Singapore Customs hosts first APEC 2009 meeting on customs procedures Let’s stamp out illegal cigarettes together! Formula One: How the cars came in   Singapore hosts chemical incidents training for Asian counterparts Traders give Singapore Customs’ service delivery the thumbs up Singapore Customs gains ground against cigarette offenders in 2008 Selective sealing of containers results in time-savings for traders   Singapore Customs marks International Customs Day 2009 Look smart! Look sharp!         Singapore hosts chemical incidents training for Asian counterparts Singapore Customs successfully organised the inaugural “Emergency Response to Chemical Incidents” training course from 2 to 6 March 2009 at the Civil Defence Academy. The training programme was co-organised with the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), and attended by participants from 13 Asian nations. Mr Gennadi Lutay, Head of Assistance and Protection Branch of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, briefed the course participants on member states’ contributions towards providing assistance and protection against chemical weapons under Article X of the Chemical Weapons Convention. Singapore Customs is the National Authority for the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), an international treaty which prohibits the development, production, stockpiling, transfer and use of chemical weapons. The training course is part of Singapore’s pledge to the OPCW to conduct relevant training courses to assist other member states, or States Parties, in their efforts to build up their national capabilities to implement their CWC obligations and to protect against chemical weapons attacks or incidents. As the implementing body for the CWC, the OPCW’s mandate is to ensure the implementation of the CWC provisions, including those for international verification of compliance with the Convention, and to provide a forum for consultation and cooperation among States Parties. Participants received hands-on training in providing medical treatment for casualties of chemical weapons attacks and the use of antidotes. Mr Gennadi Lutay, Head of the OPCW’s Assistance and Protection Branch who opened the course, highlighted the need for States Parties to facilitate and participate in the exchange of equipment and materials to help fulfill CWC objectives. The five-day course was attended by a total of 16 participants who hailed from Bangladesh, Cambodia, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam. The participants received training on how to plan for and build support teams in civil protection and decontamination operations in contaminated areas in the event that chemical weapons are used, or where there is a threat arising from chemical weapons usage. They were also taught the techniques to deal with incidents involving chemical-warfare agents using personal and collective protective equipment, as well as monitoring, detection and decontamination tools. A practical demonstration of an emergency response by the SCDF to a chemical attack, and hands-on laboratory training for the participants were included as part of the curriculum. Participants suited up in protective gear experienced the chemical agent chamber at the Home Team Academy. Aside from classroom training, the participants were taken on a learning tour of the Global Terrorism Suite at the Home Team Academy, which was set up as a learning facility to develop awareness of the threats posed by Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Explosive (CBRE) agents through the senses of sight, smell and touch. They also visited the Tuas Checkpoint's Protective and Analytical Facility, a new addition to Singapore surveillance capabilities to check the entry of undesirable biological and chemical agents. The course drew praises from both the OPCW and the participants. The OPCW officials described the course as being the best amongst similar courses they had coordinated thus far. The participants agreed that the course had met its training objectives through a good mix of theory and hands-on practical experience at the well-equipped training facilities. They found that the course provided useful insights into the necessary skills and equipment required for the setting up similar response programmes in their countries. It also provided the participants with a good opportunity to establish useful contacts and build partnerships with their counterparts from other nations in their respective lines of work. More on the CWC and the OPCW The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) is an international treaty which prohibits the development, production, stockpiling, transfer and use of chemical weapons and also stipulates their timely destruction. Singapore signed the Convention on 14 January 1993 and entered into force on 20 June 1997. The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is the implementing body for the CWC. Its activities include monitoring the implementation status of States Parties, conduct of on-site verification measures and the provision of a forum for consultation and co-operation amongst States Parties. Click here for more information on the CWC and the OPCW. Singapore Customs is the National Authority (NA) for the CWC. Set up as the national implementing body for the CWC, it also serves as a liaison point with the OPCW and other States Parties for CWC matters. Click here for more information on Singapore Customs’ role as the NA(CWC).   Copyright © 2009 Singapore Customs. All Rights Reserved.