Revoke Rape Case Bail & SG Gov to Implement STRICTER Laws on ALL Sexual Crimes
Revoke Rape Case Bail & SG Gov to Implement STRICTER Laws on ALL Sexual Crimes
Why this petition matters
In the recent case of 7 Singaporean men who DRUGGED and RAPED four of their wives over the last 8 YEARS, I am calling for collective citizen support for the State Courts to revoke their bail sentences and put them behind bars until justice is served. The Parliament of Singapore needs to implement harsher penalties against sexual crimes, as this shows leniency towards sexual crimes that have been on the rise in Singapore.
Assaulting someone sexually is a CHOICE that must, therefore, be dealt with severely regardless of their age, background, income, and education level. As a rape victim myself who has dealt with the injustice of the UK criminal justice system, we have to find our own closure by telling our stories, raising awareness, whispering the name of our attackers, and calling ourselves survivors. To live another day knowing your attacker is still out and about knowing where you live, knowing where you work/study, is another day of living in fear until justice is served. And to know that my home country is so lenient on sexual assault crimes makes me sick to my stomach. Why should Singapore then call itself the best in the world? Because clearly, we are not. We fail to protect victims, we fail to give victims a safe space to voice out, we fail to punish the offenders the right way. Our criminal justice system is constantly failing us and it is unsettling.
Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Home Affairs Amrin Amin said in Parliament, "Laws against sexual offenses apply to every individual regardless of their income or educational levels." He was responding to a supplementary question from Member of Parliament Lee Bee Wah who asked how the authorities plan to deal with the public perception that university students get away with their crimes more easily than those of other social statuses.
Mr. Amrin Amin response to that Parliamentary Question was, "Conclusions should not be drawn based on “one or two cases", as the factors behind each one are different. The differences in sentencing could be a result of individual cases and there may be specific circumstances in a case that merits a different punishment or treatment. It’s important that we send a very strong message that the rich do not get away easily or lightly for any type of crimes, including sexual offenses."
HOWEVER, The topic of young male sex offenders getting away with what amounts to a slap on the wrist has now been reignited, no thanks to reports that a 23-year-old man named Terence Siow has been given probation for molesting a woman on a train and in an MRT station. Siow was sentenced in September last year to 21 months' probation for the offenses. The case sparked a public debate after the sentence. A probation report tendered in the district court had assessed Siow as suitable for probation as his academic results showed he had the "potential to excel in life". Was this what Mr. Amrin Amin meant when he said sentencing could be a result of individual cases? Unfortunately, this sent out the wrong message to Singaporeans — that they can commit crimes and get away with them because they excel academically.
Sexual Assault Cases In Singapore Over The Years (with some reoffending WHILE on bail):
1) A man raped his maid after asking her for a massage, going on to molest another woman and assault the third WHILE ON COURT BAIL.
2) NSF pleads guilty to raping cousin, 16, WHILE OUT ON BAIL for raping ex-girlfriend.
3) 7 molest suspects to be charged; police say outrage of modesty cases on the rise. A 31-year-old woman reported she was molested in a taxi, while a 27-year-old woman said she was molested inside a residence in Serangoon. Another woman, 26, was molested along Gangsa Road.
4) OUT ON BAIL for molesting a 9-year-old girl, a man sexually assaults teen during a movie date.
5) Security guard jailed for molesting man on train, showing him porn. Marimuthu Jayabal, 67, had pleaded guilty to one charge of using criminal force on the 20-year-old victim to outrage his modesty.
6) Veteran track and field coach Loh Siang Piow was on Wednesday (June 3) found guilty of two charges of molesting a teenage athlete under his charge in 2013.
7) Five days after arriving in Singapore, a woman from China was physically and sexually attacked by a stranger who followed her into a HDB lift and grabbed her the moment the doors closed.
8) Soon after he was released from prison, a convicted rapist married a divorced woman who knew of his crimes but believed he had changed. She allowed him to be alone with her daughter from a previous marriage. But the sexual predator was undeterred despite having been sentenced to 24 years' jail and 24 strokes of the cane in 2001 for raping his niece.
and the list goes on...
After all that's been said, what could possibly be a good reason "based on individual cases" for RAPISTS who DRUGGED their wives be out on bail? This bail sentence feels like negligence on public safety. Sexual offenders are sick in their minds. These are choices they made which they know is wrong. Imagine going about your day with a rapist out around you? Imagine the fear these victims are living in? Keep these sick people out of our streets. Put them behind bars so there won't be a next victim. PREVENT. PREVENT. PREVENT. Be harsh on sexual offenders so the public knows you have our backs. Make decisions thinking about the victims more than how much these sex offenders are committed to reform. Them serving their sentences will be nothing compared to the scars sexual victims will have to face for the rest of their lives.
We do not want to live in a dysfunctional society where citizens — not just women — have lost faith in our public institutions e.g. the Police and the Courts. We do not want women to fear every time they step out of their homes. We do not want their minds to default to thinking there is little hope of justice should they fall victim to a sexual crime.
And as if there aren't already enough silent victims out there today, even more victims will choose NOT to report being violated. Out of this crippling helplessness, most of them will experience profound psychological damage. Meanwhile, predators get even more "free passes", or progress to even worse crimes.
Do something and do it better, before the public decides enough is enough.
Sign the petition now and take a stand.
(Note: I am NOT soliciting any monetary donation for this petition. Please refrain from donating if you get a prompt from Change.org to donate — donations go directly to them for the upkeep of the site.)
Decision-Makers
Singapore Parliament- Amrin AminParlimentary Secretary of Home Affairs
- Singapore State Courts