara (Somad) arrived at the Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal in Singapore on May 16, 202.
UAS is said to have arrived from Batam with six travel companions.
“Somad was interviewed, after which the group was denied entry to Singapore and placed on a ferry back to Batam on the same day,” the ministry said in a statement.
In the second point, it is stated that Somad or UAS is known to spread extremist teachings and segregation, which is unacceptable in Singapore’s multi-racial and multi-religious society.
For example, Somad has preached that suicide bombings are legal in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and are considered “martyrdom” operations.
“He also made derogatory comments about members of other religious communities, such as Christians, by describing the Christian cross as the abode of “pagan jinn”. In addition, Somad openly refers to non-Muslims as “kafir” (kafir),”
In the third point, it is stated that the entry of visitors to Singapore is not automatic or becomes a right.
The Ministry of Home Affairs said that each case was judged on its own merits.
