Category: Singapuraku

Goh Hoo Siang, A Singapore PR, Jailed Four Weeks For Insulting Modesty Of Female Tenant

An unemployed man was jailed for four weeks on Monday for taking a video of his tenant in the shower.

Malaysian Goh Hoo Siang, 34, who is a Singapore permanent resident, admitted to insulting the modesty of the 25-year-old woman at his home in Woodlands on July 15 last year.

The victim, a Malaysian, and her sister, were tenants at the time.

The court heard that between July 9 and 10 last year, Goh bought a thumbdrive with an attached pinhole camera and video recording capabilities from Sim Lim Square.

On July 15 he was at home with his daughter when he decided to put the recording device under the basin in the kitchen toilet, to film the victim and her sister. He turned on the recording device and left the toilet.

The victim returned home that evening and took a shower.

Towards the end of the shower, the recording device fell off. She picked it up and left the toilet.

When Goh went in to get the device, it was gone.

The victim saw part of the video on her laptop. She and her sister quickly left the flat to make a police report.

In his mitigation, Goh pleaded for a chance to turn over a new leaf. He tendered a medical memo from Khoo Teck Puat Hospital stating that he suffers from voyeurism – sexual interest in spying on people engaged in intimate behaviours.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Lee Zu Zhao pointed out that a recent High Court judgment stated that voyeurism does not deprive a person of self-control in the way that impulse control disorder does.

He cited aggravating factors such as high degree of planning and pre-meditation in seeking a jail sentence.

District Judge Crystal Ong agreed that a jail sentence was warranted. Goh had betrayed the trust of his tenant and managed to capture the victim nude while she was showering.

Calling it a grave intrusion of privacy and a serious insult of modesty, she said that it was lucky that more footage had not been captured.

Goh could have been jailed for up to one year and/or fined.

Source:www.straitstimes.com

April 7, 2015
MAS To Phase In Tighter Limit On Credit Card Debt And Unsecured Credit Facilities

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) will phase in a tighter limit on credit card debt and other unsecured credit facilities over four years so as to give affected borrowers more time to cut their debt.

MAS said the decision to give over-extended borrowers more time to adjust to the new measures comes after consultations with the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) and Credit Counselling Singapore (CCS), and feedback from the public.

Here’s what you need to know about the new measures.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

April 7, 2015
URA: Rise In Cases Of Unathorised Used Of Private Residential Properties

The number of private home owners illegally turning their properties into workers’ dormitories or renting them out for short-term stays have increased over the past three years.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said this as it confirmed that the Geylang apartment that caught fire last Friday (Apr 3) was illegally used as a workers’ dormitory. Two Bangladeshi workers died in the blaze, and three other people were injured.

URA said that there were 2,500 cases of unauthorised use of private residential properties in 2014. This was an increase from 2,100 cases in 2013 and 1,800 cases in 2012.

URA has investigated 180 cases involving unauthorised workers’ dormitories in Geylang alone since December last year.

The caretaker of the Geylang apartment that caught fire last week said that the living room is divided into seven rooms and one of its bigger rooms is further divided into two.

There are more than 30 people living in the apartment. This is about four times more than the maximum of eight residents allowed by URA. The case is being investigated by URA, along with the Manpower Ministry, Police and the Singapore Civil Defence Force.

The Migrant Workers’ Centre (MWC) said more needs to be done to prevent such tragedies.

“In the past, we normally do our outreach (by) trying to generate awareness about work rights, salary issues, working conditions and the work terms, for example. From this incident, I think we will also want to do more in terms of educating our workers, the migrant workers, to understand what they should also be aware of, about their living conditions and the dormitories they are staying at, to actually be able to identify some safety hazards and if there are any problems or any doubts, they should raise it to us,” said MWC chairman Yeo Guat Kwang.

“Employers should be more active and be responsible to ensure the living conditions of migrant workers are safe and conducive. They can’t just say that – as long as I have already complied with the law, and I have already provided such a provision then I don’t care,” he said.

Mr Yeo also urged the Government to let the Foreign Employment Dormitories Act cover all dormitories. “Because unfortunately, when we pass the dormitories Act, the decision is actually to only cover those dormitories with 1,000 beds and above. I think it is important for us to have one law that covers all, and we will have a mechanism to ensure that all agencies are better coordinated to address all the issues upstream.”

An earlier fire in Geylang that killed four workers in December last year is now being reviewed by the Attorney-General’s Chambers. URA and other agencies have recommended strong sentences given the severity of the offence.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

April 7, 2015
Marriage Dissolution Rates Increasing In Singapore

Marriage dissolution rates among recent marriage cohorts have increased compared to those in the past, the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) announced on Monday (Apr 6).

Among those who married in 2003, 16.1 per cent had their marriage dissolved by the 10th year of marriage. In contrast, 8.7 per cent of the 1987 cohort had dissolved their marriage by that time, the ministry said.

Similarly, 20.3 per cent of the 1998 cohort had dissolved their marriage by the 15th year of marriage, compared to 12.3 per cent of the 1987 cohort, it added.

DIVORCE RATES TWICE AS HIGH FOR YOUNGER GROOMS

Among “younger grooms”, who were aged between 20 and 24 years old, there is a higher proportion of dissolved marriages.

Divorce rates for younger grooms in civil marriages are twice as high, compared to those aged 25 and above. Thirty-three per cent of marriages involving younger grooms who married in 1998 ended in divorce before their 15th anniversary, the ministry said.

However, recent cohort Muslim divorce rates before the 5th year of marriage has bucked the trend. Divorce rates decreased from 14 per cent for the 2003 cohort to 11.4 per cent for the 2008 cohort, MSF noted.

“The improvement may be due to community initiatives in marriage preparation, enrichment and counselling for Muslim couples. Since the Marriage Counselling Programme for Muslim marriages began in 2004, more than 27,000 referrals were made. Forty-four per cent of couples in the programme decided not to proceed with divorce,” the ministry said.

The rise in Singapore’s marriage dissolution rate is in line with similar trends in other developed countries, and generally remains lower than those in countries such as the UK and New Zealand, MSF added.

NEW MARRIAGE PREP PROGRAMME IN MAY

In the same press release, MSF said it will be rolling out a new marriage preparation programme called Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Programme (PREP) from May this year.

This 12-hour programme is a more comprehensive version of the free two-hour Introduction to PREP course, which had been attended by more than 400 couples at the Registry of Marriages since the start of the year.

The programme will be held over two days, covering topics such as communication, conflict management and commitment. It is free for the first 200 couples who sign up, while couples who attend other such courses supported by the ministry will get a S$70 rebate.

Non-profit organisation Families for Life (FFL) said it welcomes the new marriage preparation programme. “Too often, couples are overwhelmed by personal work schedules and wedding preparations, and as such, feel that they have no time to attend such programmes. Such free programmes at ROM and convenient community touchpoints are likely to boost interest and participation among couples,” said FFL council member, Anita Fam.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

April 7, 2015
Nationality Based Discrimination Top Complaint Received By TAFEP, Banking And IT Sectors Most Problematic

Alleged discrimination based on nationality continued to top the list of complaints received last year by the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP), with the banking and information technology sectors still the most problematic.

These cases made up half of the some 300 complaints in total. However, TAFEP general manager Roslyn Ten said many stem from misunderstanding and not from genuine bias, and urged companies to improve communication with job seekers or existing employees by explaining why, for example, foreigners instead of Singaporeans were hired or promoted.

Speaking to TODAY yesterday, she said: “Could they better explain that it’s really about the skills? Because when they hire, they just hire. They don’t really communicate why (they) hire A and not B, and why (they) promote A and not B. It’s because of the domain knowledge … that the employers require, and somehow they couldn’t find them in locals.”

In some cases, Singaporean jobseekers may have commitments at home, and are reluctant to take up overseas postings or jobs which require frequent travelling, she said. “It’s quite difficult for them to take up (these) and (they’re) not as versatile as their foreign colleagues, in terms of being very open to being relocated or just to travel,” she added.

Overall, the number of complaints about discriminatory hiring practices received by TAFEP last year fell sharply, compared to 2013 when there were 475 complaints. But the 2013 figure was considered a blip, as it was the year when the Fair Consideration Framework was introduced. The framework requires employers to consider Singaporeans first for job openings. In 2012, there were 303 cases.

Apart from alleged discrimination based on nationality, one in five complaints wre biased linked to age — a similar proportion to alleged discrimination related to language or race.

On the number of complaints from the banking and IT sectors, Mrs Ten felt this was because “people in these sectors are more vocal”.

“They’re the PMEs (professionals, managers and executives), so they know where to bring their complaints to. It’s because of people’s awareness, rather than because these sectors are more discriminative of the Singaporeans,” she said.

Reiterating that many unfair employment practices were largely due to miscommunication, she said clear-cut cases of discrimination against Singaporeans are rare. “It’s really more of … perception,” she said.

In cases where companies do not adhere to fair employment practices, TAFEP offers suggestions to boost their human resource (HR) systems, such as refining job application forms or training recruiters in interviewing techniques.

It also educates companies on a sectorial level — through union talks, seminars and campaigns. As part of its outreach efforts, it organises a conference for business leaders, HR practitioners and academics every two years. This year’s conference takes place on Thursday.

Mrs Ten said TAFEP will step up efforts in promoting work-life harmony and the hiring of older workers, through sharing case studies and commissioning more studies.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

April 7, 2015