Singapore International Foundation

Managing Editor For Foreign Policy Discuss Singapore's Counter-Terrorism Strategies

During his visit, Dobson met with Home Affairs Permanent Secretary Mr. Benny Lee as well as key members of the Religious Rehabilitation Group, to discuss Singapore’s strategies against terrorism.

The editor also had meetings with various think tanks such as the International Institute of Strategic Studies (Asia) and International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research at S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, NTU.

Under his direction, Foreign Policy won the overall award for General Excellence in the National Magazine Award in 2007. Prior to joining Foreign Policy, Dobson served as Newsweek International’s Senior Editor for Asia. He was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2006. In 2003, he served as the U.S. Rapporteur to the World Economic Forum’s East Asian Economic Summit in Singapore and was awarded a Knight Fellowship by the Salzburg Seminar. He is also a 1994 Truman Scholar.

While in Singapore, the editor made time to take several interviews from the local press.

TODAY newspaper sought his views on counter-terrorism in Singapore, where he expressed that terrorism is a "generations-long challenge", and that "working with terrorists and radicals and showing them the errors of their ways" forms a crucial part of an effective strategy against terrorism.

"Singapore is putting in a very concerted, consistent and persistent effort to counter the issue of self-radicalisation.” Dobson also pointed out Singapore’s Religious Rehabilitation Group (RRG) as a shining example in this effort. (The RRG is a voluntary group formed in 2003 by Singapore’s Islamic leaders and scholars that counsels detained Jemaah Islamiyah members.)

For The Straits Times interview, Dobson expounded on the ongoing US elections campaign and its impact on Asia, and also touched on the current protests against the Beijing Olympics. For the former, Dobson was of the view that “whoever wins election this year will try to ensure there is no dramatic change in ties with China, irrespective of whether he or she is a Republican or Democrat."