In a statement on Friday, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said it monitors the laws of other countries, but ultimately has to decide what is prudent in Singapore's context and best interests.
The ministry was responding to a joint statement by 16 ex-ISA detainees on September 19 which took issue with the length of detention under the Act and with the ISA Advisory Board process.
It said the 16 were detained for their involvement in subversive activities that threatened national security, and not for their political beliefs.
It added that their allegation that "the protection accorded by the Advisory Board is spurious, if not a farce" is also baseless and unwarranted.
Giving details, the MHA said nine of the ex-detainees were actively involved in Communist United Front (CUF) activities in support of the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM), which was committed to the violent overthrow of the constitutionally-elected governments in Singapore and Malaysia.
They infiltrated legally-established organisations like trade unions and student associations, and instigated illegal strikes and demonstrations to cause mayhem and civil strife to complement the CPM's armed revolution.
In 1974, one of them provided medical assistance to a CPM saboteur who was hiding in Malaysia.
The ministry said the saboteur was conveying a bomb for an attack in Singapore, and was travelling along Still Road (Katong) when it detonated prematurely, injuring him and killing his two accomplices.
It added "such was the volatile and dangerous security situation then prevailing in Singapore. Following the CPM's call in 1968 to its underground networks to return to armed struggle, new CPM organisations were formed in the 1970s which included killer squads to carry out sabotage, assassinations and other acts of violence."
The statement added that in the 1980s, seven of the 16 ex-detainees were involved in a Marxist plot to subvert and destabilise Singapore.
The plot was part of the CPM's renewed efforts to rebuild a united front by penetrating and manipulating legally-established organisations.
Three of them infiltrated and manipulated several religious organisations and, exploiting the religious cover, pursued activities towards subversive ends.
On the issue of length of detention under the ISA, MHA said whether a person's detention is extended depends on whether he still poses a security threat.
For example, detainees who refused to renounce violence were detained for longer periods until they were assessed to no longer pose a security threat to society, whereas others who renounced violence and no longer posed a security threat were released much sooner.
- CNA/al
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