Madam, the last few years have seen some significant policy changes in the field of law and home affairs. Five years ago, the Criminal Procedure Code underwent a major review, which among other things changed the pre-trial process to force more disclosure from both State and defence to enable better preparations for trial. In 2012, after decades of consistently defending the need for the mandatory death penalty to apply to many offences, the government suddenly and without warning announced in this House a scaling-back of the mandatory death penalty for certain homicide and drug offences. For many years before, the government had been reluctant to provide criminal legal aid to those facing non-capital charges; this has also moved forward. Personally, having studied these issues and spoken for change for several years, I was pleasantly surprised that the government was able to slaughter these cows that appeared sacred for too long. This is good for Singapore. We should not be afraid to change our minds and make U-turns. There are other areas for improvement. Protecting civil liberties, recognizing crime victims’ needs and rights, and better safeguards for suspects during police investigations are but some. We should approach these and other issues with an open-mind. Ultimately, it is in our common interest to have a safe, fair and just society. - MP Sylvia Lim
Posted on: Wed, 28 May 2014 09:00:07 +0000