THEFT IN ARMY CAMPS (Particulars)

Mr Yeo Choo Kok asked the Minister of Defence (a) whether he will comment on the remarks made recently by the First Deputy Prime Minister on theft in army camps; (b) how many cases of theft there have been in the last five years; (c) how many culprits have been apprehended; and (d) what measures have been taken to improve general security and discipline so as to reduce theft cases in army camps as well as better the image of the army.

The Minister of Defence (Mr Howe Yoon Chong): Mr Speaker, Sir, the First Deputy Prime Minister remarked in the middle of January 1982 that theft was a common occurrence in SAF camps and that something must be done in our educational system to improve the moral fibre of our young men. I am sure Members of the House are well aware of the measures being taken by the Ministry of Education in this direction.

For the SAF, this remark of the First Deputy Prime Minister should not be interpreted to mean that theft is more prevalent among our national servicemen than among similar groups of young men elsewhere.

Every year, 20,000 or so young men of 18 years of age are recruited into national service. They come from different walks of life. Some are fresh from school and eager to go for further studies. Others have left school, on completion of their 'O' levels, one or two years ago. Many have left school prematurely at PSLE or Secondary I or Secondary 11 level. Most of these have been doing different jobs for one year or more. From this rather disparate group of young men there will bound to be different standards of integrity and moral behaviour and the incidence of petty thievery, breaking-in, and stealing cannot be avoided. What the SAF can do is to try, through strict military discipline, education and moral instruction to get our national servicemen to understand not only their rights and responsibilities as citizens but also their obligations. The SAF will not slacken in its efforts to instil discipline, integrity, and pride of belonging in our national servicemen. In this respect, Mindef is gratified to receive the support and encouragement of parents, teachers, community leaders, and others who can exercise influence over our national servicemen.

Mindef has constantly emphasized that the two to 2 1/2 years' national service should be an extension of the education of our young men. To this end, while discharging our main responsibility in providing military training, Mindef also trains our national servicemen in a variety of skills which will be useful in civilian life. The SAF itself inculcates strict discipline and adherence to the military honour code among our national servicemen. Mindef would like to believe that the young men put under our charge would have benefited in their moral, physical, and mental education while doing national service. I am happy to inform the House that there has been a dramatic improvement in the last five years with the reported cases of theft decreasing regularly each year, from 159 in 1977, to 106 in 1978; from 89 in 1979, to 66 in 1980, and to 32 in 1981.

Of the total number of 452 cases over the five years, 1977 to 1981, about half were solved with the arrest of 240 servicemen. The remaining cases were not solved.

Of the 240 servicemen arrested, half of these were educated up to only primary level. The other half were from various levels of secondary education.

The measures taken to reduce the number of theft cases in the SAF include:

(a) Briefing officers and NCOs on the common methods of theft and the preventive measures they can take.

(b) Regularly reminding servicemen at parades to take precautions against theft and of the penalties for stealing.

(c) More security patrols and spot checks, especially during weekends, public holidays, and in periods of field training and exercises, when most of the servicemen are out of camp.

(d) Severe disciplinary action against culprits, with sentences in courts martial ranging from two to 24 months' detention.