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LIFE and DEATH a Decade of Biomedical Law Making 2000–2010
850 Singapore Academy of Law Journal (2010) 22 SAcLJ LIFE AND DEATH A Decade of Biomedical Law Making 2000–2010 This article seeks to provide a survey and broad analysis of the law-making activities of the Singapore legislature in the context of global and national trends in biomedical and healthcare developments from 2000 to 2010 in the following areas: (a) regulation of complementary and alternative medicine; (b) epidemiology, infectious diseases and public health; (c) ethical issues in human organ transplantation; (d) mental capacity, mental health and competence issues; (e) regulation of medical and healthcare professionals; and (f) governance for biomedical research and biosafety. Charles LIM Aeng Cheng* BA (Hons) (Cambridge), MA (Cambridge); Barrister (Middle Temple), FSIArb. I. Introduction 1 In December 2000, the Singapore Bioethics Advisory Committee was established. The ensuing decade, 2000–2010, has witnessed an active Singapore legislature in the area of healthcare and biomedical issues. This article seeks to survey and discuss these legislative changes in the following broad areas: (a) regulation of complementary and alternative medicine; (b) epidemiology, infectious diseases and public health; (c) ethical issues in human organ transplantation; (d) mental capacity, mental health and competence issues; (e) regulation of medical and healthcare professionals; and (f) governance for biomedical research and biosafety. 2 Having regard to the sheer breadth and volume of the legislation generated in the past decade, this article can neither be * The author is currently the Parliamentary Counsel, Attorney-General’s Chambers and a member of the national Bioethics Advisory Committee as well as the National Medical Ethics Committee. This article is written in the author’s personal capacity and does not reflect the official views of the Attorney-General’s Chambers or the Government of Singapore or the Committees. -
331KB***Administrative and Constitutional
(2016) 17 SAL Ann Rev Administrative and Constitutional Law 1 1. ADMINISTRATIVE AND CONSTITUTIONAL LAW THIO Li-ann BA (Oxon) (Hons), LLM (Harvard), PhD (Cantab); Barrister (Gray’s Inn, UK); Provost Chair Professor, Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore. Introduction 1.1 In terms of administrative law, the decided cases showed some insight into the role of courts in relation to: handing over town council management to another political party after a general election, the susceptibility of professional bodies which are vested with statutory powers like the Law Society review committee to judicial review; as well as important observations on substantive legitimate expectations and developments in exceptions to the rule against bias on the basis of necessity, and how this may apply to private as opposed to statutory bodies. Many of the other cases affirmed existing principles of administrative legality and the need for an evidential basis to sustain an argument. For example, a bare allegation of bias without evidence cannot be sustained; allegations of bias cannot arise when a litigant is simply made to follow well-established court procedures.1 1.2 Most constitutional law cases revolved around Art 9 issues. Judicial observations on the nature or scope of specific constitutional powers were made in cases not dealing directly with constitutional arguments. See Kee Oon JC in Karthigeyan M Kailasam v Public Prosecutor2 noted the operation of a presumption of legality and good faith in relation to acts of public officials; the Prosecution, in particular, is presumed “to act in the public interest at all times”, in relation to all prosecuted cases from the first instance to appellate level. -
Criminal Law
Part A Bar Examinations 2015 Criminal Law Subject Coordinator: Dr S. Chandra Mohan School of Law, Singapore Management University Singapore Institute of Legal Education Part A Bar Examinations 2015 SINGAPORE INSTITUTE OF LEGAL EDUCATION Part A Bar Examinations 2015 Criminal Law (Version: 14 May 2015) INTRODUCTION The Part A Bar Examination in Criminal Law is designed to test whether overseas law graduates have obtained sufficient knowledge of the fundamental principles of criminal law in Singapore and understand how these are applied within Singapore’s criminal justice system. It is important that students keep in mind the relevant local legislative provisions and the court decisions that have interpreted these provisions (see the detailed Reading List). Singapore’s criminal law is codified and is principally contained in the Penal Code which was enacted in 1870. It is based on the Indian Penal Code and its provisions are not always similar to the English Criminal Law which its drafter, Lord Macaulay, sought to improve. Two core values of such a written Code that students must bear in mind are accessibility of the penal provisions and comprehensibility so that the layman can obtain and understand the law better. The use of ‘explanations’ and ‘illustrations’ in the sections, which give examples of the application of the provisions, are unique to the Penal Code. As the Penal Codes of India and Malaysia are similar to our Code, cases from these jurisdictions are of persuasive value in interpreting identical provisions. There are other statutes which provide for specific offences such as the Misuse of Drugs Act and the Prevention of Corruption Act. -
The Insanity Defence in the Criminal Laws of the Commonwealth of Nations
Singapore Journal of Legal Studies [2008] 241–263 THE INSANITY DEFENCE IN THE CRIMINAL LAWS OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF NATIONS Stanley Yeo∗ This article compares the M’Naghten Rules and some of the principal variations found in the Com- monwealth of Nations for the purpose of formulating the best possible provision on the defence of insanity. The discussion is enhanced by evaluations of the concept of diminished responsibility operating in the Commonwealth, and of the provision on insanity in the Statute of the International Criminal Court. I. Introduction The M’Naghten Rules propounded in 1843 by the judges of the Queen’s Bench in England1 have served as the template for the defence of insanity in the criminal law throughout much of the Commonwealth of Nations (hereinafter described as “the Commonwealth”). As might be expected, variations to the Rules have been developed either through the courts or legislatures as a result of disagreement or dissatisfaction over some feature or other of the Rules. Lately, the advancement of scientific knowledge of mental functioning has created new variations. Yet, in spite of these alternative formulations, the M’Naghten Rules continue to form part of English law and some other Commonwealth jurisdictions such as Sierra Leone and the Australian state of New South Wales.2 Is retention of the Rules defensible in the light of these variations or are there aspects which warrant revision? This article seeks to answer this question through a comparative study of the M’Naghten Rules and some of the principal variations found in the criminal laws3 of member states of the Commonwealth.4 ∗ Professor of Law, National University of Singapore. -
Public Prosecutor V Tan Chor
Public Prosecutor v Tan Chor Jin [2007] SGHC 77 Case Number : CC 30/2006 Decision Date : 22 May 2007 Tribunal/Court : High Court Coram : Tay Yong Kwang J Counsel Name(s) : Edwin San and Chew Chin Yee (DPPs) for the Prosecution; Accused in person Parties : Public Prosecutor — Tan Chor Jin 22 May 2007 Judgment reserved. Tay Yong Kwang J: Introduction 1 The accused (referred to by the media as the “One-eyed Dragon” because he has an opacity over the cornea of his right eye, which became blind some seven or eight years ago), is now 41 years old. He appeared in person in this trial, having discharged counsel before the preliminary inquiry and having refused legal representation by counsel assigned to him by the Registrar of the Supreme Court. At the commencement of the trial, the accused confirmed that he did not wish to have legal representation and that he wanted to conduct the trial on his own. He spoke mainly in Mandarin but would switch to simple (and often unstructured) English every now and then. 2 The trial involves the following amended capital charge under the Arms Offences Act (Cap 14, 1998 revised edition): You, Tan Chor Jin, on the 15th day of February 2006, at Blk 223 Serangoon Avenue 4 #02-183, Singapore, did use an arm, namely a Beretta, 0.22 Calibre pistol by discharging 6 rounds from the said pistol, with intent to cause physical injury to one Lim Hock Soon, male/40 years, and you have thereby committed an offence punishable under section 4(1) read with section 4(2) of the Arms Offences Act, Chapter14. -
Micheal Anak Garing V Public Prosecutor and Another Appeal
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE [2017] SGCA 07 Criminal Appeal No 9 of 2015 Between MICHEAL ANAK GARING … Appellant And PUBLIC PROSECUTOR … Respondent Criminal Appeal No 11 of 2015 Between PUBLIC PROSECUTOR … Appellant And TONY ANAK IMBA … Respondent In the matter of Criminal Case No 19 of 2013 Between PUBLIC PROSECUTOR And (1) MICHEAL ANAK GARING (2) TONY ANAK IMBA JUDGMENT [Criminal Law]—[Offences]—[Murder] [Criminal Procedure and Sentencing]—[Sentencing]—[Appeals] This judgment is subject to final editorial corrections approved by the court and/or redaction pursuant to the publisher’s duty in compliance with the law, for publication in LawNet and/or the Singapore Law Reports. Micheal Anak Garing v Public Prosecutor and another appeal [2017] SGCA 07 Court of Appeal — Criminal Appeals Nos 9 and 11 of 2015 Chao Hick Tin JA, Andrew Phang Boon Leong JA and Judith Prakash JA 5 September 2016 27 February 2017 Judgment reserved. Chao Hick Tin JA (delivering the judgment of the court): Introduction 1 Micheal Anak Garing (“MAG”) and Tony Anak Imba (“TAI”) were both tried in the High Court under s 300(c) of the Penal Code (Cap 224, 2008 Rev Ed) for the murder of one Shanmuganathan Dillidurai (“the deceased”). They were both charged with murder committed in furtherance of a common intention, and were thus liable to be punished under s 302(2) read with s 34 of the Penal Code. 2 MAG and TAI, together with two other friends, Hairee Anak Landak (“HAL”) and Donny Anak Meluda (“DAM”) (collectively, “the Gang”), had set out from a friend’s house on the night of 29 May 2010 with a preconceived plan to commit robbery. -
Internal Communication Clearance Form
HAUT-COMMISSARIAT AUX DROITS DE L’HOMME • OFFICE OF THE HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS PALAIS DES NATIONS • 1211 GENEVA 10, SWITZERLAND Mandates of the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment REFERENCE: UA SGP 3/2015: 30 October 2015 Excellency, We have the honour to address you in our capacity as Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment pursuant to Human Rights Council resolutions 26/12 and 25/13. In this connection, we would like to bring to the attention of your Excellency’s Government information we have received concerning the imminent execution of Mr. Kho Jabing, a Malaysian national sentenced to death for murder by a Singaporean court. According to the information received: On 30 July 2010, Mr. Kho Jabing, a Malaysian national and a co-defendant were convicted of murder in Singapore after a 2008 robbery resulting in death. As the capital punishment was mandatory for murder until 2012, they were sentenced to death. On 24 May 2011, Mr. Jabing’s co-defendant was convicted of “robbery with hurt” while his death sentence was confirmed. In 2012, following a penal reform Singapore reviewed its mandatory capital punishment laws. The courts were allowed to impose either the death penalty or other sanctions including life imprisonment for drug trafficking and murder. On 30 April 2013, the Court of Appeal decided to re-sentence Mr. Jabing, arguing that his case meets the requirements of the definition of murder under Section 300(c) of the Penal Code, stating that when there is no intention to cause death judges have the option to impose either the death penalty or life imprisonment or caning. -
Criminal Law Conference 2019 7 March 2019 Opening Address by Deputy Attorney-General, Hri Kumar Nair S.C
Criminal Law Conference 2019 7 March 2019 Opening Address by Deputy Attorney-General, Hri Kumar Nair S.C. Towards a More Efficient and Just Criminal Process Distinguished Guests Ladies and Gentlemen I. INTRODUCTION 1 I would like to touch on the topic of a just criminal process, and in particular, on a facet of justice that is often overlooked. When we talk about achieving justice in the criminal context, we often have in our minds the twin ends of securing the conviction and punishment of the guilty on the one hand, and the acquittal of the innocent on the other. Any criminal legal system which desires to be regarded as just must necessarily aspire towards these twin outcomes. But we must be careful that the ends of justice do not obscure the means by which we arrive at them. In this regard, I suggest that a necessary condition of justice is a criminal process which secures the ends of justice by fairly as well as efficiently resolving cases. 2 The link between efficiency and justice is not a new one, nor one which is controversial. In 1996, then Attorney-General Mr Chan Sek Keong, delivering the 10th Singapore Law Review Lecture, observed that: Any model of the criminal process we should strive for… must be efficient, ie, it should be able to speedily “apprehend, try, convict and dispose of a high proportion of criminal offenders whose offences become known”. 3 There are, to my mind, three reasons why the efficient resolution of criminal cases coheres with the demands of justice: (a) First, and most obviously, the timely resolution of a case enables us to reach the aforesaid ends of justice. -
Going Backwards: the Death Penalty in Southeast Asia
GOING BACKWARDS The death penalty in Southeast Asia October 2016 / N° 682a October Cover photo: An anti-death penalty advocate displays a placard in front of the Supreme Court in Manila on 26 January 2004 to call on the government to stop the scheduled executions of two convicted kidnappers. © Joel Nito / AFP tabLE OF CONTEnts Introduction 4 Brunei Darussalam: Death penalty under Sharia Criminal Code looms 5 Burma: Happy to remain de facto abolitionist 5 Indonesia: Executions continue, more crimes punishable by death 6 Laos: No progress towards abolition 8 Malaysia: Reform stalled amid ongoing executions 9 Philippines: New President proposes reintroduction of capital punishment 10 Singapore: Government defends capital punishment, executions continue 12 Thailand: Dragging its feet on abolition 13 Vietnam: Capital punishment still on the books despite law amendments 15 The death penalty in Southeast Asia: Key facts & figures 16 Recommendations to countries in Southeast Asia 17 Introduction Over the past year, Southeast Asia has witnessed significant setbacks with regard to the abolition of the death penalty. Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore have all carried out executions. It is unknown whether any executions were carried out in Vietnam, where statistics on the death penalty continue to be classified as ‘state secrets.’ In the name of combating drug trafficking, Indonesian President Joko Widodo is rapidly becoming Southeast Asia’s top executioner. The Philippines, which effectively abolished the death penalty for all crimes in 2006, is considering reinstating capital punishment as part of President Rodrigo Duterte’s ill-conceived and disastrous ‘war on drugs.’ Over the past year, slow or no progress towards the complete abolition of the death penalty for all crimes has been observed in Brunei Darussalam, Burma, Laos, and Thailand – countries that have attained, or are close to attaining, the status of de facto abolitionist. -
International Collaborative Working Towards Death Penalty Abolition Page 1 of 2
International collaborative working towards death penalty abolition Page 1 of 2 International collaborative working towards death penalty abolition By Melissa Parke Published on Thursday, 26 November 2015 16:30 Ms Parke (4:30pm) — Last week in Kuala Lumpur I participated in a parliamentary round table concerning the abolition of the death penalty in Malaysia that was co-hosted by the Parliament of Malaysia and the Parliamentarians for Global Action, the PGA, of which I am a member and the chair of the Australian national group. At the round table I met the family of a 31-year-old Malaysian man, Kho Jabing, who faces imminent execution in Singapore. Kho Jabing's petition for clemency was rejected on 19 October by President Tony Tan Keng Yam, and his execution was initially set for 6 November. Just a day before he was to be sent to the gallows he was granted a temporary stay of execution to allow for the consideration of two separate legal challenges put forward on his behalf. This is a story all too familiar on death row cases. The life of a young man being held in the balance as lawyers and the courts battle to determine his fate. Kho Jabing and a co-defendant were convicted of murder on 30 July 2010, which at the time carried a mandatory death sentence. In 2012 Singapore amended its penal code to reduce the scope of mandatory death sentences, giving the courts discretion not to impose the death penalty in instances when there is no intention to cause death. On the basis that Kho Jabing did not intend to cause death, the High Court in 2013 resentenced him to life imprisonment and 24 strokes of the cane. -
9789814677813
SUBHA THE BEST I COULDFor Review onlyNATIONAL BESTSELLER Subhas Anandan (1947–2015) was undoubtedly Singapore’s best-known S criminal lawyer. From taking on Singapore’s most infamous cases, such as those A of Anthony Ler, Took Leng How and Ah Long San, to espousing his views on NANDAN the mandatory death sentence and police entrapment, Subhas Anandan became the face of criminal defence in Singapore. But why did he choose to represent clients who were to all intents and purposes guilty? And were the criminals he represented the monsters they were made out to be? Part (auto) biography and part log of Singapore’s criminal history, The Best I Could is a candid, at times brutally honest rendition of the boy, the man, the lawyer and the mentor who would ultimately become the voice of Singapore’s underdogs and unwanted. The THE BES book is a journey through dusty jail cells, dramatic courtrooms and the minds of some of the most high-profile criminals to date. At the end of a sometimes emotional ride, underneath his signature public scowl is a heart that is truly made of gold. We are privileged to have him as a colleague and a mentor to our younger colleagues. “Even the most heinous — Tan Chong Huat, Managing Partner, KhattarWong (2009) offender deserves The Best I Could provides a good insight into the criminal mind. Subhas narrates some a proper trial.” of the island’s most heinous crimes and the criminals behind them. Some of the characters are as fascinating as the author himself, and Subhas shows there is some good in the worst of them. -
Death by Discretion
Death by Discretion An examination of the interaction between prosecutorial and judicial discretion and the effects on sentencing for capital offences under the 2013 discretionary death penalty regime in Singapore Candidate number: 8003 Submission deadline: 15 May 2018 Number of words: 18,000 Table of Contents 1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 1 2 WHY THE FOCUS ON DISCRETION IN SINGAPORE’S DEATH PENALTY REGIME ......................................................................................................................... 2 3 STRUCTURE AND METHODOLOGY .................................................................... 3 4 A BACKGROUND OF THE DEATH PENALTY IN SINGAPORE ..................... 4 4.1 Drugs Offences ................................................................................................................. 7 4.2 Murder .............................................................................................................................. 9 4.3 Constitutional Challenges ................................................................................................ 11 5 CHANGES TO THE REGIME IN 2013 ................................................................... 14 5.1 Rationale for the Changes ............................................................................................... 16 6 PROSECUTORIAL DISCRETION AND SENTENCING – BLURRING OF LINES? .........................................................................................................................