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The law system in Singapore is based on the English common law system. It has kept many of the English laws that were subsequently repealed in the United Kingdom and other nations, and added additional laws specific to Singapore. Thus, it is generally strict and aimed at instilling a self-disciplined society with restrictions and harsh punishments, such as using caning and execution. The idea has been poked fun at by its citizens, who remark that "Singapore is a fine city" ("fine" referring to a monetary fine). Singapore is one of the safest countries in the world, with low incidence of violent crimes. Both locals and tourists generally feel safe in the country.
Currently, pornography, oral sex when not a precursor to regular intercourse, and anal sex are illegal in Singapore. Magazines, movies and TV shows have to undergo government classification before being released to the general public and sales of several kinds of newspapers and magazines have been banned or restricted. Various minor offences could lead to heavy fines and caning while first-degree murder and drug trafficking in over 15 g of heroin carry a mandatory death penalty. The end result of these policies have been the hanging of more than 400 people in Singapore between 1991 and 2004, mostly for drug trafficking; due to this, Singapore has one of the highest execution rates in the world relative to population. Science fiction writer William Gibson has described Singapore as "Disneyland with the death penalty" * in Wired magazine. Chewing gum has been recently legalized as part of a U.S trade agreement, although sales are limited to pharmacies and only medical varieties may be sold. Bans on bar top dancing and bungee jumping have also been lifted.
History
For most of the 19th century the criminal law which was applied in the Three Straits Settlements of Singapore, Penang and Malacca was that of the United Kingdom, in so far as local circumstances were permitted. There was little doubt that English common law crimes were recognised in these territories at the time. Certain problems, such as the application of certain Indian Acts, however, arose in 1871 and the Straits Settlements Penal Code was passed. It came into operation on 16 September 1872. The Code is practically a re-enactment of the Indian Penal Code.
The original Code, as amended on numerous occasions, presently states the law of Singapore. The most recent amendment was made by the Penal Code (Amendment) Act 1984 which came into effect on 31 August 1984. The effect of this amendment was that minimum penalties were provided for certain offences. The last major amendment of the Code prior to 1984 took place in 1973 when punishments for certain offences were enhanced.
Prior to 1870 the law relating to Criminal Procedure in force in Singapore was mainly found in the Indian Act XVI of 1852. As a consequence of the passing of the Straits Settlements Penal Code in 1871, the Criminal Procedure Ordinance V of 1870 was passed which replaced the Criminal Procedure Act XVI of 1852 but continued the English system of Criminal Procedure and made it applicable to the Penal Code. This was found impracticable as the Penal Code did away with the division of crimes into felonies and misdemeanours and the Criminal Procedure Ordinance VI of 1873 was passed accordingly. The Ordinance VI of 1873 marked the passage of the English Criminal Law in favour of the Indian. The Ordinance did away with indictments and instituted charges for all criminal offences; it abolished the Grand Jury and Special and Common Juries.
A new Code of Criminal Procedure was enacted in 1902. The present Code was passed by the Legislative Council on 28 January 1955. It repeals and re-enacts with the amendments the previous Code. All offences under the Penal Code are inquired into and tried according to the Criminal Procedure Code. Source: Electric Law Library
Legislation
Generally all of the laws are created in the Parliament of Singapore and are nationally binding. Because there is no distinction between national government and local government, the law of Singapore has properties of both, which explains some of the unique properties of Singaporean law. Political opposition alleges that the political atmosphere of Singapore does not accommodate popular dissent of problematic laws, especially those that deal with political rights issues. Civil rights tends not to be an issue except where sexual behaviour is concerned. As Singapore is a city-state, opposition parties have recently called for a more direct method for the population to contest laws.
Examples of current laws
Here are some examples of laws currently in effect:
- The sale of chewing gum was forbidden for 12 years until May 2004, where the sale of chewing gum for medical or dental purposes from a pharmacist was approved by the government, although gum sold as candy still remains prohibited. However, those who buy nicotine chewing gum must present identification and have a doctor's prescription. Buying normal chewing gum requires identification only. If the pharmacist does not take the name of the buyer, they could face a SGD3,000 fine.
- Heavy fines and Corrective Work Order are levied on people who spit or litter in public areas.
- Eating and drinking on public transit also carry fines of up to S$500.
- Car ownership is curbed through a government scheme in which car owners must bid for a Certificate of Entitlement (COE).
- Gun ownership is illegal, as similar to other countries with strict gun control laws. In addition, using or attempting to use arms during a crime, such as a robbery, is a capital offence in Singapore.
Commercial law
Singapore has a reputation for fairness and impartiality in commercial law, and is a popular jurisdiction for arbitration and trial in South-East Asia. However, the presently pending case of Oakwell Engineering v. Enernorth Industries has called into question this impartiality and whether the judgments of Singaporean courts are enforceable outside Singapore.
Censorship
Press
- Pornography is not allowed;, e.g. Playboy and certain other 'adult/porno' magazines are not allowed, however other magazines containing "mature content" like Cosmopolitan Magazine are free to be distributed at all stores with a "Parental Warning/not suitable for the young" logo on its covers.
- Foreign newspapers and magazines may have their sales or circulation restricted. These include the Asian Wall Street Journal and the Far Eastern Economic Review, either only being available in "gazetted" form (photocopied to a limited number of subscribers, with advertising blanked out) or unavailable.
- The sale of Malaysian newspapers in Singapore is prohibited; a similar ban on the sale of newspapers from Singapore applies in Malaysia.
- Certain political material is not allowed.
- Material which may outrightly disturb religious and racial harmony is not allowed.
- Reporters sans Frontieres has ranked Singapore as 147th out of 167 surveyed countries in terms of freedom of the press. *
Films and videos
Depiction of sex and nudity is restricted at the various mature ratings (NC16, M18 and R21); movies containing graphic nudity, explicit sex or high levels of strong graphic violence are usually categorised as Restricted 21 (R21). Any outright denigration of race or religion, matters that threaten national interest, or depictions of hardcore pornographic, offensive or deviant sexual activities are banned.A short documentary called A Vision of Persistence on opposition politician J. B. Jeyaretnam was also banned for being a "political film". The makers of the documentary, all lecturers at the Ngee Ann Polytechnic, later submitted written apologies and withdrew it from being screened at the 2001 Singapore International Film Festival in April, having been told they could be charged in court.
In a more recent case, another short documentary called Singapore Rebel by Martyn See Tong Ming, which documented Singapore Democratic Party leader Dr Chee Soon Juan's acts of civil disobedience, was banned from the 2005 Singapore International Film Festival for being a "political film". By contrast, Channel News Asia's five-part documentary series on Singapore's PAP ministers in 2005 were not considered as such.
Broadcasting
Two major companies SPH Holdings and MediaCorp have a virtual monopoly of the media industry. Mediacorp is a state owned company, while SPH is partly owned by Temasek Holdings, government-backed investment company. Private ownership of satellite dishes is banned, though international TV broadcasts (such as CNN, BBC, etc) are available on StarHub's cable TV service. Owing to the Government's policy of promoting Mandarin Chinese, for many years local television was not allowed to show programmes in Cantonese, meaning that popular TV serials from Hong Kong had to be dubbed into Mandarin. Similarly, local newspapers were not allowed to carry listings for Malaysia's TV3, which showed programmes in Cantonese. However, Hong Kong's TVB, broadcasting in Cantonese, is now available on cable, although TV3 is not.Internet
Internet services provided by the three major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are subject to regulation by the Media Development Authority to block websites containing material that may be a threat to public security, national defense, racial and religious harmony and public morality, and Police are given broad powers to intercept messages online. The Ministry of Education, Singapore blocks access to pornographic and similar objectionable internet sites on its proxy servers, but this practice is common throughout the world's educational establishments.In September 2005, 3 people were arrested and charged with sedition for posting racist comments on the Internet, of which two have been sentenced to imprisonment. There are growing fears of the chilling effect with the increasing threat of legal action, including a warning by the Teachers' Union to sue students who defame teachers on their blogs.
Drug trafficking
- Narcotics laws established by the Misuse of Drugs Act are very strict.
- Anyone caught with more than or equal to 15 g (0.5 ounces) of heroin, 28 g (1 ounce) of morphine or 480 g (17 ounces) of cannabis faces mandatory capital punishment. From 1991-2004, 400 people have been hanged in Singapore, mostly for drug trafficking, the highest per-capita execution rate in the world. See Singapore Government's response to accusations regarding its use of capital punishment.
Public assembly
In Singapore, a police permit is required for holding an assembly in a public place. Any public assembly or procession of five or more persons in any public place without a permit is an offence under the Miscellaneous Offences (Public Order And Nuisance) (Assemblies and Processions) Rules. *
The rationale given for this law is that a large group of people who gather for a peaceful purpose can turn violent. In the 1950s and 1960s, there have been several violent riots in Singapore, the last incident being the 1964 Race Riots which killed 36 people. Since then, there have been only a few minor protests. Nonetheless the authority continues to take a tough stance against unlicensed outdoor protests. On 31 December 2000, fifteen members of Falun Gong consisting of thirteen foreigners and two Singaporeans were arrested at MacRitchie Park for holding an illegal assembly. *
Sexual offences
Sex deemed by the Government to be "against the order of nature", including anal sex and oral sex (except as a precursor to conventional intercourse), is criminalised by section 377 of the Singapore Penal Code, though the latter has only infrequently been enforced. Homosexuality in Singapore is not illegal, but homosexual acts are considered "against the order of nature" as well. Nevertheless, large-scale outdoor gay parties had been discreetly approved by the authorities since 2001. These parties were advertised throughout Southeast Asia and attracted a large audience until a conservative backlash beginning in 2004, attributed to the alarming increase in HIV infection within the gay community, put a stop to their official sanctioning.
Prostitution is tolerated in designated red-light districts, but soliciting for sex in public is illegal. Sexual intercourse with any girl below the age of sixteen years except by way of marriage is an offence (Section 140, Women's Charter); if the girl is below the age of fourteen, it is a statutory rape even with her consent (Section 375, Penal Code).
Recent developments
In recent years, the Singapore government has relaxed some of the stricter laws. For example, bungee jumping is no longer illegal. There are also several signs that the government is considering relaxing a number of laws concerning oral sex.
It is of note that while some archaic laws do remain from British common law, the judiciary does not ordinarily enforce these laws. However, in 2004, then-Chief Justice Yong Pung How sentenced a 25-year-old former policeman, Annis Abdullah, to jail for 12 months for receiving oral sex from a teenage girl. In his statement he said that despite growing permissiveness in some countries there were "certain offences that are so repulsive in Asian culture".
The case concerning an American teenager, Michael Fay, generated intense media interest in the United States after he was caught in 1994 for vandalising cars and stealing street signs in Singapore and was sentenced to caning. A formal request was made by the American government not to carry out the sentence, but it was rejected by the Singapore government although the number of caning strokes was reduced.
Film censorship has also been relaxed in Singapore recently. In 1991, the R(A) rating was introduced to allow adult type films that contain sex and violence to be shown for the first time, for those aged 18 years and above. The scheme was later replaced by a set of several ratings for different groups of audience, namely G (General audience), PG (Parental guidance), NC16 (not for children under 16), M18 (matured 18), and R21 (restricted 21).
DVDs and VCDs rated up to M18 are allowed. In addition, the country's only cable TV network, StarHub, is allowed to show a number of previously banned programmes that contain restricted content, such as Sex and the City, under the ratings NC16 and M18 after 10 pm, with some scenes removed.
On 18 April 2005, the government relaxed the ban on casinos and allowed the development of two Integrated Resorts with casinos. Both are expected to open by 2009. However, locals who wish to enter the casinos must pay a daily entry fee of S$100 or an annual entry pass of S$2,000. This is to reduce the negative effect of compulsive gambling in the society. The entry fees will be used to educate and counsel Singaporeans that have gambling habits. The government hopes that by having casinos, it will boost the tourism industry, which, surprisingly, has been declining in recent years.
See also
External links
"Law of Singapore"