Tuesday, October 17, 2006 Oledan: Soft measures By Radzini Oledan Slice of Life
DISASTER-PREPAREDNESS. Underneath the current security concern is the question on how well the community is informed and prepared to manage natural and manmade disasters.
The buffer for any risk and the strategy for disaster preparedness and management is information. It is the antithesis to terrorism, which uses of force or violence against people or property for the purpose of intimidation and coercion.
Terrorists often use threats to create fear among the public and to get publicity for their causes. Proper information management in the grassroots will provide better understand and in many ways, prevent such occurrence.
Despite frequent reminders, for instance, few commuters are worried enough by -- or report -- suspicious people or packages left in train or bus terminals. The public is on the lookout only when there had been recent cases of bombing incident.
There are basics that need to be observed by the public. Foremost of them is the avoidance of crowds of people and to follow the direction from authorities like the police, fire, military personnel or school and workplace supervisors.
This also necessitates that establishments, and even academic institutions should be encouraged to draft their own emergency plan for leaving and staying away from the scene of the event.
The public must also be taught that in the event of terrorist attack for instance, they have to leave the area immediately contrary to the practice in the event of an emergency where throngs of people would converge on the scene of the incident. Caution should also be taken to avoid unattended cars and trucks and to stay away from damaged buildings to avoid falling glass and bricks.
Pro-activeness can only be done when there is proper information.
In Singapore for instance, civil emergency exercises are conducted to test the preparedness of civil defense forces and the public to a bombing or gas attack. The three hour test was as close to the real things as possible without bringing life to a halt. It centers around mock bombings on four MRT stations and a bus interchange where thunder flashes which produces loud explosions and smoke generators are used.
Singaporeans had been readied for this some time but without being told exactly when and where the "bombs" will go off.
The civil emergency exercise will not only measure the readiness of the civil defense and hospital personnel to cope with a major disaster, but also the response of the public.
In an attack, much will depend on how the victims react.
It pays to be paranoid to enable local government units to put in place a comprehensive security measure that will prevent its occurrence.
Most of us may believe that all we ever need is the government to protect us but this is an apathy that could pose a danger to the survival of an urban center, which will always be considered as a terrorist target.
There is a need for authorities to take security a step further.
The anti terrorism effort could also be won through "soft power" by using knowledge, education and information to propagate peace.
The city may have adopted a series of new measures, including deployment of special police forces to patrol public transport and crowded areas and land and sea but it should also invest in providing education and public information.
The development of a comprehensive communication plan is in order, including the provision of an early warning system. In all of the events and development initiatives, communication is the key. Forget about sustainability and pro-activeness when information remains withheld from the public.
However, communication and information should be seen as a program in itself and not merely as a support to a particular program initiative. Only then that the public could make informed choices and take hold of the opportunities for them to take part in the security and development process.
It is not merely a distinction on domestic and international threats that divides the response into crisis response and consequence management.
