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Singapore - Consideration of reports of submitted by States parties under Article 44 of the Convention: Convention on the Rights of the Child: Initial reports of States parties due in 1997: Addendum [2003] UNCRCSPR 8; CRC/C/51/Add.8 (17 March 2003)
UNITED NATIONS
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|
CRC
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|
Convention on the Rights of the Child
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Distr. GENERAL
CRC/C/51/Add.8 17 March
2003
Original: ENGLISH
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COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD
CONSIDERATION OF
REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES
UNDER ARTICLE 44 OF THE
CONVENTION
Initial reports of States parties due in 1997
SINGAPORE
[29
April 2002]
GE.03-40780
(E) 070503
CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
Introduction 1 -
4 5
I. GENERAL INFORMATION 5 - 54 5
A. Demographic characteristics
8 - 17 5
B. Socio-economic and cultural indicators 18 -
26 8
C. General political structure 27 - 41 10
D. General legal
framework within which human rights
are protected 42 -
50 12
E. Dissemination of information on CRC 51 - 54 14
II. GENERAL
MEASURES OF IMPLEMENTATION 55 - 79 14
A. Implementation obligations (art.
4) 58 - 72 15
B. Publicity (art. 42) 73 - 79 19
III. DEFINITION OF
THE CHILD (art. 1) 80 - 104 20
IV. GENERAL PRINCIPLES 105 -
163 26
A. Non-discrimination (art. 2) 107 - 114 26
B. Best interests
of the child (art. 3) 115 - 134 28
C. Right to life, survival and
development (art. 6) 135 - 148 33
D. Respect for the views of the child
(art. 12) 149 - 163 35
V. CIVIL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS 164 -
219 39
A. Name and nationality (art. 7) 166 - 174 39
B. Preservation
of identity (art. 8) 175 - 177 41
C. Freedom of expression (art. 13)
178 - 190 42
D. Access to appropriate information (art. 17) 191 -
205 45
E. Freedom of thought, conscience and religion (art. 14) 206 -
207 48
F. Freedom of association and peaceful assembly (art. 15) 208 -
210 48
G. Protection of privacy (art. 16) 211 - 212 49
H. Right not
to be subjected to torture or other cruel,
inhuman or degrading treatment
or punishment
(art. 37 (a)) 213 - 217 49
I. General comments 218
- 219 50
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
VI. FAMILY ENVIRONMENT
AND ALTERNATIVE CARE 220 - 287 51
A. Parental guidance (art. 5) and
parental responsibilities
(art. 18, paras. 1 and 2) 222 -
227 51
B. Separation from parents (art. 9) 228 - 235 53
C. Family
reunification (art. 10) 236 - 238 54
D. Recovery of maintenance for the
child
(art. 27, para. 4) 239 - 242 55
E. Children deprived of a
family environment (art. 20) 243 - 250 56
F. Adoption (art. 21) 251 -
256 58
G. Illicit transfer and non-return (art. 11) 257 59
H. Abuse
and neglect (art. 19), including physical
and psychological recovery and
social
reintegration (art. 39) 258 - 285 60
I. Periodic review of
placement (art. 25) 286 - 287 67
VII. BASIC HEALTH AND WELFARE 288 -
414 67
A. Right to life and development (art. 6, para. 2) 290 -
302 67
B. Disabled children (art. 23) 303 - 322 73
C. Health and
health services (art. 24) 323 - 380 77
D. Social security (art. 26) 381
- 387 88
E. Childcare services and facilities (art. 18, para. 3) 388 -
407 90
F. Standard of living (art. 27) 408 - 414 95
VIII. EDUCATION,
LEISURE AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES 415 - 462 96
A. Education, including
vocational training and guidance
(art. 28), and aims of education (art.
29) 425 - 444 100
B. Leisure, recreation and cultural activities (art.
31) 445 - 457 104
C. General comments 458 - 462 107
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
IX. SPECIAL PROTECTION
MEASURES 463 - 536 108
A. Children in situations of
emergency
1. Refugee children (art. 22) 465 -
468 108
2. Protection of children in armed conflicts
(art. 38)
469 - 470 109
3. Physical and psychological recovery and
social
reintegration (art. 39) 471 - 472 109
B. Children in conflict with the
law
1. Administration of juvenile justice (art. 40) 473 -
487 110
2. Protection against torture and related ill-treatment
or
punishment; deprivation of liberty
(art. 37 (b), (c) and (d)) 488 -
507 113
C. Children in situations of exploitation, including
physical and psychological recovery and social
reintegration
1. Economic exploitation of children, including
child labour (art.
32) 508 - 511 118
2. Drug abuse (art. 33) 512 -
518 119
3. Sexual exploitation and sexual abuse (art. 34) 519 -
524 121
4. Other forms of exploitation (art. 36) 525 -
526 122
5. Sale, trafficking and abduction (art. 35) 527 -
530 123
D. Children belonging to a minority or an indigenous
group
(art. 30) 531 - 536 123
Introduction
- Singapore
acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
on 2 October 1995. The Convention came into force on 4 November
1995.
- This
report constitutes the initial report by Singapore as required under article 44,
paragraph 1 (a), of the CRC. It covers the
period from 1996 to 1998 and up
to 2000 in some instances.
- The
report is prepared along the guidelines spelt out in document CRC/C/5,
“General guidelines regarding the form and content
of the initial reports
to be submitted by State parties” dated October 1991.
- Chapter
I of this report provides information on the general situation of Singapore and
its approach to the CRC. Chapters II-IX examine
the provisions contained in the
various articles of the Convention and provides information on Singapore’s
position in relation
to these articles.
I. GENERAL INFORMATION
- Singapore
is a nation State consisting of one main island and some 60 small ones. Located
between latitudes 1°09’ N and
1°29’ N and longitudes
103°36’ E and 104°25’ E, it is approximately 137
kilometres north of the
equator. It is separated from peninsular Malaysia by
the Straits of Johor and from the Indonesian islands by the Straits of
Singapore.
- Singapore
has a land area of 647.5 square kilometres. The main island of Singapore is
about 42 kilometres from east to west and 23
kilometres from north to south.
Good integration of land use, infrastructure and planning of transportation is
emphasized to optimize
land use to meet the needs of different sectors of the
community.
- Singapore
has no natural resources except its people. It imports virtually everything the
population needs. As such, great importance
is placed on developing children
who are Singapore’s most precious asset. The Government is mindful that
policies and programmes
should not adversely affect the well-being of families
and children, but work to promote their well-being.
A. Demographic characteristics
- Singapore’s
population is made up largely of descendents of immigrants from the Malay
peninsula, China, the Indian subcontinent
and Sri Lanka. These different ethnic
groups have retained their traditional practices, customs and festivals whilst
acquiring a
distinct overarching common Singaporean identity. As at June 2000,
the resident population (Singapore residents and permanent residents)
was
3,263,209: 77 per cent were Chinese, 14 per cent were Malays, 8 per cent
were Indians and the remaining 1 per cent belonged
to other ethnic groups. This
multi-ethnic composition of the population shapes every aspect of civil life in
Singapore.
(a) Resident population by age group and sex
- Of
the total resident population in 1999, 22 per cent (717,300) were aged below 15
years, 70 per cent (2,225,100) were aged 15 to
64 years and 8 per cent (235,100)
of the population were aged 65 years and above. The median age of the resident
population in 1999
was 33.4 years compared to 29.3 years in 1989. Men made up
50 per cent (1,613,600) of the resident population or a ratio of 1,006
males per
1,000 females.
Table 1. Singapore resident population by age group and sex,
end June 1999
Thousand
Sex
|
Total
|
0-4
|
5-9
|
10-14
|
15-19
|
20-24
|
25-29
|
30-34
|
35-39
|
Total
|
3 217.5
|
233.8
|
254.5
|
229.0
|
209.1
|
215.3
|
271.0
|
291.8
|
316.5
|
Males
|
1 613.6
|
121.0
|
131.4
|
118.3
|
108.0
|
107.2
|
131.9
|
144.4
|
160.0
|
Females
|
1 603.9
|
112.8
|
123.1
|
110.7
|
101.1
|
108.1
|
139.1
|
147.4
|
156.5
|
Thousand
Sex
|
40-44
|
45-49
|
50-54
|
55-59
|
60-64
|
65-69
|
70-74
|
75-79
|
80 and above
|
Total
|
300.8
|
248.6
|
179.6
|
128.7
|
103.7
|
83.0
|
62.6
|
40.7
|
48.8
|
Males
|
153.2
|
127.0
|
90.7
|
63.9
|
50.7
|
39.7
|
28.9
|
18.2
|
19.1
|
Females
|
147.6
|
121.6
|
88.9
|
64.8
|
53.0
|
43.3
|
33.7
|
22.5
|
29.7
|
Source: Yearbook of Statistics 2000.
(b) Percentage of
urban population and environmental aspects
- Ninety-two
per cent of Singapore’s residents live in high-rise flats built by the
Government. The rest of the population lives
mainly in private housing estates.
Population density rose from 4,679 persons per square kilometre in 1989 to
5,900 persons per square
kilometre in 1999.
- Singapore
is also known as a garden city where the environment is clean and green and
residents enjoy a high standard of public health.
The air quality in terms of
the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) is good on 65 per cent of days and moderate
on 35 per cent of days.
The overall air pollution levels for 1999 were within
the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Long Term Goals and the United
States Environmental Protection Agency’s Standards.
- The
incidence of food- water- and vector-borne diseases is low, and practically all
Singaporeans enjoy modern sanitation.
(c) Life expectancy
- Life
expectancy has steadily improved from 75.0 years in 1989 to 77.6 years in 1999.
Females live longer than males and have a life
expectancy of 79.6 years compared
to 75.6 years for males.
Table 2. Life expectancy at birth (1989-1999)
Years
Year
|
Total
|
Males
|
Females
|
Per capita Government expenditure on health (S$)
|
1989
|
75.0
|
72.9
|
77.2
|
|
1994
|
76.3
|
74.2
|
78.5
|
400 (US$ 247)
|
1995
|
76.4
|
74.2
|
78.7
|
477 (US$ 294)
|
1996
|
76.7
|
74.6
|
79.0
|
484 (US$ 299)
|
1997
|
77.1
|
75.0
|
79.2
|
478 (US$ 295)
|
1998
|
77.4
|
75.4
|
79.5
|
500 (US$ 309)
|
1999
|
77.6
|
75.6
|
79.6
|
464 (US$ 286)
|
Source: Yearbook of Statistics 2000.
(d) Infant
mortality
- Rising
standards of living, health and hygiene have reduced the infant mortality rate
from 6.3 in 1989 to 3.2 per 1,000 live births
in 1999. In the UNICEF
report The State of The World’s Children 2001, Singapore was ranked
first, together with Japan, Sweden and Switzerland, for the lowest under-5
mortality rate in the world.
- Improved
care of antenatal mothers and neonates has reduced perinatal and neonatal
mortality over the years.
Table 3. Infant mortality rate (1989-1999)
Per 1,000 live births
Year
|
Infant mortality rate
|
1989
|
6.3
|
1994
|
4.1
|
1995
|
3.8
|
1996
|
3.6
|
1997
|
3.6
|
1998
|
4.1
|
1999
|
3.2
|
Source: Yearbook of Statistics 2000.
(e) Maternal mortality
- The
maternal mortality rate has fallen from 0.3 in 1970 to 0.17 in 2000 per 1,000
live and still births.
(f) Fertility rate
- The
total fertility rate[2] in 1999
was 1,475 births per 1,000 females aged 15-44 years. Singapore’s
Population Policy encourages higher fertility to
reverse the late marriage and
childbearing trends by Singaporean couples. However, the total fertility rate
is still below the replacement
level of 2.1. The age-specific total fertility
rates[3] are given
below.
Table 4. Age-specific total fertility rates
(1989-1999)
Per thousand resident females
Age group (years)
|
1989
|
1994
|
1995
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
15-19
|
7.2
|
7.4
|
6.5
|
6.8
|
6.8
|
7.5
|
8.3
|
20-24
|
59.7
|
47.5
|
47.1
|
44.7
|
41.7
|
39.2
|
36.5
|
25-29
|
129.7
|
132.7
|
129.0
|
125.9
|
119.1
|
106.4
|
105.0
|
30-34
|
104.5
|
111.7
|
110.0
|
111.1
|
109.4
|
98.1
|
99.3
|
35-39
|
42.1
|
43.6
|
42.2
|
43.7
|
42.7
|
40.7
|
39.4
|
40-44
|
7.6
|
6.9
|
6.6
|
7.1
|
7.2
|
6.8
|
6.6
|
Total fertility rate
|
1 754
|
1 749
|
1 708
|
1 696
|
1 635
|
1 494
|
1 475
|
Source: Yearbook of Statistics 2000.
B. Socio-economic and cultural indicators
1. Standard of
living and per capita income/gross national product (GNP)
- Standards
of living have risen substantially for nearly everyone because incomes
have risen faster than costs. In 1998, for every
10,000 people, there were
30 public buses, 1,140 private cars, 14 doctors, 2 dentists, 40 nurses
and 3,470 residential telephone
lines.
- Singapore
was ranked twenty-sixth out of 175 countries by the United Nations Development
Programme Human Development Index (HDI) of
1997 which ranks each country
according to a score on a composite index integrating per capita gross national
product (GNP), life
expectancy, literacy and educational levels. In 1999, its
GNP at prevailing market prices was S$ 39,721 (US$ 24,519). The
World Development Report collated by the World Bank ranked Singapore as the
fourth richest country in the world for 1997 based on GNP per capita, after
Switzerland,
Japan and Norway. Singapore’s GNP per capita in 1999 was
US$ 22,918.
- Singapore
has a relatively equitable distribution of income. There are no child beggars
or children who have to live in the streets
because of lack of housing. The
average monthly earnings in Singapore were S$ 2,813 (US$ 1,736) in 1999.
This was a 2.7 per cent
increase over the previous year.
Table 5. Average monthly earnings by industry
(1989-1999)
|
1989
|
1994
|
1995
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
Manufacturing
|
S$ 1 243 US$ 767
|
S$ 1 995 US$ 1 231
|
S$ 2 157 US$ 1 331
|
S$ 2 320 US$ 1 432
|
S$ 2 487 US$ 1 535
|
S$ 2 716 US$ 1 677
|
S$ 2 803 US$ 1 730
|
Construction
|
S$ 1 128 US$ 696
|
S$ 1 865 US$ 1 151
|
S$ 1 941 US$ 1 198
|
S$ 1 971 US$ 1 217
|
S$ 1 991 US$ 1 229
|
S$ 2 143 US$ 1 323
|
S$ 2 226 US$ 1 374
|
Wholesale and retail trade
|
S$ 1 290 US$ 796
|
S$ 1 945 US$ 1 201
|
S$ 2 080 US$ 1 284
|
S$ 2 203 US$ 1 360
|
S$ 2 319 US$ 1 431
|
S$ 2 539 US$ 1 567
|
S$ 2 561 US$ 1 581
|
Hotels and restaurants
|
S$ 828 US$ 511
|
S$ 1 160 US$ 716
|
S$ 1 233 US$ 761
|
S$ 1 271 US$ 785
|
S$ 1 303 US$ 804
|
S$ 1 320 US$ 815
|
S$ 1 291 US$ 797
|
Transport, storage and communications
|
S$ 1 488 US$ 919
|
S$ 2 133 US$ 1 317
|
S$ 2 261 US$ 1 396
|
S$ 2 425 US$ 1 497
|
S$ 2 581 US$ 1 594
|
S$ 2 802 US$ 1 730
|
S$ 2 836 US$ 1 751
|
Financial services
|
S$ 2 119 US$ 1 308
|
S$ 2 896 US$ 1 788
|
S$ 3 079 US$ 1 901
|
S$ 3 270 US$ 2 019
|
S$ 3 522 US$ 2 174
|
S$ 4 399 US$ 2 715
|
S$ 4 528 US$ 2 795
|
Business and real estate services
|
S$ 1 675 US$ 1 035
|
S$ 2 336 US$ 1 442
|
S$ 2 485 US$ 1 534
|
S$ 2 596 US$ 1 602
|
S$ 2 731 US$ 1 686
|
S$ 3 004 US$ 1 854
|
S$ 3 056 US$ 1 886
|
Community, social and personal services
|
S$ 1 621 US$ 1 001
|
S$ 2 286 US$ 1 411
|
S$ 2 369 US$ 1 462
|
S$ 2 472 US$ 1 526
|
S$ 2 576 US$ 1 590
|
S$ 2 811 US$ 1 735
|
S$ 2 955 US$ 1 824
|
Total
|
S$ 1 398 US$ 863
|
S$ 2 086 US$ 1 288
|
S$ 2 219 US$ 1 370
|
S$ 2 347 US$ 1 449
|
S$ 2 480 US$ 1 531
|
S$ 2 740 US$ 1 691
|
S$ 2 813 US$ 1 736
|
Source: Central Provident Fund Board (Yearbook of Statistics
2000).
S$ 1.62 = US$ 1.
2. Rate of inflation
- The
consumer price index (CPI) measures the price changes over time of a fixed
basket of goods and services commonly consumed by households.
It rose
marginally by 0.4 per cent to 109.2 in 1999, reversing the decline of 0.3
per cent in 1998. Higher costs of food, miscellaneous
items, education and
health care outweighed lower costs of housing, transport and communications.
3. External debt
- External
debts (to, for example, the Asian Development Bank and the International Bank
for Reconstruction and Development) declined
from S$ 173.8 million (US$ 107.3
million) in 1970 to S$ 4.7 million (US$ 2.9 million) in 1994. Singapore
has had no external debt
since 1996. In 1999, the gross national
saving was S$ 83,568 million (US$ 51,585 million).
4. Rate of unemployment
- Singapore’s
labour force comprised 1,980,000 people in 1999. The labour force participation
rate was 64.7 per cent. The average
unemployment rate for the whole of 1999
was 3.5 per cent, which is slightly higher than the 3.2 per cent in 1998.
5. Literacy rate
- The
literacy rate[4] (number of
literate persons for every 100 residents) for the resident population aged 15
years and above rose from 88.4 per cent
in 1989 to 93.5 per cent in 1999.
- Singapore
has four official languages, Malay, Chinese, Tamil and English. Malay is the
national language while English is the language
of administration. A
fundamental feature of Singapore’s education system is the bilingual
policy which ensures that each child
learns both English and his/her mother
tongue so as to maintain an awareness of cultural heritage whilst acquiring the
skills to
manage in a modern, industrialized economy.
6. Religion
- Singapore’s
Constitution allows every person the right to profess, practise and propagate
his religion. The main religions
in Singapore are Buddhism, Taoism, Islam,
Christianity and Hinduism. The 1995 General Household Survey showed that 85.5
per cent
of Singapore residents (2,156,100) aged 10 years and above professed to
have some religious faith or spiritual belief, i.e. 31.9
per cent Buddhists,
21.9 per cent Taoists, 15.0 per cent Muslims, 12.9 per cent Christians and 3.3
per cent Hindus.
C. General political structure
1. The evolution of the political system
- After
nearly 140 years of colonial rule (1819-1959), with the exception of the
Japanese occupation from 1942 to 1945, Singapore was
granted
self-government in 1959. On 16 September 1963, Singapore joined the
Federation of Malaysia. However, the merger was short
lived. Singapore became
a fully independent and sovereign nation on separation from Malaysia on 9 August
1965. On 21 September
1965, Singapore was admitted to the United Nations.
On 22 December 1965, Singapore became a republic. Mr. Yusof bin Ishak was the
first President of the Republic of Singapore elected by
Parliament.
2. The framework of the Singapore Government
- Singapore
is a republic with a parliamentary system of government. The organs of State,
i.e. the executive, the legislature and the
judiciary, are provided for by a
written constitution.
- The
Head of State is the President. The administration of the Government is vested
in the Cabinet, headed by the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister and the other
members of the Cabinet are appointed by the President from among its elected
members of Parliament.
The Cabinet is collectively responsible to
Parliament.
3. The executive
- In
January 1991, the Constitution was amended to allow for the election of a
President by the citizens of Singapore. The elected President holds office for
a fixed
term of six years. He is empowered to veto government budgets and
appointments to public office. He can also examine the Government’s
exercise of its powers under the Internal Security Act and religious harmony
laws, and in investigations into cases of corruption.
- The
first presidential election was held on 28 August 1993. Mr. Ong Teng Cheong was
the first President to be elected by the people
of Singapore. The current
President, Mr. S.R. Nathan, was elected to office on 1 September
1999.
- A
Council of Presidential Advisers is appointed to advise and make recommendations
to the President. The President must consult the
Council in some of his
functions, for instance, the appointment of key civil servants.
4. The Cabinet
- The
Cabinet is led by the Prime Minister, who is appointed by the President as the
member of Parliament who commands the confidence
of the majority of the members
of Parliament. Ministers are appointed by the President on the advice of the
Prime Minister and are
selected from among the members of Parliament. The
Cabinet is responsible for all government policies and the day-to-day
administration
of the affairs of the State. It is responsible collectively to
Parliament and comprises the Prime Minister and ministers in charge
of 15 ministries.
5. The legislature
- The
Singapore legislature is made up of the President and
Parliament.
6. Parliament
- Parliament
is unicameral. It consists of elected members from single-member constituencies
and Group Representation Constituencies
(GRCs) and Nominated Members of
Parliament (NMPs).
- GRCs
were created by a 1988 amendment to the Constitution to ensure representation of
minority races. Candidates for election in a GRC contest in groups of four to
six persons. All members
of a group must either belong to a single political
party or be independents. Each GRC must have at least one candidate belonging
to a minority racial community.
- Provision
for NMPs was made in the Constitution in 1990 to lend wider representation of
views in Parliament. The President may appoint up to nine NMPs for a term of up
to two years
on the recommendation of a Special Select Committee of Parliament.
NMPs are persons who have rendered distinguished public service,
or who have
brought honour to the Republic, or who
have distinguished themselves in the field of the arts, culture, the
sciences, business, industry, the professions, social or community
service or
the labour movement. NMPs are intended to reflect independent and non-partisan
views. As at April 1998, two out of the
nine appointed NMPs were women.
- The
Constitution also provides for the election of Non-Constituency Members of
Parliament (NCMPs). NCMPs are additional members appointed to ensure
the
representation of a minimum of three members from a political party or parties
not forming the Government in Parliament. The
number of NCMPs is reduced by one
for each opposition party candidate returned.
7. The judiciary
- Judicial
power is vested in the Supreme Court and the subordinate courts. The Supreme
Court consists of the High Court and the Court
of Appeal. The Judges of the
Supreme Court are made up of the Chief Justice, the Judges of Appeal and Judges
of the High Court,
as well as Judicial Commissioners. There are special
provisions in the Constitution to safeguard the tenure of office and the
independence of the Judges of the Supreme Court.
8. Presidential Council for Minority Rights
- The
Constitution provides for a Presidential Council for Minority Rights whose
particular function is to draw attention to any bill or to any subsidiary
legislation which, in its opinion, discriminates against any racial or religious
community.
- The
Council also has the general function to consider and report on such matters
affecting persons of any racial or religious community
in Singapore as may be
referred to it by Parliament or the Government.
D. General legal framework within which human rights are
protected
- Singapore
was a former British colony. Singapore’s legal system, which was largely
founded upon the British legal system, has
been modified and adapted to suit the
nation’s needs and circumstances. It is within this legal framework
whereby human rights
are protected. Any person who is of the view that his
legal rights have been infringed can bring an action in the local courts which
will then adjudicate upon the issue according to the applicable law in
Singapore.
- The
law of Singapore is made up of the Constitution, primary legislation (statutes)
and subsidiary legislation (rules, regulations, orders, etc.) made pursuant to
powers conferred on
the executive in primary legislation. The Constitution lays
down the fundamental principles and basic legal framework of the State. It also
enshrines the fundamental rights and liberties
of the individual
vis-à-vis the State. Primary legislation or statutes are laws enacted by
the Parliament of Singapore or
by predecessor legislative bodies which had the
power to enact legislation for Singapore. Subsidiary legislation are rules,
regulations
or orders made by ministers, in exercising the powers conferred on
them by the relevant statutes.
- Although
Singapore’s legal system is predominantly based on common law, there is a
small degree of legal pluralism, i.e. the
application of certain aspects of
Islamic personal law to members of the Muslim community.
- Provisions
for the protection of children in Singapore are set out in a number of statutes,
i.e. the Children and Young Persons Act,
the Women’s Charter, the Penal
Code, the Adoption of Infants Act and the Guardianship of Infants
Act.
- The
Children and Young Persons (C&YP) Act was enacted in 1949 to provide for the
welfare, care and protection of children and
young persons as well as the
treatment and rehabilitation of children and young persons who are beyond
parental control or who have
committed offences. The Act strikes a balance
between family authority and responsibility and the protection of children and
young
persons by the State. The Act has been amended several times over the
years. It was revised in 1993, incorporating enhanced penalties
for child
abuse. It was further amended in 2001 to widen the options for rehabilitating
young offenders. The recent amendments
provide greater protection and enhance
the well-being of children and young persons who are neglected, abused or
destitute and those
who are placed in residential institutions.
- The
Women’s Charter was considered a landmark piece of legislation when it was
enacted in 1961. Its wide range of provisions
forms the legal basis for
equality between spouses and lowers the barriers to the attainment of equal
partnership between husband
and wife. It safeguards women’s rights in
matters relating to marriage, separation and divorce, the custody and care of
children,
the division of matrimonial assets and maintenance upon divorce or
separation. It spells out the responsibility of parents over
their children who
are minors or who are dependants. It also provides for the protection of women
and girls against abuse and exploitation.
The Women’s Charter was amended
in 1996 to give greater protection to family members against family violence and
to women
and children in a divorce or separation.
- The
Penal Code provides for, among other things, the imposition of imprisonment
and/or the imposition of a fine for persons who abuse
and neglect children.
Details of the three statutes and their concomitant legal provisions governing
the care and protection of
children are outlined in our responses to the
articles of the CRC in this report.
- There
are no special institutions or national machinery with the specific
responsibility for overseeing the implementation of human
rights. However, the
Ministry of Community Development and Sports (MCDS) is the national focal point
for the welfare and protection,
rehabilitation and development of children.
MCDS works closely with all government ministries, the Juvenile Court, the
Family Court,
children’s organizations, nongovernmental and other agencies
on issues relating to the welfare and interest of children.
- It
must be noted that treaties and conventions do not automatically become part of
the law of Singapore. To implement a treaty or
convention in Singapore,
Parliament has to pass legislation implementing that treaty or convention. The
CRC is implemented in Singapore
via
various relevant statutes and subsidiary legislation, as explained in the
preceding paragraphs. Any person who claims that his rights
under the
Convention have been violated may invoke before the Singapore courts the
relevant provision in the legislation implementing
the Convention.
E. Dissemination of information on CRC
- Following
Singapore’s accession to the CRC, a press statement was released
on 30 November 1995 to inform the public of Singapore’s
accession. The statement highlighted the CRC as the comprehensive charter
on children’s rights and the primacy of the child’s
best interests.
Copies of the Convention were made available to newspaper editors for
information. A public forum on the CRC was
also organized in January 2000 to
share the CRC with various groups of NGOs and individuals, including children,
and to seek their
views on Singapore’s position on the
CRC.
- The
National Council of Social Service (NCSS), the umbrella body for voluntary
organizations, including children’s organizations,
was also notified of
Singapore’s accession. Copies of the Convention were also distributed to
NCSS and key children’s
agencies. Discussion sessions were also held with
NCSS and children’s organizations to brief them and seek their views on
the CRC, and to discuss how they can continue to support the interest and
well-being of children in Singapore.
- Singapore’s
accession was welcomed by the nongovernmental organizations. They noted ongoing
efforts by Government to look at
measures to enhance the welfare of children in
Singapore. These organizations disseminated information on the CRC to their
clients
and the general public.
- Details
on the publicity of the CRC are discussed in other parts of the report,
i.e. article 42 under the section on “General
Measures of
Implementation”.
II. GENERAL MEASURES OF IMPLEMENTATION
- Singapore
is a nation with no natural resources. Our people are our assets and our
children are most precious as they are our future.
Great emphasis is placed on
the well-being of the children and a considerable amount of resources are
invested in promoting their
interest and potential. Singapore also places great
importance on the well-being of the family which is the basic unit of society
and the critical environment for nurturing our young. Our policies therefore
take into consideration the well-being of children
in the context of the family.
- In
1999, 35 per cent of government operating expenditure was spent on the
social and community services sector comprising education,
health, environment,
public housing and community development. This same sector accounted for
47 per cent of the Government’s
development expenditure.
- In
accordance with the requirement in the CRC for the establishment of a national
mechanism for coordinating policies and monitoring
the implementation of the
CRC, Singapore has set up the Inter-Ministry Committee on the CRC (IMC-CRC)
to look into the implementation
and promotion of the CRC and to report on and
monitor its implementation. The IMCCRC comprises representatives from various
government
ministries. It seeks the views of the nongovernmental sector through
the organization of dialogues, forums and workshops on issues
pertinent to
children and the CRC. The IMCCRC will extend representation to include more
members from among the people in line with
the national Singapore 21 vision to
create an effective partnership and consultative relationship between the
public, private and
people sectors.
A. Implementation obligations (art. 4)
- As
indicated above, international conventions such as the CRC do not automatically
become part of the domestic legal system upon Singapore’s
accession to
them. To become part of the legal system, Parliament has to enact legislation
to implement the said conventions. However,
Singapore would like to reiterate
that the principles of the CRC have been implemented in Singapore even prior to
Singapore’s
accession. These are manifested in the legislative and
non-legislative framework in place in Singapore. Legislation which reflects
the
principles and spirit of the CRC in Singapore include the Children and Young
Persons Act, the Women’s Charter, the Criminal
Procedure Code and the
Penal Code, among others. Although the CRC itself cannot be invoked before the
courts of Singapore, any person
can invoke the provisions of relevant State
legislation.
- This
legislation is reviewed periodically and amendments have been made to them over
the years to enhance the welfare and well-being
of Singaporean children and
families. Details of the amendments of applicable legislation are mentioned
under the relevant articles
in this report. Examples of legislation which have
been amended are the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC), the Women’s Charter
and the Children and Young Persons Act, as follows:
(a) In
1995/1996, the CPC and the Evidence Act were amended to allow for child
witnesses below the age of 16 years to give evidence via live video or
television link in criminal
and civil cases. These provisions serve to protect
child witnesses from the trauma of giving evidence in court and from direct
confrontation
with the accused in criminal cases;
(b) In August 1996,
wideranging amendments were made to the Women’s Charter. Among the
amendments were provisions to enhance
the welfare and well-being of children
caught in disputes between parents or family violence, and to accord greater
protection to
victims and family members of victims of family violence;
(c) In 1993 and 2001, the Children and Young Persons Act was amended to
enhance the wellbeing of children and strengthen the protection
of children.
- A
range of non-legislative measures covering the areas of education, health and
medical services, social services, sports, the arts
and culture are in place for
the well-being, benefit and protection of children and families. Details of
these areas are also elaborated
under the relevant articles of this report.
- Singapore
captures a wide range of data and information on matters affecting children.
These include data on children in need of
care and protection, children who are
brought before the juvenile justice system and children between the age of 14 to
16 years who
are employed in industrial undertakings (as required under
Regulation 16 of the Employment of Children and Young Persons Regulations);
and
the state of health and educational status of children, among others. Reviews
are conducted to refine data collection and studies
are done to improve and
identify gaps in services and programmes.
Community development and community involvement
- The
Government seeks to build up the community network to support and strengthen the
family. It believes that individuals and groups
in the community are capable of
and willing to play a role in helping the disadvantaged and those less fortunate
than themselves.
As such, the Government endeavours to create avenues for the
community to bond through volunteerism and social participation in
various
activities and programmes through its “Many Helping Hands” approach.
- Singapore’s
“Many Helping Hands” approach enables the Government, the voluntary
sector, corporate groups and the
citizenry to come together to provide a
comprehensive range of services, programmes and support throughout Singapore to
meet the
needs of the community. The services and programmes provided through
the “Many Helping Hands” approach address the financial,
medical,
employment, education, emotional, physical and housing needs of Singaporeans,
especially those who are less fortunate.
In helping those who are disadvantaged
or in need, the approach is to provide assistance to those in need to help them
achieve selfreliance,
economic independence and productive living and
consequently selfesteem and opportunities to progress with the rest of the
population.
We believe that through this policy of self-help, values such as
self-reliance and hard work are encouraged. Such a policy guards
against
creating a dependence on welfare handouts which can lead to a loss of
self-respect, incentive to work and self-determination.
For those who are
destitute and who by reason of age, illness, disability or special circumstances
are unable to work and have no
means of subsistence or support, there are
various financial and other assistance schemes provided by the Government,
grassroots
organizations, corporate groups and other non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) to help them.
- To
support and encourage the involvement of the NGOs in the provision of services
and programmes to meet the needs of the community,
the Government provides
various kinds of support to these organizations. These include:
(a) Release of land, disused government premises or void space
in public housing estates for the setting up of facilities for programmes
and
services;
(b) Provision of a capital grant to meet up to
90 per cent (or up to 100 per cent in some instances) of
capital expenditure for
the development and furnishing of facilities of approved
programmes;
(c) Provision of financial assistance to meet up to
50 per cent (or up to 100 per cent in some instances) of
recurrent expenditure
for the running of programmes;
(d) Provision of a one-off grant to meet the start-up and initial operating
costs of some facilities (such as residential institutions
for children, the
destitute or elderly) to help nonprofit organizations cover the higher costs
they would generally incur during
the initial period of operation when the
facilities are operating well below capacity;
(e) Provision of grants
for pre-operational expenditure up to a maximum of
three months;
(f) Provision of grants of up to
90 per cent of costs for expenditure on cyclical maintenance of
buildings and facilities;
(g) Waiver of payment of Certificate of
Entitlement (COE)[5] for the
purchase of vehicles needed by NGOs to serve the needs of clients on their
programmes;
(h) Waiver or reduction in payment of medical expenses
incurred by clients (e.g. children, elderly, and destitute) in residential
facilities administered by NGOs; and
(i) Subsidy to pay for rental of
premises either partially or fully.
- These
assistance schemes to non-profit organizations are reviewed regularly to assess
the need for upward revision of government assistance.
Such government
assistance enables the NGOs to focus on service delivery instead of being
unnecessarily bogged down with fundraising
efforts.
- The
Government works closely with the National Council of Social Service (NCSS),
which is the umbrella body for more than 250 NGOs
in Singapore. The NCSS
believes that every individual, regardless of abilities and circumstances,
deserves the opportunity to maximize
his potential and lead a life of dignity in
society. It plans, formulates, and reviews social services and social policies
and advocates
on behalf of its member organizations by making representation to
the Government on key issues. It provides, develops and promotes
efficient and
effective social services and encourages voluntary work to meet current and
future needs. It coordinates and guides
the development of programmes by
its member organizations in five sectors, i.e. disability, health and
community, the family, the
elderly, and children and youth. To ensure that it
is kept updated on issues that concern the sector, research is carried out on
an
ongoing basis.
- The
NCSS has a fund-raising arm known as the Community Chest. The Community Chest
raises funds for over 200,000 disadvantaged people
in Singapore. One main
fund-raising channel is through SHARE (Social Help and Assistance Raised by
Employees), a scheme where employees
volunteer to contribute a monthly sum from
their salaries to charity. The money raised goes towards helping various groups
of people
such as the physically or mentally disabled, the elderly,
youths-at-risk and disadvantaged families.
Support to the international community
- Singapore
joined the United Nations in 1965. As a State Member of the
United Nations, Singapore has continued to contribute actively
to
discussions at the annual sessions of the General Assembly, including being one
of the co-sponsors of the resolution “Implementation
of the outcome of the
World Summit for Social Development” at the fiftyfourth session.
Singapore is deeply concerned with
international social issues, and has given
its support to organizations such as UNDP, UNICEF and the United Nations
Development Fund
for Women (UNIFEM). In 1998 and 1999, Singapore contributed
US$ 743,000 in voluntary contributions to United Nations agencies,
e.g.
US$ 600,000 was given to UNDP, US$ 100,000 to UNICEF and
US$ 40,000 to UNIFEM. The Singapore Chapter of UNIFEM has also started
the
Bintan Community Project, providing medical, dental and educational assistance
to the Indonesian island of Bintan, one of Singapore’s
closest
neighbours.
- As
a country where people are its only resource, Singapore believes that human
resource development is vital for economic and social
progress. Through the
Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP), Singapore shares its developmental
experience with and provides technical
assistance to developing countries. The
SCP is inspired by Singapore’s benefit from the training provided by
other countries
in its early years after independence. Established
in 1992, the SCP offers a wide range of training programmes to meet the
needs
of developing countries. Since then, Singapore has sponsored training
courses and study visits for over 7,000 officials from 105
developing
countries. Managed by the Technical Cooperation Directorate of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, the SCP offers two types
of technical assistance, namely
bilateral and joint training programmes.
Training of medical and health personnel
- Singapore
has several programmes for training of medical and health professionals from
other countries. These range from scholarships
to training award schemes. The
training extended by the Ministry of Health (MOH) for 1999 include:
− One-month training programme in primary healthcare nursing under the
Training Award of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) for four
nurses from Myanmar, the Philippines and Indonesia;
− Three-month training programme in neonatal intensive care for two nurses
from Myanmar and Indonesia;
− One-week study tour on adolescent reproductive health for five officials
from China;
− Four-week study programme in neonatal surgery under the WHO fellowship
for a doctor from Bangladesh;
− Four-week training in school dental health care for six Vietnamese
officials;
− Three-week fellowship training in promoting health in schools for two
doctors from China; and
− Nine-month training to obtain a diploma in paediatrics for a Bangladeshi
doctor.
Early Childhood Care and Development Project
- As
part of the resolution on the ASEAN Plan of Action for Children, Singapore
organized an ASEAN Expert Group Meeting in Singapore
from 2 to 4 June 1999 to
share its knowledge and expertise in early childhood care and development with
ASEAN member countries.
The objective was to formulate a framework for minimum
standards for childcare services and early childhood curricula, and guidelines
for suitable training programmes for implementation by ASEAN countries. The
meeting provided a platform for ASEAN member countries
to discuss issues related
to childcare services and for service providers and policy makers to exchange
information. It also provided
opportunities to tap into existing networks of
training agencies for the training of childcare personnel. The ASEAN Plan of
Action
for Children has identified the provision of childcare services and the
strengthening of the training of childcare providers and
trainers as priority
areas.
- Singapore
also offers training programmes in early childhood education to other regional
countries under the SCP through the Regional
Training Resource for Early
Childhood Care and Education, Asia, an accredited childcare training agency in
Singapore.
B. Publicity (art. 42)
Publicity efforts on the CRC
- The
principles of the CRC and Singapore’s accession to the CRC were publicized
widely in the media in 1995. The Ministry of
Community Development and Sports,
which chairs the IMC-CRC, circulated and promoted the articles of the CRC to
NCSS, major voluntary
welfare organizations (VWOs) and other organizations,
particularly those which focus on the welfare of children. It also held
dialogues
with various organizations to obtain their views on the CRC,
Singapore’s position vis-à-vis the articles and areas for
improvement, amongst other issues. The NGOs were also asked to apply and
disseminate the information on the CRC to those whom they
help and come into
contact with. There is ongoing reference to specific articles of the CRC in
project proposals.
- Various
government agencies have also undertaken measures to publicize specific articles
relevant to their agencies to members of
the public for the protection of
children. For example, the Ministry of Manpower has highlighted the need for
employers to provide
the necessary safeguards for children and young persons in
employment in its publication “Guide to the Employment Act”,
in
information leaflets for the public, on its web site and in weekly lectures
conducted on the Employment Act. These safeguards
include maximum hours of work
each day and the type of work allowed.
- An
informative and easy-reading book targeted at children, youth, parents and
others working with young people was published in March
1999 by the Singapore
Law Society. It is edited by Ms. Suchitthra Vasu and it creates awareness of
legal obligations and rights
of children. Entitled “The Rights of a Minor
in Singapore”, this book explains the rights of a minor in line with the
principles of the CRC. The purpose of the book is twofold. Firstly, it is
intended to educate children on their basic legal rights.
Secondly, it is
intended for parents and teachers to educate children and minors on their basic
legal rights for their protection.
- The
Ministry of Education (MOE) has publicized a set of statements on the mission of
the Education Service and the Desired Outcomes
of Education. The statements are
pupilcentred, focusing on the child and outlining the roles expected of each
stakeholder (the child,
the teacher, the principal, MOE and the community) in
helping the child to grow. These statements serve as reference points for
all
concerned in the development of the child.
- To
raise the awareness of the CRC, MOH has printed the statement, “As a
signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights
of the Child, the
Ministry of Health Singapore strives to ensure that no child is deprived of his
or her right of access to a high
standard of healthcare services” in all
health booklets. These health booklets are distributed to the parents and
guardians
of all babies born in Singapore.
- The
National University of Singapore has also included the CRC in its training for
social workers and psychologists. Copies of Singapore’s
draft initial
report on the CRC were also extended to postgraduate students of the National
University of Singapore studying the
module on Child Welfare Policy for
discussion. This module is extended to both the Graduate Diploma and Masters
programmes in social
work.
Other publicity plans
- An
inter-agency working group has also been set up to look at raising awareness
among adults and children on the principles and provisions
of the CRC. To
publicize the CRC to both adults and children, videotapes, posters, place mats,
postcards, instructional manuals
and booklets on the CRC have been produced and
distributed to schools, childcare centres and VWOs as well as at public
exhibitions.
The notion of child rights is in place and Singapore will continue
to look at measures to make the CRC and Singapore’s country
report widely
known, including applying the various information technology and Internet media.
III. DEFINITION OF THE CHILD (art. 1)
- The
age of majority applicable in Singapore is 21 years old as provided by common
law. This section lists the different definitions
of “a child”
stated in various legislation for specific purposes.
Article 1
Care, custody and maintenance of children
- The
Women’s Charter spells out the responsibilities of parents towards the
care of their children who are minors. Section 2
of the Women’s Charter
defines a “minor” as “a person who is below the age of 21
years and who is not married,
or a widower or a widow”. For the purpose
of custody of children in divorce proceedings or nullity of marriage and for the
award of maintenance, section 122 of the Women’s Charter defines “a
child” as a “child of the marriage who
is below 21
years”.[6]
Protection of children against abuse and neglect
- The
Children and Young Persons Act provides for the care and protection of children
and young persons who are below 16 years of age.
The Act protects them from
abuse, neglect and abandonment and institutes punishment when adults are
careless or neglectful. It
also provides for the rehabilitation of children and
young persons who commit offences or are beyond parental control. The Act
serves
to strike a balance between parental responsibility and those of the
State. It defines a “child” as a person below 14
years of age, a
“young person” as a person who is 14 years and above but
below 16 years of age, and a “juvenile”
as a person who is 7 years
of age or above but below the age of 16 years.
- The
Women’s Charter accords protection to women and girls who are in moral
danger or protects them against sexual exploitation
regardless of
age.
Employment
- The
Employment Act adopts the same definitions as the Children and Young Persons Act
for a “child” and a “young
person”.
- Singapore
prohibits the employment of children below the age of 12 years. While a child
or a young person is allowed to work under
the law, Singapore’s labour
legislation restricts the type of work the child or young person can engage in
and the maximum
hours he or she may be employed. A “child” may be
employed in industrial work when such undertaking is one which only
members of
the same family are employed in, and as a workman on any vessel which is under
the personal charge of the parent of the
child (save for a child employed under
an approved apprenticeship scheme). A “child” can only engage in
light work in
a non-industrial undertaking which is suited to his capacity. A
“young person” may be employed in an industrial undertaking
provided
that the Commissioner of Labour is notified within 30 days from the date of
employment. Children and young persons are
not allowed to
work:
(a) In any occupation, place or working conditions
injurious or likely to be injurious to their health; or in any service involving
management of, or attendance to, machinery in motion; or in any service
involving management of, or attendance to, or proximity to,
any live electrical
apparatus which is not effectively insulated; or in any underground
work;
(b) During the night between 11.00 p.m. and 6.00 a.m.;
(c) On their rest days without the permission of the Commissioner of
Labour;
(d) More than three hours without a break of 30 minutes or six
hours in any one day in the case of a child; and four hours without
a break of
30 minutes or seven hours in any one day, inclusive of the period of school
attendance (if he/she is attending school)
in the case of a young person; and
(e) Unless certified medically fit by a medical practitioner.
- Practically
all children who are below the age of 16 years are either pursuing an education
in schools or learning a skill in vocational
institutions. So far, the Ministry
of Manpower (MOM) has not received reports or complaints of children who have
been exploited
or forced to work in industrial undertakings (including
factories). Neither has it come across any complaint or contravention of
the
law prohibiting children below the age of 14 years from working in industrial
undertakings. There are also inspections on the
employment of children and
young persons. A total of 775 inspections were made in 1999 and no cases of
infringement were found.
Sexual consent
- Section
375 of the Penal Code provides that an offence of statutory rape is made out if
(among other things) a man has sexual intercourse
with a girl even with her
consent if she is below 14 years of age. This means that a “child”
below 14 years old cannot
legally consent to sexual intercourse. Under the
Women’s Charter, any person who has carnal connection with a girl below
the
age of 16 years, except by way of marriage, is guilty of an
offence.
Marriage
- The
Women’s Charter governs civil marriages in Singapore. The minimum legal
age of marriage in Singapore is 18 years with parental
consent. A person below
18 years of age wishing to get married has to apply for a Special Marriage
Licence from the Minister of
Community Development and Sports before he/she can
marry. Any person above 18 years but below 21 years of age is required to
furnish
his/her parent’s/guardian’s written consent for marriage.
Testimony in court
- The
Criminal Procedure Code accords special protection to child witnesses
below 16 years of age. Their testimony can be given through
live
video or television links from a place outside the courtroom in relation to
offences of physical abuse, sexual abuse, child
abuse and prostitution. The
Evidence Act accords special privilege to child witnesses below 16 years in
civil suits for their testimony to be given through live video or
television
links from a place outside Singapore if both parties had consented to this
arrangement and the witness is outside Singapore.
The court may also control
the persons whom the child witness can see and/or hear during proceedings. This
provision enables the
court to protect the interests of child witnesses
especially if they are afraid of the accused and could be traumatized by the
presence
of the accused.
- The
court recognizes the vulnerability of witnesses who, because of their age or
their involvement in an alleged crime, may be psychologically
affected even
before they arrive at the court’s doors. It has a Vulnerable Witness
Support Programme for children who need
to appear before the court. Under the
Programme, a support person is assigned to a witness who is deemed vulnerable.
The support
person will provide non-evidentiary practical and emotional
preparation of and support to the child on an individual basis until
court
proceedings are concluded. This Programme accords special support and
protection to:
(a) Any child or young person below 16 years of age who may be a victim of a
crime, or a witness to a crime who is required to give
evidence in court;
and
(b) A victim or witness who is above 16 years of age, but who has a
mental age of under 16 years.
Consumption and purchase of controlled
substances
- The
Smoking (Control of Advertisement and Sale of Tobacco) Act prohibits the sale or
giving of tobacco products to persons under 18
years. The Poisons Act prohibits
the sale of poison to persons below the age of 18. Under the Custom (Liquor
Licensing) Regulations,
it is an offence for a licensee to permit a person under
the age of 18 to consume alcoholic liquor at the licensed premises or for
someone to purchase alcohol for a person under 18 years at a licensed premises
or for the person under 18 years to purchase alcoholic
liquor.
Age of culpability for offences committed
- Section
82 of the Penal Code states that nothing is an offence which is done by a child
under 7 years of age. The age of criminal
responsibility therefore starts at 7
years of age. Though the age of criminal liability is 7 years, there are
safeguards for children
up to 12 years. Section 83 of the Penal Code qualifies
that in the case of a child between 7 and 12 years, there would be no criminal
responsibility if the child has not attained sufficient maturity of
understanding to judge the nature and consequences of his conduct
on that
occasion. As such, children in this category who commit minor offences are
normally given a warning and may be referred
to a diversionary guidance
programme administered by the Ministry of Community Development and Sports for
follow-up. For more serious
offences, the police will refer the child to a
child psychiatrist to satisfy section 83 of the Penal Code before making a
decision
on whether to charge the offender. The police are guided by clear
procedures in dealing with children.
- Singapore
notes that there may be concerns that the age of criminality is set too low as
very young children may not understand the
offences committed or even appreciate
that an offence has been committed by his/her action. This concern has been
discussed periodically
and extensively by both the Government and
non-governmental sectors. It was also raised in Parliament. The Ministry of
Community
Development and Sports also consulted various government
organizations, children’s organizations and individual experts and
advocates of children in 1999. The general view of most children’s
organizations and advocates as well as that of the Singapore
public is for
retention of the present age of criminality in the interest of the child. Most
also feel that there are sufficient
safeguards to protect young
children.
- It
is the view that retention of the current minimum age provides a safety net for
young offenders and protects them from exploitation
by unscrupulous adults who
may want to make use of children for committing offences. It allows for early
intervention by social
service and other authorities. Singapore has a separate
juvenile justice system which adopts a restorative or communitarian model
and
places emphasis on the best interest of the child. The juvenile justice system
recognizes that the complexity of juvenile crime
requires the incorporation of
elements of deterrence, incapacitation and rehabilitation, and balances
legislative concern for the
child’s welfare and its public duty to
preserve law and order. It uses a multi-pronged approach that focuses not only
on the
offender but also the victims. Institutionalization is considered only
as a last resort. Children in Singapore are therefore not
subjected to the same
justice system as adults.
- The
Juvenile Court considers the best use of available dispositions as means to
reform and reintegrate the juvenile constructively
back into society. In
choosing the appropriate order or “instruments of reform”, the
Juvenile Court is mindful of the
strengths and limitations of the individual
offender who appears before it. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other
written
law, no child or young person can be sentenced by any court other than
the High Court to corporal punishment. In deciding the order,
the Juvenile
Court takes into consideration:
(a) Rehabilitation and
reformation;
(b) Promotion of education and welfare;
(c) Removal
from undesirable surroundings;
(d) Compensation of
victims;
(e) Protection of the public;
(f) Risk of re-offending;
and
(g) Punishment of offender.
- Not
all persons arrested for committing offences are eventually charged in court.
In many cases, the police, at the direction of
the Attorney-General’s
Chambers, administers stern warnings to juveniles or refers them for
community-based programmes to help
the juveniles and their families, instead of
prosecuting them. The number of offenders aged between 7 and 12 years
brought before
the Juvenile Court averaged about 10 per year for the period 1994
to August 1999. Most of these children are between 11 and 12 years.
Even for
children who are brought before the Juvenile Court, the preferred treatment
modality is community-based treatment, unless
the behaviour and circumstances of
the juveniles are such that communitybased treatment would be inappropriate or
unsuitable. (This
subject is further discussed under “Special Protection
Measures”.)
- While
the Government sees merit in retaining the current minimum age for culpability,
it will continue to review its stand, taking
into consideration local and global
trends and new developments.
Institutionalization and imprisonment of
offenders
- A
child below 14 years cannot be sentenced or ordered to be imprisoned for any
offence or be committed to prison in default of payment
of a fine or costs. A
young person below 16 years cannot be ordered to be imprisoned for any
offence, or be committed to prison
in
default of a fine, damages or costs, unless the court certifies that he/she
is of so unruly a character that he/she cannot be detained
in a place of
detention or an approved school for juveniles. Except for such cases, children
who need to be institutionalized are
placed in facilities specially set up for
the reception, care and rehabilitation of children and not in prison settings.
- A
child offender can be committed to an Approved School or a Young Offenders
Section administered by the Prisons Department if his/her
behaviour and
character are so unruly or depraved that treatment in a juvenile facility is
deemed unsuitable. These facilities are
set up separately within the
Reformative Training Centre, a facility for the treatment of offenders who are
above 16 years but below
21 years of age. About 40-50 juveniles are held at the
Approved School or Young Offenders Section.
- Under
the Children and Young Persons Act, where a child or young person is convicted
of murder, culpable homicide not amounting to
murder, attempted murder or
voluntarily causing grievous hurt, and the court is of the opinion that none of
the other methods by
which the case may legally be dealt with is suitable, the
court may sentence the offender to be detained for such period as may be
specified in the sentence. During that period, the child or young person is
liable to be detained in such place on such conditions
as the Minister of
Community Development and Sports may direct. The child or young person may be
released by the Minister on licence
which may contain such conditions as the
Minister may direct.
- Under
the Penal Code, it is specifically provided that a sentence of death shall not
be pronounced on a person convicted of an offence
if it appears to the court
that he was under the age of 18 years at the time the offence was committed.
Such a person shall instead
be sentenced to be detained at the President’s
pleasure. There is no minimum or maximum period of detention. Cases involving
such offenders are reviewed internally every four years and a report is
forwarded to the Minister of Home Affairs and the President.
After the tenth
year of detention, the review is carried out annually. The offender may be
released on the Order of the President.
Consent for medical treatment
- In
Singapore, the general age of consent for medical treatment has not been
definitively stated in the legislation and case law at
the moment. Parental
consent may not necessarily be required if:
(a) It is a case
of emergency; or
(b) The child is a case of abandonment, or when the
parents cannot be located if a child is not capable of consenting; or
(c) A pregnant girl below the age of 18 years who is unmarried wishes
to terminate her pregnancy.
- However,
unmarried girls below 16 years of age seeking treatment to terminate pregnancies
have to undergo compulsory pre-abortion
counselling at the Institute of Health
to ensure that they are aware of the consequences of their decisions. Pre- and
post-abortion
counselling are compulsory for all women who request an abortion.
Upon completion of the counselling session, the Institute of Health
will issue a
Certificate of Attendance (COA). No termination of pregnancy can be performed
unless a girl produces a COA. A minimum
time lapse of 48 hours is needed after
pre-abortion counselling before the pregnant girl can undergo abortion. This is
to allow
the girl time to review the information she has received and to make a
considered and informed decision. Compulsory post-abortion
counselling of all
abortees is to ensure that they are informed of available family planning
methods. (This is also covered below
under “General
Principles”.)
- Surgical
sterilization can be carried out for a male/female below 21 years of age if
he/she is married and gives consent to such treatment.
Prior to the treatment,
the registered medical practitioner is required to give a full and reasonable
explanation as to the meaning
and consequences of the
treatment.
IV. GENERAL PRINCIPLES
- In
Singapore, the child is precious to both his or her family and the nation. The
Government places a very high premium on the education,
health and protection of
children so that they can realize their full potential, regardless of race,
religion or socio-economic background.
- This
chapter discusses the general principles in the areas of non-discrimination,
best interests of the child, the right to life,
survival and development, and
respect for the child’s views in relation to the situation in Singapore.
A. Non-discrimination (art. 2)
- Article
12 of the Constitution of Singapore guarantees all Singapore citizens including
children, the right to equality and non-discrimination. It states:
(a) All persons are equal before the law and entitled to the
equal protection of the law;
(b) Except as expressly authorized by the
Constitution, there shall be no discrimination against citizens of Singapore on
the ground only of religion, race, descent or place of birth in
any law or in
the appointment to any office or employment under a public authority or in the
administration of any law relating to
the acquisition, holding or disposition of
property or the establishing or carrying on of any trade, business, profession,
vocation
or employment. This article does not invalidate or prohibit:
(i) Any provision regulating personal law; or
(ii) Any provision or practice restricting office or employment connected with
the affairs of any religion, or of an institution
managed by a group professing
any religion, to persons professing that
religion.
- This
article of the Constitution specifically guarantees Singapore citizens equal and
effective protection against discrimination on any ground such as religion,
race, descent or place of birth in any law or in the appointment to any office
or employment under a public authority or in the administration
of any law
relating to the acquisition, holding or disposition of property or the
establishing or carrying on of any trade, business,
profession, vocation or
employment.
Women and girls
- Females,
who make up almost half of Singapore’s population (50 per cent of the
population in 2000), are not regarded as a minority
or disadvantaged group.
They are given equal access to education, training, employment opportunities and
health-care services.
They enjoy the same rights and opportunities as males in
all sectors based on the principle of meritocracy. The principles of
meritocracy
and equality are incorporated in the planning and implementation of
policies and programmes across government ministries. Both male
and female
students follow a common curriculum in schools. Females also made up 52 per
cent of the university student population
in the 1999 intake.
- In
recognition of the equality and importance of the female gender, Singapore
signed the “Declaration on the Advancement of
Women in the ASEAN
Region” on 5 July 1988 which aims to promote women’s status and
enable them to achieve their fullest
potential. Singapore also acceded to the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
on 5 October
1995.
- The
Ministry of Community Development and Sports serves as the national focal point
and chairs an inter-ministerial committee on the
advancement of the status of
women. The Singapore Council of Women’s Organizations, a non-governmental
umbrella body of women’s
organizations, provides leadership and direction
for women’s organizations and works in partnership with the Government to
promote the effective participation and advancement of women in all
fields.
Juvenile justice
- Police
procedure accords special consideration in the handling of children. For
example, police officers avoid using force at the
point of effecting an arrest.
Children are separated from other offenders when detained. Investigations for
cases involving children
as accused persons are expedited. The general
guideline in juvenile justice is to deal with minors without undue delay.
- During
investigations, the police may refer the accused child to the Child Guidance
Clinic for an assessment of the child’s
maturity of understanding. This
is especially so in cases where the offence is a serious one, so as to ensure
that the level of
maturity of understanding of the child is factored into the
investigation. For petty offences committed by children, the police
can
recommend to the Attorney-General that the child be warned and let off or be
placed on a community-based programme such as the
Guidance
Programme.[7]
- As
mentioned above in “Definition of the Child”, Singapore has a
separate juvenile justice system for the treatment of
children below 16 years of
age who commit offences. A social report from a probation officer is called for
in all cases brought
before the Juvenile Court. The Juvenile Court is also
assisted by a panel of advisers comprising private individuals appointed by
the
President of Singapore and who are experienced or knowledgeable in
children’s rights. The advisers advise the magistrate
on the treatment
and needs of the juvenile before the magistrate decides on the course of
rehabilitation for the juvenile.
B. Best interests of the child (art. 3)
- Article
3 (1) of the CRC states that in all actions concerning children, undertaken
by public or private social welfare institutions,
courts, administrative
institutions or legislative bodies, the best interests of the child shall be a
primary consideration. Article
3 (2) states that States parties should
undertake to ensure the child such protection and care necessary for his/her
well-being,
taking into account the rights and duties of his or her parents,
legal guardians, or other individuals legally responsible for him/her,
and, to
this end, take all appropriate legislative and administrative measures.
Singapore has entered a declaration on this article,
stating that, “the
Republic of Singapore considers that a child’s rights as defined in the
CRC, in particular the rights
defined in articles 12 to 17, shall in accordance
with articles 3 and 5 be exercised with respect for the authority of parents,
schools
and other persons who are entrusted with the care of the child and in
the best interests of the child and in accordance with the
customs, values and
religions of Singapore’s multiracial and multi-religious society regarding
the place of the child within
and outside the family”. While Singapore
agrees that in all our actions concerning children, the best interests of the
child
should be the primary consideration, Singapore is of the opinion that it
is in the best interests of the child that the rights conferred
on the child by
the CRC should also be exercised with respect for the authority of parents
and schools and in accordance with the
customs, values and religions of the
people. While we have entered a declaration, Singapore’s laws and
practices take into
account and place emphasis on the best interests of the
child.
- Singapore
recognizes the family as the fundamental building block of society. It is the
nurturing ground for the young and where
a child first experiences love, warmth
and security, and acquires values and knowledge. In Singapore, where the family
size is small,
the child is a precious and valued member of the family.
Children are also regarded as the country’s greatest assets and the
future
of the nation. The Government therefore invests a considerable amount of its
resources in promoting and safeguarding the
interests, welfare and well-being of
our children through the family and community.
Legal disputes and laws
- In
legal disputes involving families and children, it is the court’s primary
responsibility to protect the interests of children.
The court encourages
conciliation and cooperation to achieve a consensual outcome which focuses on
the welfare of children. The
Family Court has a Famcare Centre with court
counsellors offering conciliation counselling to couples to help them resolve
custody
or access disputes. Litigation, which tends to escalate the acrimony
between parties, is only used as a last resort.
- The
physical set up of the Court takes into account the needs of children. A
children’s room with a child minder is available
at the Family Court where
parents can leave their children while they attend hearings in other parts of
the building. This helps
to shield children from disputes in court. A
Children’s Resource Centre for older children at the Family Justice Centre
provides
information on family cases and counselling to children. The Centre
also has a KIDS (Kids in Difficult Situation) Line for children
caught in the
midst of their parents’ marital breakdown, family violence or other family
disputes. It provides basic information
on how children can cope with their
difficulties and where they can seek help.
- The
Children and Young Persons Act has provisions which allow the removal of a child
or young person to a place of safety or an approved
home, or the placement of
the child under the care of a fit person or the supervision of a Welfare
Officer, if the parents are unable
to provide adequate care for the
child.
- Section
3 of the Guardianship of Infants Act (GIA) states that the welfare of the child
shall be the first and paramount consideration in any court proceedings
involving the
custody or upbringing of a person below 21 years or the
administration of any property belonging to or held in trust for that child.
The powers of the guardian under the GIA are also limited to ensure that the
child’s interests are safeguarded. Section 16 of the GIA stipulates that
a guardian of the property of an infant shall not, without the leave of the
court:
(a) Sell, mortgage, exchange, or part with the
possession of any property of the infant; or
(b) Lease any land
belonging to the infant for a term exceeding one year:
(i) Any disposal of an infant’s property in contravention of this section
may be declared void by the judge; and
(ii) The court shall not make any order under subsection (i) unless it is
necessary or advisable in the interest of the infant.
Childcare
- Since
1980, the Government, through the Ministry of Community Development and Sports,
has promoted and regulated the development and
operation of childcare centres
for children below 7 years of age, to help working parents who need
alternative childcare arrangements
for their pre-school children while they
work. To safeguard the well-being of children, the Child Care Centres Act and
the Child
Care Centres Regulations govern the operation of such centres. A
childcare centre is defined as any premises at which five or more
children under
the age of 7 years are habitually received for care. No person can operate
a childcare centre without a licence from
the Director of Social Welfare.
- The
Director may refuse to issue a licence if he/she is not satisfied as to the
character or fitness of the applicant or if the premises
do not comply with any
requirements relating to health, sanitation or safety of the child. Any person
who operates an unlicensed
childcare centre or breaches the terms and conditions
of the licence is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine not
exceeding S$ 5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years,
or both. The Director can also revoke or suspend a licence
for offences
committed under the Act. The Director is required to maintain a register of all
licensed childcare centres and may enter
to inspect such centres.
- Childcare
officers conduct prelicensing visits to new centres to ensure that the
legislative requirements are met before they are
allowed to operate. All new
childcare centres are issued a six-month licence in the first instance.
Licences can be renewed up
to a maximum period of two years, depending on
the performance of the centres. The visits and renewal of the licence are
safeguards
to ensure that centres provide good care to
children.
- Once
a childcare centre is set up, a childcare officer will guide, supervise and
provide consultation to the centre. Regular unannounced
visits to the centre
are made to ensure compliance with the licensing conditions and that a
satisfactory standard of care is provided.
A Childcare Centre Evaluation
Instrument[8] is used to
evaluate these centres. Centre supervisors are informed of shortcomings and
given advice and/or set conditions for addressing
or rectifying them. A copy of
the assessment is given to the centre for information and follow-up action. The
areas evaluated cover:
(a) Staffing situation and
staff-children ratio;
(b) Supervisor’s qualifications and
experience;
(c) Compliance with legislative requirements in terms of
safety, hygiene, nutrition and administration;
(d) Compliance with
conditions for previous licence; and
(e) Quality of care in the centre
which includes centre environment, staff-child interaction and centre-parents
relationship, etc.
All complaints against childcare centres are
investigated and actions are taken against a centre where necessary.
- The
Ministry of Community Development and Sports also promotes and oversees the
development and operation of student care centres
(SCCs, also known as
before-and-after school care centres) for the care of school-going children up
to the age of 14 years. Though
SCCs are not licensed, the Ministry sets
guidelines for their operation and investigates complaints in the interest and
welfare of
children.
- To
encourage the development of childcare and student care centres, the Government
provides financial incentives and other support
to non-profit organizations and
employers that develop and operate such centres. These
include:
(a) Release of government or Housing and Development
Board (HDB)[9] premises for the
setting up of childcare centres;
(b) Capital grants for the conversion
and renovation and for the cyclical maintenance of such
premises;
(c) Non-commercial or subsidized rent for the use of such
premises;
(d) Capital grants for the purchase of furnishings and
equipment; and
(e) General tax advantages for employers for the
development and operation of workplace childcare centres.
- To
make childcare and student care centres accessible and affordable to parents,
the Government also provides subsidies to working
parents (and non-working
mothers) who use these centres. For example, the Government provides
S$ 150 or S$ 75 per child per month
for fullday or half-day care
programmes respectively to parents using childcare centres. The Government also
provides an additional
subsidy to low-income families to ensure that these
children are not deprived of such facilities. The Centre-based Financial
Assistance
Scheme for Child Care is a financial assistance scheme for
lower-income families, providing monthly subsidy on top of the universal
subsidy. It also provides one-off assistance to help families meet the start-up
costs of placing their children in childcare centres
or counselling care centres
(e.g. deposit, uniform, etc.). Subsidy for student care centres are only
given to low-income parents
and the level of subsidy varies according to the
income of parents.
Youth activities
- On
1 November 1989, the Government set up the National Youth Council (NYC) to
coordinate youth affairs at the national level. A minister
of State heads the
28-member Council which comprises representatives from various government
ministries, statutory boards, youth
organizations and the National Council of
Social Service and individuals such as members of Parliament, youth advocates
and experts.
The NYC’s mission is to help create opportunities for youth
to maximize their potential and enhance their contributions to
society. It
works in partnership with more than 200 youth groups as well as educational
institutions, civic and voluntary organizations
and public- and private-sector
agencies. The NYC’s responsibilities
include:
(a) Keeping policy makers and the public informed
about youth issues;
(b) Recommending new policies and
activities;
(c) Acting as a catalyst to spark off and implement new
ideas for youth programmes; and
(d) Coordinating youth schemes.
- NYC
has developed a number of infrastructural set-ups to meet the needs of youth and
fully engage them in their free time and recreational
activities. Among these
are a National Youth Centre housing a Youth Park, a one-stop information centre,
a Multi-Purpose Hall and
Youth Research Centre. The National Youth Centre offers facilities for
performances, carnivals, movie nights, exhibitions and youth
outreach
activities. These facilities offer youth a place to have good, clean
fun.
- To
develop and empower youth, NYC administers an endowment fund, the Youth
Development Fund, which provides seed money to help youth
initiate and implement
projects which benefit the community and society. NYC also runs the Youth
Community Initiative Movement to
encourage youth to initiate and operationalize
their ideas for community service. The Movement is to encourage youth to be
more
proactive in community service and develop a greater sense of participation
and ownership over these initiatives.
- To
better understand the profile and needs of youth and spearhead new initiatives
in their best interests, NYC also administers:
(i) A Youth Research Fund which provides grants for non-commercial surveys and
studies that will add to the understanding of local
youth trends and profiles;
(ii) A Repository of Youth Research which enables researchers to make
crossreferences and check available information before embarking
on new studies;
and
(iii) A Youth Research Web Site which facilitates the development of research in
youth-related areas of concern and serves as an
information centre for
crossreferences and networking amongst researchers.
- NYC
also organizes forums for researchers to enable interested parties to network
and facilitate exchange and cross-fertilization
of ideas.
- An
Inter-Ministry Committee on Youth Crime (IMYC), chaired by a minister of State,
aims to support initiatives to reach out to youths
before they are exposed to
the justice system as well as provide those who have failed with a
second chance. IMYC spearheads and
steers development programmes for
youth-at-risk and forges close partnerships with the community to explore new
ways to creatively
and constructively support and sustain the development of
youthat-risk. IMYC provides a platform to consider new initiatives for
youth
services.
- NYC
confers an annual Singapore Youth Award to honour outstanding youths’
contributions and achievements. In addition, NYC
identifies exemplary youths in
Singapore for other local, regional and international awards to internationally
recognize and celebrate
the achievements of youth. A day is also set aside
specially to symbolize the integral role youth play in Singapore’s
development.
Youth Day is celebrated with a wide range of events and
participation by schools and youth organizations.
C. Right to life, survival and development (art. 6)
- Singapore
has a good track record in child health and development and has met the targets
on child health and development of the World
Summit Goals for Children. This is
attributed to effective and rigorous implementation of laws, services and
programmes which have
been put in place to promote the development of
children.
Right to life
- Persons
who at the time of commission of an offence are below 18 years are prohibited
from being sentenced to death under the Criminal
Procedure
Code.
Infanticide
- The
punishment for infanticide in Singapore is imprisonment for life, or
imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, and
an additional
liability to a fine. The Penal Code does not make a distinction as to the age
of the victim: causing the death of
a child is no different from causing the
death of an adult. However, the Penal Code has a special provision for women
who have caused
the death of their children because of imbalance of the mind
(section 310 of the Penal
Code).[10] From 1994 to
1998, there were a total of four cases of infanticide.
Environment control
- Singapore
is generally pollution free and has a clean and green environment. Residents
enjoy a high standard of public health. Singapore’s
watercourses are
relatively pollution free. Dissolved oxygen levels are good, ranging from 2 to
8 milligrams per litre, and support
aquatic life. Modern sanitation is
available to almost 100 per cent of the population and the incidence
of food-, water- and vector-borne
disease is low. This high standard is
attributed to the successful implementation of environmental management and
public health
policies.
- The
air quality in Singapore is closely monitored by the Ministry of the
Environment. The air quality in terms of the Pollutant Standards
Index is good
on 65 per cent of the days and moderate on 35 per cent of the days. The overall
air pollution levels for 1999 are
well within the WHO and United States
Environmental Protection Agency standards.
Provision of health-care system
- Singapore
has a comprehensive health-care system for children, the elements of which are
as follows:
(a) There is a network of primary health clinics
and hospitals (both private and public);
(b) Government polyclinics
provide maternal and child health care which includes a child surveillance
programme comprising development
screening and immunizations for preschool
children, health promotion activities and curative care;
(c) A School Health
Service provides free screening and immunizations, follow-up of students with
chronic health problems and health
education activities for schoolchildren.
Free dental checks are also provided;
(d) Secondary and tertiary health
care are also provided for and easily accessible in the government and private
sectors;
(e) Singapore also has an epidemiological network for disease
surveillance, which also provides inputs to the planning, implementation
and
monitoring of health-care programmes.
- Prenatal
care is provided at primary health clinics and hospitals. Special precautions
are taken for high-risk pregnancies. More
than 99 per cent of births
are attended to by trained health personnel. The health needs of Singapore
children are attended to from
the time of conception till they complete their
pre-university education (usually aged 18 years). No child in Singapore is
deprived
of his/her inherent right to live.
- The
Infectious Disease Act (cap. 137) provides for the quarantine and prevention of
infectious diseases. The Act and its regulations
require compulsory
immunization of children against diphtheria and measles. Immunization is
provided against tuberculosis, poliomyelitis,
measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus,
diphtheria, pertussis and hepatitis B. Child immunization programmes are made
available to all
children in Singapore through government polyclinics, the
School Health Service (SHS) and private hospitals/public hospitals and
private
practitioners. The public sector administers 60 per cent of immunizations
while the rest are carried out by the private
health sector. All immunizations
in polyclinics and SHS are free except for hepatitis B. The Central
Immunization Registry monitors
the immunization status of children. Reminder
letters are sent to parents of children who have defaulted from immunizations.
In
1995, the expanded programme of immunization (EPI) coverage was over
90 per cent for preschool children, and the immunization coverage
for
booster diphtheria, tetanus and polio was about 85 per cent for
primary schoolchildren.
- The
childhood immunization programme against diphtheria, tetanus and poliomyelitis
has been successful. In 1993, 1995 and 1996, no
indigenous case of diphtheria,
poliomyelitis and neonatal tetanus was reported. Hepatitis B vaccination was
introduced for all newborns
in 1987. Consequently, the incidence of acute
indigenous hepatitis B among children below 15 years decreased from
1.6/100,000 in
1983 to 0/100,000 in 1995. It was 0.4/100,000 in 1996
and 0/100,000 in 1997. Hepatitis B immunization has contributed to a
reduction
in acute hepatitis B infection from 5.8/100,000 in 1992 to 4.6 in
1993.
Registration of deaths of children
- Under
the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, a doctor issues a certificate of
cause of death to the informant upon the death of
a child. The informant then
brings the certificate to the Registry of Births and Deaths for registration and
updating of the Registry’s
database. A death certificate is issued to the
informant. For stillbirths, the Act provides for a doctor to issue a
notification
of stillbirth to the parents. This notification is then used to
register the stillbirth.
- Under
the Act, the cause of death is based on the certificate of cause of death issued
by a doctor. If the certificate reflects an
unnatural cause listed in the list
provided by the Department of Pathology, the case will be referred to the State
Coroner for confirmation.
Physical planning and design
- The
public housing authority of Singapore, the Housing and Development Board (HDB),
aims to provide affordable high-quality housing
to residents. The average norm
of an HDB dwelling unit per person (including children) is 25 square metres in
HDB towns. This living
standard is equivalent to other developed countries. A
conscious effort is placed on safety measures in the design of HDB flats
and the
planning of parks and children’s playgrounds, to ensure that the standard
of living is adequate for the child’s
physical, mental, spiritual, moral
and social development. The safety measures provided by HDB are stipulated in
the Building Control
Regulations. For example, parapet walls are constructed
above the recommended height of 0.9 metres under the Regulations.
Vertical
railings are used in residential blocks to prevent children from
climbing over and falling off. All electrical and mechanical systems
in
HDB buildings are also designed and installed in accordance with the
prevailing Codes of Practice.
- An
HDB neighbourhood park, which ranges from 0.4 to 1.5 hectares, is provided for
every 5,000-6,000 dwelling units. For new housing
estates, public parks of 0.4
to 0.7 hectares are provided for every 1,200-3,000 dwelling units. The parks
are located closer to
the residents and linked by green connectors. Park
facilities include children’s play equipment, fitness equipment, a street
soccer pitch or 3-on-3 basketball court, shelters, jogging tracks, footpaths, an
amphitheatre and pavilion.
- Children’s
playgrounds are usually located at the precinct centre and near a childcare
centre to facilitate supervision. Play
facilities, hard courts and multipurpose
courts are preferably located in shady areas within precincts. Sufficient
levels of green
space and large shady trees are provided around the play
facilities and strict safety regulations are imposed, for
example:
(a) A children’s playground should not be
bordered on two or more sides by service roads or near a fire engine
access;
(b) The design and manufacture of all proprietary play equipment
are required to comply strictly with the various safety standards
of their
countries of origin. These standards include the American Standards (ASTM F
1487-95), German Standards (DIN 7926) and British
Standards, among others. Most
of the play equipment used is also certified by the International Play Equipment
Manufacturers Association.
D. Respect for the views of the child (art. 12)
- Article
14 of the Constitution of Singapore states (among other things) that every
citizen of Singapore has the right to freedom of speech and expression.
However,
Parliament may by law impose restrictions on this right if it considers
them necessary or expedient and in the
interest of the security of Singapore. The rights of the child to express
his/her own views in all matters affecting him/her would
include issues of
custody, care, education, abortion and sexual sterilization. These rights would
be elaborated upon under the respective
articles.
Court proceedings
- In
Juvenile Court proceedings, the child or young person who is accused of any
offence is allowed to give evidence on oath or affirmation
or to make a
statement if he/she so desires. He/she can also call witnesses to give evidence
on his/her behalf (section 42 (6) of
the Children and Young Persons Act). When
the offence is proven, the child/young person and his/her parent(s) or
guardian(s) have
the right to say anything in extenuation or mitigation of the
penalty. The Juvenile Court has jurisdiction to try all offences that
are
triable only by a magistrate’s court or district court (subject to certain
exceptions stated in section 33 (1) of the Act),
provided that the accused
person has not reached the age of 16 years on the commencement of the hearing of
the charge. Under the
Criminal Procedure Code, the accused in any hearing in
the “normal” courts (i.e. the subordinate courts and High Court)
has
the right to give evidence in his/her own defence, call witnesses to support
his/her defence, cross-examine prosecution witnesses
and make a statement
setting out his/her mitigation.
- The
views of offenders who are being considered for probation are also taken into
consideration by the court. Under section 5 (4)
of the Probation of Offenders
Act, a Probation Order for a person 14 years and above may only be made if
he/she expresses his/her
willingness to comply with the requirements of the
Probation Order.
Custody
- Under
Singapore laws governing custody proceedings, the views of the child will be
heard if he/she is old enough to give an independent
opinion. The protections
provided under article 14 (1) (a) of the Constitution conform to article
12.
- Under
the Women’s Charter (sect. 119 (2)), the court is expected to have regard
for the wishes of the parents of the child and to the wishes of the child, where
he/she
is of an age to express an independent opinion, when deciding the custody
of a child. The child is asked for an opinion in custody
disputes if he/she is
able to speak on the matter. If the court is unsure of the child’s views,
the dispute is referred to
the Ministry of Community Development and Sports for
specialist help or support. (See also under article 9 below.)
Abortion
- A
child’s right to express views freely in matters pertaining to the child
per se is also extended to the act of abortion.
Unmarried girls who are below
the age of 18 years are entitled to the right of terminating a pregnancy without
seeking parental consent.
Abortion will be performed as long as the pregnancy
is of no more than 24 weeks’ duration and if the pregnant
girl:
(a) Is a citizen of Singapore or is the wife of a citizen
of Singapore;
(b) Is the holder, or is the wife of a holder, of an
employment pass or a work permit pass issued under the Immigration Act;
or
(c) Has been resident in Singapore for a period of at least four
months immediately preceding the date on which such treatment is
to be carried
out.
- The
requirement is that unmarried girls below 16 years of age have to undergo
compulsory pre-abortion counselling when they seek treatment
to terminate
pregnancies. This is to ensure that they are aware of the consequences of their
decision and given advice, counselling
and referral to support services where
necessary. Upon completion of the counselling session, the Institute of Health
(IOH) will
issue a Certificate of Attendance (COA). No termination of pregnancy
can be performed unless the girl produces the COA. A minimum
time lapse of
48 hours after the pre-abortion counselling is required before the pregnant
girl can undergo the abortion. Compulsory
post-abortion counselling is also
required of all abortees so that they will be informed of available family
planning methods. (See
also under chapter III, “Definition of the
Child”.)
Sexual sterilization
- A
registered medical practitioner may carry out treatment for sexual sterilization
on any individual below 21 years of age if:
(a) The consent of
the individual and his/her parent or guardian are obtained for such treatment if
the individual is not married;
or
(b) The individual gives consent to
such treatment if he/she is married.
Prior to the treatment, the
registered medical practitioner is required to convey to the individual
undergoing the treatment a full
and reasonable explanation as to the meaning and
consequences of the treatment.
- As
sexual sterilization involves surgical sterilization of a permanent nature, the
State considers that a child’s rights defined
in article 12 (1) should be
in accordance with articles 3 and 5 and be exercised with respect for the
authority of parents and guardians
who are entrusted with the care of the child.
This is in tandem with the Convention’s principle that the best interests
of
the child are always considered.
Participation in feedback and expression of
opinions
- The
Government encourages feedback on policies and issues from students through
various activities and programmes organized by the
Ministry of Education and
other bodies. Details of these activities and programmes are covered under the
section on freedom of expression
in chapter V, “Civil Rights and
Freedoms”.
- A
Feedback Unit was established in 1985 as part of the Government’s efforts
to be more consultative. The Unit looks into the
views and suggestions of
Singaporeans as well as helps explain government policies to Singaporeans.
Guided by a supervisory panel
comprising members of Parliament, grass-roots
leaders, trade union leaders and representatives from the public and private
sectors,
the Unit provides several opportunities for Singaporeans to contribute
their views and suggestions on national issues and policies.
These include
feedback channels, feedback groups, feedback sessions, public opinion polls and
surveys, information newsletters and
web sites.
- The
views of young people are also sought by the Feedback Unit. Examples of these
sessions with young Singaporeans and students to
gather their comments on
national issues and matters affecting them directly include:
− Dialogue session with young Singaporeans on Prime Minister’s
National Day Rally Speech (4 September 1996);
− Dialogue session with junior college students on education (2 October
1996);
− Tea session with polytechnic graduates on their aspirations (26 November
1998);
− Dialogue session with young Malays (14 December
1998);
− Dialogue session with young Singaporeans on Prime Minister’s
National Day Rally Speech (30 August 1998);
− Polytechnic Feedback Group Meetings (ongoing).
- NYC
organizes and supports national education programmes for young Singaporeans to
express their views and discuss current issues
facing the nation with national
leaders, including the Prime Minister.
- In
November 1998, NYC launched “Channel Y”, a youth communication and
outreach programme. Channel Y offers a wide spectrum
of activities covering
broad-based communication channels for young people to express and exchange
views on issues which concern
them. Channel Y programmes are designed to
promote desired values through creative programmes that reach out to youth of
different
backgrounds. Its platforms include movie screenings, performances,
radio chat-shows, Internet projects and comic projects, among
others.
Television programmes
- There
are locally produced children’s programmes which elicit comments from
children and youth on national issues or matters
directly affecting them. One
example of such a programme is “Kids Talk Back”, where children and
youth are invited to
air their views and opinions and participate in national
discussions. The Singapore Broadcasting Authority has also sponsored and
promoted the production of children’s programmes that provide wholesome
entertainment and information.
V. CIVIL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS
- This
chapter presents Singapore’s position in respect of the
following:
(a) Name and nationality;
(b) Preservation
of identity;
(c) Freedom of expression;
(d) Access to
appropriate information;
(e) Freedom of thought, conscience and
religion;
(f) Freedom of association and of peaceful
assembly;
(g) Protection of privacy; and
(h) The right not to be
subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment.
- The
Singapore Constitution provides that every citizen of Singapore has the right to
freedom of speech and expression, to profess and practise his religion
and to
propagate it, and to freedom of association and assembly. However, these rights
have to be applied within the limits permitted
in the interest of public safety,
order, health and morals; and within the constraints of Singapore’s
geographical size, population
density and its resources.
A. Name and nationality (art. 7)
Registration of newborns
- Under
the Registration of Births and Deaths Act (cap. 267) of Singapore, every child
born in Singapore must be registered within 14
days after birth and shall be
given a name (sections 9 and 10 of the Act). This right to registration and
name also applies to a
child born out of wedlock. If parents fail to come up
with an appropriate name for the child within the time frame, the parents
are
given 12 months to register the child’s name on unnamed birth
certificates. There are still some unnamed birth certificates
issued in cases
where the child had died within 28 weeks after birth.
- To
protect the child and deter parents from not registering the birth of their
children, there are penalties in the law. A parent
who fails to register a
birth without reasonable excuse is liable upon conviction to a fine not
exceeding S$ 100. Any parent who
without reasonable excuse fails to
register his/her child with a name within 12 months from the birth of the child
is liable on conviction
to a fine not exceeding S$ 100 and to a further
fine not exceeding S$ 40 for every day he fails to continue to do so after
conviction.
To make it easy for parents to register
the birth of their children, the registration of births can be done at most
hospitals where the children are born so that parents
can do so before the
mother and child leave the hospital. The registration of births is not a major
problem in Singapore as parents
are aware of this responsibility and
registration has been made convenient for parents.
Nationality
- While
Singapore has entered a reservation on article 7 in view of its differential
treatment of children born outside Singapore to
a Singapore citizen mother and
non-citizen father, the incidence of rejection for citizenship by parents is
rare.
- The
Singapore Constitution grants citizenship on the basis of birth, descent,
registration or naturalization. If a child is born in Singapore and his/her
parents
are legally married at the time of birth, the child will be eligible for
citizenship as long as one of its parents is a Singapore
citizen. Where a child
is born overseas and the parents are legally married, eligibility for
citizenship by descent, upon application,
will normally be determined by the
father’s nationality. This is in line with our Asian tradition where
husbands are the heads
of household.
- A
Singaporean woman married to a foreigner can apply for any of her children to be
a Singapore citizen by registration under her own
sponsorship. Singapore adopts
a non-prejudicial and impartial stand towards citizenship applications, and any
deserving applicant
(male or female) in his/her own right has the opportunity to
obtain citizenship for his/her children. Based on immigration records,
the
percentages of approvals for citizenship applications by Singaporean fathers and
Singaporean mothers for their children born
overseas in 1999 are similar: about
75 per cent of these applications were approved. The non-approval of
applications include those
where parents were unable to provide sufficient
documentary proof of their marriage. If an illegitimate child is born in
Singapore
to a mother who is a Singapore citizen at the time of his birth, the
child will be a Singapore citizen by birth. If it is born outside
Singapore and
the mother is a Singapore citizen, she can apply to register the child as a
Singapore citizen.
Persons born on ships or aircraft
- Under
the Third Schedule to the Constitution, a person born on board a registered ship
or aircraft, or on board an unregistered ship or aircraft of the Government of
any country,
is deemed to have been born in the place in which the ship or
aircraft was registered or, as the case may be, in that
country.
Abandoned children
- There
are legal provisions to recognize abandoned children as citizens of Singapore so
that they will not be deprived of a nationality.
Under the Third Schedule to
the Constitution, any newborn found exposed in Singapore and who is of unknown
and unascertainable parentage will be deemed a citizen of Singapore
by birth and
the date of finding shall be taken to be the date of birth of such a
child.
Children born to asylum-seekers and refugees
- With
limited land and natural resources, and the need to keep our population size
manageable, Singapore is unable to be as forthcoming
in accommodating refugees
as other developed countries with greater physical land area and greater
resources. As such, Singapore’s
immigration policy does not allow the
entry and resettlement of refugees or accept anyone who claims to be a refugee.
Notwithstanding
its position, Singapore had accommodated and facilitated the
resettlement of Vietnamese boat people through the setting up of a camp
in 1978,
i.e. the Hawkins Road Camp which was administered by the Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
There were 10
cases of children born to Vietnamese refugees. These children were not
Singapore citizens at the time of birth.
There were no incidents of children
born to asylum-seekers in Singapore. Singapore’s position with regard to
refugee children
is spelt out under article 22, chapter IX, “Special
Protection Measures”, below.
Dual citizenship
- The
Government does not allow Singaporeans to have dual citizenship. Exceptions are
made for children who are allowed to hold dual
citizenship till the age of 21
years, by which time they will have to decide which citizenship they wish to
retain. This issue of
dual citizenship was discussed at the Forum on the CRC in
January 2000 and dual citizenship was not considered feasible at this point
of
time because Singapore is still a young nation.
B. Preservation of identity (art. 8)
Preservation of name and nationality
- The
Registration of Births and Deaths Act allows an applicant to add a surname to a
child’s name and even allows a child registered
without a name to have
his/her name registered within seven years of birth. The Act allows a parent or
guardian to alter the child’s
name within 12 months of the birth of the
child. No alteration is permitted once a certified extract has been furnished
to any party.
Deprivation of nationality
- Under
the Singapore Constitution, only a person above the age of 21 years can renounce
his citizenship. However, the Government may deprive a child under 21 years
of
his Singapore citizenship if his/her father has renounced his citizenship or is
deprived of his citizenship under article 129
(2) (a) or 134 (1) (a) of the
Constitution and the child has obtained citizenship by virtue of being a child
of the person who was so registered, or of that person’s
wife or husband.
However, in practice, careful consideration is given to the facts and
circumstances of the cases before taking
deprivation action, and this provision
is rarely used in Singapore.
- The
Singapore Constitution generally does not allow the Government to deprive a
child under 18 years of his Singapore citizenship except if the Government is
satisfied that the registration was obtained by means of fraud, false
representation, or the concealment of any material fact, or
was effected or
granted by mistake.
C. Freedom of expression (art. 13)
- Article
14 of the Constitution provides that every citizen of Singapore has (among other
things) the right to freedom of speech and expression, but Parliament may
by law
impose such restrictions as it considers necessary or expedient in the interest
of the security of Singapore.
- Under
the Undesirable Publications Act (cap. 338) and the Films Act (cap. 107), all
imported films and publications can be subjected
to censorship by the Films and
Publications Department before they are allowed into Singapore. Films and
publications that are obscene
are not allowed. Films which are not obscene and
are allowed for public screening are categorized into G (suitable for children),
PG (suitable for children with parental guidance), NC-16 and
R (A) ratings, with varying degrees of censorship depending on the age
of its target audience. Videos and publications meant specifically for children
are among the categories exempted from censorship.
- Singapore’s
population can receive up to 5 local free-to-air TV channels and 18 local radio
stations. The BBC also has a 24-hour
FM radio service operating in Singapore.
Over and above this, there are 37 cable TV channels in Singapore, of which 32
are foreign
channels transmitting “live” through Singapore Cable
Vision. These include news channels like CNN International, BBC
World,
CNBC Asia, as well as children’s channels like TNT Cartoon Network, Eureka
Learning Channel and Discovery Channel.
As at the end of 1999, there were
206,000 cable TV subscribers, representing 23 per cent of all homes. Monthly
subscriptions start
from an affordable S$ 33.94 (US$ 21). With the efficient
telecommunications and broadcast networks, even families with modest incomes
are
able to afford cable television and the Internet.
- The
Government actively encourages the use of the Internet in offices, schools and
homes. At the end of 1999, there were over 700,000
Internet users in Singapore,
representing over 20 per cent of our population. These numbers will rise
further as more schools put
in place access to the Internet from primary to
tertiary level by 2001.
- In
addition, the Singapore Broadcasting Authority (SBA) has established a policy
framework for the Internet with a view to promoting
and facilitating its growth
while at the same time maintaining social values. Specifically, SBA adopts a
three-pronged approach
comprising joint government and industry initiatives and
public involvement to encourage Internet development. This approach
emphasizes:
(a) Promotion of public awareness of positive
aspects and hazards of using the Internet through public
education;
(b) Encouragement of the industry to set its own standards
through self-regulation; and
(c) Institution of a light-touch policy
framework in regulating content, which is regularly fine-tuned based on
consultation with
the industry and the public.
- Children
are free to access information and ideas in all media, including through print,
broadcast or the Internet. There are over
5,500 foreign publications and over
4,000 local publications in Singapore, of which 38 are designed for children,
such as Young Generation and IT Whiz. Some of these publications,
such as Friday Weekly, have students on their reporting team. To
encourage the pupils to learn actively, the school curriculum is implemented
through
strategies that are pupil centred. Pupils are actively involved in
expressing their views through oral and written expression and
art, and, with
the increased use of information technology, the Internet. Pupils are
encouraged to be creative and innovative and
some have risen to this challenge
and have come up with their own innovations.
- Singapore’s
education system provides pupils with opportunities to participate in
decision-making, particularly so in secondary
schools and junior colleges where
pupil leaders actively participate in the decision-making process in some areas
of school life
and college life. The Student Council or the Prefectorial Board
forms the apex of the leadership groups in schools. Various co-curricular
activities implemented in schools also create leadership opportunities in
decision-making at the planning, implementation and review
stages of the
activities.
- Freedom
of expression among our pupils is encouraged through seminars, debates, the
arts, and oratorical and writing activities at
different levels. At the Junior
College (JC) level, where students are mainly between the ages of 16 and 18
years, there is the
JC Debating Championships. Since 1998, these debates are
televised. Such debates aim to promote free speech and excellence in debating.
The best five speakers from the JC Championships represent Singapore at the
annual World Schools Debating Championships which, apart
from promoting debating
skills and free speech, also promote international understanding as they bring
together teams from different
parts of the world to debate in places as diverse
as Israel, England and Bermuda. The Plain English Speaking Award, a public
speaking
competition for secondary and pre-university students, gives students
the opportunity to express their thoughts on specific topics.
They are able to
develop self-confidence, poise and thinking skills in the process of delivering
prepared and impromptu speeches.
Approximately 40 secondary and pre-university
students participate each year.
- Writing
activities organized for students encourage them to express their thoughts,
feelings and impressions. The Ministry of Education
organizes international
related competitions and this included the United Nations Fiftieth
Anniversary Writing Competition which
gave students the opportunity to write
poems, letters and essays on the topic of the United Nations and its work.
Other writing
competitions include the annual Commonwealth Essay Writing
Competition and the National Education Exhibition Essay
Competition.
- Since
1970, a pre-university seminar for JC students has been organized annually. It
is a five-day residential seminar for about
500 pre-university students aged
usually between 16 and 18 years who are immersed in issues presented by
eminent politicians and
business and community leaders. The students are given
the opportunity to ask questions and comment on issues, e.g. developing a
knowledge-based economy, promoting bonding within the community and
globalization, among others. Students are involved in giving
case-study
presentations based
on topics presented so that they can discuss these issues in depth. The
seminar also enables students to take part in special activities
such as outdoor
adventure training, workshops on emotional intelligence and various art forms,
concert presentations, and meetings
with older persons. The themes of the
seminar for the last few years included:
1995
|
-
|
Coming of the IT Age
|
|
|
|
1996
|
-
|
Life Skills for a Changing World, Challenges and Choices
|
|
|
|
1997
|
-
|
Singapore as Best Home
|
|
|
|
1998
|
-
|
Going Global, Staying Local
|
|
|
|
1999
|
-
|
Singapore 21: The Road Ahead
|
- An
annual Singapore Youth Festival showcases the talent of our students from
primary and secondary schools and JCs. Students express
themselves artistically
in drama, music, dance and art and crafts. In the field of drama, for example,
the pupils are free to produce
their own play scripts, method of dramatic
presentation, and costume and set design.
- As
part of holistic education, Physical Education (PE) plays an important role in
developing the physical and social well-being of
our students. Through physical
activity, PE aims to develop students’ motor skills and games skills, and
to equip them with
the skills, knowledge and attitudes to pursue a physically
fit and socially healthy lifestyle. In addition, PE fosters self-esteem,
promotes teamwork and affords a platform for the students to develop and apply
thinking skills in game situations. PE is a compulsory
subject in the formal
curriculum and the Ministry of Education (MOE) provides guidelines on the number
of PE periods to be taught
in schools per week:
Levels
|
Number of PE periods
|
|
|
Primary 1-4
|
3 periods of 30 min.
|
|
|
Primary 5-6
|
2 periods of 35-40 min.
|
|
|
Secondary
|
2 periods of 35-40 min.
|
|
|
Pre-university
|
3 periods of 45 min.
|
- In
addition, the Trim and Fit (TAF) programme in schools helps students to improve
their level of fitness and to attain and maintain
an acceptable weight status.
In particular, the National Physical Fitness Award (NAPFA) scheme is adopted to
motivate students to
attain desirable levels of overall fitness. Medically fit
students participate in the NAPFA test every year to assess their fitness
levels.
D. Access to appropriate information (art. 17)
Radio and television
- The
Singapore Broadcasting Authority (SBA) mandates that the five free-to-air
channels (TCS and STV 12, Mediaworks) are to broadcast
a total of at least 32
hours of children’s programmes per week. The broadcasters, at their own
cost, provide for 16 hours
of broadcasting, while SBA funds the other 16 hours
of programmes per week. Programmes are info-educational in nature, with at
least
four hours of local production in four languages, i.e. English, Chinese,
Malay and Tamil. Locally produced programmes include popular
programmes such as
“Kids at Work” (English), “Hip-O” and
“Friends” (English), “Little Diaries”
(Chinese),
“Kids’ Camp” (Chinese), “Ya Alif” (Malay),
“Jo Kilat” (Malay) and “Kaanbom
Karpom” (Tamil). These
programmes promote socially desirable and positive values and are developed with
a local flavour to
perpetuate the diverse cultural heritage of our
children.
- A
Children’s Programme Advisory Subcommittee assists SBA in monitoring the
range, output and quality of children’s programmes
and in making
recommendations on how programmes can be improved. SBA forwards such
recommendations to the broadcasters and encourages
them to take the necessary
action. A children’s television seminar was held on 17 September
1999 as part of Singapore’s
efforts to enhance the quality of
children’s programmes. Targeted at broadcasters, producers and
programmers of children’s
programmes, the seminar included internationally
renowned speakers from the British Broadcasting Corporation, Nickelodeon Global
Network Ventures, the Discovery Channel and Australian Children’s TV
Foundation who shared winning formulae for quality children’s
programmes.
- Broadcasters
are required to satisfy certain Public Service Broadcast (PSB) requirements
according to the licence conditions. (PSB
programmes are programmes considered
desirable for society but deemed to be less commercially viable and therefore
merit consideration
for public funding. Children’s programmes are
included in the PSB programmes.) Broadcasters are also expected to exercise
self-censorship based on a set of broad programme guidelines given by SBA.
Guidelines for children’s TV programmes
include:
(a) Programmes should be wide ranging in genre and
context, but avoid gratuitous scenes of violence, horror or
sex;
(b) Stories must generally reflect respect for law and order,
parents, elders and fellow human beings. Stories should clearly portray
good
morals, e.g. hero and villain characters must be distinguishable, and the
lifestyles of gangs and gangsters should not be portrayed
as
desirable;
(c) Programmes should not contain scenes depicting the
consumption of liquor or tobacco products unless an educational point is being
made, or unless, in very exceptional cases, the dramatic context makes it
absolutely necessary;
(d) Like all children’s programmes, cartoons
must avoid excessive violence, especially those featuring humans and human-like
characters and depicting realistic story lines (as opposed to clearly fanciful
or magical themes);
(e) Programmes should never end in a way that could
disturb or negatively affect the emotions of children.
- Singapore
has a Family Viewing Policy to ensure that unsuitable material for children is
not broadcast at times when there will be
a large audience of young viewers.
All programmes broadcast between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. must be suitable for family
viewers.
Internet
- A
volunteer Parents Advisory Group for the Internet was formed in 1999 to help
parents make the Internet safer for children. Headed
by a retired school
principal, the group has recruited 65 parents and has received S$ 50,000
(US$ 30,864) in funding assistance from
SBA. SBA has also worked with the
Internet Access Service Providers in Singapore to provide optional family access
networks that
parents can subscribe to for their children. These networks
filter out pornographic as well as other undesirable sites and provide
an
optional, hassle-free network solution to parents who are unfamiliar with the
use of stand-alone filtering software such as CyberPatrol
and
NetNanny.
Books, CD-ROMs and videos
- Library
services for children are provided by the National Library Board (NLB) through a
three-tier system for regional, community
and neighbourhood libraries. Besides
the regional library at each town centre, there are 16 community libraries. By
the year 2003,
NLB plans to set up a network of about 100 community
children’s libraries across the island. This is to enable children below
10 years old to walk to a library from their home easily. Currently, there
are 41 such libraries. Through NLB’s network of
libraries,
children in Singapore enjoy free and equal access to library services which are
made convenient and accessible to them.
- The
National Library has developed an excellent and wide-ranging collection of books
and audio-visual and multimedia materials. The
materials are in
Singapore’s four official languages, and they cater to the varied
interests of children from infancy to teenage
years. Continuous critical
evaluation of the collection is carried out to maintain the effectiveness and
quality of the resources.
These children’s collections are bought from
all over the world. NLB does not carry nor promote materials of undesirable
content. NLB has not sponsored the production of children’s books so far
but will carry Singapore published materials when
they are available in the
market. It takes part in the ASEAN co-publication programme under the ASEAN
Committee on Culture and Information
umbrella to produce children’s
materials. Four such publications have been produced.
- NLB’s
children’s libraries are appropriately designed with decor that appeals to
children, and are conducive to learning
and exploration through print materials,
multimedia, online learning resources and the Internet. Innovative ways to keep
learning
fun and fresh are continually introduced so as to stimulate the
children’s interest. Children’s library membership accounts
for 20
per cent of total library membership in Singapore. However, children’s
book loans make up 50 per cent of total loans.
An average of 12 million
children’s books are loaned a year.
- The
National Library places great emphasis on developing services for children,
believing that reading habits are best nurtured from
a young age. Reading is
basic to lifelong learning, and in line with NLB’s mission of expanding
the learning capacity of Singapore,
its libraries play an important role in
nurturing the culture of learning in the young and making reading an enjoyable
experience.
Specialist children’s librarians are continuously being
trained to provide quality library services to children, as well as
to parents,
teachers and childcare specialists. Our libraries have contributed much to the
educational and intellectual development
of children in Singapore, and
complement the formal education provided by the schools. The libraries have
also brought much pleasure
and delight, enriching the lives of countless
generations of Singapore children, some of whom may not have had the means and
privilege
of owning their own books.
- The
National Library Board also works closely with MOE to cultivate reading among
schoolchildren. Regular class visits to the libraries
are organized to promote
books and reading, and to orientate students to the services provided by the
libraries. Under MOE’s
Community Involvement Programme, students assist
with library activities such as storytelling and user education programmes which
provide further exposure to libraries.
- NLB
also networks with other organizations that share the same objective of
promoting reading such as the National Book Development
Council of Singapore and
the Society for Reading and Literacy. These organizations jointly organize
talks and workshops on reading
for parents, as well as storytelling and reading
festivals at a national level.
- In
the next five years, the National Library Board will build four more community
libraries, and an additional regional library.
In addition, a new National
Library Building, which is five times larger than the current building, is
expected to be ready in 2004
and will house an extensive collection of books.
NLB is also forging partnerships with major libraries around the world to
provide
Singaporeans easy access to library resources
worldwide.
Information on health
- To
educate the public as well as promote the importance of health, the National
Health Education Department uses a combination of
mass media tools and
interpersonal strategies to increase awareness, reinforce positive behaviour and
change undesirable traits among
Singaporeans. The National Healthy Lifestyle
Campaign and National Smoking Control Campaign target schoolchildren as well as
the
general population.
- Besides
general health education programmes targeted at all age groups, special health
education programmes are conducted by the School
Health Services (SHS) such as
talks, health fairs, demonstrations and dissemination of educational materials.
Among the topics addressed
are diet and nutrition, vision care, AIDS and
sexually transmitted diseases, healthy lifestyles, stress, personal hygiene,
growth
and development and smoking. In 1998, an online free of charge medical
service “Health One”, was launched. It is a
joint project of the
National University of Singapore and National Computer Board to provide
Singaporeans with local and world health
information. Information is available
on the web site in English, Chinese, Malay and, probably, Tamil later. This
information is
available to children and teenagers as most of them are computer
literate and have access to the Internet.
Information to young offenders
- Young
offenders who are placed in institutions are given access to information and
reading materials that promote social, spiritual
and moral well-being. They
are, however, not allowed to have reading materials that incite religious
intolerance and those that
contain excessive violence and sex.
E. Freedom of thought, conscience and religion (art.
14)
- Singapore’s
Constitution gives every person, including a child below 18 years, the right to
profess and practise his/her religion
and to propagate it and many religious
faiths are practised in Singapore. However, the right to practise religion has
to be applied
within the limits permitted in the interest of public safety,
order, health and morals. The Penal Code sets penalties for acts of
injury or
insult to be made in respect of a person’s religion. A child under 18
years will receive similar protection under
the Penal Code.
- Pupils
wishing to receive instruction on religious knowledge may do so through
religious organizations, viz. churches, temples, mosques,
etc. The Ministry of
Education offers the subject at GCE “O” (General Certificate of
Education “Ordinary”)
and “N” (“Normal”)
Level examinations to pupils wishing to sit for it.
F. Freedom of association and peaceful assembly (art.
15)
- The
Singapore Constitution guarantees freedom of association and assembly to every
citizen of Singapore. Citizens have the right to assemble peaceably and
without
arms and to form associations. However, the Government may impose such
restrictions as it considers necessary or expedient
in the interest of the
security of Singapore or any part thereof or public order or morality. Any law
relating to labour or education
may also impose restrictions on the right to
form associations.
- Police
have imposed restrictions on youths below the age of 16 years from patronizing
entertainment outlets that serve alcohol and
have facilities for dancing for the
following reasons :
(a) Juveniles are impressionable and there
is a need to protect them from untoward influences at such entertainment
outlets;
(b) They are usually school-going students and should be
discouraged from spending too much time at these places; and
(c) Gangs
will be prevented from using these entertainment outlets as grounds for gang
recruitment and congregation.
- Statistics
from police reports revealed that entertainment outlets serving alcohol with
facilities for tea dances and dancing were
fertile ground for gang members to
congregate and in the process, recruit gang members. Many cases of rioting,
unlawful assembly
and confrontations involving youths who were gang members
arose from petty disputes originating from the activities at such entertainment
outlets. These places also provided ample opportunities for naïve youths
to join gangs and to subsequently be involved in undesirable
activities. The
assembly of juveniles at such entertainment outlets increases the likelihood of
and propensity for criminal activity.
The subsequent impact of such criminal
influence on youths has to be prevented. Hence, in the interest of public
order, the age
restriction on patronizing entertainment outlets was introduced.
Feedback gathered has shown that the general public is of the view
that tea
dances have an undesirable social influence on youths. School principals,
teachers, parents and social workers also share
these
sentiments.
G. Protection of privacy (art. 16)
- Our
defamation laws protect honour and reputation. Besides the Defamation Act
(which deals with civil claims for defamation), the
Penal Code has provisions
dealing with defamation as well. Whoever “defames” another (as
defined in section 499 of the
Penal Code) may be sentenced to imprisonment of up
to two years, or be fined, or imprisoned and fined.
- Confidentiality
of the patient is safeguarded in medical practice. However, we do not have
legislation protecting people’s
privacy. In practice, authorities keeping
confidential personal data are usually subjected to obligations of
confidentiality. The
courts in Singapore are also able to restrict the
reporting of cases involving minors by the mass media to protect
them.
H. Right not to be subjected to torture or other cruel,
inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment (art. 37 (a))
- Singapore
has entered a declaration stating that article 37 does not prohibit the
application of any prevailing measures prescribed
by law for maintaining law and
order or the judicious application of corporal punishment in the best interests
of the child.
- The
Singapore Government believes that every person who commits a crime should be
held accountable for his misdeeds. However, a restorative
model rather than a
punitive model is applied in the juvenile justice system. The rights of
children and young persons are protected
under the provisions of the Children
and Young Persons Act, which state that they are to be tried for their offences
in the Juvenile
Court where a range of treatment and sentencing options are
available. Juveniles are tried by the High Court for serious offences
such as
murder, rape, drug trafficking and armed robbery after they are deemed
unsuitable for treatment in the Juvenile Court (section
33 of the Children and
Young Persons Act). Juveniles may also be subjected to caning. However, under
Singapore’s laws, a
juvenile offender will be caned with a light rattan
instead of the usual rattan used for adults. Females are not liable to caning
(section 231 of the Act). In 1998, there were a total of 20 juvenile offenders
who were caned for committing serious offences.
As at September 1999, 39
juveniles had been caned.
- Singapore
laws prohibit the sentencing of any child below 14 years to imprisonment for any
offence. A young person below the age
of 16 years cannot be committed to
prisons in default of fine or damages or cost unless the court certifies that
he/she is of so
unruly a character that he/she cannot be detained in a place of
detention or approved school. However, for certain grave offences
such as
murder, culpable homicide not amounting to murder, or voluntarily causing
grievous hurt, he/she may be ordered to be detained
in a place of
detention.
- A
range of non-custodial options are available to the Juvenile Court for the
treatment of offenders under the age of 16 years at the
time of the trial.
These include:
(a) Discharging the
offender;
(b) Discharging the offender but entering him/her into a bond
of good behaviour and compliance with any order imposed by the
Court;
(c) Committing the offender to the care of a relative or fit
person;
(d) Ordering the offender’s parent or guardian to execute a
bond to exercise proper care and guardianship;
(e) Making a probation
order requiring the offender to be under the supervision of a probation officer
or a volunteer probation officer;
and
(f) Ordering the offender to pay a
fine, damages or cost.
- The
death penalty can only be imposed on offenders who are above the age of 18 years
at the time of commission of the capital offence.
Persons who are below the age
of 18 at the time of commission of a capital offence will be detained at the
President’s pleasure
in lieu of the death penalty. They are eligible for
consideration for release after serving about 13 years of imprisonment. There
is no legal minimum or maximum period of detention. The cases of prisoners
detained during the President’s pleasure are reviewed
internally every
four years and the report is forwarded to the Minister for Home Affairs and the
President. After the tenth year
of detention, the review is carried out on an
annual basis. Recommendations for release are made by the Prisons Department
and forwarded
to the Minister. The prisoner will be released upon an order from
the President. (Similar information is also found in chapter
III
above.)
I. General comments
- There
are avenues for freedom of expression. The Singapore Government has implemented
programmes which will provide even more avenues
for Singaporeans, including
children, to participate in the nation’s affairs. The Government aims to
let each citizen become
a participant in building the Singapore they want for
themselves through active citizenry, where major issues can be discussed
honestly
and robustly, and everyone has a hand in improving policies as well as
a stake in their success.
- The
Government notes that rapid developments in technology have enabled Singaporeans
to have greater and easier access to information,
particularly through the
Internet. Every aspect of daily living has been impinged upon, and the
Government recognizes a need to
protect the wellbeing of all, especially
children, who are the most vulnerable and impressionable. The Ministry of
Information and
the Arts intends to embark on a study on the implications of
these trends for Singapore.
VI. FAMILY ENVIRONMENT AND ALTERNATIVE CARE
- Singapore
places great importance on the well-being of the family unit. We believe that a
strong cohesive family is better able to
provide a nurturing environment for the
physical, emotional, mental and social development and security of its children
and to impart
positive values which are crucial for the well-being of society.
While emphasis is placed on family responsibility to care and guide
its members
and kinship support network is encouraged, the Government with the involvement
of the community, strives to provide an
environment which bolsters the
family’s capacity to care for and nurture its members. Many of our
policies and programmes
therefore are pro-family. These policies are
deliberately multifaceted, touching all aspects of the Singapore society, to
create
a total social environment which enables the family to fulfil its care
and nurturing roles.
- There
are various multidisciplinary committees that deliberate and review policies and
programmes that affect families. It can be
said that at any one time, there
will be one such committee convened at the national level which has
representation from the Government,
the community, the private sector and child
welfare advocates. Most of these focus not only on public awareness and
education programmes
but also services for the family and children.
A. Parental guidance (art. 5) and parental
responsibilities
(art. 18, paras. 1 and 2)
- Singapore
supports the principle that both parents have shared responsibility for the
upbringing and development of their children.
This is manifested in our family
practices, social services, programmes and laws. Under the Women’s
Charter, both parents
have a duty to maintain their children during marriage and
even after the marriage is dissolved. Maintenance orders can be issued
by the
Family Court for the benefit of a legitimate as well as an illegitimate child
and a child[11] of the
family. That the responsibility of parents or guardians is
“primary” rather than exclusive suggests that the
secondary
responsibility lies with the community and the State.
- Cognizant
of the stresses of modern living and the competing demands on parents’
time, Singapore is continuously cultivating
an environment to support parents in
discharging their responsibilities. To promote family life, the Government,
through MCDS, implements
Family Life Education (FLE) and Parent Education
programmes nationwide and designates a week as “National Family
Week”
each year. Its Family Life and Parent Education programmes aim to
promote harmonious and healthy family life. The efforts under
the programme
include the production of resource materials for the public and for the use of
the organizations running such programmes,
the regular conduct of talks and
workshops on various family issues (including effective parenting) for parents,
teachers, social
workers and the public, and the promotion of family life. The
speakers for the talks and workshops are drawn from a pool of professionals
from
various disciplines such as social work, psychology, education, child and family
development, and counselling.
- The
Government actively promotes the development of Family Service Centres (FSCs),
which are one-stop neighbourhood-based social service
centres, to support
individuals and families in the community. These FSCs provide a range of
services such as counselling, advice,
information, referral and group work. FLE
is one of their core programmes.
- The
dual-income family is a common feature in Singapore today. It therefore becomes
important for employers to be more supportive
of the family responsibilities of
their staff. The Government encourages employers in Singapore to foster a
family-friendly work
environment. Alternative working arrangements, such as
part-time work, contract work, flexible work arrangements, home-based
tele-commuting
and understanding the occasional need to attend to family
emergencies are encouraged among employers. The Government also encourages
the
development of childcare
centres[12] as well as
student care centres (or before-and-after school care
centres[13]) to cater to the
childcare needs of working parents. Through the provision of such facilities
and emphasis on family life, the Government
hopes to alleviate the burden of
working parents, help couples balance work and family life, and support parents
in their parenting
roles.
- If
a juvenile is beyond parental control or commits an offence, the Juvenile Court
(JC) can take several measures to reinforce parental
responsibility:
(a) Section 31 of the Children and Young Persons
Act empowers the JC to require the presence of parents or guardians in court.
It
is the JC’s practice to require parents to attend with their child and
to be heard alongside them;
(b) Where a probation order is made, the JC
would invariably order the parents of a juvenile offender to execute a bond to
exercise
proper care and guardianship under section 44 (1) (d) of
the Children and Young Persons Act;
(c) Section 39 of the Children and
Young Persons Act empowers the JC to fine the parents for the offending
behaviour of their child.
A significant principle of this provision is to
reinforce parental responsibility for their children. Essentially, the JC has
to
be satisfied that the parents contributed to the commission of the offence by
neglecting to exercise due care of the juvenile before
the power may be invoked.
It is not intended to punish parents for having delinquent offspring, but seeks
to highlight parents’
duty to exercise due care of their child. It is the
failure to exercise that duty which the JC will punish once the connection
between
neglect and the delinquency is established;
(d) The JC has also
instituted pre-complaint counselling for cases of complaints lodged by parents
against children who are reported
to be beyond parental control. Such cases are
sometimes referred to FSCs for a preliminary assessment on whether FSCs would be
able
to work with the family and the child without further court intervention.
This ensures that parents expend all efforts, with or
without external help, in
the community before bringing their child into the juvenile justice system for
his/her problem behaviour.
- The
JC and MCDS promote awareness of the availability of community-based resources
to help parents in the management of their delinquent
children to divert such
children from the court system.
B. Separation from parents (art. 9)
Abuse and neglect
- The
Children and Young Persons Act provides for the removal of abused children to a
place of safety even before they can be brought
before a court for the making of
an order for their care and custody. It also provides for the taking of a
destitute child to a
place of safety. Removal of a child to a welfare home is
done only as a last resort and to ensure the safety and best interest of
the
child. Visits by parents to such welfare homes are encouraged to develop the
bonding between the child and his/her family.
Access to incarcerated parents
- Regulation
83 (1) of the Prisons Regulations provides that a child under 3 years of age is
allowed to be in the prison with his/her
mother. A child, upon attaining the
age of 4 years, may also be allowed to remain in prison with his/her mother with
special approval
from the Minister for Home Affairs. The families of all newly
admitted prisoners are briefed on the procedures involved in prison
visits.
Forfeiture of visits is imposed at the discretion of the superintendent for
misconduct. Conversely, the superintendent
may, at his/her discretion, permit
additional visits under circumstances that warrant special
consideration.
- Social
workers from Save The Children Singapore, a voluntary welfare organization, work
closely with the Prisons Department to help
children of incarcerated mothers.
They help them deal with issues such as anger and depression as a result of
having a mother in
jail. The organization started its outreach programme in
1994 to help female prisoners in Changi prison stay in touch with their
families, especially their children. When these children visit their mothers,
the social workers engage them in games and activities.
They also help trace
the children of prisoners and persuade them to visit their mothers in instances
where there are strained relations.
The organization intends to expand the
programme to other prisons and involve other VWOs in Singapore.
Divorce/custody proceedings
- The
welfare of the child is of paramount consideration in divorce proceedings.
Section 125 (2) of the Women’s Charter provides
that the welfare of
the child is the paramount consideration in deciding in whose custody a child
should be placed. The provisions
of the Women’s Charter aim to provide
the best arrangements for a child after the parents’ marriage is
dissolved.
- The
child is given opportunities to express his views in custody proceedings in
accordance with article 12. In practice, the judge
takes into consideration the
views of the parents and the child if the child is of an age capable of
expressing an independent opinion
on custody issues. The judge may interview
the child to determine his/her wishes before a decision is made. The court may
also
direct MCDS to investigate and submit a report to assist the court in
deciding the best possible arrangement for the child upon the
dissolution of a
marriage.
- The
court recognizes the child’s need to maintain contact with both parents
after a divorce. It takes into consideration the
effect of a divorce on the
children of the marriage, and may make a decree nisi subject to such terms and
conditions as it deems
fits. The court may not allow a divorce to be made
absolute unless suitable arrangements have been made for the children. The
court
also takes the approach that where one parent is granted custody,
reasonable access will be granted to the other parent unless there
are strong
factors militating against the parent’s access to the
child.
- The
Family Court enacted the Women’s Charter (Parenting Plan) Rules 1997,
which came into operation on 1 May 1997. Under the
Rules, parenting plans have
to be filed together with a divorce application to state what arrangements would
be made with regard
to the children from the marriage. The plan should state
which parent has custody, care and control of the children, access, living
arrangements, maintenance and education of the child. Parents are therefore
compelled to make suitable plans for the children before
they proceed with the
divorce. Specifically:
(a) Rule 2 of the Parenting Plan Rules
stipulates that the welfare of the child include arrangements in relation
to:
(i) The custody, care and control of, and access to the child;
(ii) Financial provisions for the child;
(iii) The education of the child; and
(iv) Any other parental responsibility for the
child;
(b) Rule 3 provides more specifically that parties to
the marriage shall try to agree on the arrangements for the welfare of every
dependent[14] child of the
marriage and to enter into an agreed parenting plan before a petition is filed.
If the child’s parents are not
able to agree on such arrangements, they
may choose to seek the advice and assistance of a person who is trained in
child-related
welfare matters to help them settle on some agreement. Rule 3 (3)
states that parents must regard the welfare of the child as the
paramount
consideration.
- The
Family Court has set up a panel of child advocates to give a voice to children
in court for high-conflict custody issues. The
court-appointed advocates will
interview and advise the child. They will then submit a report which highlights
the child’s
wishes as well as all relevant factors which have not been
raised by the parties with the court. This scheme gives cognizance to
a
child’s right to be heard in a case where the outcome affects his/her
future. In addition to custody and access orders,
the Family Court may also
issue “parenting orders” requiring parents to attend parenting
classes or counselling after
the conclusion of the case. Where appropriate, the
court will review the custody orders.
C. Family reunification (art. 10)
- For
1997, the number of Singaporeans denied passports was only 45 while a
total of 450,942 passports were issued. The reason for
rejection can
be found under the Passport Regulations. An authorized officer can, at his
discretion, refuse the issue of a passport, for example when a Singapore citizen
has been convicted
by a court of law in Singapore or Malaysia for certain
offences like unlawful possession of arms and ammunition, or a Singapore citizen
has been admitted into an institution approved by the Minister for Home Affairs
for the purpose of treatment and rehabilitation of
drug
addicts.
- Under
the Immigration Act and the Employment of Foreign Workers Act, non-citizens of
Singapore are required to be in possession of
a pass or permit before they can
enter, remain and work in Singapore. Work permit holders are required to comply
with work permit
conditions governing employment and marriage in Singapore.
These requirements are necessary as Singapore is geographically one of
the
smallest and most densely populated countries in the world. Currently, there
are more than 450,000 foreign workers, mainly unskilled,
in Singapore and there
are genuine concerns over the impact that such a large pool of foreign workers
can have on Singapore’s
social cohesion and integration. Singapore
therefore accordingly reserves the right to apply such legislation and
conditions concerning
the entry into, stay in and departure from Singapore of
those who do not or no longer have the right under Singapore laws to enter
and
remain in Singapore, and to the acquisition and possession of citizenship, as it
may deem necessary from time to time and in
accordance with its
laws.
- Work
permit holders who give birth in Singapore without obtaining the approval of the
Ministry of Manpower for their marriages are
repatriated and placed on entry
ban. The child may leave Singapore with the parent on entry ban. If the child
remains in Singapore,
the child can still maintain regular contact with the
parent by visiting the country where the parent is.
D. Recovery of maintenance for the child (art. 27, para.
4)
- Singapore
has bilateral arrangements for reciprocal enforcement of maintenance orders with
the Commonwealth countries, namely the
United Kingdom, Guernsey, Jersey, Canada,
Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Hong Kong, India, Sri
Lanka, Zambia,
Malawi, South Africa, the Cook Islands, Western Samoa and
St. Vincent. Orders made by courts of other countries may not be directly
enforced although arrears may be claimed as debts through civil
suits.
- Under
section 68 of the Women’s Charter, a parent has to maintain or contribute
to the maintenance of his or her children, whether
they are in his or her
custody or the custody of any other person, and whether they are legitimate or
illegitimate. Parents have
also to provide children with accommodation,
clothing, food and education. If a parent neglects or refuses to provide
reasonable
maintenance for the child, the court may order the parent to pay a
monthly allowance or a lump sum for the maintenance of the child.
The court may
order a parent to pay maintenance for a child above 21 years if the child
is:
(a) Physically or mentally disabled;
(b) Serving or
will be serving full-time National Service;
(c) Receiving or will be receiving instruction in an educational institution
or undergoing training for a trade, profession or vocation;
and
(d) Facing special circumstances which justify the making of an
order.
- The
application for the maintenance of a child may be made
by:
(a) Any person who is a guardian or has the actual custody
of the child;
(b) Where the child has attained the age of 21 years, by
the child himself;
(c) Where the child is below the age of 21 years, any
of his siblings who has attained the age of 21 years; or
(d) Any person
appointed by the Minister for Community Development and Sports.
- If
a parent fails to make one or more payments required under a maintenance order,
the court may take one or all of these actions:
(a) Direct the
amount due to be paid by levying fines;
(b) Sentence him/her to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month for each month’s allowance
remaining unpaid; or
(c) Make a garnishee order.
A sentence of
imprisonment does not affect or diminish the obligation of the parent against
whom the maintenance order is made although
the court may reduce the amount of
payments.
E. Children deprived of a family environment (art. 20)
- This
article accords children deprived of a family environment special protection and
assistance from the State and requires the enactment
of national laws to ensure
alternative care. The Children and Young Persons Act provides for the care of
children in need of care
and protection and who are destitute. A destitute
child can be placed for adoption to willing parties after the assessment of the
latter’s suitability through social investigation and contact. If the
child is not suitable for adoption, alternative care
arrangements are
made.
Fostering Scheme
- The
Ministry of Community Development and Sports has had a Fostering Scheme
since 1956 for children (including intellectually disabled
children) aged
18 years and below. The Scheme allows children deprived of parental care to be
cared for in a normal home environment
and within the community. It serves as
substitute care for children whose parents or guardians are unable to care for
them either
temporarily or over a considerable period of time. The foster
mothers are carefully selected and paid a fostering allowance and
an educational
allowance for the child. Table 6 shows the placement of children on the Scheme
from 1998-2000.
Table 6: Cases placed in foster care (1998-2000)
|
Age (years)
|
Chinese
|
Malay
|
Indian
|
Others
|
Total
|
Female
|
Male
|
Female
|
Male
|
Female
|
Male
|
Female
|
Male
|
1998
|
Below 2
|
2
|
4
|
1
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
4
|
2
|
16
|
3-5
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
3
|
6-11
|
4
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
11
|
Above 12
|
6
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
7
|
Total
|
14
|
7
|
3
|
1
|
3
|
3
|
4
|
2
|
37
|
1999
|
Below 2
|
2
|
6
|
1
|
3
|
2
|
1
|
1
|
2
|
18
|
3-5
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
5
|
6-11
|
3
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
7
|
Above 12
|
4
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
7
|
Total
|
11
|
10
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
4
|
1
|
2
|
37
|
2000
|
Below 2
|
6
|
8
|
4
|
3
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
32
|
3-5
|
2
|
5
|
2
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
12
|
6-11
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
5
|
Above 12
|
6
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
12
|
Total
|
17
|
14
|
9
|
4
|
6
|
5
|
3
|
3
|
61
|
- The
Scheme works towards planning and facilitating a permanent care arrangement for
the child either through discharge to parents
or relatives where appropriate;
adoption placement or legal guardianship by suitable persons; or placement in a
residential institution
if foster care is found unsuitable owing to the
child’s special needs and where his return to his family is not
foreseeable.
The Scheme is preferred to institutional placement as it lessens
the trauma of uprooting the children from a home environment and
reduces
possible adjustment problems if and when the children return to their own homes
subsequently. Placement in a residential
institution is always a last
resort.
- A
committee comprising individuals and professionals from the community is
appointed by the Director of Social Welfare to advise on
the placement of
children and to review cases under the Scheme.
Children’s homes
- The
MCDS also supervises 15 children’s residential homes run by VWOs. Six are
gazetted as Places of Safety, Approved Homes
and/or Approved Schools under the
Children and Young Persons Act to admit children placed under statutory orders.
Together, these
homes provide care for children whose families are unable to
give them proper care or who are admitted by the Juvenile Court either
for
protection or for rehabilitation for offences committed. Different homes admit
different categories of children regardless of
race, language or religion. The
children admitted are:
(a) From poor, broken or dysfunctional
families and in need of shelter;
(b) Neglected, abused and in need of
care and protection;
(c) Orphaned, destitute or abandoned
children;
(d) Beyond parental control; or
(e) Placed by the court
for offences committed.
- To
support these VWOs in the running of these homes, the Government provides a
per capita grant for each child and free medical treatment
for the children
at all government hospitals and polyclinics. In addition, the Government also
provides grants to meet expenses
for cyclical maintenance and rental of
premises.
- The
children in these homes continue to attend schools and are entitled to
recreational outings and visits by parents and relatives.
Most of these homes
conduct religious, cultural, recreational and social activities for the
children. Normalcy of their lives is
established as far as possible. Social
workers in these homes work with the children to aid their psychological
recovery and eventual
integration into their own homes where
possible.
- MCDS
undertakes periodic review of the various alternative care arrangements with a
view to improving services for children in need
of alternative care. MCDS, NCSS
(the umbrella body for non-government organizations), together with
representatives from children’s
homes, have formulated guidelines to
ensure standards of care in children’s homes. While it is noted that the
level of care
in children’s homes run by VWOs is generally good and the
management of these homes genuinely committed to the well-being and
welfare of
children under their care, MCDS, NCSS and VWOs see the need for standards to be
set against which the homes can measure
their standards and to ensure the
well-being of children.
F. Adoption (art. 21)
- The
Adoption of Children Act (cap. 4) governs adoption procedures in Singapore.
Before the court makes an order for adoption, the court must be satisfied that
the adoption order is for the welfare of the child, with due consideration given
to the wishes of the child, his age and understanding.
Adoption orders can only
be made in Singapore by the court under the Act. The Attorney-General or any
fit and proper person appointed
by the court acts as guardian ad litem to a
child concerning whom an application for adoption has been made. Investigations
are
conducted by child welfare officers of MCDS on behalf of the guardian ad
litem. Consent to place the child for adoption is required
from the parents or
guardians or persons who have custody or are liable to contribute to the support
of the child (sect. 4 (4)). The consent is in a prescribed form and must be
attested by a solicitor, a commissioner for oaths, a notary public, or any
person for the time being authorized by law in the place where the document is
executed to administer oaths. This ensures that the
natural parents/guardians
fully understand the nature and effect of an adoption order.
- In
tandem with the intention to protect the interests of the child, the
dispensation of parental consent is allowed in some cases,
i.e.:
(a) Where the infant has been abandoned, neglected or
persistently ill-treated; or
(b) Where the person whose consent is to be
dispensed with is unfit by reason of any physical or mental incapacity to have
the care
and control of the infant; or
(c) Where the consent ought, in
the opinion of the court, to be dispensed with.
- Article
21 (b) states that State parties shall recognize that intercountry adoption
may be considered as an alternative means of childcare.
Singapore’s laws do not provide for intercountry adoption. An applicant
and the child put up for adoption must be resident in Singapore at the time of
application. This, however, does not preclude local
adopters applying for a
foreignborn child to enter Singapore for the purpose of adoption. The adoption
of Singaporean babies by
foreign parents is not an issue because of the large
number of Singaporeans who wish to adopt and the relatively small number of
Singaporean children available for adoption.
- Local
couples who have made their own arrangements to adopt foreign-born children are
assisted by way of home study reports if this
is required by the adoption
agencies to facilitate the adoption. After ascertaining the adopters’
eligibility and the residential
status of the child, inprinciple approval may be
granted by the Immigration Department for the foreign-born child to enter
Singapore.
Subsequently, a dependant’s pass is issued to the foreign-born
child to enable the child to be considered a resident in Singapore
for the
purpose of adoption proceedings.
- If
there is sufficient evidence to show that the adoption is to circumvent the
immigration restriction, e.g. adoption by relatives
of children of work permit
holders, Singapore will refuse the issue of the pass after careful
consideration. Even if a child is
adopted overseas, application for a
dependant’s pass for the child would be assessed afresh notwithstanding
that the adoption
order has been granted overseas.
- For
all adoptions under our laws, the court must be satisfied that the adopters have
not received any financial consideration for
the adoption order other than those
sanctioned by the court, i.e. expenses (section 5 (c) of the
Act).[15] This is to ensure
that no transactions or sale of children has occurred.
G. Illicit transfer and non-return (art. 11)
- There
is legislation in place to deal with the illicit transfer and non-return of
children:
(a) Under the Penal Code, whoever conveys any person
beyond the limits of Singapore without the consent of the person or person(s)
legally authorized to consent on behalf of that person, is guilty of kidnapping
that person from Singapore (sect. 360) and shall
be punished with imprisonment
for up to 10 years and shall also be liable to a fine or caning. Section 361
makes it an offence to
take or entice a minor (under 14 years if male or under
16 years if female) out of the keeping of the lawful guardian, without the
consent of the guardian. Under section 363, kidnapping from lawful guardianship
carries the same penalty as kidnapping a person
from Singapore. Under section
370, whoever exposes any person as a slave
shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to seven years and shall
also be liable to a fine. Whoever habitually exports
slaves may be punished
with life imprisonment. It is also an offence (under section 372 of the Penal
Code) for someone to sell a
person under the age of 21 years for
prostitution;
(b) Under the Women’s Charter, whoever trafficks in
women or girls is guilty of an offence and shall be liable to imprisonment
for
up to five years and a fine (sect. 141 (1)). Under section 142, whoever by
false pretences takes out of Singapore any woman
or girl for the purpose of
prostitution is guilty of an offence and faces the same punishment as stated in
section 141 (1);
(c) Under the Children and Young Persons Act, any
person who takes part in transferring the possession, custody or control of a
child
for valuable consideration (e.g. money) faces imprisonment for up to four
years.
H. Abuse and neglect (art. 19), including physical
and psychological
recovery and social reintegration (art. 39)
- Singapore
takes a serious view of violence in any form. The Government and the community
believe that no one deserves to be abused
and protection will be accorded to
those who are vulnerable. There are several pieces of legislation to deal with
violence and the
protection of children. The Children and Young Persons Act
provides for the protection of and rights to protection for children
and young
persons who are 16 years of age and below. Part XI of the Women’s Charter
provides for the protection of women and
girls against moral danger and
exploitation. The Women’s Charter also spells out responsibilities of
parents in relation to
the care of their children and protection of family
members (including children) from family violence. In addition, the Penal Code
provides for the imprisonment and/or the imposition of a fine on persons who
abuse and neglect children.
- In
the administration of this legislation, the primary objective is to protect
children and other vulnerable victims from abuse, ill-treatment,
neglect,
abandonment, sexual exploitation, taking part in public entertainment and
illegal activities such as illegal hawking, gambling
and begging. Though the
number of reported cases of child abuse is not large and has in fact decreased
by more than half over the
past 10 years, Singapore is still concerned
about and takes a serious view of child abuse.
Legal provisions on cruelty to children
- Child
abuse is defined as any act of omission or commission by a parent or guardian
which would endanger or impair the child’s
physical or emotional
well-being, or that is judged by a mixture of community values and professionals
to be inappropriate. Child
abuse can be broadly grouped under four categories:
(a) Physical abuse. Physical abuse occurs when a child is
physically injured other than by accident. It includes injuries such
as cuts,
bruises, burns, bleeding and fractures caused by a range of acts including
beating, shaking, inappropriate administration
of alcohol and drugs, attempted
suffocation or excessive discipline or physical punishment;
(b) Neglect.
Neglect is a deliberate denial of a child’s basic needs. This is where a
parent, guardian or caregiver fails
to provide adequate food, shelter, clothing,
medical care and supervision or forces a child to undertake duties inappropriate
to
his physical strength or age to the extent of impairment to normal
development;
(c) Sexual abuse. Sexual abuse is the exploitation of a
child or young person for sexual gratification or any sexual activities
between
an adult and a child. It also includes exposing a child to forms of sexual acts
or pornographic materials;
(d) Emotional and psychological abuse.
Emotional and psychological abuse refers to the significant impairment of a
child’s
social, emotional, cognitive and intellectual development and/or
disturbances of the child’s behaviour resulting from behaviours
such as
persistent hostility, ignoring, blaming, discriminating, or blatant rejection of
the child.
- The
Women’s Charter encapsulates the right of protection of any “family
member” as defined under Section 64 of the
Act. The definition includes
an adopted child or stepchild. The Women’s Charter defines “family
violence” as
the commission of the following
acts:
(a) Wilfully or knowingly placing, or attempting to
place, a family member in fear of hurt;
(b) Causing hurt to a family
member by an act which is known or ought to have been known would result in
hurt;
(c) Wrongfully confining or restraining a family member against
his/her will; or
(d) Causing continual harassment with intent to cause
or knowing that it is likely to cause anguish to a family member.
- The
court may, if satisfied on the balance of probabilities that family violence has
been committed or is likely to be committed against
a family member and that it
is necessary for the protection of the family member, make a protection order
restraining a person from
using violence against the family member. An
application for a protection order can be made by the victim concerned or, in
the case
of a child below 21 years of age or an incapacitated person, by a
guardian or relative or person responsible for the care of the
child or
incapacitated person, or by any person appointed by the Minister. These
provisions recognize the right of the child to
be protected from all forms of
family violence and enable the court to make protection orders for the
protection of children.
- The
court may issue an expedited order (EO) even before the abuser is informed of a
victim’s application for a protection order.
This is done when the court
is satisfied that there is imminent danger of family violence being committed
against the victim. Thus,
a victim in imminent danger may be granted the
protection even before the process of mediation and court
hearing.
- Section
4 of the Children and Young Persons Act states that if any person above the age
of 18 who has custody, charge or care of any
young person, wilfully assaults,
ill-treats, neglects, abandons or exposes the child or young person to be
assaulted, ill-treated,
neglected, abandoned or exposed, in a manner likely to
cause that child or young person unnecessary suffering or injury to his health
(including injury to or loss of sight, hearing, a limb or organ of the body, and
any mental derangement), that person shall be guilty
of an offence. The penalty
for such an offence is a prison term that can extend to four years, or a fine
not exceeding S$ 4,000,
or both. In the event of death caused to a child
or young person, the perpetrator may face a prison term which may extend to
seven
years, or a fine not exceeding S$ 20,000, or both. Tougher penalties
for such offences are provided for in the Penal Code should
there be a need for
them.
Management of abuse
- The
MCDS is the lead agency for child protection and welfare. The MCDS works in
close collaboration with the police, the Ministries
of Education, Health and
Manpower, the AttorneyGeneral’s Chambers, the Juvenile Court and NGOs in
the protection of children
and young persons. There are inter-agency working
groups comprising representatives from relevant government agencies, the
voluntary
sector and concerned individuals which look at the management of
family violence in Singapore, the protocols and the coordination
of agencies
involved in the management of family violence cases, and the implementation of
nationwide campaigns and public education
on family violence. There is also an
Inter-Ministry Working Group on Child Abuse which oversees the coordination and
management
of child abuse among government agencies and the prevention of child
abuse in Singapore.
- MCDS,
together with other relevant agencies, organize and promote public education and
awareness programmes on child abuse and neglect
and family violence. To ensure
more effective management of child abuse, a manual on the management of child
abuse cases in Singapore
was developed in 1999. The manual contains the
protocols of key agencies in the management of child abuse to ensure close
collaboration
and coordination among the different agencies and professionals.
Another manual which deals with the management of family violence
was also
developed. Both manuals were launched on 20 September 1999 and distributed to
relevant agencies. Workshops were also held
for various professional groups on
these manuals.
- A
multidisciplinary and multi-agency team, Child Abuse Protection Team (CAPT), was
set up in 1996 under MCDS to effect a better team
approach in the management of
child abuse cases referred to MCDS for investigation. This team comprises
professionals such as social
workers, psychologists, doctors and psychiatrists.
Related professionals relevant to the cases are invited to discussions as and
when necessary. All reported cases of child abuse are investigated and abusers
appropriately dealt with.
- The
Children and Young Persons Act allows the removal of a child from his parents if
the child is assessed to be at risk and in need
of protective custody. Care is
taken to prevent family break-up as a consequence of the action while the abuser
is dealt with under
the law unless the child’s well-being is threatened.
Intervention efforts aim to help reconcile the abused child and his/her
parents
and family where possible.
- The
incidence of child abuse is closely monitored in Singapore. The number of child
abuse cases reported to MCDS has decreased over
the years from 279 in 1986 to
145 in 2000. Of the 145 cases for 2000, 50 (or 34 per cent) had evidence of
abuse as determined by
medical reports while 7 (or 5 per cent) were false
complaints. Another 88 (or 61 per cent) had no evidence of abuse but were
assessed
to be in need of intervention and assistance.
Table 7. Profile of alleged cases of child abuse known to MCDS
(1998-2000)
cases
|
1998
|
1999
|
2000
|
No. of cases investigated
|
164
|
143
|
145
|
No. of cases with evidence of abuse
|
28
|
45
|
50
|
No. of cases with lack/no evidence of abuse but need assistance
because of stress factor(s) in the family
|
100
|
80
|
88
|
No. of false complaints
|
36
|
18
|
7
|
Table 8. Profile of child abuse cases known to MCDS
(1998-2000)
cases
Total No. of cases
|
1998
|
1999
|
2000
|
28
|
45
|
50
|
Sex
|
Males
|
14
|
24
|
34
|
|
Females
|
14
|
21
|
16
|
|
|
|
|
|
Race
|
Chinese
|
9
|
17
|
24
|
|
Malay
|
10
|
20
|
21
|
|
Indians
|
7
|
6
|
4
|
|
Others
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
|
|
|
|
|
Age
|
0-2 years
|
3
|
7
|
8
|
|
3-5 years
|
3
|
10
|
9
|
|
6-11 years
|
13
|
22
|
24
|
|
12 years and above
|
9
|
6
|
9
|
- The
Ministry of Health has in place a Child Abuse Committee which looks at
standardization of protocols, reporting of cases and increasing
awareness among
health personnel including those in the private sector.
- There
are rules and regulations to ensure the safety of children in schools,
kindergartens and childcare centres, especially concerning
outdoor activities
and injuries within and outside the school, kindergartens and childcare centres.
Students and children who are
seen or suspected by teachers to have been
physically abused by their parents or guardians at home are
reported
to MCDS and the police for further investigation. The MOE is informed of
cases of abuse or potential abuse to facilitate monitoring
of students and to
help in the healing process of victims. To protect the privacy of the students
affected, the matters are kept
confidential by the school. The pupils are
counselled by teachers and professional counsellors where necessary.
- On
1 July 1996, MCDS, together with the police, the hospitals, NCSS and social
service agencies, put in place an island-wide networking
system for the
management of family violence cases. The networking system is a collaboration
between and among government and nongovernment
agencies to better manage family
violence cases and help victims and innocent family members of victims of family
violence. The
networking system also helps perpetrators deal with their
violence and individuals and families to resolve their problems and differences
in an amicable way. The Government has also developed training packages and
introduced regular training programmes on family violence
for social workers in
non-government sectors to enhance the skills of such workers. MCDS funds
training programmes[16] for
social workers from the social service agencies involved in the networking
system to enhance their skills and knowledge on family
violence and the
management of family problems.
- The
Family Court has also set up a Family Protection Unit (FPU) to manage family
violence cases and to provide protection to victims
of family violence for cases
that come before the Court. Trained counsellors are available to provide
counselling for child victims
as well as perpetrators.
Physical and psychological recovery
- Victims
of abuse are sent for psychological intervention by a psychologist or child
psychiatrist where necessary. This is to help
victims build up their
self-esteem, empower victims and facilitate their reintegration into a normal
life. The focus of therapy
or counselling is to help victims to integrate and
make sense of their experience in a way appropriate to their developmental
stage.
Therapy is also conducted to help victims discharge and express their
views in a safe manner. This is to prevent victims from acting
out in a
negative way and thus placing themselves at further risk.
- The
psychological treatment for abused victims varies with the severity and duration
of the abuse, the types of abuse and the age
of the victim involved and his
emotional make-up. The key concepts of the treatment therapy
include:
− Providing a safe haven for the victim;
− Working through the traumatic reactions;
− Relief or reduction of anxiety;
− Encouraging the expression of anger and pain;
− Regaining personal power and sense of mastery;
− Correct faculty thinking through cognitive work; and
− Developing accomplished and evaluative goals for moving on in
life.
- Victims
may be treated individually, in groups, or within the family if appropriate.
Individual therapy focuses on the intra-psychic
functioning. Family therapy
deals more with non-abusive disciplinary and child-rearing techniques,
parent-child relationship and
parent-child communication and interaction
pattern. Play therapy is administered for younger victims who cannot verbalize
adequately.
Discipline
- School
authorities are mindful that the school is first and foremost a place to nurture
the child to develop his/her fullest potential.
Hence, in the administration of
discipline, great care is given to the enforcement measures so that the
pupils’ dignity and
self-esteem are not eroded. In the disciplining of
pupils, counselling towards responsibility is practised as an alternative to
punishment. Schools are continually encouraged to implement proactive measures,
such as the teaching of life-skills in order to
instil values and
self-discipline in their pupils.
- Corporal
punishment is meted out judiciously to errant male pupils, and even then as a
last resort, by the principal or a teacher
authorized by him/her. Under no
circumstances are female pupils subjected to corporal punishment. The
guidelines from the Ministry
of Education (MOE) specify that corporal punishment
should not be carried out in anger and should be done with a light cane on the
palms or buttocks, and that other school personnel are not at all allowed to
mete out corporal punishment. Parents are informed
by the school of the
corporal punishment meted out on the child and details of the offence. If they
are of the view that the punishment
has been excessive, they can report the
matter to the MOE which will look into their complaints and take the appropriate
action against
errant school personnel.
- In
Singapore, caning may be used judiciously by parents as a mode of discipline.
This form of punishment is used mainly to punish
errant children for misdeeds
and not meant to abuse the child. Parent education on best practices in
disciplining and managing children
is readily available.
- The
Singapore Government notes that though the family unit is relatively strong in
Singapore, the family is increasingly under pressure
in a fast-changing, highly
globalized world. The Government works with civic groups, community leaders and
voluntary groups to help
families cope with child management issues.
Training
- Great
emphasis is placed on skills and training of personnel involved in the
management of child abuse cases. Ongoing training is
carried out by the
relevant agencies to enhance the competence of their respective staff. MCDS
organizes inter-agency training programmes
on child abuse and family violence
regularly to enhance the state of collaboration. Regular training, workshops
and seminars are
also conducted by MCDS, the police and MOH for their staff to
enhance their skills and knowledge in the management of such cases.
The police,
in collaboration with the Society Against Family Violence (an NGO), conducts
ongoing training for its front-line officers
on family violence. MCDS and the
police also coordinate small group workshops for police officers and social
workers at divisional
levels to enhance the collaboration between the NGOs and
the police.
- The
Government fully funds some of the training programmes for social workers from
the Government and voluntary sectors, e.g. MCDS
funded a two-year diploma course
on family and marital counselling for social workers from both the voluntary and
government sectors.
Training agencies are also commissioned by the Government
to conduct regular training programmes for social workers working with
victims
and perpetrators. MCDS also sponsored four social workers from the voluntary
sector to go on a study trip to study family
violence management in Australia in
1997.
Publicity and awareness
- The
Government recognizes that public education is important to deal with child
abuse and neglect and family violence and works closely
with the courts, Family
Service Centres, crisis shelters, and organizations like the Association of
Women for Action and Research
(AWARE), the Singapore Council of Women’s
Organizations (SCWO, which is the umbrella body for women organizations), the
Society
Against Family Violence and the Singapore’s Children’s
Society, to promote awareness of child abuse and family violence.
Information
booklets and pamphlets on family violence are developed and disseminated to
hospitals, community centres, lawyers and
others for their information and
reference should they come into contact with such cases. MCDS conducts talks in
schools and pre-school
facilities such as childcare centres on the signs and
symptoms of child abuse and the protocol for the referral and management of
cases. Child abuse pamphlets and booklets aimed at raising awareness were
developed and disseminated in 1999 and 2001. More public
education efforts will
be mounted to raise awareness, enhance the protective network for victims and
reach out to perpetrators.
Preventive measures
- Singapore
implemented the Parent Education Programme in June 1985 as a preventive and
developmental programme to support parents in
the demanding task of parenting.
The programme helps to equip parents with the essential knowledge and skills in
parenting to enhance
their effectiveness in the management of their children and
prevent abuse. In 1987, the programme was expanded and renamed Family
Life
Education (FLE) programme. The FLE programme promotes positive attitudes
towards marriage, parenthood and children. This is
to help couples getting
married to be better prepared for what lies ahead of them as a newly-wed couple,
as parents and as grandparents.
- FLE
(including the parent education programme) is organized through Family Service
Centres, the mass media, schools and workplaces.
A series of pamphlets focusing
on marriage, parenting and disciplining children has been produced by MCDS for
distribution to the
public and for the use of organizations conducting such
programmes. It is hoped that these steps would go a long way in strengthening
families and playing a part in child protection and child welfare.
I. Periodic review of placement (art. 25)
- The
cases of children placed in children’s homes, foster care or institutions
are reviewed periodically by Case Review Committees
in each institution. An
Advisory Board and Discharge Committee review all cases admitted into
institutions either by the Juvenile
Court or the Director of Social Welfare for
offences or for being beyond parental control. The Advisory Board and Discharge
Committee
comprises individuals from various fields and is appointed by the
Minister for Community Development and Sports to advise and make
recommendations
to the Director of Social Welfare on cases in institutions administered by
MCDS.
- For
those who are admitted into hospitals for treatment of mental disorders, the
Mental Disorders Treatment Act provides for periodic
review of the treatment
given and the review of patients. Protocols and guidelines are in place to
ensure periodic review of treatment.
VII. BASIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
- Singapore
children enjoy quality, up-to-date health care that is readily accessible and
affordable. The Ministry of Health (MOH)
provides preventive, curative and
rehabilitative health services and coordinates the planning and development of
the public and private
health sectors.
- National
efforts towards health promotion and disease prevention are sustained and
supported by all sectors. The national health-care
expenditure in 1999 was
S$ 4.3 billion (US$ 2.65 billion) or 3 per cent of the
gross domestic product. National health expenditure
was S$ 1,347
(US$ 831) per capita in 1999. Government subsidy on the public health-care
services was S$ 1,089 million (US$ 672).
A. Right to life and development (art. 6, para. 2)
Child mortality rates
- Child
mortality rates have declined greatly since the 1940s. The initial fall can be
attributed to improvement in socio-economic
conditions, a comprehensive maternal
and child health and family planning programme, and the setting up of a
postgraduate programme
at the National University of Singapore in the 1970s
which trains paediatric, neonatal and obstetric and gynaecology specialists.
Improved standards of health care in these areas have contributed to the
improvement in health indices. Neonatal, perinatal and
infant mortality rates
improved from 8.9 per 1,000 live births, 13.4 per 1,000 live and
stillbirths and 11.7 per 1,000 live births
in 1980 to 2.4 per 1,000 live
births, 4.9 per 1,000 live and stillbirths and 4.1 per 1,000 live births in 1998
respectively.
- In
addition to the factors in the above paragraph, the following factors have also
contributed to the improved rates, which helped
to rank Singapore as one of the
best in the world in health care for children:
(a) Immunization
and environmental health programmes which controlled infectious
diseases;
(b) Introduction of neonatal intensive care units at all major
hospitals with obstetric practice;
(c) Improved care of neonates and
advances in managing premature babies;
(d) Good obstetric practice and
quality antenatal care (more than 99 per cent of births attended by
trained personnel);
(e) Provision of prenatal and post-natal care
provided at primary health clinics and hospitals and special precautions taken
for
high-risk pregnancies, in particular near term and at the time of
labour;
(f) Mass screening (thyroid function and G6PD deficiency) for
newborns;
(g) Availability of cardiac surgery; and
(h) Renal
dialysis/renal and liver transplants for children with chronic renal/liver
failure.
- Further
improvements in mortality rates would be directed at the control of congenital
anomalies, continued improvement in perinatal
and neonatal care, control of
accidents, prevention of suicides and improvement in treatment of cancer and
continued improvement
in treatment of infections like pneumonia (see tables
9-11).
Table 9. Reported diphtheria, poliomyelitis, measles, acute
hepatitis B,
neonatal tetanus, pertussis, congenital rubella and
childhood
tuberculosis meningitis in Singapore (1982-1998)
|
Diphtheria
|
Poliomyelitis
|
Measles
|
Acute hepatitis B*
|
Neonatal tetanus
|
Pertussis
|
Congenital rubella
|
Childhood tuberculosis meningitis
|
1982
|
6 (2)
|
1 (1)
|
1 965
|
182
|
1
|
7
|
3
|
4
|
1983
|
4 (4)
|
2 (2)
|
677
|
217
|
3
|
7
|
10
|
1
|
1984
|
0
|
2 (2)
|
2 417
|
235
|
1
|
1
|
7
|
0
|
1985
|
0
|
0
|
136
|
243
|
0
|
0
|
3
|
1
|
1986
|
1
|
2 (2)
|
218
|
229
|
3
|
9
|
3
|
1
|
1987
|
1 (1)
|
0
|
123
|
182
|
0
|
9
|
2
|
1
|
1988
|
0
|
0
|
192
|
226
|
0
|
11
|
0
|
0
|
1989
|
1 (1)
|
0
|
146
|
244
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
1990
|
1
|
1 (1)
|
143
|
206
|
0
|
8
|
4
|
0
|
1991
|
1 (1)
|
0
|
216
|
156
|
0
|
5
|
1
|
0
|
1992
|
1
|
0
|
606
|
108
|
0
|
14
|
4
|
0
|
1993
|
0
|
0
|
665
|
96
|
0
|
1
|
4
|
0
|
1994
|
0
|
0
|
159
|
79
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
0
|
1995
|
0
|
0
|
185
|
112
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
1996
|
1 (1)
|
0
|
308
|
126
|
0
|
4 (1)
|
2
|
2
|
1997
|
0
|
0
|
1 413
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
2
|
1998
|
0
|
0
|
114
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
( ) Imported cases.
* Indigenous cases.
Table 10. Childhood immunization (1995-1998)
|
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
% of infants immunized against tuberculosis
|
97
|
97
|
98
|
98
|
% of infants immunized against diphtheria/tetanus/whooping cough
|
92
|
92
|
93
|
96
|
% of infants immunized against poliomyelitis
|
92
|
91
|
94
|
96
|
Hepatitis B
|
94
|
89
|
94
|
96
|
% of children aged 2 years immunized against measles
|
90
|
94
|
90
|
94
|
% of children aged 12 years immunized against German measles
|
90
|
92
|
84
|
95
|
Table 11. Live births and infant mortality rates for
countries with populations
greater than 2.5 million and infant mortality
rates equal to or less
than the United States (1992, 1993, 1994*)
|
Number of births in 1993 or 1994+
|
Infant mortality rate**
|
Birth rates**
|
1994
|
1993
|
1992
|
1994
|
1993
|
Japan
|
1 258 237
|
4.2
|
4.4
|
4.5
|
10.1
|
9.6
|
Singapore
|
49 602
|
4.3
|
4.7
|
4.9
|
-
|
17.5
|
Finland
|
65 032
|
4.7
|
4.4
|
5.2
|
12.9
|
12.8
|
Sweden
|
110 828
|
4.4
|
4.8
|
5.2
|
12.6
|
-
|
Hong Kong
|
70 451
|
-
|
4.8
|
4.8
|
-
|
11.9
|
Norway
|
59 041
|
5.2
|
5.0
|
5.9
|
13.7
|
13.7
|
Germany
|
805 760
|
-
|
-
|
6.2
|
9.4
|
9.8
|
Denmark
|
67 442
|
-
|
5.6
|
6.5
|
13.4
|
13.0
|
Ireland
|
49 456
|
5.9
|
6.0
|
6.6
|
-
|
13.9
|
Switzerland
|
82 900
|
5.5
|
6.2
|
6.4
|
11.9
|
12.1
|
Netherlands
|
189 600
|
5.9
|
6.3
|
6.3
|
12.1
|
-
|
Australia
|
260 229
|
-
|
6.1
|
6.9
|
-
|
14.7
|
Austria
|
91 588
|
6.1
|
6.5
|
7.5
|
11.1
|
11.8
|
France
|
721 000
|
6.1
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
12.3
|
Canada
|
384 200
|
6.2
|
-
|
6.1
|
13.1
|
-
|
United Kingdom
|
781 017
|
6.2
|
6.3
|
6.6
|
-
|
-
|
New Zealand
|
58 867
|
-
|
7.2
|
7.3
|
-
|
17.1
|
Italy
|
433 615
|
6.7
|
7.4
|
8.2
|
9.3
|
9.4
|
Spain
|
388 708
|
7.2
|
7.6
|
7.2
|
-
|
9.9
|
Belgium
|
116 449
|
7.6
|
8.0
|
8.9
|
11.6
|
12.1
|
United States
|
3 952 767
|
8.0
|
8.3
|
8.5
|
15.2
|
15.5
|
Greece
|
102 500
|
8.3
|
8.5
|
8.6
|
9.8
|
9.9
|
* Data available as of September 1996. Data available from United
Nations Statistical Office or from United Nations Demographic
Yearbook, 1992,
1993, or 1994, Population Reference Bureau, 1996 (1994 figures for Sweden,
Finland, Norway, Ireland, United Kingdom,
France and Greece), or health, United
States, 1995.
** Rate per 1,000 live births.
+ With the
exception of Germany, the number of births is reported for the latest year for
which data on infant mortality rates were
available. The number of births for
Germany is reported for 1993.
& Rate per 1,000 total
population.
Ref. Paediatrics, vol. 98, No. 6, December
1996.
Causes of death among children in Singapore
- The
most common causes of death among children under 5 years of age are congenital
anomalies, perinatal complications, complications
of prematures, pneumonia,
heart diseases, cancer and accidental falls. In 1997, the mortality rate of
children < 5 years old
in Singapore was 3.8/1,000 which, together with
Sweden’s, is the lowest in the world.
- The
most common causes of death among children 5-18 years are accidental injuries,
cancer, infections, congenital anomalies, suicides
and heart diseases (see
tables 12-13 on causes of mortality in children).
Table 12. Major causes of mortality in children < 5
years
cases
Causes
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Congenital anomalies
|
99
|
86
|
89
|
Perinatal complications
|
64
|
61
|
62
|
Pneumonia
|
23
|
35
|
41
|
Heart diseases
|
13
|
5
|
5
|
Cancer Leukaemia Other malignant neoplasm
|
13 6 7
|
19 6 13
|
13 5 8
|
Accidental falls
|
6
|
6
|
8
|
Table 13. Major causes of mortality in children aged 5-18
years
cases
Causes
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Accidental injuries Road traffic accidents Others
|
35 17 18
|
31 17 14
|
28 14 14
|
Cancer Leukaemia Other neoplasm
|
32 11 21
|
35 15 20
|
32 11 21
|
Infections Pneumonia Others
|
15 6 9
|
14 10 4
|
16 12 4
|
Congenital anomalies
|
13
|
9
|
7
|
Suicides
|
9
|
10
|
18
|
Heart diseases
|
5
|
7
|
11
|
Cancer
- The
most common cancer in childhood is acute leukaemia followed by brain tumours and
solid tumours. Most childhood cancers can now
be “cured” with
multi-modal and new multidrug protocols. Bone marrow transplant is available to
those who need it.
These modalities are offered at KK Women’s and
Children’s Hospital and National University Hospital. The medical costs
are subsidized and may even be free for the needy.
- The
Singapore Cancer Registry maintained by the Department of Community, Occupation
and Family Medicine (National University of Singapore)
carries out cancer
surveillance. A one-stop Cancer Centre has been set up in Singapore. It
coordinates all cancer control activities,
acts as a tertiary referral centre
for the management of cancer patients and provides facilities for teaching,
training and research.
- The
Hospice Care Association provides outpatient and home hospice care for children.
The MOH also provides a subvention for home care
programmes.
Injuries and injury prevention
- Injuries
are the leading cause of death among school-going and economically active age
groups while home injuries are the most common
cause of hospitalization in
children. Several organizations are involved in helping to reduce the incidence
of such injuries, e.g.
the Home Safety Committee of the National Safety Council
is involved in education of the public; the Singapore Civil Defence Force
teaches safety drills; and the Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE) is in
charge of the safety of electrical appliances and children’s
toys.
Suicides
- Suicide
during childhood and early adolescence is relatively uncommon, although the rate
has been rising. Risk factors for teenage
suicide are being female, Indian,
from a lower socialeconomic class, and having problems with family, school and
relationships.
There has been a documented peak during the September-October
period corresponding with the school
final term examinations.
Table 14. Suicide rates in Singapore (per 100,000) - 10-19
years
|
10-14 years
|
15-19 years
|
1981-1985
|
0.5
|
5.4
|
1986-1990
|
1.2
|
7.1
|
1991-1995
|
1.3
|
6.1
|
Source: Registry of Births and Deaths.
- Though
our suicide rate is lower than that in other developed countries (see table 15),
there continues to be a concerted effort by
both government and private agencies
to prevent
suicides among children and young persons.
Table 15. Suicide rates - 15-19 years (1991)
|
Rate per 100,000
|
New Zealand
|
15.7
|
Finland
|
15.0
|
Canada
|
13.5
|
Norway
|
13.4
|
United States of America
|
11.1
|
Australia
|
10.5
|
Singapore
|
6.9
|
Source: UNICEF Report 1992.
- The
Child Guidance Clinic of the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) provides
outpatient and inpatient services for emotionally disturbed
children, including
those with suicidal tendencies. The Child Guidance Clinic runs a 24-hour
“Crisis Help-line” for
their patients, police, hospitals and public
and private “homes”, to provide help and guidance at that
“critical
time” of need. Other measures undertaken to reduce stress
and suicide among children include:
(a) Setting up several
help-lines such as:
(i) Samaritans of Singapore which provides round-the-clock advice on any crisis
or emergency;
(ii) Parent-line for parents who have problems dealing with their children; and
(iii) Teens-line for teenagers to share their problems, hopes and
dreams;
(b) Organization of “stress management
programmes” by Singapore’s School Health Service (SHS) where
lectures such
as “Coping with stress”, “Teenage
sexuality”, “Problemsolving skills”, “Problems
adolescents
encounter”, “Weight management”, “Enhancing
self-esteem” and “Common behaviour problems”
are given
regularly to schoolchildren to help them cope better;
(c) Parents are
advised, through formal public lectures and also face-to-face encounters by
Family Health Service (FHS), the Institute
of Mental Health (IMH), the School
Health Service and private agencies, not to put their children under excessive
stress and not
to have unrealistic expectations for their children. These
lectures aim to inform parents of proper parenting skills, and to increase
public awareness of the avenues for help in times of need;
(d) Public
education materials for parents on how to help their children cope better and
other books by local and international writers
on such subjects as parent-child
relationships are readily available in bookshops and public libraries.
- We
work with the Singapore media to persuade them not to sensationalize suicides
and to educate the public about suicides. Professional
groups like teachers,
health workers, and social workers are educated on “warning signs”
of suicides such as depression
and change of emotional behaviour, so that they
can recognize the problem early and refer children for preventive
therapy.
B. Disabled children (art. 23)
- Policy
matters on disability in Singapore are coordinated by the Ministry of Community
Development and Sports (MCDS) with the involvement
of NCSS. The Ministry looks
at the overall policy on rehabilitation and coordinates the action of government
departments and nongovernmental
organizations. Ministries and agencies deal
with services for which they have policy and specific
responsibilities.
- In
the development and implementation of programmes for people with disabilities,
the Government adopts the following philosophy and
approach:
(a) People with disabilities should:
(i) Have opportunities to achieve their potential and be independent where
possible;
(ii) Be integrated in society where feasible and practical;
(iii) Be encouraged to live within the community as far as possible; and
(iv) Be institutionalized only as a last resort;
(b) The
care and welfare of people with disabilities is everyone’s concern i.e.
the family, the community and the Government.
- Singapore
is signatory to the Asian and Pacific Decade for Disabled Persons 1993-2002 of
the Economic and Social Commission for Asia
and the Pacific (ESCAP) which aims
to promote the integration of people with disabilities into mainstream society
and also promote
equal opportunities and
participation.
National Birth Defect Registry
(NBDR)
- NBDR
was set up by MOH in January 1993 to monitor birth defects, the leading causes
of morbidity and mortality in the perinatal period
and early childhood in
Singapore. Birth defects had a high death toll among the young and were
responsible for more than a third
(34.5 per cent) of deaths in the 0-9
age group in 1966. In the year 2000, congenital abnormalities were responsible
for about 29
per cent of deaths in the 0-9 age group.
- NBDR
captures information on all children with major birth defects who were born from
January 1983. It provides important inputs
for drawing up intervention
programmes to reduce birth defects and makes possible the evaluation of such
control programmes. The
sources of notification of NBDR
are:
(a) Antenatal notifications (for the diagnosis of defects
before delivery):
(i) Cytogenetic laboratories, which carry out antenatal diagnostic tests for
birth defects;
(ii) Abortion clinics where abortions are carried out for foetuses with birth
defects; and
(iii) Department of Pathology, Singapore General Hospital, for post-mortems done
on stillbirths;
(b) Postnatal notifications (for diagnosis
of defects after delivery):
(i) Neonatal units, which report birth defects in newborns (this is the most
important source of notification to the NBDR); and
(ii) Paediatricians/paediatric surgeons and Paediatric Departments which report
birth defects during childhood. This accounts for
nearly a quarter
(23 per cent) of the total notifications.
- Various
specialists in related disciplines follow up on these children in hospitals
where they receive the necessary curative and
initial rehabilitative care. Many
conditions have “Combined Therapy Clinics” (e.g. Spina Bifida
Clinic) consisting of
specialists of various relevant disciplines who can
jointly decide on the best mode of treatment and rehabilitation of these
children.
These children are often also referred to various private/voluntary
or government-related bodies best suited for their needs, e.g.
cerebral palsied
children are referred to the “Spastic Children’s Association of
Singapore”. These agencies are
mainly responsible for their
rehabilitation, education and job placement.
Education
- Education
in Singapore is available to children with disability. Those who are able to
withstand the rigours of mainstream education
attend mainstream primary and
secondary schools, junior colleges or centralized institutes. Those who cannot,
receive their education
in special education (SPED) schools run by voluntary
welfare organizations (VWOs) which receive financial support from both the
Ministry
of Education and NCSS. In addition, the Government also provides
professional and infrastructural support to SPED schools. While
there is access
to education for disabled children, education is not compulsory for these
children.
- School
fees are set by individual VWOs. No child with disability is deprived of
special education on account of inability to pay.
All VWOs have subsidy schemes
to help needy pupils pay their school fees. The subsidy schemes are also
extended for the payment
of transport and the provision of free meals. In 1998,
there were 16 SPED schools run by VWOs under the umbrella of NCSS. They
provide
education to more than 3,500 disabled children of various categories of
disabilities (table 16).
Table 16. Schools for different disability groups
|
Number of schools
|
Enrolment
|
Educationally subnormal
|
4
|
905
|
Intellectually disabled
|
5
|
1 355
|
Hearing impaired
|
2
|
272
|
Visually handicapped
|
1
|
61
|
Cerebral palsied
|
1
|
204
|
Multiple handicapped
|
3
|
741
|
Total
|
16
|
3 538
|
- SPED
schools provide specially customized educational programmes and training for the
different disability groups they serve. The
programmes aim to develop the
pupils to their fullest potential and help them to grow up with confidence to
become independent, self-supporting
and contributing members of society where
possible. Besides receiving classroom instruction from the teachers, the pupils
also receive
help and training from paramedical professionals such as
psychologists, speech therapists, physiotherapists and social workers.
- Disabled
children begin to attend SPED schools usually from the age of 4 to 6 years.
Some SPED schools provide early intervention
programmes for younger disabled
children from as early as six months. The school-leaving age varies from 14 to
18 years.
- The
sensory impaired pupils who are able to pass the Primary School Leaving
Examination (PSLE) continue their education in mainstream
secondary schools
under an Integration Programme. As at January 1999, there were 114 hearing
impaired and 19 visually impaired pupils
in the Integration Programme. These
pupils attend regular classes in and follow the curriculum of mainstream
schools. The pupils
in the Integration Programme enjoy the same benefits in
education as their non-disabled peers. In addition, they also receive
instructional
materials and specialized equipment fully paid for by MOE.
Special resource teachers are deployed to the schools to assist them.
The
resource teachers for the hearing impaired pupils work with them during
instructional time within their classes, translating
lessons into sign language.
The resource teachers for the visually impaired pupils teach Braille, transcribe
pupils’ assignments
and examinations and sources for reading materials.
Also, resource teachers provide tutorials, guidance and counselling for the
pupils.
- The
other pupils, upon graduation from the SPED schools, continue to receive
education and training in various training centres and
workshops run by the
respective VWOs with government support. Those who are able are ultimately
placed in open employment and those
who require more supervision will attend
production sheltered workshops or work activity centres.
Transportation
- People
with disabilities have different degrees of mobility. Most can and do take
public transport such as buses and the Mass Rapid
Transit (MRT) daily. Steps
have been taken by public transport operators in recent years to make their
systems user-friendlier and
more
accessible to people with disabilities. To help them, Singapore’s Land
Transport Authority (LTA) and public transport operators
have introduced various
measures to facilitate their travel on public transport. These
include:
(a) Reserved seats for the disabled on buses and MRT
trains;
(b) Low-floor buses to facilitate boarding;
(c) Ramps at
MRT stations;
(d) Voice announcements at MRT stations upon arrival to
help the visually impaired;
(e) Non-slip floor surfaces to demarcate the
edge of platforms in elevated MRT stations; and
(f) Retrofitted vertical
lifts at MRT stations for the Woodlands extension line as well as future
North-East and Changi extension
lines.
- Several
other schemes have also been established to assist the disabled and VWOs in
their transportation needs:
(a) Waiver of Additional
Registration Fee (ARF)[17]
and Certificate of Entitlement
(COE)[18] Scheme by the
Government to help lower the costs of purchasing vehicles by NGOs; and
(b) Taxi and Bus Subsidy Scheme to help working persons and students
with disabilities to commute to work and special schools at
subsidized rates.
- LTA
adopts stringent eligibility criterion for applications for vocational licences
for public vehicles, and enforces a strict disciplinary
system on holders of
existing licences. This is to ensure that drivers of public service vehicles
like buses and taxis are reliable
and credible, and our public transport service
is safe for use, even for a child alone. The drivers are closely monitored for
any
offences committed. The penalty for a severe offence which threatens the
safety of commuters may mean a life-time ban on driving
a public service
vehicle.
Efforts in integrating the disabled in public
housing
- Singapore
regards the development of a barrier-free physical environment as necessary for
integrating the disabled into community
life. In 1990, the Code on Barrier-Free
Accessibility in Buildings was introduced to help consultation with those who
are affected
and was well received by those with disabilities. Existing
buildings are required to undergo extensive retrofitting to provide basic
accessibility features when they upgrade. Where technically possible, these are
incorporated in the older estates that are being
upgraded.
- To
create a barrier-free physical environment, the following accessibility features
have been incorporated in all public housing projects
since
1990:
(a) Ramps to facilitate barrier-free access from the
housing blocks to the driveway and parking lots;
(b) Designated parking
lots for the disabled in Housing Development Board (HDB) multi-storey and open
space parking lots. These
designated parking lots are usually located near
lifts or ramps to enhance accessibility for the disabled. Provision has also
been
made to allow for the construction of additional parking lots for the
disabled should the current provision be insufficient;
(c) Lifts with
landings on every floor, wide entrances for the passage of a wheelchair, lowered
lift button panel (between 1.2 m
and 1.5 m from the ground), Braille
plates on the lift button panel and voice synthesizers to help those who are
visually handicapped.
Grip rails are also provided on all three panels of the
lift to provide support for the aged and disabled.
- Access
to the sensory dimension was also provided for the hearing impaired. A major
proportion of English and Chinese language programmes
are subtitled in English,
Mandarin or Malay to reach out to the hearing impaired. As far as possible, a
selection of genres such
as movies, dramas, docu-dramas and sitcoms are
subtitled for variety. Current and up-to-date teletext news is also
available.
- Some
Singaporeans with disabilities have secured employment and done well in their
careers. Those with limitations are assisted by
VWOs which continue to work
with their residual abilities.
- ESCAP
has sought the participation of Singapore in its efforts to encourage others to
learn from Singapore’s experience in the
provision of services for the
disabled. Singapore has a wide range of services and much has been done to meet
the varying needs
of the disabled. Singapore will continue to increase the
amenities, services and programmes for the disabled further over time.
C. Health and health services (art. 24)
- The
two main government departments responsible for preventive child health care are
Family Health Service (FHS) and School Health
Service (SHS). FHS caters only to
pre-school children and provides immunization and child health surveillance.
The budget allocated
for the services for the past two years is given in the
tables below.
Table 17. FHS budget allocation for children
|
|
1997
|
1998
|
Total
|
S$ 4 400 000 (US$ 2 716 050)
|
S$ 5 600 000 (US$ 3 456 790)
|
S$ 6 100 000 (US$ 3 765 430)
|
Table 18. SHS budget allocation for schoolchildren
|
|
1997
|
1998
|
Total
|
S$ 9 406 520 (US$ 5 806 490)
|
S$ 10 397 550 (US$ 6 418 240)
|
S$ 11 000 000 (US$ 6 790 120)
|
Conversion rate used: S$ 1.62 = US$ 1 (Figures are rounded
up).
- The
annual budget allocated to FHS and SHS is used to provide preventive health care
to all children up to junior college level (i.e.
usually children up to 18
years). This budget does not include expenditure on curative care provided for
sick children. Aside from
the health-care services provided by the Government,
a sick child may also seek medical treatment from various medical institutions
such as private general practitioners, hospitals and medical centres.
Access to health care
- Primary,
secondary, and even tertiary health-care are easily accessible. Government
polyclinics and private practitioners are located
all over the island and
usually concentrated in new towns where the population density is
high.
- The
financial policy of the health-care delivery system is based on individual
responsibility coupled with government subsidies to
keep basic health care
affordable. FSH and SHS charge a nominal sum for attendance at their clinics.
Children pay half the charges
of an adult, i.e. S$ 4 per visit and
S$ 0.60 per item of medicine per week (ceiling of S$ 3.00).
Immunization (except hepatitis
B) is free in FHS and SHS.
- Those
admitted to hospitals can pay their bills through Medisave, a national
compulsory savings scheme to help individuals save for
their hospitalization
expenses for themselves and their families. If they demand a higher level of
service, there are various government
and private insurance schemes to help pay
for the higher expenses.
- Financial
assistance is available for needy children in government hospitals and clinics.
The Government has set up a Medical Endowment
Fund (Medifund) to assist
needy Singaporeans pay for medical care. Medifund serves as a safety net to
Singaporeans who, despite
help from government subsidies, are still unable
to settle their hospital bills. In 1998, there were 69,000 applications
for Medifund
assistance and 99 per cent were approved. A total of
S$ 14.52 million (US$ 8.96 million) was disbursed in financial
year 1998 (1
April 199831 March 1999).
Health-care network
- Preventive
health care comprises health education, immunization against infectious diseases
and selective health screening. Curative
and rehabilitative services are
provided through the government and restructured hospitals and a network of
government polyclinics
for general outpatient care. The public health-care
delivery system is complemented by a system of health care provided by private
medical practitioners. MOH also regulates the standard and practice of
health-care services.
- MOH
works closely with the Ministry of the Environment (ENV) in the maintenance of
environmental health and control of communicable
diseases and Ministry of
Manpower (MOM) to improve the industrial and occupational health of workers. It
also liaises with health
authorities and medical organizations worldwide. Views
are exchanged and experiences shared through bilateral events throughout
the
year. Participation in international meetings and international recognition by
WHO of local health departments (which are designated
as WHO Collaborating
Centres to carry out field studies and serve as reference and training centres
for the region) have helped to
boost Singapore’s efforts to become a
regional centre of medical excellence.
Primary and family health services
- Private
practitioners and government polyclinics, outpatient dispensaries and childcare
clinics provide primary health care in Singapore.
In 1998, there were 2,489
doctors in the private sector providing 80 per cent of primary health care.
The Ministry’s Family
Health Service provides the remaining
20 per cent.
- There
are 14 polyclinics, 4 outpatient dispensaries and 2 maternal and child health
clinics under the FHS. The polyclinics are family
practice clinics that provide
comprehensive continuing care to the patient and family members. Services
include medical management
of acute and chronic illness, follow-up of patients
discharged from hospital, maternal and child health care, health screening,
health
education, patient counselling, diagnostic services (lab and X-ray),
dental care, rehabilitative services and immunization.
- Maternal
and child health-care services include antenatal and postnatal care, family
planning information, health education and immunization
and health surveillance
for preschool (06 years). Children are monitored on their growth and
development using Denver Developmental
Screening Tests to detect abnormalities
in growth or development delays.
School Health Service (SHS)
- SHS
provides health surveillance, immunization and health education through its
school and clinic (Student Health Centre) programmes.
The main objectives are
early detection and management of health problems, follow-up of students with
risk factors for major diseases,
disease prevention through immunization, and
health promotion through encouragement of healthy lifestyle and
habits.
- In
1998, SHS conducted a total of 612,776 screening examinations. Full medical
examinations are provided for students in primary
1 and 6 and their equivalents
in special and vocational schools. More specialized types of screening
examination are also carried
out, e.g. vision, auditory, spinal, etc.
Follow-up of defective health problems was provided for 511,174 students in
1998.
- Students
identified with health problems are referred to relevant agencies for further
evaluation and management. Of the 157,553
students referred in 1998, less than
1 per cent were referred to the hospitals. The rest were seen at the
Student Health Centre
clinics by the SHS
doctors or the seven
specialist clinics, which include adolescent, cardiac, endocrine, learning
disorders, otology, ophthalmology
and spinal clinics. A total of 327,123 doses
of vaccines against diphtheria, tetanus, polio, measles, rubella and
tuberculosis were
administered to schoolchildren in 1998.
- Health
education activities reached out to a total of 368,949 students and 576,928
parents in 1997. These activities included 21,170
talks, 1,157 video
presentations, 20 health fairs and distribution of pamphlets (802,181 pieces).
In 1998, the target population
reached was 252,527 and the number of activities
numbered 13,979.
- SHS
also monitors environmental cleanliness, ambience, safety and compliance of the
school canteens to vision care guidelines (lighting,
etc.) and quality of food
content.
Dental clinics
- Preventive,
promotional and curative dental health services are provided through the School
Dental Service, the Hospital Dental Service
and the Community Dental Service.
They are freely and easily accessible via the hospital dental clinics, community
dental clinics,
school dental clinics and multiple private dental clinics
located all over the country. Dental treatment in school dental clinics
is
given free of charge. School Dental Services allocation for schoolchildren was
about S$ 17.3 million (about US$ 10,679,000) for
1997 and
S$ 18 million (about US$ 11,111,100) for 1998.
- The
School Dental Service (SDS) provides dental care at 196 primary
schools, 89 secondary schools and 14 special schools for the
handicapped.
This is done through 187 school dental clinics, 6 mobile
dental clinics and the School Dental Centre at the Institute of Dental
Health.
Treatment is provided by dentists, dental nurses and dental therapists. In
1998, 95 per cent of primary school pupils,
53 per cent of secondary school
pupils and 46 per cent of special school pupils received dental care
whilst the rest sought dental
attention when necessary.
- Community
dental clinics consist of a number of dental clinics opened in polyclinics to
bring dental services closer to residents.
The first such clinic was opened in
August 1996. To date, there are 10 such clinics.
- Singapore’s
potable water has been fluoridated since 1957. This programme has helped o
lower the decayed, missing and filled
teeth (DMFT) index of 12-yearolds to 1.0
since 1994.
Pharmaceutical Department
- The
Pharmaceutical Department of the Ministry of Health is responsible for ensuring
the quality, safety and efficiency of pharmaceutical
products sold in the
market. To achieve this, the following drug regulatory programmes are
implemented: drug registration; quality
surveillance of pharmaceutical
products; adverse drug reaction monitoring.
- Singapore’s
population has ready access to good quality pharmaceutical products through both
the public and private health-care
sectors. MOH employs a Standard Drug List
similar to the WHO Essential Drug List, which constitutes all essential drugs
required
to treat the common ailments of the majority of patients, and this is
consistently reviewed to ensure that it remains comprehensive.
Hospital services
- There
are 12 public sector hospitals (3 government and 9 government restructured)
and 13 private hospitals which provide curative
and rehabilitative
care to the population. Of the 12 public sector hospitals, 6 provide acute
general inpatient and specialist outpatient
services and 24hour accident and
emergency services. The other 6 hospitals serve special functions, e.g. KK
Women’s and Children’s
Hospital provides specialized health care for
women and children.
- Restructured
hospitals follow the Ministry’s policy, direction and guidelines. The
Government provides a subvention to enable
them to continue providing subsidized
medical services at affordable rates. Public sector hospitals provide 80 per
cent of hospital
beds while the private sector accounts for nearly 20 per
cent.
Quality assurance
- All
hospitals (government and restructured) and all government clinics in FHS and
SHS have quality assurance programmes to assess
the quality of service of their
health care, personnel and service. They strive to maintain the highest
attainable standard of health
care and facilities for the treatment of illness,
and preventive and rehabilitative health care.
- As
at December 1998, there were about 111 paediatric specialists and about 184
trained obstetric and gynaecological specialists.
Tables 19 and 20 show the
health manpower.
Table 19. National health manpower ratio
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1:770
|
1:760
|
1:750
|
Dentists
|
1:4 330
|
1:4 260
|
1:4 230
|
Pharmacists
|
1:4 210
|
1:3 958
|
1:3 873
|
Nurses
|
1:264
|
1:254
|
1:248
|
Table 20. Health personnel, 1980, 1990, 1996-1999
|
1980
|
1990
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
Doctors
|
1 976
|
3 573
|
4 661
|
4 912
|
5 148
|
5 325
|
Public
|
855
|
1 831
|
2 177
|
2 312
|
2 416
|
2 535
|
Private
|
1 052
|
1 593
|
2 302
|
2 380
|
2 489
|
2 606
|
Not in active practice
|
69
|
149
|
182
|
220
|
243
|
184
|
Dentists
|
346
|
672
|
835
|
878
|
914
|
942
|
Public
|
161
|
185
|
176
|
187
|
180
|
167
|
Private
|
177
|
466
|
626
|
666
|
696
|
727
|
Not in active practice
|
8
|
21
|
33
|
25
|
38
|
48
|
Pharmacists
|
368
|
587
|
858
|
944
|
998
|
1 043
|
Public
|
58
|
96
|
175
|
177
|
204
|
219
|
Private
|
310
|
452
|
518
|
593
|
610
|
598
|
Not in active practice
|
NA
|
39
|
165
|
174
|
184
|
226
|
Nurses and midwives
|
8 324
|
10 238
|
13 680
|
14 705
|
15 568
|
15 947
|
Public
|
5 357
|
6 150
|
7 679
|
8 277
|
8 681
|
8 692
|
Private
|
1 801
|
2 610
|
3 719
|
3 880
|
3 827
|
3 872
|
Not in active practice
|
1 166
|
1 478
|
2 282
|
2 548
|
3 060
|
3 383
|
Nutritional status of children
- The
nutritional status of Singapore children is closely monitored from birth up to
the time they leave school. During the neonatal
period, breastfeeding is
strongly advised and measures are taken to prevent distribution of milk samples
to newborns in hospitals
and government clinics. Education materials on
“why breastfeed, how to prepare for breastfeeding and how to
breastfeed”
are distributed to healthcare workers. The Breastfeeding
Mothers’ Support Group (BMSG) runs a telephone hotline and its members
are
on hand to help mothers with any matter related to breastfeeding. The
government polyclinics hold nutrition talks and demonstrations
on infant feeding
and weaning diets and on diets for babies and toddlers. Dietician counselling
services are available in 12 polyclinics.
Children who fail to thrive are
followed up or referred to hospital for investigations.
- The
Department of Nutrition (DON) is responsible for improving the nutritional
status of Singaporeans and reducing the incidence of
dietrelated diseases. DON
constantly reviews current knowledge about diet and diseases to formulate
various national nutritional
policies and dietary guidelines for health
promotion and disease treatment. Public education is carried out through the
mass media
as well as facetoface activities. DON promotes a healthy food supply
through collaboration with other ministries, nongovernmental
bodies, the media
and the food industry. Guidelines and training courses have been developed to
promote healthier menu choices and
catering practices in school canteens,
childcare centres, kindergartens, hospitals, public eating places and
residential institutions
for children and young persons, besides institutions
and facilities for other groups.
- Consultation
is provided on a regular basis to various bodies on matters like nutritional
claims in food advertising. Nutrition is
also incorporated into educational
curricula at all levels. Assistance and collaboration are rendered to both
local and international
research projects. The nutritional status of
Singaporeans is monitored through dietary surveys and food consumption
studies.
- There
is also close nutritional monitoring of schoolchildren by SHS. In 1998,
3.3 per cent of schoolchildren were found to be underweight
(weight
for height <80 per cent of population mean based on local standards).
These were referred to the Student Health Centre
for management and followup.
There was no case of gross malnutrition detected. The last reported case of
death of a child from
protein-calorie malnutrition was in 1988 (a male <1
year old). Since then, there have been no deaths from malnutrition in children
(<18 years) reported in Singapore. Although 6.4 per cent of our
schoolchildren were found to be underweight in 1996, most of
these cases were
due to food fads and excessive physical activity and no cases of gross
malnutrition were found. The number of underweight
school children has fallen
to 3.3 per cent in 1998.
- Singapore’s
greater nutritional problem is obesity. In 1998, 10.9 per cent of
schoolchildren were found to be obese (weight
for height >120 per cent of
population mean). Such children are closely monitored, given advice on diet and
exercise programmes
and informed of risk of cardiovascular problems in adult
life.
- The
prevalence of underweight and obesity between males and females among
schoolchildren are comparable (see table 21 on common health
problems in the
School Health Service), except those in secondary 4 (aged 15-16) where boys have
a higher prevalence of being underweight
than girls. This is probably due to
the higher level of physical activity. There is no discrimination against
female children in
Singapore. Although “malnutrition” due to food
deprivation and defined by underweight is not a great problem in Singapore,
we
plan to look at the “underweights” for the under7 age group for more
comprehensive data on the status of nutrition
of our children and for comparison
with other countries.
Circumcision
- Male
circumcision is carried out for medical and religious reasons and involves the
removal of the foreskin of the penis by surgical
means. It is usually done in a
sterile environment, and in private by either a trained doctor or male nurse.
Female circumcision
is usually done in infancy. The procedure involves the
removal of a small piece of skin from the clitoris by doctors, with sterile
scissors or scalpel in a sterile environment, and in private. The rest of the
genitalia are left intact. Antibiotic cream is then
applied to the cut. So
far, no cases of complications from female circumcision have been reported in
Singapore government polyclinics
and hospitals. As there is no mandatory
reporting of circumcision cases to the Ministry of Health, the actual prevalence
of such
practices is not known, but anecdotal evidence suggests that while male
circumcision is common practice among Muslims and Jews in
Singapore, female
circumcision is rare, if practised at all.
Frequent illness and health problems
- The
major causes of hospitalization in children in Singapore are injuries, asthma,
infections like gastroenteritis and pneumonia,
malignancy and convulsions.
Table 21 shows the prevalence of conditions present in schoolchildren seen by
the School Health Service.
The major health problem among school-going children
is defective vision.
Table 21. Common health problems - School Health
Services
Common health problems detected through health screening -
1998
|
% of total pupils screened
|
Primary 1
|
Primary 6
|
Secondary 4
|
All levels
|
Defective vision
|
27.2
|
60.3
|
62.5
|
52.4
|
Obesity
|
10.9
|
13.8
|
11.8
|
10.9
|
Asthma
|
1.0
|
7.4
|
7.3
|
8.1
|
Underweight
|
1.7
|
14.7
|
6.5
|
3.3
|
Spinal
|
0.3
|
3.2
|
2.1
|
5.4
|
Source: SHS Annual Report 1998.
Family planning
- Family
planning services are widely available and easily accessible. Contraceptives at
a nominal fee are available at primary health
clinics (private and government)
and also available at obstetrics and gynaecological specialist clinics and the
hospitals (private
and government). Family planning is well accepted and the
practice rate is 65 per cent of married women in the reproductive age
group.
The contraceptive methods commonly used are condoms (22 per cent), oral
contraceptive pills (7 per cent), intrauterine devices
(7 per cent) and
traditional methods (13 per cent) such as the use of the withdrawal method
and “safe period”.
AIDS/HIV
- The
first local case of HIV was diagnosed in 1985. In the first three months of
1998, another 44 Singaporeans were detected to be
infected with HIV.
This brought the total number of HIVinfected Singaporeans to 775 at 31 March
1998. Among them were 370 asymptomatic
carriers, 144 with full-blown AIDS and
261 others who have died.
Table 22. Distribution of HIV-infected Singaporeans by mode of
transmission
|
1985-
1990
|
1991
|
1992
|
1993
|
1994
|
1995
|
1996
|
1997
|
March 1998
|
Total
|
Sexual order table
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Heterosexual
|
16
|
22
|
37
|
47
|
62
|
83
|
103
|
135
|
36
|
541
|
Homosexual
|
31
|
11
|
12
|
6
|
15
|
17
|
12
|
12
|
4
|
120
|
Bisexual
|
12
|
3
|
3
|
9
|
9
|
10
|
20
|
15
|
3
|
84
|
Intravenous drug use
|
1
|
3
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
4
|
5
|
0
|
16
|
Blood transfusion
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
3
|
Renal transplant overseas
|
0
|
2
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
5
|
Prenatal (mother to child)
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
4
|
1
|
6
|
Total
|
61
|
42
|
55
|
64
|
86
|
111
|
139
|
175
|
44
|
775
|
Control and prevention of AIDS
- The
control and prevention of AIDS comes under the purview of MOH with the
involvement of other government agencies and community
groups. The National
AIDS Control Programme was drawn up in 1985 and comprises the following
elements:
Public education and education of high-risk
groups;
Counselling for highrisk
groups;
Legislation;
Protection of the national blood
supply;
Management of the infected;
Monitoring of the
disease;
Personnel training;
Research.
- Although
many advances have been made in the care of HIV/AIDS patients, no cure or
vaccine has been developed yet. Health education
and safe practices continue to
be the mainstay for the control of HIV/AIDS. The main focus of
Singapore’s programme against
AIDS is therefore health education targeted
at the general population as well as those at risk of infection. Various forms
of communication,
including pamphlets, posters, exhibitions, talks, workshops,
forums and the mass media, are used to convey to the public information
on AIDS,
the modes of transmission, highrisk activities, the precautionary measures and
the importance and need to practise them.
- Public
education is sustained throughout the year. A month is also devoted each year
to more intensive public education. The AIDS
Awareness Month has been held in
conjunction with World AIDS Day on 1 December since 1987. This has resulted in
a high general level
of awareness of the disease and its mode of
transmission.
- With
the changing trend of HIV transmission in Singapore, the educational message is
focused on the dangers of casual sex, as HIVpositive
persons cannot be
identified by appearance. Messages to promote family values and to avoid
premarital and extramarital sexual relationships
have been strongly intensified.
The use of condoms for prevention is emphasized to those at risk of infection.
- To
reach out to all youths in Singapore, all secondary school leavers and students
from the Institutes of Technical Education are
given lectures on AIDS and STDs.
In 1993, a structured AIDS education programme was implemented for students in
polytechnics, junior
colleges and pre-university centres. AIDS education is
also provided for all National Servicemen.
- Certain
legal measures were also taken to combat the disease in the interest of both the
infected and the general public. HIV infection
and AIDS were made notifiable
diseases under the Infectious Diseases Act in 1985. To further tighten the
control of AIDS in Singapore,
the Infectious Diseases Act was amended in 1992 to
include provisions:
(a) Empowering the Director of Medical
Services to require any person diagnosed with AIDS or infected with HIV to
undergo counselling
or to comply with specified safety measures;
(b) To
make it an offence for any person who knows that he is infected with HIV or has
AIDS to commit any act which is likely to
transmit the disease to another
person, e.g. through sexual intercourse with another person or to donate
blood at any blood bank
in Singapore; and
(c) Protecting the identity of
an HIVinfected person so as to prevent discrimination against him/her as well as
to encourage those
who are at risk of infection to come forward for counselling
and HIV testing.
- Stringent
measures are undertaken to safeguard the national blood supply from HIV
infection and other bloodborne diseases. These
measures
include:
(a) Testing of blood and blood products for HIV,
syphilis and hepatitis B and C; and
(b) Stringent donor selection at the
pre-donation stage. All potential donors are interviewed and have to complete a
specially designed
detailed questionnaire on past and present risk activities
associated with HIV infection. These measures are targeted at making
persons at
risk of such diseases exclude themselves from giving blood. Every potential
donor is then counselled by a doctor, following
which he signs a declaration to
say that he has not made a false statement. Donors making false declarations
may face prosecution.
This is to deter anyone with highrisk behaviour from
donating blood that may be infected.
- Singapore
also has facilities for autologous blood donation to allow persons to store
their own blood for elective operations. This
measure eliminates the risk of a
person contracting bloodborne diseases such as AIDS from another person’s
blood.
Management of the infected
- Individuals
who perceive themselves to be at risk of infection are encouraged to undergo HIV
screening. Facilities for screening
are widely available. Counselling provides
an opportunity for a change in lifestyle and risk behaviour. Cases are managed
at the
Communicable Disease Centre by doctors and other staff who are specially
trained to manage such cases. All patients with AIDS/HIV
infection are
counselled regularly to ensure compliance with treatment. Their sex partners
are also counselled and screening is
carried out for those who have been exposed
to the infection. Facetoface counselling is given to those with highrisk
behaviour.
- An
AIDS telephone helpline started in 1987 provides anonymous personal counselling
to the public. Recorded information on AIDS in
the four main languages is
provided.
- A
voluntary organization, Action for AIDS, formed in 1988, complements the
Government’s efforts in controlling AIDS. Its objectives
are to promote
educational activities relating to AIDS and HIV infection, support welfare
activities for and prevent discrimination
against patients and families, and
promote research in areas related to HIV infection and AIDS.
- MOH
works closely with other relevant ministries, community groups and international
bodies in the training of personnel for the effective
control of AIDS. Courses
have been jointly organized by the Ministry and external bodies such as the
Fogarty Foundation/University
of California Los Angeles School of Public Health
for doctors, nurses, counsellors and laboratory technicians. All medical and
paramedical
personnel have been issued with “Guidelines for Preventing
Transmission of Bloodborne Infection in a Health Care
Setting”.
- Research
projects and studies are regularly carried out to evaluate existing programmes
and gather information for planning future
control programmes. Monitoring of
the AIDS situation in Singapore is routinely carried out. Recent studies showed
that the risk
of HIV transmission from mother to child is reduced through early
detection and early treatment. Since January 1998, doctors have
been advised to
screen antenatal mothers for HIV infection so that measures can be instituted
for those found infected. This reduces
the number of children with HIV
infections through perinatal transmission. These tests are available at
subsidized rates in all
government clinics and institutions.
- An
ASEAN Task Force on AIDS set up in March 1993 monitors the regional situation
and initiates joint planning and implementation of
a regional programme against
HIV/AIDS. This includes exchange of information and cooperation in research and
training.
Sexually transmitted disease (STDs)
- The
incidence of STDs in Singapore has made a steady decline in the last decade.
There were 271 and 286 adolescents (aged 10-19 years)
who were reported to have
STDs in 1997 and 1998 respectively.
Traditional medicine
and practices
- The
use of traditional Chinese medicines (TCM) is widely practised in Singapore.
There are local training schools in TCM. A Traditional
Chinese Medicine Unit
was set up in MOH in 1995. The aim was to improve the standard of practice of
TCM. It monitors reports of
adverse effects and complications arising from TCM
practice and usage. A Chinese Proprietary Medicine (CPM) Unit was set up by MOH
under the purview of the Pharmaceutical Service to look into implementation of
control measures for CPM through licensing product
importers and local CPM
manufacturers.
- Through
health education, children and parents are taught about dangers of traditional
practices which may be unhealthy. Under the
law, persons who carry out
fraudulent practices can be prosecuted.
Training for healthcare personnel
- MOH
places emphasis on training for all healthcare professionals to upgrade the
quality of health care. It sponsors health-care professionals
for formal
postgraduate courses, both locally and overseas, and for practical attachments
to renowned centres overseas. Internationally
recognized experts are invited to
lecture, conduct teaching sessions and demonstrate surgical procedures to the
local medical and
dental staff. In 1995, 49 medical, dental, nursing and
paramedical experts were invited.
- The
National University of Singapore undertakes undergraduate training for doctors,
dentists and pharmacists. MOH via its various
medical boards also registers
qualified professionals from recognized overseas universities. Nanyang
Polytechnic provides undergraduate
training of nurses by offering the Diploma in
Nursing course.
- There
are 15 health and health-related departments in Singapore which have been
designated as WHO Collaborating Centres. These Centres
work with WHO to carry
out field studies and serve as reference and training centres for the region.
For example, the WHO Western
Pacific Regional Office assisted MOH in setting up
the Acupuncture Research Clinic. Opened in September 1998, the Clinic
undertakes
clinical research on medical conditions for which acupuncture is said
to be effective, such as chronic pain management.
General comments
- Singapore’s
standard in health care for its population is similar to those of advanced
industrialized countries. There has
been increasing budgetary allocation for
the preventive aspects of reproductive health and strong preventive health and
education
programmes with special emphasis on the well-being of mothers and
children.
- Plans
for the future include improving the quality of clinical services and
professional manpower, and control of costs to patients
and the Government. The
Ministry of Health hopes to promote the health of Singaporeans by encouraging
healthy lifestyles and preventing
disease while ensuring access to good and
affordable basic health care in the event of illness.
D. Social security (art. 26)
Social security and financial assistance
- Singapore
has a Public Assistance
scheme[19] to help
individuals and families, including children, who are in genuine need of help.
The Government also gives grants and subsidies
to charities who run programmes
for the low income groups. The Public Assistance scheme and various other forms
of financial assistance
are targeted at helping needy families, especially those
with young dependants.
- However,
Singapore has a social security savings scheme jointly supported by employees,
employers and the Government. This scheme,
called the Central Provident Fund
(CPF), was established in 1955 to provide financial security for workers in
their old age or when
they are no longer able to work. Over the years, it has
evolved into a comprehensive social security savings scheme, which not only
takes care of a member’s old age, health-care needs and home ownership,
but also provides financial protection to members and
their families through its
insurance schemes. In addition, members are eligible for various schemes which
offer financial protection
benefits to the members and their dependants, which
may include spouse, parents and children. The schemes are:
(a) The MediShield Scheme, a low-cost medical insurance scheme
which helps the insured meet the treatment cost of serious and prolonged
illness. CPF members may use their CPF savings to pay the insurance premiums
for their dependants who are covered under MediShield;
(b) The
Dependants Protection Scheme, which provides CPF members and their dependants
with financial assistance in the event that
the members become permanently
incapacitated or die prematurely;
(c) The Home Protection Scheme, which
protects CPF members and their dependants from losing their homes should the
members become
permanently incapacitated or die prematurely before their housing
loans are settled.
- There
is no compulsory CPF contribution for non-working adults. However, to help
members set aside enough savings for their basic
old age and health-care needs,
voluntary contributions to their CPF accounts are encouraged. For example, the
CPF contribution of
a non-working woman can be from her working husband or
children. The contributions can be in the form of cash or from the CPF accounts
of the contributing members. These housewives will then receive monthly
payments from the age of 60 years onwards. This will ensure
that they have an
income during their old age. As such, non-working adults can participate in the
CPF system and enjoy all its benefits,
which serve as a form of social security
for them.
- The
Community Development Council
(CDC)[20] has the authority,
responsibility and funds to help the less able and less successful in its
neighbourhood. CDC aims to build a
closely knit and cohesive community where a
seamless delivery of social services is rendered if necessary. CDC plans,
initiates
and manages community policies and programmes. These include
financial assistance for medical treatment (Medifund), scholarships
and
bursaries, study loans, community libraries, recreational facilities and various
social assistance schemes. CDC also organizes
community projects to cater to
the needs of the elderly, children, the poor and the disabled.
- Each
CDC is provided with a start-up grant of S$ 1 per resident living in that CDC.
It also receives donations of funds from well-wishers.
For every S$ 1 of
donation received, the Government provides an additional S$ 3. These funds are
channelled towards the activities
and programmes of the CDC. This system is a
manifestation of the Government’s belief that a local
community will produce better results when given the authority and
responsibility to look after its well-being, rather than one that
is managed
centrally by the Government. The Government hopes that the establishment of
CDCs will help build a tightly knit, compassionate
and selfreliant
community.
General comments
- The
Government has plans to refine the CPF system to ensure that Singaporeans have
adequate savings to meet their needs in old age
and for medical care. It plans
to explore new avenues for members to invest their savings for higher returns,
taking into consideration
the changing workforce profile and ageing population.
For the self-employed, the Government aims to encourage them to save beyond
Medisave to better meet their old age needs. It will also encourage members to
plan early for adequate financial security for their
retirement. These measures
are aimed at protecting the interests of Singaporeans by empowering them with
sufficient resources to
be self-reliant and independent and to circumvent
situations of helplessness and vulnerability.
- During
the economic crisis in Asia in 1998, Singapore was not spared totally even
though our strong fundamentals stood us in good
stead and international
investors commended Singapore for the way the crisis was handled. Retrenchments
hit a total of 28,300 against
the previous high of 19,529 in 1985. During the
economic downturn then, CDCs provided counselling and job matching services, and
assisted those who faced difficulties with expenses for utilities, medical care
and education. The role of CDCs will continue to
be enhanced to serve the
people. The Government hopes to see the CDCs taking on some of the tasks
currently undertaken by the Ministry
of Community Development, the Ministry of
Health and other agencies. This move will be in tandem with Singapore’s
vision to
foster a stronger participation in community programmes by the
residents in their respective districts.
E. Childcare services and facilities (art. 18, para.
3)
- Singapore
places importance on the well-being of the family unit. It believes that
strong, cohesive families are better able to provide
a nurturing environment for
the physical, emotional, mental and social development security of children and
family members.
- With
families in Singapore becoming smaller and the population ageing rapidly and
birth rates declining, Singapore expects that family
care responsibilities will
increase. To support the family in its care of its children and other dependent
members, the Government
promotes the development of a range of schemes, services
and programmes to meet the varying needs of families and to support the
families
in the care of their dependants. These facilities are established as standard
features in the community to ensure that
they are available and accessible to
all Singaporeans. These include childcare centres and student care centres to
help mothers
with the care arrangements of their children (details of which are
covered elsewhere) and familyfriendly work practices.
- In
his National Day Rally 2000 speech, the Prime Minister announced the Children
Development Co-Savings Scheme (or Baby Bonus) and
the paid maternity leave for
the third child. In addition, the Prime Minister also announced several
supporting measures to promote
marriage and procreation so as to create a total
environment conducive to raising a family. These include the Government’s
taking the lead as a family-friendly employer, as well as ensuring more and
better childcare centres.
Creating a pro-family environment
Baby Bonus and third child paid maternity leave
- The
Baby Bonus and paid maternity leave for the third child are measures introduced
by the Government to help address part of the
financial costs of raising
children.
- The
Baby Bonus is a two-tiered grant. In the first tier, the Government will
provide S$ 500 and S$ 1,000 per year for second- and
third-order
births respectively from 1 April 2001. The second tier is an annual co-payment
scheme, where Government will match the
parents’ contribution
dollar-for-dollar up to S$ 1,000 per year for the second child and up to
S$ 2,000 per year for the third.
Both tiers of the grant will be
given for six years and placed in a Children Development Account (CDA) for any
of their children’s
educational and developmental needs.
- The
third child paid maternity leave scheme allows women who have their third child
to claim eight weeks of paid maternity leave.
However, the cost of that leave
would be borne by the Government, subject to a cap of S$ 20,000. Both this
scheme and the Baby
Bonus only apply when the children are Singapore citizens
and legitimate.
Government as a family-friendly employer
- In
addition, the Government has decided to implement the following work practices
that would allow its employees to support its efforts
in creating a pro-family
focus via a balanced work-life environment:
(a) To allow three
days of paid marriage leave for the first marriage with effect from 1 October
2000;
(b) To allow three days of paternity leave for male civil servants
for their first three children with effect from 1 October 2000;
(c) To
allow teleworking, where practical, as an alternative working arrangement,
particularly for parents with young children; and
(d) To allow
individual ministries and departments to implement flexible work arrangements,
as long as there is no loss of productivity
and lapse in service standards to
the public.
- The
above measures are in addition to the many pro-family measures that had been
introduced in the civil service, such as:
(a) No-pay leave for
childcare of up to four years for each child;
(b) Part-time employment
for working mothers for up to three years regardless of the age of the child;
and
(c) Full-pay leave of five days per year per child for the first
three children to look after a sick child aged 6 years and below.
Care facilities for children
Childcare centres for pre-schoolers
- In
1984, the Government implemented a national childcare centre programme to
promote the development of childcare centre facilities
for children up to age 7
years as part of its support to working mothers. (Details of the
Government’s assistance to employers
and non-profit organizations for the
development and operation of such facilities are given under article 4 above.)
The total enrolment
for childcare centres as at 31 March 2000 was 35,343
children. This includes both full-day and half-day programmes. The total
number
of childcare centres as at 31 March 2000 was 567.
- A
1997 Population Planning Section (Ministry of Health) survey on newly married
couples showed that childcare availability was the
second most commonly cited
factor influencing the decision on family size, after finance. Hence, the
Ministry of Community Development
and Sports (MCDS) will increase the number of
childcare places by 25 per cent over the next three years, that is by about
12,000
to 58,000 places. The focus will be in neighbourhood housing estates
where the demand is highest. Parents can also look forward
to more trained
childcare teachers. MCDS will also work with grass-roots organizations to
remove obstacles so as to encourage more
informal infant care arrangements in
the community.
- To
support parents who use these childcare centres, the Government provides
childcare subsidy to all working parents who are Singapore
citizens or permanent
residents, to help them defray the cost of payment of childcare fees. The
Government gives S$ 150 per child
per month or S$ 75 per child per month for
placement of a child in a full-day or half-day care programmes, respectively.
For non-working
mothers, the subsidy is S$ 75 per child per month. The
Government’s expenditure on childcare subsidies totalled about S$ 51.6
million (US$ 31.9 million) in financial year 1998 and S$ 54 million
(US$ 33.3 million) in financial year 1999.
- In
addition to the government subsidy, there are financial assistance schemes to
help mothers from low-income families who want to
work and need childcare
arrangements. These are the Centre-Based Financial Assistance Scheme for
Childcare (CFAC) and the Back to
Work Childcare
Scheme.
(a) CFAC helps low-income families with additional
subsidy over and above the universal childcare subsidy provided by Government.
CFAC provides relief for families who find it difficult to pay for childcare
services despite the government subsidy. Successful
applicants are given a
subsidy of between 75 per cent to 95 per cent of the average non-profit
childcare centre fee depending on
household income;
(b) The Back to Work
Childcare Scheme implemented by MCDS in August 1998 helps mothers with a
one-time grant to help meet costs of
deposit, first month’s fees,
registration fees, uniforms (maximum two sets) and insurance which are charged
by childcare centres.
The scheme helps mothers get their children started on
the childcare programme. Eligible mothers are given up to S$ 1,000 (US$
617)
for each child.
- Mindful
that a well-qualified childcare staff is the linchpin of ensuring good quality
preschool programmes, childcare centres are
required to employ suitably
qualified personnel trained at the certificate and diploma levels in pre-school
education who would be
equipped with appropriate pedagogical practices and
competencies to help leverage the overall quality and standards of pre-school
in
Singapore and provide for the optimum development of young children by enhancing
the physical, social, intellectual and emotional
aspects of children’s
development. With effect from January 2001, a new pre-school education (PSE)
Framework for Teacher Training
and Accreditation was introduced by the Ministry
of Education (MOE) and the Ministry of Community Development and Sports (MCDS),
in a joint initiative to enhance the quality of pre-school education in
Singapore. The PSE Framework provides guidelines in areas
such as teacher
training requirements and training programmes to ensure consistent standards and
quality in pre-school education.
Various categories of pre-school personnel
such as supervisors, childcare teachers and childcare assistants undergo the
required
training so that they are fully equipped with the appropriate knowledge
and competencies in order to provide effectively for the
young
children.
- A
Pre-School Qualifications Accreditation Committee (PQAC) jointly steered by MOE
and MCDS looks into the accreditation of training
programmes for pre-school
personnel, the curriculum of local training agencies and the accreditation of
overseas pre-school qualifications
obtained by individuals. The Committee has
accredited the teacher-training courses offered by the following training
agencies in
Singapore:
(a) Advent Links - Southeast Asian
Union College;
(b) Association for Early Childhood Educators
(Singapore);
(c) Kinderland Learning Centre;
(d) National
Institute of Education;
(e) Ngee Ann Polytechnic;
(f) PCF Early Childhood
Institute;
(g) Regional Training and Resource Centre for Early Childhood
Care and
Education, Asia;
(h) Singapore Institute of
Management.
Student care centres for school-going children
(SCC)
- The
SCC programme, or before-and-after school centres for schoolchildren up
to 14 years of age, is targeted at helping working parents
who need
alternative care arrangements for their school-going children who would
otherwise be left unattended on their own when parents
work. These centres keep
children constructively occupied before and after school hours and reduce the
exposure to negative influence
and risks. These SCCs are either school-based or
community-based centres and are run by non-profit organizations or private
operators.
- The
Government provides fee assistance for children from low-income families who
place their children in non-profit SCCs run by NGOs.
This ensures that SCCs are
affordable to parents who need to place their children in SCCs. The fee
assistance is issued on a sliding
scale based on household income of the family.
- The
Government encourages the development and operation of SCCs by non-profit
organizations. (Details of the Government support to
non-profit organizations
are under article 4 above.)
Family Service Centres (FSCs)
- The
Government actively promotes the development of Family Service Centres (FSCs) to
provide support service to help families and
individuals in the community. FSCs
are developed at major housing estates to make social services accessible and
available at the
neighbourhood level. They provide a range of services for both
the adults and children and adopt a familyfocused approach in the
delivery of
services. The range of programmes provided are casework and counselling for
individuals and families, student care,
supervised play, and toy and book
libraries. These centres also actively promote Family Life Education (FLE).
Government provides
capital and recurrent funding to non-profit organizations
which set up Family Service Centres. As at the end of 2000, there were
27 FSCs.
The Government has plans to develop eight more FSCs by the year 2001.
Family life education and parent education
- Singapore
adopts a multi-pronged approach towards educating its people in family life.
These programmes are aimed mainly at promoting
the well-being of the family and
enhancing
family life. Parent education is actively promoted to help parents in their
role and enhance parenting skills. To reinforce the
importance of building
strong and close-knit families amidst busy careers and lifestyles, MCDS
organizes an annual National Family
Week. In addition, MCDS produces
newsletters, videos, pamphlets, handbooks and television programmes on family
life for the purpose
of public education.
- Public
education has a wide reach but the Government recognizes that it cannot be
expected to impart family skills and experience
in a significant way. To this
end, MCDS organizes talks, seminars, workshops and other activities, on topics
ranging from married
life to parenting. These talks are also being organized by
NGOs. MCDS provides funding support, produces resource materials for
the NGOs
use, as well as sources for recruits and trains the facilitators and trainers
for these sessions.
F. Standard of living (art. 27)
- This
article recognizes the right of the child to an adequate standard of living.
The primary responsibility to secure, within their
abilities and financial
capabilities, the necessary living conditions for the child’s development
lies with the parents or
the guardians of the child. The State’s role is
primarily to provide the framework and to enable parents and others responsible
for the child to implement their rights and responsibilities visàvis the
child.
- There
are legal provisions to ensure parental responsibility in the care of children.
Section 68 of the Women’s Charter states
that “except where an
agreement or order of court otherwise provides, it shall be the duty of a parent
to maintain or contribute
to the maintenance of his or her children, whether
they are in his or her custody or the custody of any other person, and whether
they are legitimate or illegitimate, either by providing them with such
accommodation, clothing, food and education as may be reasonable
having regard
to his or her means and station in life or by paying the cost
thereof”.
Housing
- Public
housing for children is considered in the context of the family nucleus. A
child can be included in his/her parent’s
application for an HDB flat as
an occupier to form the family nucleus. A family nucleus can comprise of
an:
(a) Applicant and his spouse, with
children;
(b) Applicant (single, above 21 years) and his/her parents,
with siblings; or
(c) Applicant (widowed, separated or divorced) and
children legally in his/her custody.
- In
the event of the death of a child’s parents who are the lessees of an
existing HDB flat, the administrator of the deceased’s
estate will be
allowed to manage the flat for the child, on condition that the ownership of the
flat is transferred to the child
when he/she reaches 21 years of age. This
aspect of the Government’s lease administration on retention of flats
serves to
protect the rights of the child to take over ownership of his/her
deceased parents’ flat upon reaching the age of 21 years.
The Housing and
Development Act also allows a trust to be created for the minor child as
beneficiary of the deceased parents’
flat.
- In
the event of the death of a child’s parents who are the tenants of an
existing HDB rental flat, the tenancy of the flat can
be transferred to a
citizen guardian for the child, on condition that it will be transferred back to
the child when he reaches 21
years of age.
- Children
without surviving parents are eligible to apply for public housing under the
Orphans Scheme. One sibling must be at least
21 years of age at the time of
application.
Financial and other assistance
- Singapore
has a wide range of schemes, programmes and services to help those in genuine
need of assistance. The Government, voluntary
welfare organizations, community
groups and self-help groups run a range of financial and other support services,
schemes and programmes
to help individuals and families. No one who is
genuinely in need will be denied assistance. Special focus is placed on the
welfare
and well-being of children, especially children of families where
parents are unable to provide adequate care for them. Schools,
government
clinics and social service agencies assist to identify children at risk and
extend necessary assistance to these children
and their families. Where the
agencies are not able to assist, these children and their families are assisted
with referral to relevant
government and nongovernmental agencies for supportive
help, including financial assistance. The services and support available
to
families in the care of their children besides those already mentioned earlier
in this report include free or subsidized tuition
to help children from
disadvantaged families to cope with their studies, free textbooks and allowances
for school, and assistance
in alternative care arrangements if parents are
incarcerated or in no position to look after their children.
VIII. EDUCATION, LEISURE AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES
- The
Singapore Government places a very high premium on the education of
Singaporeans. Singapore aims to make its standard of education among the
best in the world. The objective of education in Singapore is to prepare
our
children for the process of lifelong learning to cope with the constantly
changing world and build a responsible, cohesive and
robust society. The school
curriculum and education programmes are aimed at producing well-rounded and
morally upright individuals,
who are fully conversant with the latest
technological advances and yet are in touch with their Asian heritage.
- Education
continues to be a major item of public expenditure, accounting for
about 22.4 per cent of the total government recurrent
expenditure. A
substantial proportion of
the cost of education is subsidized by the State. A considerable amount of
money is invested in the education of each student. The
table below shows the
government recurrent expenditure on education per student.
Table 23. Government recurrent expenditure on education per
student
|
|
1992
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
Primary schools
|
S$ 1 474 (US$ 910)
|
S$ 2 061 (US$ 1 272)
|
S$ 2 960 (US$ 1 827)
|
S$ 2 865 (US$ 1 769)
|
S$ 2 655 (US$ 1 639)
|
Secondary schools
|
S$ 2 042 (US$ 1 260)
|
S$ 3 129 (US$ 1 931)
|
S$ 4 469 (US$ 2 758)
|
S$ 4 516 (US$ 2 788)
|
S$ 4 852 (US$ 2 995)
|
Junior colleges
|
S$ 2 643 (US$ 1 631)
|
S$ 4 780 (US$ 2 950)
|
S$ 7 052 (US$ 4 353)
|
S$ 6 489 (US$ 4 006)
|
S$ 6 011 (US$ 3 710)
|
Institute of technical education
|
S$ 3 631 (US$ 2 241)
|
S$ 6 201 (US$ 3 828)
|
S$ 8 942 (US$ 5 520)
|
S$ 7 384 (US$ 4 558)
|
S$ 6 900 (US$ 4 259)
|
Polytechnics
|
S$ 4 219 (US$ 2 604)
|
S$ 6 142 (US$ 3 791)
|
S$ 8 856 (US$ 5 467)
|
S$ 8 466 (US$ 5 226)
|
S$ 8 016 (US$ 4 948)
|
Universities
|
S$ 11 993 (US$ 7 403)
|
S$ 15 422 (US$ 9 520)
|
S$ 19 926 (US$ 12 300)
|
S$ 15 881 (US$ 9 803)
|
S$ 14 922 (US$ 9 211)
|
Source: Ministry of Education (Yearbook of Statistics
2000).
Note: Data refer to the financial year which begins in
March and ends in April of the following year.
Conversion rate used:
S$ 1.62 = US$ 1.
- Although
Singapore currently does not practise compulsory education, education at the
primary and secondary levels is almost universal.
However, for each age cohort
of children that registers at primary 1 in national primary schools, 2 per cent
(about 1,000 children)
are not in school and this is a cause of concern to the
Government. About 1 per cent of these children are registered in private
schools, e.g. the madrasahs (Islamic religious schools), or are homeschoolers.
The other 1 per cent could not be contacted.
- Singapore’s
survival and prosperity in the twenty-first century will depend on how well
prepared Singaporeans are for the challenges
of the globalized knowledge-based
economy (KBE), as well as their social cohesion and sense of commitment to the
nation. The education
system thus seeks to promote the holistic development of
the child and the Government is committed to ensuring that every child has
an
equal head start in education in order to develop his/her potential to the
full.
- In
view of this, the Government has, after extensive discussions with community
leaders, interest groups and members of the public,
decided to make the six-year
primary education in national schools compulsory with effect from January 2003,
starting with the cohort
entering primary 1 that year. The Compulsory Education
(CE) Bill was passed by the Singapore Parliament in October 2000 to effect
this
change.
- Compulsory
primary education is defined as education in national schools for Singapore
citizens residing in Singapore. Parents who
fail to register their children in
primary 1 in such schools from 2003 will be counselled to do so. Every effort
at counselling
and mediation will be made to ensure that they send their
children to school. If these efforts fail, as a last resort, the force
of the
law can be brought upon such parents.
- However,
in view of the reality of the situation in Singapore, exemptions from CE are
given to four categories of pupils. These categories
are:
(a) Pupils of madrasahs. The madrasah plays an
important role in producing religious scholars and religious teachers for the
Muslim community. The madrasahs
feel that the training for these scholars and
teachers needs to begin from a young age, and that they will not be able to
attract
enough students at the secondary level if all children had to attend
national schools at the primary level under CE. On the other
hand, there is a
concern that madrasah graduates who do not become religious teachers and
scholars will not be well equipped for
jobs in the KBE as the focus of their
education is on religious subjects. After much discussion, it was decided that
with effect
from 2003, individual primary 1 pupils of the madrasahs could be
exempted from CE, provided the madrasahs meet a certain minimum
standard at the
national Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) offered at primary 6 when
these pupils sit for the examination.
This is to ensure that children who
receive their primary education in madrasahs achieve a minimum level of academic
attainment.
The total annual primary 1 intake of Singaporean pupils into the
six full-time madrasahs is capped at 400;
(b) Pupils of San Yu
Adventist School. The San Yu Adventist School is owned and operated by the
Seventh-Day Adventist Mission of Singapore. It is a small school with
a
population, in 1999, of 73 at the primary level and 222 at the secondary level.
The school’s mission is to provide Christian
education parallel with the
Singapore education system. As the school has historically been offering
education to Singaporeans,
its contribution is recognized. Hence, Singaporean
pupils of the school at the primary level have also been given individual
exemption
from CE. The school, like the madrasahs, must meet a certain minimum
standard at the PSLE. However, based on the school’s
primary 1 intake of
less than 10 Singaporean pupils in recent years, the total annual primary 1
intake of Singapore citizens into
the school is capped at
10;
(c) Children receiving home schooling. A small number of
parents have strong views on how their children should be brought up and
educated. They choose to educate their
children at home, using curriculum
packages designed for home-schoolers from abroad. As these parents are very
keen on how they
want to educate their children, it has been decided that such
children are allowed exemption from CE. However, their parents must
be able to
satisfy the MOE that the two key objectives of CE can be achieved for their
children. These two objectives are:
(i) To give our children a common core of knowledge which will provide a strong
foundation for further education and training to
prepare them for a
knowledge-based economy;
(ii) To give children a common educational experience which will help to build
national identity and cohesion.
The parents are also required
to furnish information on the curriculum and educational outcomes of the
home-schooling programme.
The progress of the home-schoolers would be closely
monitored. They will be required to sit for tests at certain points of their
primary education and as well as the PSLE. They would have to meet the same
PSLE standard as the children attending the San Yu Adventist
School. The MOE
reserves the right to withdraw its approval for exemption from CE at any stage.
These stringent requirements for
home-schoolers to be exempted from CE will help
the MOE to ensure that home schooling is not used by irresponsible parents as a
loophole
to circumvent the introduction of CE and hence negate the purpose for
which CE is introduced;
(d) Children with special needs. Several
options are currently open for the education of children with special needs.
Children with mild and sensory disabilities
but who are able to cope with
mainstream schools attend such schools which incorporate the appropriate
facilities and resources.
Children with moderate and profound disabilities are
educated in special education (SPED) schools established by voluntary welfare
organizations with the help of the MOE and the National Council of Social
Service. There are also home-based programmes for such
children. While
children with learning disabilities are much more able to develop their full
potential if they attend SPED schools,
the enforcement of CE may be unduly harsh
on the parents of such children. Therefore, it has been decided that special
needs children
who are not able to attend national schools because of
physical/intellectual disabilities be automatically exempted from CE.
- Education
is heavily subsidized in Singapore. In the primary school, Singaporean pupils
and those who are children of Singaporeans
do not pay school fees. (Those in
the secondary school and junior college pay only S$ 5 and S$ 6 respectively
per month.) Non-citizen
pupils in the primary school pay school fees at
different rates. Those whose parents are permanent residents, employment pass
holders
and diplomats of foreign embassies pay a concessionary rate of
S$ 36 (about US$ 20) per annum. Other non-citizens pay S$ 960
(about
US$ 640) per annum. Still, these rates are much lower than the
actual cost (S$ 2,865) per annum of educating a child in primary
school.
- However,
in line with the philosophy that parents must be responsible for their
children’s education, miscellaneous fees are
charged to all pupils in
order to meet part of the cost of materials and supplies that are used in
school. The rate of the miscellaneous
fees at the primary school level is
S$ 10 per month. Nevertheless, if there are needy pupils who need
assistance to pay these fees,
there are several assistance schemes from schools
and community agencies to help. No child in Singapore is deprived of an
education
because his parents cannot afford to pay the fees charged in school.
- The
Government’s move to introduce CE in 2003 shows that it is very serious
about wanting to ensure that every child gets a
good head start in the national
primary schools, which are by far the largest providers of education with a
population of about 300,000
pupils annually. In contrast, the number of pupils
exempted from CE is very small. To a large degree, therefore, Singapore is
meeting
the requirements of article 28 (1) (a) of the Convention,
although a reservation on it has been entered.
A. Education, including vocational training and guidance (art.
28),
and aims of education (art. 29)
Pupil
enrolment
- Virtually
all children of school-going age are in mainstream primary or secondary schools.
The table below shows the enrolment of
pupils (both male and female) in the
various educational institutions.
Table 24. Enrolment in the various educational institutions
(1999)
|
|
Total
|
Males
|
Females
|
Primary schools
|
199
|
300 153
|
155 513
|
144 640
|
Secondary schools
|
152
|
173 007
|
90 592
|
82 415
|
Junior colleges and centralized institutes
|
16
|
25 032
|
11 342
|
13 690
|
Institutes of technical education
|
10
|
16 390
|
12 089
|
4 301
|
Polytechnics
|
4
|
57 126
|
32 135
|
24 991
|
National Institute of Education
|
1
|
3 317
|
990
|
2 327
|
Universities
|
2
|
47 347
|
26 902
|
20 445
|
Total
|
384
|
622 372
|
329 563
|
292 809
|
Source: Ministry of Education (Yearbook of Statistics
2000).
- There
are some Muslim parents who prefer to send their children to madrasahs (Islamic
religious schools) for their education. Academic
subjects such as English,
mathematics and the Malay language are taught in addition to the study of Islam.
The table below shows
the number of children who are studying in
madrasahs.
Table 25. Number of children studying in madrasahs
|
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
7 to below 12 years
|
2 717
|
2 676
|
2 638
|
2 615
|
12 to below 18 years
|
701
|
861
|
1 046
|
1 290
|
Total
|
3 418
|
3 537
|
3 684
|
3 905
|
Education system
- Most
children in Singapore begin their education in kindergartens or childcare
centres before proceeding to primary schools for their
formal education.
In 1998, there were 421 kindergartens, all privately run, with 104,464
pupils. There were 567 childcare centres
as at March 2000. By the age of 18
years, students would have completed their secondary, vocational and
post-secondary education
and would have almost completed polytechnic education.
To make these different forms of education available and accessible to every
child, 199 primary schools, 152 secondary schools, 14 junior colleges
(JCs), 2 centralized institutes (CIs), 14 institutes of technical
education
(ITE) centres and 4 polytechnics had been established as at February 1999. The
current pupil per teacher ratio is presented
in the table
below.
Table 26. Number of pupils per teacher
|
1989
|
1994
|
1995
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
Primary
|
26
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
25
|
25
|
25
|
Secondary
|
22
|
22
|
23
|
22
|
21
|
20
|
19
|
Source. Yearbook of Statistics 2000.
- Pupils
attend school regularly. When they show signs of dropping out of school, it is
viewed with deep concern by the school authorities.
School principals and
teachers do their utmost to give close attention to these pupils at risk and
their parents. They are counselled
by teachers and, in some cases, by
professional counsellors. If these efforts fail, the cases can be referred to
the self-help groups
of the various ethnic communities in Singapore for
assistance. These groups are often able to do more as families identify better
with them. Even if the efforts of these groups fail, the principals will still
readmit such pupils if they want to rejoin the school
system within a reasonable
period of time. The percentage of pupils dropping out of school is small. In
1997, out of 467,523 pupils
in the primary and secondary schools, 1,798
(0.38 per cent) left school prematurely. In 1998, out of a population
of 467,106 pupils
in primary and secondary schools, 1,580 (0.34 per cent) left
school prematurely. There are various efforts to reach out to pupils
who have
dropped out of school by the National Youth Council and other organizations with
a view to helping these children and preventing
them from getting into trouble.
School curriculum
- The
school curriculum and the duration of schooling are customized to suit the
differing abilities of the pupils. There are differentiated
courses in the
primary, secondary and postsecondary stages to allow pupils of different
abilities to learn at a pace suitable to
them so that they can develop to their
fullest potential. Both male and female students follow a common curriculum.
For those inclined
towards technical studies, the various Institutes of
Technical Education (ITEs) provide a wide range of courses in technical and
business subjects where pupils undergo systematic and structured training
programmes, lasting between one and two years. The training
combines classroom
instruction in basic technical and commercial theory with practical application
sessions in workshops, laboratories
and simulated industrial settings.
- In
the school, the students are provided with a curriculum that will enable them to
keep in step with Singapore’s modern economy.
English, mathematics and
science and information technology are given emphasis. To ensure that our
pupils are in touch with their
Asian heritage, the mother tongue is also given
due emphasis. Values are taught directly through civics and moral education
(CME),
and indirectly through subjects like general paper, and language and
literature lessons. The rights of individuals and groups are
given due
recognition. The concept of equal treatment for all, regardless of race,
language and religion, gender and socio-economic
status, is taught and
practised. In CME, the rights of the citizen are also discussed under the topic
of citizenship. Topics like
religions and festivals emphasize the right of
every individual to choose and practise his religion. Respect and tolerance are
highlighted
and strongly encouraged in the light of Singapore’s
multiracial and multi-religious society.
- The
importance of the family and filial responsibility are also inculcated in
pupils. The teaching of CME includes components on
the family where issues like
family harmony and communication, roles in the family and responsible parenthood
are focused on. The
pupils are taught moral concepts such as family unity,
love, respect and care for elders, communicating and cooperating with family
members, sharing household responsibilities and upholding the sanctity of
marriage and the importance of parenthood.
- To
keep in step with developments in information technology, schools are equipped
with computers. Pupils are trained to use them.
More computer software is also
being used in teaching. Teachers and pupils also have access to the
Internet.
- Community
service was made an integral part of our school curriculum in 1997. The
Community Involvement Programme (CIP) gives the
opportunity to each pupil in JCs
and CIs to participate meaningfully in contributing to the community for at
least six hours per
year. By participating in the programme, they imbibe values
such as commitment to community and country, respect for people of diverse
beliefs, languages and cultures, care for the environment and concern and
compassion for others. The programme also helps pupils
prepare for adulthood so
that they can take their place in society as responsible and good citizens on
whom the nation can depend
in the future.
- The
responsibility for caring for our natural environment is not overlooked in
educating our children. The primary, secondary and
pre-university curricula
have topics on appreciation of the natural environment, ecological foundations,
managing natural resources,
study of pollution and environmental health and
management. These topics are taught during English, science, health education,
social
studies, civics and moral education, home economics, geography and
general paper lessons. To reinforce pupils’ awareness of
the need to
respect and care for the environment, schools have encouraged their pupils to
clear litter in parks and on beaches periodically.
A pilot project to allow
primary school pupils to be involved in the maintenance of parks and to use it
as a learning resource was
launched in 1997, involving two primary schools. In
1998, three more primary schools, two secondary schools and one junior college
participated in the project.
- Singapore
schools, ITEs, polytechnics and universities have well-trained teachers and good
teaching and learning facilities. They
nurture and train pupils to enable them
to cope with the demands of the modern economy and, as adult citizens later on,
with the
expectations of a modern nation. Visitors from the region and the
world visit the Ministry of Education and our educational institutions
to learn
how the system is implemented. The National Institute of Education, which is
the training agency for teachers, also provides
training for schoolteachers from
Brunei and the Maldives.
Gifted Education Programme (GEP)
- The
GEP was implemented in Singapore in 1984 as it was recognized that there are
pupils who are intellectually gifted and that there
should be provisions to meet
their needs. These pupils would have the opportunity to develop at their own
pace commensurate with
their intellectual ability and to achieve their own
potential.
- The
GEP is essentially an enrichment programme. The enrichment programme is based
on the syllabus of the national curriculum for
regular classes. In the GEP,
topics are dealt with in greater depth and breadth. Greater emphasis is placed
on the development
of creativity as well as critical thinking, problem-solving
and enquiry skills. Pupils are encouraged to work independently on projects.
They also have the opportunity to work with specialists in creative writing,
the humanities, information technology and the sciences through
mentorship programmes. Besides developing the intellectual capabilities
of the
pupils, a concern of the GEP is also developing pupils to be socially aware and
to be committed to contributing to society.
- The
GEP starts at primary 4 and ends at secondary 4. There are two entry points to
join the GEP; at primary 4 and secondary 1. GEP
pupils are placed in special
classes in mainstream schools, where they are able to interact with their
schoolmates through participation
in other programmes and co-curricular
activities.
Community and parental involvement
- To
provide a platform for schools, parents and the community to work together, a
national-level advisory council, COMPASS (Community
and Parents in Support of
Schools), was formed in January 1999. It is chaired by the Education Minister.
It draws its members from
amongst principals, parents and the community. It
aims:
− To actively encourage parents and the community to work together with
schools to help children learn better;
− To be a forum where best practices on collaborative efforts of schools,
homes and community in education can surface and
be propagated;
− To act as Ministry of Education’s first public audience for
feedback on policies and programmes on parent and community
support for schools;
and
− To help the Ministry of Education communicate various messages relevant
to schoolhome-community collaborations.
- The
formation of COMPASS is based on a recognition that the total education of the
child depends on an active alliance of school,
parents and the community. While
the community at large supports education by contributing services, funds and
resources, there
remains a significant proportion of parents who find it
difficult to participate in their children’s total development due
to the
parents’ lack of education, time or confidence. On the other hand, there
are parents who want a say in their children’s
education, and
relationships between these parents and teachers may come under strain should
there be divergent views. COMPASS thus
provides the opportunity for parents and
the community to work together with schools for the benefit of
children.
- To
this end, COMPASS has published a document, “Stakeholders in
Education”, which outlines the roles and qualities expected
of each
stakeholder - the child her-/himself, her/his parents and family, her/his
teachers, her/his principal, MOE HQ, the community,
business and industry, the
Alumni Association, as well as the School Advisory/Management Committee - in
helping the child learn and
grow. With these statements, there will be a common
understanding of the type of partnerships that can be undertaken and how the
respective roles can be fulfilled.
Teachers
- The
National Institute of Education (NIE) is responsible for the initial as well as
ongoing training of teachers. It plays a pivotal
role in ensuring that teachers
develop the right values and attitudes, and are equipped to perform their roles
and responsibilities
effectively.
- In
March 1998, a Committee[21]
was set up to review the role of training for teachers and to better prepare
teachers for future challenges. The Government recognizes
that the teacher is
instrumental in everything that is carried out in the area of education and that
success in educating children
and youth depends critically on how well equipped
the teachers are in carrying out their roles. The Committee also acknowledges
the challenge of change facing teachers. Teacher training is thus now conceived
as separate initial teacher training and continual
teacher training to meet the
respective required levels of quality and professionalism. The findings and
recommendations arising
from this Committee would serve as an important road map
for the schools, the NIE and the MOE to realign the teacher training system
to
meet the needs of the education system for the twenty-first
century.
- To
attract and retain good teachers, the MOE aims to recruit from the top one third
of each cohort. The Ministry will proactively
market teaching scholarships and
awards, and look into ways to improve the terms and conditions of service as
well as look after
the well-being of teachers. It is hoped that these measures
would create a good pool of professional resources to meet the needs
of the
students, where the skills and competencies of each child would be assessed
individually to suit his own needs.
B. Leisure, recreation and cultural activities (art.
31)
- Children
in Singapore enjoy equal rights to participate in cultural and artistic
activities with adults. In fact, more efforts and
resources are channelled to
instil in them an interest in the arts, and to enable them to acquire some
skills. We also hope to deepen
their appreciation of the arts, in line with our
objective of building a gracious society.
- Singapore
aims to be a global city of the arts, hosting the best of the East and West and
presenting home-grown productions of an
international standard. Coupled with a
range of cultural activities, Singaporeans are encouraged to lead healthy lives
through recreational
activities and sports. Comprehensive facilities are
developed to support a wide variety of activities.
The arts
- The
National Arts Council[22]
(NAC) promotes appreciation of the arts among young Singaporeans. To nurture
and provide assistance to aspiring talents, NAC provides
bursaries and
scholarships to pursue their interests in the various art forms. In 1998,
S$ 3.7 million (US$ 2.3 million) were given
out through 19
financial assistance schemes. These schemes are categorized under training and
general grants. Twenty full scholarships,
101 bursaries and 32 training
grants worth a total of over S$ 1 million (US$ 630,000) were awarded
to promising artists, arts students
and arts groups for training and skills
upgrading. General grants worth S$ 2.6 million
(US$ 1.6 million) were given to support the
productions, exhibitions
and literary productions undertaken locally or overseas by 82 local artists and
125 arts groups.
- Under
the biennial Singapore Festival of the Arts that the NAC organizes, there are
performances suitable for the young. As part
of the Festival’s fringe
events, there is also a week of exciting and varied arts activities called
“Fringe for Kids”.
From time to time, the NAC also brings in good
quality overseas programmes suitable for children.
- The
NAC launched the Arts Education Programme (AEP) in schools in 1993 with the aim
of promoting an appreciation of the arts among
young Singaporeans. The Council
hopes to give every student the opportunity of exposure to and experience in the
arts. In 1998,
180,000 students in more than 200 schools participated in
1,450 activities. The AEP comprises six main art forms, music,
theatre,
dance, literature, the visual arts and film, and three themes:
(a) Arts Exposure. Arts Exposure programmes introduce
students to a particular art form. They are approximately 30 to 40 minutes long
and are presented
in one of the following formats:
(i) Performances, usually accompanied by an explanation about the background and
development of the art form; and
(ii) Talk-cum-demonstration;
(b) Arts Experience.
These go one step further by providing opportunities for students to participate
in the various art forms. More suitable for smaller
groups of students, they
are designed to be interactive, and to help build confidence, skills and expand
students’ capacity
for creative thinking. Some programmes take the form
of theatre-in-education, which helps students explore topical issues related
to
themselves, friends, family and society. School texts can also be made more
interesting through drama-in-education programmes;
(c) Arts Excursions. Arts Excursions recognizes that an environment
totally different from a classroom setting would increase students’
interest
in learning. Arts Excursions allow students to attend performances at
formal performing venues, so they can visit museums, arts
centres and theatres
and participate in outdoor arts events. With Arts Excursions, students can
visit artists’ studios or
rehearsal space to get a behind-the-scenes
glimpse at the work and a chance to talk to artists, musicians, playwrights,
directors,
actors, administrators and organizers.
- Apart
from the programmes organized by the NAC, many children are actively involved in
school choirs, school plays and performances.
Many children in Singapore also
attend art, drama and music classes organized by community centres and art
societies.
- To
expand the range of post-secondary educational opportunities available in the
arts, the Government has extended funding for diploma
courses conducted by the
LaSalle-SIA College of the Arts and the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, which are
tertiary institutions specializing
in arts education. The Government is also
supporting the development of new or upgraded facilities for these institutions.
To further
encourage the development of the arts scene, a new Institute of the
Arts (ITA) has been set up in the National University of Singapore
(NUS) to
conduct degree-level performing arts programmes in
2001.
Sports
- The
promotion of sports and recreational activities and programmes for children come
under the purview of both the Ministry of Education
and the Singapore Sports
Council (SSC).
- In
organizing its programmes and activities, the Singapore Sports Council considers
their appropriateness to the age of the various
participants. The SSC works
closely with various community organizations and sports associations which offer
many programmes to
children and youths such as coaching assistance in specific
sports as well as financial assistance for talented school athletes.
The
SSC’s Learn-to-Play programmes for various sports and games are open to
all members of the public, including children.
Children use SSC’s public
sports facilities, such as swimming pools and badminton and tennis courts, at
concessionary rates.
- The
SSC had its first conference on women in sports in Singapore in March 1999. The
conference recognizes the potential for sport
and physical activity to impact
positively on women’s and girls’ lives, and highlights the
importance of enhancing sporting
opportunities for women and girls to
participate fully in sports at all levels and in all functions and roles. It
provided a platform
to discuss the constraints faced by women and girls today in
their quest for sports excellence in an effort to devise strategies
to encourage
more women and girls in Singapore to come forward and participate actively in
sport and exercise.
- To
provide the pupils with a well-rounded education, co-curricular activities (CCA)
are carried out in schools. The objectives of
CCA include the promotion of
physical health and development, the inculcation of moral, cultural and
aesthetic development, and the
development of self- and group-discipline and
group loyalty. These objectives are achieved through a host of activities
subsumed
under three categories, viz. sports and games, uniformed groups and the
arts, which include music and dance.
- In
primary schools, participation in CCA is encouraged. Schools select activities
that appeal to pupils’ interest in sports
and games, uniformed groups and
the arts. CCA is mandatory in secondary schools. Every school is expected to
plan and implement
a suitable, effective and meaningful CCA programme which is
geared towards mass participation and which provides the more inclined
to
develop their potential to the fullest. Pupils are required to choose one CCA
from the list of core activities comprising sports
and games, uniformed groups
and cultural activities. Ample time is given to these activities outside school
hours and pupils are
trained to hone their skills and knowledge in them.
- In
many of these activities, inter-school competitions are conducted and pupils are
able to show their skills and talents. The culmination
of the CCA programme is
showcased at the annual Singapore Youth Festival where the schools, JCs and CIs
take part to display their
achievements in areas such as music, dance and drama
performances, band displays, and arts and crafts exhibitions. In all the
activities,
the ability and talent of the pupils are clearly
shown.
C. General comments
Education
- The
Singapore Government realizes that the nation’s continued success depends
on how well it prepares its people, particularly
our children, for the
challenges ahead. Singapore has always placed a premium on education, and will
continue to invest heavily
in the young. Plans for the future include an
emphasis on ability-driven education, to help each child recognize and make use
of
his or her talents and abilities. To do so, first there is identification
and development of individual talents and abilities.
Secondly, there is
harnessing of talents and abilities, the inculcation of national values and
social instincts in our young so as
to allow them to contribute their talents
actively for the good of society and the community.
- The
Government intends to put in place a conducive school environment to achieve the
desired outcomes of education, which focus on
the holistic development of the
pupil as an individual and citizen. There will be emphasis on the physical
environment as well as
systems and structures that impact on how teaching and
learning takes place. The curriculum will continue to be revised to infuse
thinking skills and incorporate the use of IT in the design and delivery of
syllabi. The new syllabi have been phased in from 2001
onwards, along with
systemic changes to teaching strategies and learning resources. To provide
students with opportunities to integrate
knowledge, skills and values learnt in
class, project work will be implemented in a nonassessment mode in all schools
in 2001. The
current system of assessments will also be reviewed to meet
Singapore’s objective of developing creative independent learners.
A new
university admissions system to be implemented from 2003, for example, will not
rely on A-level results but make a more holistic
evaluation of a person’s
potential.
- In
Singapore, where parents place much emphasis on education, the non-education of
children is not a problem. Nevertheless, the Government
and the community are
concerned about the small number of children who are not enrolled in primary 1
by parents or who drop out
of school. The introduction of compulsory education from 2003 onwards is an
indication of the Government’s commitment to ensure
that the potential and
development of every child in Singapore is being looked into.
Pre-school education
- MOE
will be more involved in pre-school education, investing in curriculum design
and teacher training, conducting research and tightening
regulations. Pilot
research will also be conducted to ascertain the most effective way for MOE to
work with pre-school centres to
prepare children for school
learning.
- A
Steering Committee on Pre-School Education has been formed to oversee the
necessary changes that will help raise the quality of
pre-school education in
Singapore. The committee will come up with an overall policy framework for the
development of pre-school
education in Singapore. This will include the desired
outcomes of pre-school education in Singapore, developmentally appropriate
pre-school curricula, the planning and implementation of pilot research
projects, the establishment of systems and structures for
the training of
preschool teachers, and tightening of regulations for pre-schools and
kindergartens.
IX. SPECIAL PROTECTION MEASURES
- The
Singapore Constitution and laws accord protection for the vulnerable against
exploitation and abuse, and individuals against unlawful or arbitrary
deprivation
of liberty. Singapore does not tolerate exploitation of those who
are vulnerable, particularly where it concerns children and women
and
girls.
- This
chapter touches on children in situations of emergency, children in conflict
with the law, children in situations of exploitation,
and children belonging to
a minority or indigenous group.
A. Children in situations of emergency
1. Refugee children (art. 22)
- Singapore
is geographically one of the smallest independent countries in the world and one
of the most densely populated. With limited
land and natural resources and the
need to keep our population size manageable, Singapore is unable to be as
forthcoming in accommodating
refugees as other developed countries with greater
physical land area and greater resources. As such, Singapore’s
immigration
policy does not allow the entry and resettlement of refugees or
accept anyone who claims to be a refugee, whether on economic or
political
grounds. The Republic of Singapore accordingly reserves the right to apply such
legislation and conditions concerning
the entry into, stay in and departure from
the Republic of Singapore of those who do not or who no longer have the right
under the
laws of the Republic of Singapore to enter and remain in the Republic
of Singapore, and to the acquisition and possession of citizenship,
as it may
deem necessary from time to time and in accordance with the laws of the Republic
of Singapore.
- Notwithstanding
its position, Singapore had accommodated and facilitated the resettlement of the
Vietnamese boat people through the
setting up of a camp in 1978, i.e. the
Hawkins Road Camp which was administered by UNHCR. A camp administrator took
charge of the
day-to-day running of the camp. Language and vocational classes
conducted by wives of expatriates or voluntary teachers were arranged
at the
camp for the refugees. Items such as food and clothes donated by charitable
organizations were distributed to the refugees.
Unlike other camps in the
region, the Hawkins Road Camp was not a closed camp. The refugees were allowed
to leave the camp between
certain hours of the day. Camp passes were issued for
the purpose. Unfortunately, some misused the privilege and took up illegal
employment outside the camp.
- The
camp accommodated about 30,000 refugees. They were resettled except for a
residential lot of about 20 families who stayed at
the camp from 1990 to 1996.
This was because third countries had reneged on their unconditional written
guarantees to resettle them
within three months of their arrival in 1990.
During their stay at the camp, seven couples married. There were 19 deliveries
of
babies either at government or private hospitals.
- With
the decision by UNHCR to close the camp on 30 June 1996, the remaining refugees
returned by flight to Ho Chi Minh City on 27
June 1996. The refugees went home
with an average of US$ 1,852 (S$ 3,000) in savings, with one person having saved
as much as US$
11,111 (S$ 18,000). As a gesture of goodwill, the Singapore
Government gave them each US$ 760.
2. Protection of children in armed conflicts (art. 38)
- Singapore
is a party to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and has enacted the Geneva
Conventions Act to implement the Geneva Conventions.
The Geneva Convention (IV)
relating to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War contains
provisions for the protection
of children in armed conflicts.
- Only
persons above 16 years and 6 months are subject to the Enlistment Act and in
practice, only those who have reached the age of
18 years are enlisted for
National Service.
3. Physical and psychological recovery and social
reintegration (art. 39)
- The
social and psychological recovery and social reintegration of child victims of
abuse, exploitation and neglect have been incorporated
under article 19
above.
- Singapore
has not been involved in an armed conflict since achieving independence. The
provision concerning the physical and psychological
recovery and social
reintegration of a child victim of armed conflicts has not been applicable in
our context thus far.
B. Children in conflict with the law
1. Administration of juvenile justice (art. 40)
- In
1994, the Government set up an Inter-Ministry Committee on Dysfunctional
Families, Juvenile Delinquency and Drug Abuse to look
at, among other matters,
the problem of juvenile delinquency and the family in Singapore. The Committee
also considered measures
for the prevention and treatment of juvenile
delinquency and to enhance family life. The Government was concerned that
juvenile
delinquency was symptomatic of more serious family problems. The
recommendations to address the concerns have since been implemented
or are in
the process of being implemented. In addition, an Inter-Ministry Committee on
Youth Crime (IMYC), chaired by a senior
State minister, provides an ongoing
focus on the issues affecting juveniles and youth. It looks at and recommends
policies and programmes
for the prevention and treatment of juvenile delinquency
and youth crimes.
- Pre-emptive
measures are taken to educate and inform teenagers about the serious
consequences of joining gangs. Counselling is given
to at-risk groups of youths
who are highly likely to join gangs. Talks on repercussions of joining gangs
are conducted in schools.
Visits to prisons are organized for at-risk youths by
the police to give them an insight into the serious consequences of taking
the
wrong path.
Procedure and provisions for investigation of
offences
- There
is a presumption of innocence under Singapore’s criminal laws. The State
has to prove a case against a person (child
and adult alike) charged with a
criminal offence. The minimum age of criminal liability is 7 years. (Please
see the section “Definition
of the Child”.)
- The
protection against retrospective criminal laws is found in article 11 of the
Constitution and applies to all accused persons regardless of age. The Penal
Code, Evidence Act and Children and Young Persons Act (C&YP Act) contain
provisions relating to criminal laws and procedure applicable to trials
of
children and young persons. The entire thrust of the C&YP Act is to set in
place a separate system for the juvenile offender
and to shield the juvenile
from the harsher regime for older offenders who are prosecuted in our courts.
The juvenile justice system
places emphasis on restorative justice,
rehabilitation and reintegration of the child into the family and society.
Treatment focuses
on the best interest of the child and institutionalization is
considered as a last resort. Juveniles below 16 years of age are not
committed
to prisons for adults but institutions specially set up for the reception and
treatment of juvenile offenders. Such institutions
come under the purview of
the Ministry of Community Development and Sports. Only under special
circumstances are juveniles aged
14 years and above committed to institutions
administered by the Prisons Department. This applies to situations when the
offence
is of a very serious nature and the behaviour or character of the
juvenile is so depraved that the juvenile is deemed unsuitable
for treatment in
a juvenile institution, i.e. where the juvenile would pose a danger to other
juveniles or be disruptive to the rehabilitation
of other
juveniles.
- The
right to be informed of the charges against anyone (including a juvenile) is
found in article 9 (3) of the Constitution. Criminal trials are
provided under our judicial system with legal representation as of right. The
juvenile is free to engage any
counsel of his/her choice to challenge the
legality of the deprivation of liberty before a court. Article 12 of the
Constitution and the Criminal Procedure Code provide adequate guarantees to the
ends stated in the article.
- Under
Singapore law, although an accused person may choose to remain silent, an
adverse inference may be drawn. An accused person
cannot be compelled to
confess to his guilt and is entitled to cross-examine his witnesses and also to
call witnesses to support
his case. Judicial appeal and review are available to
any child found guilty by a trial court. The accused is given the services
of
an interpreter if he/she requires one.
- There
is restriction on coverage on television and in newspapers of proceedings in the
Juvenile Court which would reveal the identity
of the juvenile, unless the
Juvenile Court or the Minister for Community Development and Sports is of the
view that such restrictions
should be lifted in the interest of justice. The
Court also has power to order that a case be heard in camera when the
circumstances
of the case so require.
- The
arrest, detention or imprisonment of juveniles are measures of last resort.
When a juvenile below 16 years old is arrested for
any offence, his/her parents
will be informed of the arrest and requested to go to the police station. The
investigation officer
(IO) has to complete his preliminary investigations in
four hours and release the juvenile on bail to the custody of the parents.
Strict timelines for trials, usually two weeks from the time parties indicate
readiness to take hearing dates, are observed. Efforts
are made to find out the
background of the juvenile. If he/she is a student, a school report will be
sought from the school; statements
from parents are also recorded to gauge
his/her behaviour at home. The IO will record statements of witnesses and
complainants and
will find out whether he/she is a first-time offender. After
the completion of investigations, the case is referred to the
Attorney-General’s
Chambers with the police’s recommendations on
whether prosecution should be initiated against the juvenile. If the decision
is to issue a warning to the juvenile, the Head Investigation Officer will
formally warn him/her in the presence of his parents.
- The
police prosecute juveniles in court based on the severity of the offence. If
the decision is made to charge him/her, he/she will
appear in the Juvenile Court
should he/she be under 16 years of age on the date of the court appearance. If
above 16 years of age,
he/she will appear in the subordinate courts. In the
event of a conviction, the court will sentence the juvenile within the limits
of
the law.
Diversionary measures for treatment of juvenile
offenders
- Diversionary
measures are available to the police and the Attorney-General’s Chambers
for young offenders who they intend to
let off with a caution. Examples are the
Guidance Programme (GP) and the Streetwise Programme.
Guidance Programme (GP)
- The
Guidance Programme (GP) is a six-month counselling and rehabilitation programme
for juveniles who are let off with a police caution
instead of being charged in
court for offences committed. Juveniles are helped to recognize the seriousness
and consequences of
their acts, and to acquire life skills such as self-control,
handling of peer pressure and conflict resolution. Parents of these
juveniles
are guided with respect to necessary skills and knowledge to be more effective
in the parenting and supervision of their
children. The GP comprises
counselling, group sessions and support groups for the juvenile, the parents and
other family members.
Other activities such as recreational and community
service activities are also provided.
Streetwise Programme (SWP)
- The
Streetwise Programme (SWP) is a developmental programme aimed at changing the
behaviour of youths who have unwittingly drifted
into gangs. It is a six-month
structured programme that includes elements of counselling, family conferencing,
peer support, recreation
and academic activities. The programme aims to help
youth turn over a new leaf and gain a fresh start in life. Main sources of
referrals for the SWP include police referrals for nonoffenders and referrals
from the court. It is part of the community-based
treatment programme for
youths placed on probation for committing gang-related offences. It is also
targeted at youths who are looking
for help to get out of
gangs.
Treatment of juvenile offenders charged in court
- Where
a juvenile is prosecuted and convicted in court, there is a wide variety of
communitybased and residential orders which the
court may make, e.g.
supervision, probation, care of a “fit
person”,[23] detention
centres, approved schools, weekend detention, community service order and
reformatory training centres. The court may
also undertake some pre-court
measures such as family conferencing. Family conferencing is a process which
provides an opportunity
for the juvenile to understand the seriousness of the
offending behaviour, to accept responsibility for the offending behaviour,
to
address the issue of family and community accountability, to contribute to the
cautioning process if possible, and to make possible
reparation compensation to
the victim.
- The
philosophy underlying the treatment of juveniles is that all community-based
options have to be considered. Institutionalization
should be the last resort.
When juveniles are committed to institutions for rehabilitation, the ultimate
aim of the institutional
programme is to reintegrate them into society. This is
achieved through the inculcation of discipline, desirable social values,
education and marketable skills. Each juvenile is viewed as unique. Individual
treatment plans are formulated and implemented to
address the potential for the
rehabilitation of each resident.
- Family
and community involvement are essential components of the rehabilitation process
and the reintegration of children into society.
Parents participate in
orientation programmes, counselling sessions, workshops, group sessions and
parent-support groups,
regardless of whether the juvenile is placed in a community-based or
residential programme. The Government works closely with civic
and grass-roots
organizations, voluntary welfare organizations, individual volunteers, schools
and employers to develop a network
of services to supplement and support the
rehabilitation process and to provide a continuum of services and programmes.
2. Protection against torture and related ill-treatment or
punishment;
deprivation of liberty (art. 37 (b), (c) and
(d))
- This
provision imposes an obligation on States parties to protect all children from
any form of physical harm, whether in the form
of treatment or punishment.
Capital punishment or life imprisonment without release is prohibited for those
aged 18 years and below.
Singapore’s domestic laws, i.e. the Penal Code,
the C&YP Act and the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC), comply fully with
the
obligation. The C&YP Act contains comprehensive provisions to protect the
overall well-being of the child as well as against
trafficking in children. The
CPC provides that no person of 18 years and below is liable to be punished with
the capital penalty
while those between the ages of 7 and 16 years can only be
caned with a lighter rod. The Penal Code also states that no act of a
child
below 7 years of age is an offence. Our penal laws recognize the importance of
rehabilitation of offenders. Hence, remission
of sentences, including life
sentences leading to early release from prison, is possible for all offenders.
While the Juvenile Court
has powers to order detention in approved schools or
approved homes for fixed periods for juveniles, the Minister is empowered under
the C&YP Act to order the early release of children from such detention if
there are reasons to warrant the early release.
- As
mentioned above under article 37 (a), persons who are below the age of 18 years
at the time of commission of a serious offence
can be detained during the
President’s pleasure in lieu of the death penalty. There is no legal
minimum or maximum period
of detention. The cases of those detained are
reviewed every four years and a report is forwarded to the Minister for Home
Affairs
and the President. After the tenth year of detention, the review is
carried out annually. Recommendations for release will be made
by the Prisons
Department and forwarded to the Minister. The prisoner will be released upon an
order from the President.
- Article
9 (1) of our Constitution states that no person shall be deprived of life or
personal liberty save in accordance with law. Article 9 (2) states that where
a
complaint is made to the High Court that a person is being unlawfully detained,
the Court shall order him/her to be produced before
the Court and released,
unless the detention is lawful. These are safeguards in our Constitution
against unlawful or arbitrary deprivation of liberty. Article 9 (3) of the
Constitution also provides that a person arrested should be informed, as soon as
may be, of the grounds for arrest and allowed to consult a legal
practitioner of
choice. The person arrested has to be produced before a magistrate within 48
hours.
- Arrested
persons below 16 years of age have to be brought before a Juvenile Court. Where
this is not possible, the arresting officer
shall bring the person before a
magistrate without unnecessary delay. The magistrate shall release that person
on a bond unless
the charge is one which can only be tried by the High Court, or
it is necessary to remove the person from association with undesirable
people,
or the ends of justice would be defeated by the person’s release. These
provisions in the C&YP Act are in line
with article 37 (b).
- It
must be noted that not all persons arrested for committing offences are
eventually charged in court. In many cases, the police,
at the direction of the
Attorney-General’s Chambers, may administer a stern warning to juveniles
or minors instead of prosecuting
them. The police may place a juvenile in the
Guidance Programme instead of prosecuting the juvenile. Warning and placement
in the
Guidance Programme is done on a case-by-case basis.
- The
1997 and 1998 statistics on arrests of juveniles and those between 16 and 19
years showed that a sizeable number of juveniles
were involved in serious
offences such as outraging modesty and rioting (see tables
below).
Table 27. No. of juveniles (7-15 years) arrested, charged and
convicted
in court for seizable offences in 1997 and 1998
|
Arrested
|
Charged
|
Convicted
|
Pending
|
1997
|
2 147
|
213
|
87
|
123
|
1998
|
2 242
|
183
|
11
|
172
|
Table 28. No. of persons aged 16-19 years arrested, charged
and convicted
in court for seizable offences in 1997 and
1998
|
Arrested
|
Charged
|
Convicted
|
Pending
|
1997
|
2 265
|
617
|
237
|
350
|
1998
|
2 154
|
597
|
50
|
545
|
- The
C&YP Act provides a wide array of sentencing options for the Juvenile Court.
The C&YP Act states that a “child”
shall not be imprisoned and
that a young person shall not be imprisoned for any offence unless the Court
certifies that he/she is
of so unruly a character that he/she cannot be detained
in a place of detention or an approved school which are facilities for the
treatment of juvenile offenders who are below 16 years of age at time of
committal. Detention is imposed only as a last resort and
for the shortest
period of time to enable rehabilitation. The Act also provides that children
and young persons being detained,
conveyed to a court or awaiting trial shall
not associate with adult offenders. A panel of advisers comprising prominent
individuals
appointed by the President advises the Juvenile Court magistrate on
treatment of juveniles brought before the Juvenile Court.
- Child
offenders who are detained have the right to legal and other appropriate
assistance and to challenge their detention in the
High Court. Such actions are
always heard speedily. There is no criminal legal aid scheme provided by the
State. The only free
criminal legal aid is provided by the Singapore Law
Society under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme.
- A
young offender who attains the age of 16 by the time the case comes up for
hearing in the Juvenile Court may be referred to a District
Court to be
considered for reformative training. The District Court may either sentence
him/her to reformative training or deal
with him/her in a manner similar to that
adopted by the Juvenile Court.
- Detention
under the Misuse of Drugs Act, Internal Security Act and Criminal Law (Temporary
Provisions) Act is done in accordance with the law. Singapore has made a
declaration
that article 37 does not prohibit the application of any prevailing
measures prescribed by law for maintaining law and order or measures
and
restrictions which are prescribed by law and which are necessary in the
interests of national security, public safety and public
order (see paragraph 2
of the Instrument of Accession). This declaration sets out Singapore’s
position in relation to the
issue of solitary confinement in detention centres
and prisons as well as corporal punishment in juvenile homes, prisons and drug
rehabilitation centres.
Institutions for children and young persons who are
offenders
- If
institutionalization is deemed necessary by the court, an offender below the age
of 16 years is generally committed into institutions
for children and
young persons unless the offence committed is of a very serious nature and the
behaviour of the juvenile is so depraved
that he/she is deemed unsuitable for
treatment in a juvenile institution. These institutions are administered either
by the Ministry
of Community Development and Sports (MCDS) for juveniles who
need a more structured environment for their rehabilitation, or by voluntary
welfare organizations for juveniles who have committed milder offences and are
less problematic in their behaviour. Institutionalization
is considered only as
a last resort for juvenile offenders and is invoked only when community-based
facilities are deemed unsuitable.
Committal into these institutions is for
either two or three years.
- The
emphasis of programmes in these institutions is on rehabilitation, restorative
justice, and the best interest of the juveniles.
Programmes include education,
vocational training, group sessions, individual counselling, moral and religious
education and recreational
and sports activities. Individual needs of the
juveniles are addressed to prepare for their eventual reintegration into society
and with a view to inculcating discipline, desirable social skills and values,
and life skills. The treatment process does not concentrate
on juveniles alone,
but involves parents and significant family members at every stage of the
rehabilitation process. The support
and involvement of schools, community,
civic and social groups and individuals are also enlisted. Parents, siblings
and significant
relatives are encouraged to visit the juveniles, either weekly
or fortnightly, depending on the institution. These juveniles are
also allowed
to go on home leave after some months of stay subject to good behaviour. The
frequency of home leave (once a month,
once a fortnight, weekly) depends on the
progress made by the juveniles.
- Corporal
punishment is allowed in these juvenile institutions. However, the
administration of corporal punishment is guided by Regulations
under the
C&YP Act. Only the Superintendent or, in his absence, an authorized person
can administer corporal punishment. Solitary
confinement is only for very
unruly and difficult residents and is also guided by the Regulations of the
C&YP Act. Punishment
of residents is subject to several conditions: the
separated resident must not be below 12 years old; the confinement room must
be
bright, airy and kept lighted after dark; the separated resident must be able to
communicate with staff of the school or home
during separation; and the resident
must not be separated for more than 24 hours except with prior approval of the
Director. A Board
of Visitors comprising prominent members
of the public is appointed by the Minister for Community Development and
Sports under the C&YP Act. The Board ensures that standards
are maintained
and the well-being of the children are catered to in the approved schools,
approved homes, places of detention, places
of safety and remand facilities for
children. Members of the Board of Visitors make regular unannounced visits to
these institutions
to check on them.
- All
cases of juvenile offenders who have completed one year of stay in these homes
are reviewed by an Advisory
Board.[24] If the progress
of a juvenile is satisfactory, the juvenile can be considered for early release
on licence and placed under the
care of an aftercare officer for the remaining
portion of the detention order. The aim is to help juveniles return to their
families
and society at the first appropriate opportunity after 12 months of
stay. The table below shows a breakdown in the admissions to
juvenile homes by
gender and type of offence.
Table 29. No. of admissions to homes administered by MCDS by
gender and case type
|
Males
|
Females
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
2000
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
2000
|
Theft/stolen property
|
94
|
112
|
97
|
190
|
105
|
20
|
11
|
23
|
23
|
24
|
Theft of motor vehicles
|
19
|
11
|
12
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
3
|
-
|
0
|
Housebreaking
|
13
|
20
|
17
|
18
|
10
|
-
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Affray/causing hurt
|
15
|
14
|
6
|
9
|
6
|
2
|
3
|
1
|
3
|
5
|
Robbery/extortion
|
26
|
21
|
30
|
33
|
7
|
10
|
3
|
9
|
5
|
1
|
Rioting
|
15
|
35
|
14
|
32
|
7
|
4
|
10
|
3
|
3
|
4
|
Unlawful assembly
|
20
|
53
|
34
|
29
|
9
|
1
|
3
|
5
|
1
|
0
|
Possession of offensive weapons
|
3
|
16
|
10
|
11
|
2
|
-
|
-
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
Beyond parental control
|
11
|
18
|
14
|
18
|
11
|
30
|
39
|
42
|
26
|
30
|
Child protection order
|
2
|
-
|
2
|
-
|
1
|
2
|
-
|
6
|
5
|
2
|
Women’s Charter
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
1
|
8
|
5
|
6
|
10
|
Smoking/possession of tobacco products
|
2
|
2
|
17
|
19
|
11
|
1
|
-
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
Others
|
26
|
28
|
18
|
39
|
35
|
2
|
2
|
9
|
5
|
10
|
Outrage against modesty/carnal connection
|
3
|
7
|
7
|
1
|
12
|
-
|
-
|
0
|
0
|
-
|
Culpable homicide
|
2
|
1
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Drugs
|
5
|
8
|
8
|
5
|
3
|
3
|
11
|
4
|
3
|
5
|
Mischief/illegal hawking
|
-
|
-
|
16
|
14
|
7
|
-
|
-
|
0
|
-
|
0
|
Total
|
256
|
346
|
302
|
418
|
226
|
76
|
91
|
110
|
84
|
92
|
Institutions for those above 16 years and difficult
juveniles
- Singapore
has a medium-security institution for the rehabilitation of offenders aged
between the ages of 16 and 21. This is the Reformative
Training Centre (RTC)
which comes under the purview of the Prisons Department. Those between 16 years
and below 21 years may be
ordered by the court to undergo reformative training
for up to four years in the RTC in lieu of an imprisonment term upon conviction
of a criminal offence, if the court feels that the period of reformative
training will contribute to rehabilitation. A reformative
trainee who has shown
good progress and conduct can be released after serving a minimum period of 18
months. The maximum period
of detention is 36 months. Upon release, the
offender is also placed under the supervision of an aftercare officer until the
expiration
of 48 months from the date of conviction. The rules relating to the
release and supervision of reformative trainees are listed in
the Criminal
Procedure Code. The treatment and rehabilitation programme are governed by the
Prison Standing Orders.
- An
offender who is above 14 years but below 16 years and has already been committed
to a juvenile institution but is subsequently
found to be disruptive and a
danger to other juveniles may be ordered by the Juvenile Court to be detained at
the RTC.
- Reformative
trainees are allowed to receive visits from their family and friends once every
fortnight. Like all institutions under
the administration of the Prisons
Department, the conditions within the RTC are monitored through:
(a) Yearly visit by the Director of Prisons. The
Director’s visit is marked by an inspection of the institution to ensure
that it is properly administered by the Superintendent.
The reformative
trainees are free to see the Director on his rounds of the institution to make
requests or air their grievances;
(b) Visits by visiting
justices. Visiting justices are prominent citizens appointed by the
Minister of Home Affairs to function as an independent authority to check
on the
management of penal facilities, including the RTC. Such inspection visits are
unannounced and conducted at the discretion
of the individual visiting justice.
A visiting justice has access to all parts of the institution and all
reformative trainees.
These reformative trainees can freely approach the
visiting justice and bring up any complaints or requests to be looked into.
The
complaints/requests made by the reformative trainees are to be entered into an
official register for onward transmission to the
Director of Prisons and the
Minister for Home Affairs;
(c) Inspection of prisons by Prisons
Headquarters. The Prisons Headquarters conducts surprise inspections of the
institution to ascertain whether existing prison procedures and regulations
are
adhered to. These inspections are carried out by the Prison Staff Inspectorate
(PSI), which reports directly to the Director
of Prisons.
- Reformative
trainees also have opportunities to air their grievances:
(a) The Superintendent makes daily inspection rounds of the
institution and the inmates are able to bring up any grievance or request
to his
attention;
(b) Reformative trainees are allowed to receive regular
visits from family members and friends. Trainees can use the opportunity
to
make their grievances known to them. They can enlist the services of lawyers to
enquire into allegations of ill-treatment by
prison staff, write to the Director
of Prisons or the Superintendent, or register their complaints through
representation to members
of Parliament. The allegations will be duly looked
into and an official reply shall be given to the complainants;
(c) The
inmates are also free to complain to the visiting justices whenever they make
their rounds of the institution. All complaints
made to them are duly
investigated.
- The
RTC has facilities for teaching and vocational training. All reformative
trainees are required to undergo a broad-based vocation
training that gives them
basic competency in two technical subjects (electrical wiring and basic computer
skills). They may also
sit for courses to improve their educational
qualification. Primary and secondary school subjects are taught by trained
teachers
seconded from the Ministry of Education. Education, welfare, skills
training, religion and recreation form the key elements of the
physical and
psychological recovery efforts undertaken at the RTC. Individual and group
counselling are conducted by trained prison
officers. There are resident
counsellors who work with the inmates on a daily basis. There is a dispensary
at the institution to
treat minor medical problems on a daily basis. Serious
medical cases are referred to hospitals for specialist medical treatment.
- Existing
prison rules and regulations cater to the mental and physical well-being of the
young offenders. The rehabilitation programmes
for such offenders are
consistent with the provisions laid out in the Convention and the United Nations
Standard Minimum Rules for
the Treatment of Prisoners.
C. Children in situations of exploitation, including physical
and
psychological recovery and social reintegration
1. Economic exploitation of children, including child labour
(art. 32)
- Singapore
is a party to the ILO Minimum Age (Industry) Convention, 1919 (No. 5), the
Minimum Age (Sea) Convention (No. 7) and the
Minimum Age (Trimmers and Stokers)
Convention (No. 15). Singapore’s labour legislation accords special
protection to persons
below the age of 16 years. Children below the age of 12
years are prohibited from being employed while those between the ages of
12 and
16 years may be employed subject to employers’ compliance with the
safeguards in the labour legislation. These safeguards
pertain to the type of
work allowed and the hours of work.
- To
ensure that these provisions are adhered to, the Employment Act spells out
penalties for both the employers who have contravened
the law and parents or
guardians who condone such action. Upon conviction, a person shall be liable to
a fine not exceeding S$ 2,000
or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding
two years or to both. The minimum terms and conditions and safeguards in
employment
are stipulated in the Employment Act and the Safety and Health
Regulations. The employment, safety and health legislations are strictly
enforced. Appropriate penalties are imposed on employers who violate these
regulations.
- Singapore
employment legislation grants protection to children up to the age of 16 which
may not be in line with the Convention which
envisages protection granted to
children up to the age of 18 years. Singapore has entered a reservation on this
article, stating
that “the employment legislation of the Republic of
Singapore prohibits the employment of children below 12 years old and gives
special protection to working children between the ages of 12 years and below
the age of 16 years. The Republic of Singapore reserves
the right to apply
article 32 subject to such employment legislation”. The current minimum
age restriction on the employment
of children and young persons in Singapore was
set based on the duration of primary and secondary education in Singapore.
Students
complete their secondary education usually at 16 years. Those who do
not wish to pursue further studies may thus join the labour
force at 16 years.
In practice, most youths between the ages of 16 to 18 years are either pursuing
higher education or vocational
training in technical institutes.
Notwithstanding this, our employment legislation does provide for the protection
of the child
in respect of the maximum number of hours that he/she may work,
working hours and types of work. The types of employment Singaporean
children
would likely be engaged in would be fast-food restaurants, clerical or other
support services in offices or sales in department
stores during the school
holidays.
- Although
it is rare to find children working in “sweat shops” or unregulated
industries in Singapore, there has been an
increase in the number of children
who have been caught selling pirated CDs. Investigations have shown that these
children often
are made use of by adults. Hence, public education messages have
been sent to the public and children in schools to protect them
from
exploitation. This situation is also being closely monitored by the
police.
2. Drug abuse (art. 33)
- Singapore
prohibits the illicit use, production and trafficking of narcotics. The Misuse
of Drugs Act (MDA) and the Drug Trafficking (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (DTA)
administered by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) serve this
purpose. The
measures taken are for the protection of the public, not just children.
Singapore is a party to the Single Convention
on Narcotic Drugs (1961) and the
Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971).
- The
MDA targets the supply and demand side of drug trafficking and abuse via arrest
and prosecution. It provides for punishments
such as fines, imprisonment,
caning and death sentences for offences ranging from consumption to possession,
trafficking, importation
and exportation of controlled drugs. By the same
token, the DTA empowers authorities to trace, freeze and forfeit assets of drug
traffickers and render the laundering of drug proceeds an offence. This is to
add a further disincentive to drug traffickers who
take the risk of trafficking
drugs despite Singapore’s tough laws and severe
penalties.
- The
number of people below the age of 20 years arrested in 1996 for drug addiction
is low and makes up only 6.1 per cent (352 addicts)
of the addict population in
Singapore. This percentage has been decreasing steadily since 1993, which saw
the peak at 11.6 per cent
(679 addicts). From 1995 to 1996, though, there
has been a 0.4 per cent rise in the number of addicts arrested. This increase
is
probably due to the popularity of psychotropic drugs, namely Ecstasy, among
our youth.
Community involvement
- The
National Council Against Drug Abuse (NCADA) was formed in January 1995 to advise
the Minister for Home Affairs on the policies
and measures necessary to curb
drug abuse in Singapore. Its goal is also to mobilize and sustain public
support for its anti-drug
programmes. NCADA members are prominent individuals
from the business sector and the community appointed by the Minister for Home
Affairs for a period of two years at a time.
- NCADA
believes that in view of the high individual, social and economic costs of drug
addiction, a fundamental component of its efforts
should be directed towards the
prevention of drug abuse, along with the creation of strong public awareness and
community support
for the various anti-drug programmes. NCADA harnesses greater
community involvement in its antidrug cause and works closely with
both the
community and relevant government agencies such as the CNB, the Prisons
Department and the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative
Enterprise (SCORE).
Their activities and programmes are aimed at reinforcing the anti-drug message
to high-risk individuals and
helping ex-addicts in their rehabilitation. The
Council also emphasizes the important role that the community plays in
discouraging
illicit drug use. Its long-term strategy is to continue to create
a strong, cohesive social network to support the Government’s
anti-drug
measures and programmes. It has so far received strong support for its work
from the many voluntary welfare organizations,
community groups and the private
sector. It plans to continue with its multi-pronged approach, but with greater
emphasis on prevention.
Preventive drug education
- In
addition to NCADA’s public education efforts, the Preventive Education
Unit (PEU) set up within the CNB in 1994 undertakes
preventive education and
coordinates the efforts of preventive drug education to contain
Singapore’s drug problem. The PDE
programmes complement the enforcement
action and rehabilitation to stamp out the drug menace. PDE educates students,
high-risk youth
and young adults about drug abuse. It is thus hoped that
widespread PDE will lead to the development of an adversarial attitude
towards
illicit drug use. PDE focuses on schools and organizes visits to drug
rehabilitation centres, talks by CNB officers during
school assemblies,
adventure learning camps, anti-drug abuse weeks and PDE seminars for teachers
and student leaders.
Enforcement
- The
self-containment of Singapore’s drug situation is due to the vigorous and
regular enforcement efforts undertaken by CNB
to cripple drug trafficking
syndicates to curb the demand for contraband drugs. In recent years CNB has
intensified its efforts
to identify members of drug trafficking syndicates for
arrest and prosecution. With traffickers out of the way, addicts are denied
drug sources at street level. CNB arrests not only the key leaders, but
simultaneously all clients and associates as well. The
table below illustrates
the number of arrests made for prosecution offences.
Table 30. Arrests for prosecutions (1996-1998)
|
|
1997
|
1998
|
Prosecutions
|
2 119
|
1 724
|
1 718
|
3. Sexual exploitation and sexual abuse (art. 34)
- Singapore
does not have laws which permit the prosecution of Singaporeans in Singapore for
acts of sexual abuse or sexual exploitation
committed overseas. However, there
are various provisions which provide penalties for offences committed within
Singapore. Sections
6 and 11 of the C&YP Act provide penalties for sexual
exploitation of children and young persons in Singapore. Section 140 of
the
Women’s Charter provides penalties for a comprehensive list of offences
against females, including prostitution of female
children in Singapore.
Section 376 of the Penal Code provides penalties for sexual intercourse with a
girl below the age of 14 irrespective
of consent. Section 376 A and 376 B of
the Penal Code provide penalties for incest and aggravated penalties for incest
with a girl
under 14. From 1994 to June 1999, there were two cases of sexual
exploitation (one in 1994 and the other in 1995).
- Singapore
is a party to the Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and
of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of
Others, and the Final Protocol
(1950).
- In
1992, the Singapore Council of Women’s Organizations (SCWO), the umbrella
body for women’s organizations, made a proposal
to standardize and enhance
police procedures in the management of rape cases. As a result, a Rape
Management Committee was set up
under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) with
representatives from SCWO. A Rape Investigation Squad was also launched on 1
October
1997, which centralized investigations of offences of such nature under
the Criminal Investigation Department instead of the Police
Land Divisions. The
Squad comprises a 15-member team of 10 male and 5 female police officers who
investigate cases of rape, incest,
carnal connection and unnatural offences.
These officers are specially identified and undergo a training programme
provided by psychologists
and legal officers. A trained female officer will see
to the needs of the female victim throughout the investigation process. Victims
are provided with counselling and emotional support to reduce their
trauma.
Children and young persons taking part in public
entertainment
- Section
11 of the C&YP Act restricts children and young people from taking part in
any form of public entertainment of an immoral
nature which is dangerous to the
life or prejudicial to the health, physical fitness and kind treatment of the
child or young person,
or without the consent of his/her parents or guardian.
Any person guilty of an offence is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding
S$ 1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both.
If the person is a licence holder under the Public Entertainment
Act, the court
may also order the cancellation of the licence or its suspension for such period
as the court may think fit.
Offences relating to prostitution
- The
Women’s Charter has provisions to deal with offences relating to
prostitution:
(a) Section 140 of the Women’s Charter
makes it an offence for any person to procure, intimidate, harbour or detain any
woman
or girl for the purpose of prostitution or for carnal connection, except
by way of marriage, either within or outside Singapore.
The offender is liable
on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years and shall be
liable to a fine not exceeding
S$ 10,000;
(b) Sections 143 and 144
provide that any person who is the owner or occupier of any premises and who
permits a girl under the age
of 16 to use the premises for intercourse or
permits a mental defective to use the premises for intercourse shall be liable
on conviction
to a fine not exceeding S$ 2,000 or to imprisonment for a term not
exceeding three years, or both; and
(c) Section 145 provides that any
person who causes or encourages the prostitution of, intercourse with, or
indecent assault on,
a girl under the age of 16 years shall be liable upon
conviction to a fine not exceeding S$ 2,000 or to imprisonment for a term not
exceeding three years.
General comments
- Singapore
has few reported cases of the sexual exploitation of children. The Government
is confident that the harsh penalties will
act as deterrents to potential
abusers and will continue to work with the relevant professionals and agencies
in identifying possible
cases of sexual exploitation.
4. Other forms of exploitation (art. 36)
- Article
36 requires the State to protect the child against all forms of exploitation
prejudicial to the child’s welfare. Singapore
views its policies and
legislations as effective in protecting our children from exploitation. The
cases of exploitation are very
few in number. Nevertheless, the Government
reviews the various legislation periodically for their relevance and to
safeguard the
best interests of the children and residents of Singapore.
- Slavery
and forced labour are prohibited under our Constitution. Singapore is a party
to the International Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Women and
Children (1921) and the 1947
Protocol, Convention for the Suppression of the
Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others and
Final
Protocol (1950), the International Agreement for the Suppression of
the White Slave Traffic (1904), the International Convention for the Suppression
of the White Slave Trade (1910) and the 1949 Protocol, Supplementary Convention
on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade and
Institutions and Practices
Similar to Slavery (1956) and the ILO Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No.
29).
5. Sale, trafficking and abduction (art. 35)
Trafficking in children
- Singapore
does not tolerate offences related to trafficking of children. Under section 12
of the Children and Young Persons Act,
any person found guilty of an offence
involving the unlawful transfer of possession, custody or control of a child
shall be liable
on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding four
years.
- Section
141 of the Women’s Charter states that any person who buys, sells,
procures, traffics in, or brings into or takes out
of Singapore for the purpose
of such traffic, and whether or not for the purpose of present or subsequent
prostitution, any woman
or girl, shall be guilty of an offence and shall be
liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years and
shall be liable to a fine not exceeding S$ 10,000.
- Besides
these laws, there are programmes and services available to children who are
victims of trafficking. There are agencies that
provide medical services,
counselling, psychological and psychiatric services and residential care for
children. These services
and programmes are provided by governmental and
non-government agencies.
Abduction
- The
Women’s Charter has provisions to protect children from being removed
unlawfully from Singapore. The provisions stipulate
that:
(a) A child under custody order cannot be taken out of
Singapore except with the written consent of both parents or the leave of
the
court;
(b) A person given the custody of a child or who has the written
consent of the person given custody is, however, not prevented from
taking the
child out of Singapore for a period of less than a month;
and
(c) Contravention is an offence which is subject to a fine of up to
S$ 5,000 or imprisonment up to one year, or both.
D. Children belonging to a minority or an indigenous group
(art. 30)
- The
Constitution states (in article 152) that it shall be the responsibility of the
Government constantly to care for the interests of the racial
and religious
minorities in Singapore. The Government shall exercise its functions in a
manner so as to recognize the special position
of the Malays, who are the
indigenous people of Singapore. Accordingly, it shall be the responsibility of
the Government to protect,
safeguard, support, foster and promote their
political, educational, religious, economic, social and cultural interests and
the Malay
language.
- Singapore
has a community of self-help organizations which cater to the Malay-Muslim,
Indian, Chinese and Eurasian ethnic groups.
These organizations are MENDAKI,
the Singapore Indian Development Association, the Chinese Development Assistance
Council and the
Eurasian Association. They are financially supported by the
Government. The objective of these organizations is to help the less
advantaged
members in their respective community adapt to the rapid economic and social
changes. They aim to do this through educational
and training programmes. An
emphasis is placed on working with children and young people through ethnically
sensitive programmes
for teaching and enrichment.
- The
Majilis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) - the Islamic Religious Council of
Singapore - is the supreme Islamic religious authority
in Singapore.
Established in 1968 to advise the Government on Islamic matters, MUIS looks
after the religious, social and welfare
needs of Muslims in Singapore. Its
functions and responsibilities are set out in the Administration of Muslim Law
Act (AMLA). To
help build strong and stable families, a new Family Development
Department in MUIS was officially launched in April 1998. One of
its first
tasks was to conduct nationwide research involving 1,000 individuals and 30
organizations to survey the needs of the Muslim
community.
- The
Government recognizes that one important aspect of social cohesion for a
multiracial and multicultural nation like Singapore is
racial and religious
harmony. While Singaporeans of all communities now adopt a Singaporean
identity, the Government encourages
the desire of each community to preserve its
own distinctiveness in terms of its vibrant facets of language, religion and
culture.
Singapore has enjoyed racial harmony for a generation. However, the
Government still works continually to build mutual understanding
and respect
among the communities.
- Singapore
continues to explore its multicultural heritage through the preservation and
interpretation of the nation’s history
and material culture in the context
of its multicultural origins. This includes promoting awareness of the
ancestral cultures of
all citizens through publications and exhibitions. To
bring about a greater understanding of and appreciation for the many cultures
that make up Singapore, our museums have staged several exhibitions such as the
following:
Culture on the Fringes: The Orang Asli Collection
(1994)
Traditional Weddings (1995)
Singapore Malays - A social
history (1996)
Rumah Baba - Life in a Peranakan House
(1997)
Ramayana: A living tradition (1997)
Harmony of letters:
Islamic Calligraphy (1998)
Highlanders, Islanders and Headhunters (1998)
The Jewish Community
of Singapore (1999)
Tamil Language and its history in Singapore
(2000).
- The
Housing Development Board (HDB) ensures that sites within HDB estates are
reserved for various religious groups for their religious
buildings. Vacant land
within HDB estates is also let out to grass-roots organizations at nominal fees
for recreational projects
for children. For example, street soccer pitches,
multi-purpose hard courts and children’s playgrounds, etc., are some of
the common items put up by the grass-roots organizations to cater to the needs
of children of all races.
Notes
[1] Conversion rate used:
S$ 1.62 = US$ 1.
[2] This is the average
number of children that would be born per female, if all females lived to the
end of their childbearing years
and bore children according to a given set of
age-specific fertility rates. It is derived by aggregating the age-specific
fertility
rates of females in each of the reproductive ages for a specific year.
It refers to the number of births by mothers of a specific
age group during a
given year, per thousand females in that age group.
[3] This refers to the
number of births by mothers of a specific age group during a given year,
per thousand females in that age group.
[4] Literacy is defined as
a person’s ability to read with understanding a newspaper in the language
specified.
[5] Singapore implemented a
vehicle quota system on 1 May 1990 to regulate the growth of the vehicle
population in Singapore. Under
the system, the number of vehicles allowed for
registration is predetermined annually, taking into account the prevailing
traffic
conditions and the number of cars taken off the road permanently, whilst
the market conditions determine the price of owning a vehicle.
To register for
a new vehicle, a resident of Singapore needs to bid for a COE.
[6] Section 92 of the
Women’s Charter defines a “child of the marriage” to mean
“any child of the husband and
wife, and includes any adopted child and any
other child (whether or not a child of the husband or of the wife) who was a
member
of the family of the husband and wife at the time when they ceased to
live together or at any time immediately preceding the institution
of the
proceedings, whichever first occurred; and for the purposes of this definition,
the parties to a purported marriage that is
void shall be deemed to be husband
and wife”.
[7] The Guidance Programme
is a diversionary measure implemented by the Ministry of Community Development
and Sports in October 1997.
It is a six-month counselling and rehabilitative
programme aimed at giving juveniles a second chance and helping juveniles steer
away from crime. The Programme is run by social workers of voluntary welfare
organizations appointed by the Ministry. Juveniles
are let off with a stern
warning if they complete the Programme successfully in lieu of court prosecution
for the offences committed.
This Programme was implemented to prevent
recidivism as police statistics showed that one in three children caught by the
police
for offences and let off with a warning reoffend. The recidivism rate
for children who have completed the Guidance Programme is
only
4 per cent.
[8] The Evaluation
Instrument for childcare centres was developed in 1990 with the assistance of
experts recruited under UNDP.
9 The HDB is the public
housing authority in Singapore.
[10] Section 310 of the
Penal Code provides that a mother who causes the death of her child who is below
12 months of age, because she
is of unsound mind and has not recovered fully
from childbirth, will not be found guilty of murder.
[11] Under the
Women’s Charter, a “child” is defined as a person below 21
years.
[12] Care facilities for
children below 7 years of age.
[13] Care facilities for
school-going children up to the age of 14 years.
[14] Rule 2 of the
Women’s Charter (Parenting Plan) Rules defines this as a child who is
below the age of 21 years, or above the
age of 21 but suffers from mental or
physical disability; is or will be serving full-time national service; or is or
will be receiving
instruction at an education establishment or undergoing
training for a trade, profession or vocation, whether or not in gainful
employment.
[15] Section 5 (c) of the
Adoption Act states that the court, before making an adoption order, shall be
satisfied that the applicant
has not received or agreed to receive, and that no
person has made or given, or agreed to make or give to the applicant, any
payment
or other reward in consideration of the adoption except such as the
court may sanction.
[16] Details on training
are mentioned later in this section.
[17] ARF is a tax
equivalent to 140 per cent of a car’s open market value.
[18] The Vehicle Quota
System was implemented on 1 May 1990 to regulate the growth of the vehicle
population in Singapore. Under this
system, the number of new vehicles allowed
for registration is predetermined annually, taking into account the prevailing
traffic
conditions and the number of vehicles taken off the roads permanently,
whilst the market determines the price of owning a vehicle.
To register for a
new vehicle, a resident of Singapore needs to bid for a COE.
[19] Public Assistance is
meant to assist Singapore citizens who, due to age, illness, disability or
unfavourable family circumstances,
are unable to work and have no means of
subsistence and no one to depend on.
[20] CDC is a local
administration set up to better serve Singaporeans. Currently, the island of
Singapore is divided into five CDCs.
[21] This Committee was
chaired by the Senior Minister of State for Education, Dr. Aline Wong, and
comprised of senior officials from
the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the
National Institute of Education (NIE), a national training institute for trainee
teachers.
[22] The National Arts
Council (NAC) was established in 1991 to spearhead the development of the arts.
Its mission is to help nurture
the arts and develop Singapore into a vibrant
global city for the arts. NAC promotes the appreciation and practice of the
arts,
nurtures artistic talent, provides arts facilities, promotes Singaporean
arts overseas and brings international talents and events
into Singapore.
[23] Under the Children
and Young Persons Act, a “fit person” is a person whom the court or
the Protector thinks is competent
to provide care, protection and supervision of
a child or young person.
[24] Also mentioned above
in “Family Environment and Alternative Care”.
-----
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