EXTRADITION (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

3.50 p.m.

The Minister for Law and National Development (Mr E. W. Barker): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

Sir, the Bill now before this House seeks to amend the Extradition Act, 1968, principally with a view to bringing sections 21 and 31 of the Act in line with the corresponding provisions in the extradition legislation of most other Commonwealth countries.

Under the existing provisions of our Act, a fugitive offender who has been returned to Singapore for an offence committed prior to his return may be tried not only for the offence for which he was returned but for any other offence based on proof of the same facts of the offence for which he was returned; whereas under the "speciality rule" of extradition legislation in most other Commonwealth countries including the United Kingdom, such a fugitive can only be tried for any lesser offence based on proof of the same facts. Where, for example, the United Kingdom Government accedes to a request of the Singapore Government to return a fugitive accused of the murder of a child that he had kidnapped, the use of the words "any other offence" under section 31 of our Act as at present drafted would enable that person to be convicted of kidnapping with intent to murder which under our law carries the same penalty as murder - the offence for which he was returned. The offence of kidnapping with intent to murder is not therefore "a lesser offence" to that of murder.

Unless, therefore, the existing provisions in our Act are amended as proposed in the Bill, the Singapore Government would be obliged to give an undertaking to the Government of the United Kingdom every time it seeks the return of a fugitive offender that he will only be tried for the offence for which he was returned, or a lesser offence based on proof of the same facts. This would lead to unnecessary inconvenience and delay in the rendition of a fugitive. The amendments proposed in clauses 4 and 6 of the Bill will thus obviate the necessity of giving such an undertaking every time we seek the return of a fugitive offender from the United Kingdom or any other Commonwealth country which has adopted the "speciality rule".

Opportunity has also been taken in this Bill to make a drafting amendment to the definition of "extradition crime" in relation both to a Commonwealth country and to a foreign state, and also to make it clear that a District Judge has all the powers that are conferred upon a Magistrate under the Extradition Act. Though the latter situation is to a great extent provided for by section 18 of the Criminal Procedure Code, it is desirable that specific provision should be made in our Act if for no other reason than that this Act is intended to deal in a comprehensive manner with all matters concerning extradition. This amendment appears in clause 2 which amends section 4 of the Act.

The other amendments proposed by clauses 3 and 5 are drafting amendments.

Sir, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

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

The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill.-[Mr Barker].

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