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Madam, On 20 January 2014, Deputy Prime Minister Teo delivered a Ministerial Statement on the
riot that took place at Race Course Road on 8 December 2013.
The Statement detailed the chronology of events, actions taken against those involved in the riot,
and the measures implemented to stabilise the situation and restore law and order following the incident.
These measures included heightened security with stronger uniformed presence on the ground,
and the installation of more security cameras; restrictions on the sale of alcohol,
and the ban on consumption of alcohol in public areas; and changes to the transport and traffic arrangements.
These proactive measures were taken by the Police and other Government agencies
to address factors that could have contributed to, or aggravated, the incident that occurred on 8 December 2013.
These include the very large congregations, the relatively easy access to alcohol and its widespread consumption in public areas,
and the traffic condition in Little India on weekends.
Collectively, these measures have helped to stabilise the situation, instil confidence, and been broadly accepted by many stakeholders.
This Public Order (Additional Temporary Measures) Bill 2014 will allow Police
to continue to take calibrated measures to maintain public order and calm in Little India.
Why do we need this legislation?
Madam Speaker, in the aftermath of the riot,
the Government relied on a variety of laws to implement some of these key measures to restore order in the Little India area.
In particular, Police powers were largely derived from the Public Order (Preservation) Act or PO(P)A.
However, this is not appropriate for several reasons.
Because we currently do not have laws to impose restrictions on the consumption of alcohol in public places,
we have to invoke a provision under the Public Order (Preservation) Act to implement this measure.
But POPA was conceived to deal with far graver situations.
Consequently, it is an Act with broad and extensive police powers,
and it requires the Minister for Home Affairs to proclaim the existence
of a state of danger to public order in a designated area - in this case, Little India.
With each proclamation, which has been the case for every weekend and public holiday since the riot,
the entire suite of powers under POPA becomes available to the Police.
While some of these powers are needed to maintain public order in Little India,
many others are excessive and unnecessary for this purpose.
These include the power to implement curfews, impose reporting requirements on persons,
to overcome resistance during arrest.
However, given the heightened security environment in Little India,
there is still a need for a limited set of powers to continue implementing the measures I have described.
These limited powers are, in fact, already available under POPA
and they are also prescribed in other legislations such as the Public Order Act.
The heightened security environment in Little India on weekends is similar, though not identical, to that in large scale special events.
In recognition of this heightened security environment, this House passed the Public Order Act in 2009
to provide the Police with targeted additional powers to uphold law and order, and maintain security during special events
such as the annual National Day parades and the Youth Olympic Games in 2010.
These powers are enumerated in Part III of the Public Order Act.
However, these powers cannot be applied to the weekend gathering of foreign workers in Little India
because they do not qualify as special events under the Act.
Further, there are some inconsistencies in the current enforcement powers.
For example, a range of enforcement actions (from fines to suspension or revocation of license)
can be taken against a business that has a valid liquor license but violates its conditions,
yet a commensurate range of enforcement powers is not available under the Customs Act,
for actions against an errant business which sells alcohol without a valid liquor licence.
The only course of action available is to initiate prosecution for an offence under the Customs Act,
while the errant business can continue to operate in the interim.
This Public Order (Additional Temporary Measures) Bill addresses these concerns by
providing for a focused set of powers, far more limited than the extensive powers available today under the Public Order (Preservation) Act
to support the security, traffic management, and alcohol restriction measures in Little India.
The powers accorded to the Police and regulatory agencies under the Bill have precedents in our existing laws.
These provisions are derived from relevant public order legislation
and scoped to serve the specific objective of maintaining law and order in Little India.
The Bill is "temporary" in the sense that it is valid for only 12 months from the date of its publication in the Gazette.
In short, this legislation is limited in its duration, location, and scope of powers.
Madam, let me now go through the key Clauses in the Bill that pertain to its jurisdiction;
the acts that are prohibited;
the permit regime that creates exceptions to these prohibitions;
and finally, the regulatory powers that our agencies require to carry out their tasks effectively.
This legislation will be limited temporally and geographically.
It will be valid for a period of 12 months.
This should provide sufficient time for the Ministry of Home Affairs and other agencies to deliberate on and implement longer-term measures,
taking into account the findings and recommendations of the Committee of Inquiry,
and the review of the liquor licensing regime.
The Bill will apply to the same area that has been proclaimed under the Public Order (Preservation) Act since 8 December 2013,
which is designated as a "special zone".
Clause 3 allows the Minister for Home Affairs to amend the boundaries of the special zone.
It can be reduced in size, as and when the situation improves,
or expanded to include adjacent areas under certain defined circumstances,
taking into account any spill-over occurrences.
Clause 4 makes it an offence for any individual to consume alcohol in any public place within the special zone.
This includes consumption within licensed liquor establishments.
Clause 4 also makes it an offence to sell or supply alcohol on any premises in a special zone.
Mere possession of or bringing of alcohol into the special zone is not an offence under the Bill.
Clause 4 provides for exceptions under certain circumstances, such as where
the consumption, sale, supply and use of alcohol are carried out in accordance with a permit.
The prescribed penalty for unlawful consumption of alcohol in a public place within
the special zone is a fine not exceeding $1,000.
This is similar to the offence of smoking in a prohibited place.
The penalty for unlawful sale or supply of alcohol within the special zone is a fine not exceeding $5,000,
which follows the penalty for a similar offence under the Customs Act.
The Bill also prescribes higher penalties for repeat offenders to reflect the seriousness of such violations.
Clause 5 establishes a permit regime to serve as an exception to the prohibitions in Clause 4.
Two types of permits are possible under the Bill.
The first is a class permit which applies to a class of similar persons without the need for persons
within that class to apply individually for a permit.
The Commissioner of Police ("the CP") may, by a notification published in the Gazette,
grant class permits to exclude classes of persons from the general prohibitions in Clause 4.
These may consist of residents, transient visitors,
or persons with a place of business or performing lawful business within the special zone.
One such class permit may be issued to all persons in the special zone consuming alcohol outside of weekends,
public holidays and their eves, and special occasions.
This will ensure that the prohibitions apply only in those specific times, as they apply at this point as well.
Another class permit could be for establishments like restaurants, hotels,
pubs and coffee shops which hold public house and beer house licenses,
to continue their business by allowing the sale and consumption of alcohol in their premises,
in accordance with their respective licence conditions.
The second type of permit is for individuals who do not fall within the terms of a class permit,
but may need to seek exemption from the prohibitions in Clause 4 for a special ad-hoc activity.
Such applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
In addition, Clause 6 allows any guest of a permit holder to consume alcohol in a public place hired by that permit holder.
Clause 7 further allows the lawful delivery within the special zone of alcohol bought or owned by a permit holder at his request.
Clause 5 also provides for cancellation and suspension of any individual permit or class permit, with due process,
if the permit holder fails to comply with the terms and conditions specified in the permit, or to maintain order in the special zone.
A person who is aggrieved by a refusal or cancellation of an individual permit can appeal to the Minister for Home Affairs.
His decision is final.
Madam, Clause 8 makes it an offence to bring into or possess prohibited items within the special zone,
unless it is supported by a permit under the Bill.
Let me now turn to the scope of police powers under the Bill.
Police powers in the Bill are far less than what we already have today under POPA.
The language of the provisions in the Bill are also adapted from those set out in Part III of the Public Order Act
to explicitly enable the Police to better enforce restrictions imposed in Little India.
These more focused powers have proven to be necessary
and effective in policing large crowds and ensuring public order,
similar to what is done at special events, and it will similarly be useful in the context of the special zone in Little India.
Under Clause 9, a police officer, or an approved auxiliary police officer,
can inspect any person present within, or seeking to enter, the special zone,
and the person's personal property, for any prohibited item or any container of alcohol.
This is adapted from Section 24 of the Public Order Act.
The Police have established protocols, based on operational experience with various special events, to ensure that
such checks and interviews, where needed, are conducted purposefully, responsibly, and professionally.
Like Section 28 of the Public Order Act, a police officer or an auxiliary police officer can, under Clause 10 in the Bill,
interview any person present within, or seeking entry to, the special zone to establish the person's reasons for doing so.
Under Clause 12, if a police officer reasonably suspects that an offence under the Bill has been, is being, or is likely to be committed,
the officer has powers to enter any premises,
search any property within the special zone, and detain any person, without a warrant.
This power is not unfettered; only a police officer (not an auxiliary police officer) at least of the rank of sergeant,
can exercise these powers, and do so acting upon reasonable suspicion that an offence has been, is being or is likely to be committed.
Clause 11 of the Bill is adapted from Section 29 of the Public Order Act and empowers a police officer, or an approved auxiliary police officer,
to direct a person who intends to enter or has entered a special zone to leave and not re-enter the special zone or
to refuse the person entry to the special zone, in lieu of arresting the person.
However, any order to leave and not re-enter must be for a reasonable period of not more than 24 hours, and similarly,
any order refusing entry to the special zone cannot be for more than 24 hours.
Clause 13 empowers the Commissioner of Police or any authorised police officer
to issue a written notice to a person banning the person from entering the special zone or
specified premises within the special zone for up to 30 days.
Before issuing such a ban, the officer has to consider the person's likelihood to re-offend or threaten public order,
and the effectiveness of a ban in preventing or mitigating such risks.
However, the ban cannot be applied to persons whose place of residence, work, or business, is within the special zone.
Persons who are aggrieved by such notice may appeal to the Minister for Home Affairs.
A person who without reasonable excuse enters the special zone
in contravention of his banning notice commits an offence, and will be asked to leave or face removal under Clause 11.
Until the Ministry of Home Affairs concludes its review of the liquor licensing regime under the Customs Act,
taking into consideration any recommendations of the Committee of Inquiry,
no new liquor licences or extension of trading hours for existing licences, will be granted for establishments in the special zone.
Clause 18 of the Bill gives effect to this freeze for the next 12 months.
Renewals and the transfer of existing liquor licences, and variation of such licence conditions may be allowed,
provided they are consistent with the restrictions imposed under the Bill.
These remain subject to assessment by the Liquor Licensing Board (LLB).
If there is evidence to suggest that the holder of a liquor licence or other business licence
(such as that for food establishments, public entertainment, or hotels)
has supplied or sold liquor in contravention of the prohibitions in Clause 4 of the Bill,
the respective regulatory agency is empowered by Clauses 18 and 20 in the Bill to cancel or suspend the relevant licence, after due process.
This applies to the the licences issued by Liquor Licensing Board,
the National Environment Agency, Agri- Food & Veterinary Authority, and the Hotel Licensing Board.
This supplements the respective Acts of these regulators and is intended to enable swift action
to be taken against those who contravene the restrictions.
There are avenues for appeal, including to the Minister in charge.
I will now touch briefly on the other provisions in the Bill.
To regulate vehicle and human traffic flow for safety and security purposes over short durations, especially
during peak and festive periods, Clause 14 empowers a police officer (of the rank of sergeant and above) to
order the restriction or closing of any road, street, footpath or waterway in the special zone,
where he deems this necessary to maintain public order.
The longest this order can be in force for, is 48 hours.
Clause 15 provides that any police officer who witnesses an offence under the Bill
may arrest the person who commits such offence.
Clause 16 allows for the composition of offences by the Commissioner of Police or an authorised police officer at his discretion.
Subsidiary legislation will be made prescribing the types of offences which can be compounded.
Clause 17 provides that individual officers can be held accountable for offences committed by bodies corporate
such as registered companies or partnerships, if investigations indicate their complicity in the commission of such offences.
Clause 21 empowers the Minister for Home Affairs to make regulations for the purposes of the Bill.
As this is subsidiary legislation, any regulations made can only relate to
subject-matter covered by provisions in the Bill and they cannot be inconsistent with any Act.
Madam Speaker, the riot on 8 December 2013 was the most serious public order disturbance in Singapore in more than four decades.
Our resolute response to restore order in Little India in the immediate aftermath,
and the efforts to maintain it thereafter, has allowed us to ensure a safe and stable Little India since the riot.
The powers provided in the Public Order (Additional Temporary Measures) Bill are
scoped tightly to enable the Police and other agencies to maintain public peace, safety
and security for the benefit of all persons in Little India, without continuing to invoke the Public Order (Preservation) Act,
and the extensive powers it provides for.
In the measures that we have taken, and in setting out this temporary legislation,
we have endeavoured to balance the considerations off various stakeholders - residents, business owners, and visitors -
while maintaining order and preventing a similar incident.
Notwithstanding the diverse interests and perspective within each group of stakeholders,
we have been encouraged and gratified by the understanding
and support of business associations, grassroots leaders and residents in the area.
And we will continue to work closely with key stakeholders, even as we develop longer term solutions.
Meanwhile, the Public Order (Additional Temporary Measures) Bill 2014 will allow the Police to continue to maintain and ensure
the peace and public order in Little India.
Madam Speaker, I beg to move.