ARMS OFFENCES (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

The Minister for Home Affairs and Education (Mr Chua Sian Chin): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

Section 10(a) of the Arms Offences Act, 1973, exempts the following categories of persons from section 3 of the Act which provides for punishment for unlawful possession of arms or ammunition:

(a) members of any visiting force lawfully present in Singapore;

(b) members of the Police Force; and

(c) members of a volunteer force or local force constituted under any written law for the time being in force in Singapore.

Because of this exemption provision, police officers and military personnel cannot be charged for unlawful possession of arms or ammunition under the Arms Offences Act. They can only be charged under another Act, the Arms and Explosives Act, which imposes much lighter penalties than the Arms Offences Act. In principle, there is no reason why uniformed personnel should not be treated like other citizens when they are not acting in the performance of their duty. They should not be allowed to escape the more severe punishment which they may deserve as provided by section 3 of the Arms Offences Act.

The Bill therefore seeks to redress this anomaly without causing disruption or inconvenience to uniformed personnel who need to carry arms in the performance of duty by restricting the exemption.

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 Chua Sian Chin].

Bill considered in Committee.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Clause 1 -

The Chairman: The citation year will be altered from "1977" to "1978".

Clause 1 ordered to stand part of the Bill.

Clause 2 ordered to stand part of the Bill.

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