SUICIDE OF FULL-TIME NATIONAL SERVICEMAN

Mr Low Thia Khiang asked the Minister for Defence (a) what are the terms of reference of the Committee of Inquiry to be convened by his Ministry into the suicide of full-time National Servicemen Gordon Khor Chun Keat aged 20 in Jurong Camp on 1st July 1994; and (b) whether he is aware of any prevalence of excessive punishment for relatively minor offences in the camp of the deceased and unfocused attitude of the High Command to suicidal tendencies in its rank and file and, if so, whether his Ministry will include questions concerning these matters in the terms of reference of the Committee of Inquiry.

The Minister for Defence (Dr Lee Boon Yang): Mr Speaker, Sir, before I proceed to answer the question, may I urge the Member for Hougang to familiarise himself with parliamentary procedures concerning Questions for Oral Answers. His untimely interjection yesterday was unnecessary and a mark of impatience.

Sir, we value the life of every SAF serviceman. Whenever an SAF serviceman loses his life, regardless of the circumstances, we consider the loss one too many. Therefore, it is the practice for Mindef to conduct an independent and comprehensive investigation into all deaths from unnatural causes which include suicide cases. For those involving national servicemen, the investigation is normally conducted by a Committee of Inquiry (COI) headed by a senior public official from outside Mindef. The scope and terms of reference for each Committee of Inquiry are comprehensive and seek to cover all possible aspects that could shed light on the incident. The Committee will look into the circumstances and events which led to the incident, including the serviceman's family background, medical and psychiatric history, disciplinary records and personal problems. The findings and recommendations of the Committee of Inquiry into the death of Private Khor, like other Committees of Inquiry, will be submitted to the Armed Forces Council which is chaired by the Minister for Defence and includes the Permanent Secretaries, the Chief of Defence Force and the Service Chiefs. Appropriate follow-up actions will be taken after the deliberation by the Armed Forces Council on the Report from the Committee of Inquiry.

The Member for Hougang must also know that under our laws, the Police conduct their own independent investigation of all unnatural deaths in Singapore and present their findings to the State Coroner. I would also like to say that the unit that Private Khor was attached to did not have any complaint or incidence of excessive punishments being meted out to national servicemen. So it is therefore premature for Mr Low to speculate on the cause of the suicide of Private Khor and to cast aspersions on the attitudes of senior SAF officers. By doing so, he may be causing unnecessary alarm among national servicemen and their parents.

Dr Lau Teik Soon (Thomson GRC): Would the Minister inform the House what measures are in place to ensure that such incidents will not recur?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Sir, as I have said in my answer, Mindef is very concerned with the well-being of each and every serviceman in the SAF. Therefore, Mindef has put in place various measures to try to identify and help servicemen who have problems. We recognise that, because of our universal conscription system, the SAF takes in people from all walks of life and from different backgrounds, some of whom will bring with them into national service their own personal and family problems. Because of this situation, we have an extensive mechanism to help SAF servicemen who have difficulties. We have a 24-hour hotline manned by professional counsellors at the SAF Counselling Centre. Servicemen can always call this 24-hour hotline for advice or assistance if they have any difficulty, including emotional problems. We have also appointed para-counsellors for the SAF Unit. The para-counsellors are there to help servicemen in the unit who may have difficulties in adjusting to military life. We have also appointed Orientation Officers in all the basic military training units. This is precisely to give assistance to those national servicemen in full time service who have just been enlisted and are undergoing their BMT and may need some assistance in adjusting to the rigour and discipline of military life.

The units also have a mechanism whereby the immediate superiors conduct interviews with their servicemen to find out from time to time how they are coping with the training. This will help to identify those who may have difficulty making adjustment and to spot potentially troublesome cases early.

Mr Low Thia Khiang: Has the Committee of Inquiry completed its findings?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Sir, the incident in this case took place in early July. The Committee of Inquiry has not completed its findings. That is why I said it was premature for him to speculate and to try to cast aspersions on senior SAF officers.

Mr Low Thia Khiang: Sir, since the Committee of Inquiry has not completed its findings, on what basis is the Minister sure that what I have mentioned in my Question would not have happened?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Sir, the Member is recalcitrant. I just told him that the Committee has not completed its findings. Therefore, it is premature for me to speculate and it is also premature for him to try to speculate on the possible causes of the incident. So he should refrain from this line of questioning.

Mr Low Thia Khiang: Okay, we do not speculate. Would the Minister agree that the Committee should look into these possible causes?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Sir, I take the Member's Question seriously and therefore I expect him to listen to the answer that I give. I have said in my answer that the scope and terms of reference of each Committee of Inquiry are comprehensive and seek to cover all possible aspects that could shed light on the incident and that should be the answer to his supplementary question. We would investigate and get to the bottom of each and every incident of unnatural death.

Mr Chia Shi Teck: The Minister has said that there are lots of avenues where these national servicemen or their parents can turn to for their problems. Are these made known to the national servicemen and their parents?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Mr Speaker, Sir, yes, the avenues for assistance for servicemen in the SAF are widely circulated to all servicemen. Telephone numbers are circulated or posted at conspicuous places so that servicemen know where they can call up for assistance, if necessary.

Mr Chia Shi Teck: Under the Army discipline, would they be charged for insubordination because soldiers are afraid to by-pass their superiors to lodge complaints or things like that?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Sir, servicemen who call up the Counselling Centre for assistance are not charged for by-passing the normal military disciplinary procedure because these are not deliberate attempts to by-pass military disciplinary procedure. These are soldiers who have difficulties and who need assistance. We will listen to their request and we will see how we can help them overcome their problems.

Dr Wang Kai Yuen: May I ask the Minister whether the Committee of Inquiry's proceedings and report are kept confidential or made available to the public, or at least made known to the next-of-kin?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Sir, the findings of the Mindef Committee of Inquiry are meant for Mindef's internal use and not generally released. The reason is that such investigation, in some cases, may touch on areas with military security implications. Nevertheless, as I said, the Police will conduct a completely independent and equally thorough investigation into any cases of unnatural death in Singapore, including those taking place among SAF servicemen. The Police will release its findings to the State Coroner.

Dr Kanwaljit Soin: Would the Minister have on hand the number of suicides by national servicemen in the last three years? I am just asking whether he has on hand the statistics.

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Sir, the SAF does not reveal statistics on its servicemen.

Mr Chiam See Tong: Before I go on to my supplementary question, I do not think the Minister should be so hot under the collar.

Mr Speaker: Order. Mr Chiam, no speeches. Ask your supplementary question.

Mr Chiam See Tong: The Minister has said that Mindef has got a comprehensive means of detecting problems in national servicemen, such as a 24-hour hotline, para-counsellors and Orientation Officers. But can the Minister explain, despite all these good measures, how is it that there are still suicides among national servicemen?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Sir, the SAF has put in place an extensive network of counselling services and help-lines to assist servicemen who are in trouble. But this network of assistance can only work if the serviceman who is in trouble comes forward to seek assistance. From time to time, despite all the good intention and all the care and concern that we have towards our servicemen, there will be some who have certain difficulties and who may not be prepared to seek assistance and the problem is aggravated over time and he may therefore commit some act which could get him into trouble or lead to perhaps even a suicide. The measures that we have put in place are there to help those who come forward to seek assistance or for us to reach out to those who are showing symptoms of such a problem. But it can never be a fail-safe mechanism. It can never be a 100% successful mechanism because from time to time there will be some people who will slip through. 1.30 pm

Mr Speaker: Order. It is 1.30 pm. End of Question time.

[Pursuant to Standing Order No. 21(3), Questions Nos. 15-19 have been postponed to the sitting of Parliament on 27th July, 1994.]