UNDESIRABLE PUBLICATIONS (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

3.21 p.m.

The Minister for Home Affairs (Mr Ong Pang Boon): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

The object of the proposed amendment to the Undesirable Publications Ordinance (Cap. 124) is to close loopholes which purveyors of yellow literature and other undesirable publications have taken advantage of. The Undesirable Publications Ordinance is one of Government's main weapons in its fight against lewd, obscene, immoral and undesirable publications which either tend to corrupt individuals or threaten the welfare and security of our lawfully and constitutionally established State.

Under the law as it stands, the powers of Government under this Undesirable Publications Ordinance to prohibit the importation, sale and circulation of any undesirable publication are restricted to publications which are published or printed outside Singapore or printed in Singapore otherwise than in accordance with the Printing Presses Ordinance.

Unfortunately, certain local writers and publishers have taken advantage of loopholes in the Printing Presses Ordinance to print and publish undesirable material. By undesirable, we mean writings which are morally offensive or are calculated to endanger the welfare, peace and security of the state. Thus lewd, immoral and obscene publications are undesirable.

The Undesirable Publications Ordinance, as it now stands, cannot adequately control local undesirable publications of this kind, because certain local writers and publishers have been cashing in by taking advantage of the definition of "newspaper" in the Printing Presses Ordinance. Because of this definition, permits are not required to print publications in the form of novels, short stories or magazines containing only articles of general literary interest, poems and short stories.

However, a number of these books and magazines, though superficially professing high moral and literary facade, nevertheless contain articles, poems, and short stories which are undesirable. There may be a show of dealing with sex and morals in an intelligent and adult fashion but those who read between the lines know that the intention is not so high-minded and literary, in other cases, though professing to be literary articles, many of these articles are undesirable in content and purpose. But because these publications do not require permits under the Printing Presses Ordinance, they cannot be proceeded against under the Undesirable Publications Ordinance.

It is possible to amend the definition of "newspaper" to cover any type of publication but that would affect bona fide local writers, poets, dramatists, literary critics and novelists. It is our purpose to encourage local writers to produce good reading material - and more of it. By amending the definition of "newspaper" we would be putting local writers to unnecessary trouble and delay by subjecting them to the procedure under the Printing Presses Ordinance.

It is therefore considered that the best way of preventing evasion of the laws regarding local publications in Singapore would be not to amend the definition of "newspaper" in the Printing Presses Ordinance, but to amend the Undesirable Publications Ordinance by deleting from section 3 thereof the words "published or printed outside the State or printed within the State otherwise than in accordance with the provisions of the Printing Presses Ordinance". Such an amendment will empower the Minister to proscribe any publication which he considers undesirable, whether it is printed within or without the State and whether it is printed in accordance with the Printing Presses Ordinance or not. Such an amendment will give the Police power to enter premises and seize such proscribed publications under section 8 of the same Ordinance.

Sir, it can therefore be seen that this short Amendment Bill is aimed at solely against the undesirable local writers and authors who are taking advantage of a loophole in the Printing Presses Ordinance to serve their own ends and their bank balances.

Sir, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole Assembly.

Assembly immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. [Mr Ong Pang Boon].

Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.