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Friday 6 February 2009
Novel idea to tackle vice
The British are considering a novel law to curb prostitution by making it a crime for a man to pay for sex with a prostitute who is working under a pimp.
The British are considering a novel law to curb prostitution by making it a crime for a man to pay for sex with a prostitute who is working under a pimp.
MP Christopher de Souza (Holland-Bukit Timah GRC) asked in Parliament yesterday if the Ministry of Home Affairs would consider enacting such a legislation here.
In 2006, police arrested 4,310 foreign prostitutes. In 2007, the number grew to 5,400 but dropped to 5,000 last year. This works out to about 100 vice-related arrests a week, he said, adding that 91 per cent of the women were here on social visit passes.
Mr. de Souza noted that British Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has announced that England and Wales are considering criminalising paying for sex with someone who is ‘controlled for another person’s gain’. This law envisions that such men be fined £1,000 (S$2,200).
This will be a strict liability offence, meaning ignorance of the circumstances will not be a defence in court.
Prosecuting such men could be the panacea for the disturbing trend, said Mr. de Souza. ‘The aim of the law is the protection of women - that women should not be traded or used as a commodity. I fully support this aim and believe we should take concrete steps to achieve it.’
Senior Minister of State for Law and Home Affairs Ho Peng Kee said the arrest numbers of 100 a week should be put in context that 190,000 tourists enter Singapore each week. Tightening up checks on female tourists will cause delays and hamper efforts to promote tourism, he added.
However, Mr. de Souza said he was sure the ministry would not use the same justification if it was 100 drug traffickers a week instead of 100 prostitutes.
Associate Professor Ho assured the MP the police are geared up for the fight against vice. He noted the British law has not yet come into force. ‘It is difficult to gauge if it will be effective. And indeed a serious concern is whether it will drive the problem deeper underground instead of mitigating it.’ Moreover, the trafficking of women for vice is not a problem here, unlike in Britain. But he assured Mr. de Souza the ministry will monitor how this British law, if passed, works out.
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Novel idea to tackle vice
By Selina Lum
6 February 2009
The British are considering a novel law to curb prostitution by making it a crime for a man to pay for sex with a prostitute who is working under a pimp.
MP Christopher de Souza (Holland-Bukit Timah GRC) asked in Parliament yesterday if the Ministry of Home Affairs would consider enacting such a legislation here.
In 2006, police arrested 4,310 foreign prostitutes. In 2007, the number grew to 5,400 but dropped to 5,000 last year. This works out to about 100 vice-related arrests a week, he said, adding that 91 per cent of the women were here on social visit passes.
Mr. de Souza noted that British Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has announced that England and Wales are considering criminalising paying for sex with someone who is ‘controlled for another person’s gain’. This law envisions that such men be fined £1,000 (S$2,200).
This will be a strict liability offence, meaning ignorance of the circumstances will not be a defence in court.
Prosecuting such men could be the panacea for the disturbing trend, said Mr. de Souza. ‘The aim of the law is the protection of women - that women should not be traded or used as a commodity. I fully support this aim and believe we should take concrete steps to achieve it.’
Senior Minister of State for Law and Home Affairs Ho Peng Kee said the arrest numbers of 100 a week should be put in context that 190,000 tourists enter Singapore each week. Tightening up checks on female tourists will cause delays and hamper efforts to promote tourism, he added.
However, Mr. de Souza said he was sure the ministry would not use the same justification if it was 100 drug traffickers a week instead of 100 prostitutes.
Associate Professor Ho assured the MP the police are geared up for the fight against vice. He noted the British law has not yet come into force. ‘It is difficult to gauge if it will be effective. And indeed a serious concern is whether it will drive the problem deeper underground instead of mitigating it.’ Moreover, the trafficking of women for vice is not a problem here, unlike in Britain. But he assured Mr. de Souza the ministry will monitor how this British law, if passed, works out.
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