PERSONS DETAINED UNDER P.P.S.O.

Monday, 8th April, 1963

Dr Lee Siew Choh asked the Minister for Home Affairs to give a full list of persons arrested in Singapore and detained under the Preservation of Public Security Ordinance in Singapore and the Federation of Malaya since 2nd February, 1963, stating (i) the name, sex and age of each detainee; (ii) their occupations, or organisations they belong to; (iii) the date, time and place of arrest; (iv) their exact places of detention; (v) what time after arrest were the families informed of the whereabouts of the detainees; and (vi) when were their families permitted to visit them.

Mr Ong Pang Boon: The supply of the list asked for is not in the interest of security. Most of the names are already known to the Press and the public. A few top-ranking cadres are from time to time discovered and no benefit should be given to the Communist organisations in letting them know of intelligence progress. Members of the families of detainees were informed officially by press notification on 5th February, 1963, that they should contact the Special Branch to arrange for visits to detainees. The first of the visits was allowed on 8th February, 1963.