On Jan 20, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) introduced a temporary Bill that would provide the Singapore Police Force (SPF) with enhanced powers. Which as passed as law in parliament yesterday. When Second Home Affairs Minister S Iswaran downplayed the bodily invasion by claiming that the provision is adapted from the existing Public Orders Act which upholds law and order during such events like the National Day Parade, he failed to address the possibility of an inebriated law officer using the law to cop a feel. Just peruse the recent headlines about cases of misbehaving men in uniform, with or without the inducement of alcoholic temptations.
Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) was more specific about the violence visited upon us in the name of stamping out violence: "When we make laws that are not in keeping with established principles of administrative law, when we allow our citizens and all who work for us and with us to live in fear of such wide and discretionary powers without recourse, when we dismiss out of hand the valid concerns of many in civil society, we are also violent." (italics mine)
As for the right to raid without a court issued warrant "if the officer reasonably suspects an offence has been, is being, or likely to be committed", we know they borrowed that idea from Tom Cruise in "Minority Report". That film's central theme is the question of free will versus determinism, in a state where the role of preventive government goes overboard in protecting its citizenry by making arrests before a crime is actually committed. Their "PreCrime" police force makes use of visions of the future generated by three "precogs", mutated humans with precognitive abilities, to stop murders before they happen. The precogs are maintained only for their brain functions, their bodies kept barely alive by being suspended in a pool of special fluids. That's one helluva use of an ageing body way past the expiry date.
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It begins with a police state and if they want to, a military junta will be formed.
ReplyDeletepatriot
What the fark is that supposed to mean?
ReplyDeleteDoes the ordinary people on the streets know how to tell from a sergeant rank to a non-sergeant rank?
Does it mean, if stopped for search, they are only searching for alcohol, strictly speaking, and nothing else?
Does it mean, if a woman/lady/girl drinking and inebriated, the state where one can be most vulnerable, and there is no woman sergeant present, the officer is also warrant to search?
Does it mean if a non-sergeant asked to be searched, I have every right as a citizen, drunk or not drunk, disallowed and refuse the request?
I think this is a blatant abuse of the state law without the explicit approval and agreement from the citizenry. It is a violation of our bodily rights. In fact, it shows the stupidity and meekness of the police force , that now they treat every citizens (foreign or locals) that they mostly invited, as distrustful and potentially harmful and as such, pre-emptive actions have to be taken before they strike" unexpectedly - something our police force /home team is very badly prepared for.
I object to such law and I urge everyone to stand up against it. Every revellers drinking at clarke quays/boat quays or any happy ocassion have the potential to be body searched by the police officers in abusive cases that is yet unseen. That is simply not acceptable. Apparently, carrying a pistol and baton on them is not sufficient anymore! If this is such a dangerous state, overnight, after the riots, why not give citizens the right to own a bloody gun! Fucktards!
Can't tell the difference between auxilliary officer, traffic police, and state police. Asked my teenage daughter and son, wife and maid, none can give me the answer conclusively. And we expect foreign workers to know?
DeleteNo. It does not mean only a Sergeant can strip search any individual. The bill states ANY police officer can strip search ANY individual.
DeleteThe Sergeant and above can raid ANY premises without a warrant. So much as even if he suspects a crime will be committed in the future.
If that is not a police state, I don't know what is.
Correct. The three pre cogs are: the old metal fart, the woody mouldy and the fried steady KFC on fire. Plug them in and spin them around like a dialysis machine operating inside the empty shell of a dragon lobster.
ReplyDeleteThis bill may be temporary and within little india confines, but what is to stop them from turning this into a permanent act and extended to other areas later? All it takes is another rambunctious incident and the whole 'non-routine' checks will become routines thereafter? Just look what happens with CCTVs and other illegal gatherings act they can impose on the people with impunity?
ReplyDeleteBesdies, a body cavity search is extremely invasive and burdens a suspect's reasonable expectation of intrusion.
Apparently here in SG, we don't have other reasonable avenues for a less invasive means of finding that "alcohol" or "illegal weapon" evidence?
Anyone knows how long Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) have been in the books? and how long more it will remain temporarily in the G's reckoning?
DeleteJust tell me this.
DeleteIn the event one’s rights have been infringed and an unlawful search has occurred, how will an individual know and where can he/she look to (which section of the constitution for a remedy?). The people deserves to know when a police officer has crossed its line and abuse or violated the person unnecessarily.
A strip search is a practice of searching a person for weapons or other contraband suspected of being hidden on their body or inside their clothing, and not found by performing a frisk search. Do they need to do that for a can or a bottle of beer?
ReplyDeleteIn the same way, it could be used as political tool like ISD to humiliate the opp party and others that PAP don't like by strip searching them when these victims are in Little India. We know that PAP control the police force and military and every gov org in SinLand, don't we ?
DeleteUnderstand or not ?
Some clowns could just trick opp party members into Little india and apply strip search them on PAP's command.
Understand or not ?
Now you see the how these laws on evil because PAP is evil .
Understand or not ?
http://news.yahoo.com/police-turn-routine-traffic-stops-into-cavity-searches-201433510.html
ReplyDeleteThis is SIN in 10 yrs' time. Is a small and expedient state, everything accelerate or deteriorate faster than anywhere. Knowing the PAP rules of draconian law, Congrats!!
Shouldn't the same be applied to Clarke Quay, Boat Quay and Circular Rd, where alcohol is also consumed by rowdy patrons in large quantities. What if a raging mob of drunken football fanatics run riot after their club lose a match?
ReplyDeleteIt will happen..matter of time...you know PAP's pattern by now.
DeleteThe Minister has assured everyone that excessive powers will not be abused. But wait one minute, they can't even produce the minimum CCTV surveillance to rebut allegations of abuse inflicted on suspects (or prisoners) while in police (or prison) custody. All they can do is dismiss such allegations as not warranted. And yet when the UN comes up with a report of widespread human rights abuses, they try to dismiss as rubbish ?
ReplyDeleteNow if you are one of those PRC bus drivers or Indian foreign workers who are caught on the wrong side of the law & already at their mercy to cry out for your Mama, would you be so brave to continue to accuse them wrongly of such abuses ? Have our human rights standards even gone below that of communist China ?
Are Laws being implemented without any debate in Parliament?
ReplyDeleteThe Minister said we would be remiss if we waited for the COI results to take action?
ReplyDeleteLet me get this right. This, after you have given unlimited access of liquor license to the area. This after you have repeatedly failed to stop the drunken activities that happened week after week, year after year. This, after you have failed to provide FW ample space/activities to engage on their off day.
And now, you are screaming "we are NOT shrieking our responsibility" anymore with an expedient bill to pass that impacts everyone else?!!!!
And we have been told this is not pre-meditated. This is a one-off event.
Wow..so failure to disperse in time or to abide by a strip search of short-term bill is not an exceptional fault on the Foreign workers/rioters. But rather, is a systemic failure to carry out its prior duty by govt/MOM/Home Team back then.
Why do we keep giving this government a monster blank cheque to denigrate our civil liberties and dignity?
It is fine for them to do it to the people...
ReplyDeleteIt is not so fine if the people do it to them...
Get it...
So why whine so much...u get and deserve the gov't u are "forced" to accept...willing or not...fair or not...
Understand.
in which orifice of the body can you stick a can of beer or a bottle of whiskey without its presence being obvious????
ReplyDeletewhy do we need draconian laws for ''one-off'' events, ones which happen 40+ years apart????
how is it nothing is done about more destructive events which happen FAR more frequently -- like floods -- as a result of poor planning and policies????
how is it that a man can have his workpass terminated and be summarily sent home for not Immediately obeying the police's order to move off, but a govt can still stick around and continue to stuff 6.9million people into a country which cant accommodate that many, even though citizens make a hue and cry that this is utter madness????
how is that draconian laws are not passed and punishment is not meted out to politicians who are so derelict in their duty that they do not provide basic infrastructure, like homes and hospitals, for the hundreds of thousands of people they insist on bringing in to a country????
This is the most racist country in the world. They are not going to strip search the Ang Mo's even if they are drunk. They will only strip search locals. This is a form of police brutality.
ReplyDeleteWhy can't the cops carry breathalyzers with them in the area? Why must they resort to strip search except to intimidate the public?
If you are a resident in the area, what happens to your constitutional rights? Will you allow them to strip search your wife and daughters?
Are the temples in the area protected from the unlawful search?
Allowing this illegal decree is to give up your civil liberty. This alone is worth mass protesting and throwing out the political bums.
Didn't they try to DRUM up the good feelings with recent report that crime rates in SG is at 30yrs low? So how come our prison population rate keep being the highest compared to all asia regions, 2nd only after Thailand? IT is incredulous for a ""peaceful" and "low crime" "swiss-like-living state" like us, don't you think?
ReplyDeleteSingapore 242 per 100,000 imprisoned
Hong Kong 128 per 100,000
Korea 99 per 100,000
Switzerland 79 per 100,000
I suppose when you are in prison, you forfeit the right to vote. Whether you can vote after you are released, I'm not sure.
I just know that when the Dutch announced their crime rates have dropped, they also announced the closure of 19 prisons. Now, that's what I call a successful Force with proven track record. No point telling me your SMRT has good governance but the real track record is hardly on track!! So now we want to give them more forces so that they have more justified reasons to lock more people?
http://www.ibtimes.com/prisoners-100000-us-has-highest-incarceration-rate-world-chart-1384305
http://www.prisonstudies.org/sites/prisonstudies.org/files/resources/downloads/wppl_10.pdf
http://www.prisonstudies.org/country/singapore
Voting Opposition is the only way.
ReplyDeleteThe time for talking is so over.
Dont put too much hope on that
DeleteWith just 60% votes, they got 93% of the parliamentary seats-
With their disingenuous electoral scheme, even if their popular votes fall below 50%, they can still be the Govt. You can work out the sums
Now a precedence has been established there is nothing to prevent them placing Aljunied under the same Act using some pretext or other.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.facebook.com/thecartoonpress
ReplyDeleteTo me, strip search means "The removal or rearrangement of some or all of the clothing of a person so as to permit a visual inspection of a person’s private areas, namely genitals, buttocks, breasts (in the case of a female), or undergarments."
ReplyDeleteWhy is there such a necessity to humiliate someone publicly like this,given the alcohol ban and increased surveillance are already in place?
What would be the reasoning and decision for an officer to perform such an act?
Why are we giving so much empowerment to auxillary police officers who are outsourced to 3rd party security firm, who mainly hire malaysians?
With this in consideration, the Ministry must clarify the issue of determining which situations warrant a strip search and within what manor a strip search should be conducted.
Many of us are unconvinced this is a necessary and required step to give our police force such big latitude. We are going down a slippery slope.
22 out of 23 comments are anonymous. You can see the current state of civil liberty in Singapore.
ReplyDeleteWhat Swiss standard is this? More like North Korea standard.
Enough said.
hello,
Deletepatriot is just as anonymous as anyone else here. Just because he call himself patriot does not make him any less anonymous as no one knows who he is and so he still keep himself anonymous. So all the comments here are anonymous.
They readily admitted that the ICA fiasco was because:
ReplyDelete“The officers showed weak situational awareness and exercised poor judgment,” Teo said.
NMP Eugene Tan asked whether the incident had “revealed systemic issues within the Home Team”, with the agencies failing to coordinate among themselves to locate the woman driver.
Couldn't these be the causes of the riot? And this Bill is enacted, based on the superior olefactory senses of a Minister in ascribing the riot to alcohol, and in the Administration's penchant to further clamp down on our civil liberties? We are a police state in being, if not in name.
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