Politics

The politics of Singapore take place in a framework of a parliamentary republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Singapore is the head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Parliament of Singapore. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The legislature is the parliament, which consists of the president as its head and a single chamber whose members are elected by popular vote. The role of the president as the head of state has been, historically, largely ceremonial, although the constitution was amended in 1991 to give the president some veto powers in a few key decisions such as the use of the national reserves and the appointment of key judiciary positions. They may also exercise powers over civil service appointments and internal security matters.

Political Background

Politics in Singapore have been dominated by the PAP since its independence in 1965. Foreign analysts and several opposition parties including the Workers Party and the Singapore Democratic Party argues Singapore is a de facto one party state and have accused the PAP of taking harsh action against opposition parties to discourage and impede their success, including accusations of gerrymandering and the filing of civil suits against the opposition for libel or slander.

Western democracies consider the form of government in Singapore to be closer to authoritarianism rather than true democracy and could be considered an illiberal democracy or procedural democracy.

Singapore has what its government considers to be a highly successful and transparent market economy. Some people have labelled Singapore a social democracy, although the PAP has consistently rejected the notion of being socialist. One of the differences from a social democracy is that the government uses public opinion and feedback when deciding policies, instead of rigorous lawmaking procedures. However, some of PAP's policies do contain certain aspects of socialism, which includes government-owned public housing constituting the majority of real estate and the dominance of government controlled companies in the local economy. The Housing Development Board oversees a large-scale public housing programme and education in Singapore is a rigorous compulsory public education system, and the dominance of government-controlled companies in the local economy. Although dominant in its activities, the government has a clean, corruption-free image. Singapore has consistently been rated as the least-corrupt country in Asia and amongst the top ten cleanest in the world by Transparency International.

Although Singapore's laws are inherited from British and British Indian laws, including many elements of English common law, the PAP has also consistently rejected liberal democratic values, which it typifies as Western and states that there should not be a 'one-size-fits-all' solution to a democracy. Laws restricting the freedom of speech are justified by claims that they are intended to prohibit speech that may breed ill will or cause disharmony within Singapore's multiracial, multi-religious society. Some offences can lead to heavy fines or caning and there are laws which allow capital punishment in Singapore for first-degree murder and drug trafficking. Amnesty International has criticised Singapore for having 'possibly the highest execution rate in the world' per capita. The Singapore Government responded by asserting it had the right as a sovereign state to impose the death penalty for serious offences. Most recently, the PAP has relaxed some of its socially conservative policies and encouraged entrepreneurship.

Constitution

The Constitution of Singapore is the supreme law of Singapore and it is a codified constitution. The constitution cannot be amended without the support of more than two-thirds of the members of parliament on the second and third readings. The president may seek opinion on constitutional issues from a tribunal consisting of not less than three judges of the Supreme Court. Singaporean courts, like the courts in Australia, cannot offer advisory opinion on the constitutionality of laws.

Part IV of the constitution guarantees the following:

liberty of a person (limited)
prohibition of slavery and forced labour
protection against retrospective criminal laws and repeated trials
equal protection
prohibition of banishment and freedom of movement
freedom of speech, assembly and association (limited)
freedom of religion
right to education

Part XII of the constitution allows the Parliament of Singapore to enact legislation designed to stop or prevent subversion. Such legislation is valid even if it is inconsistent with Part IV of the constitution. The Internal Security Act (ISA) is a legislation under such provision. In 1966, Chia Thye Poh was detained under the ISA and was imprisoned for 23 years without trial.

President

Prior to 1991, the president was the head of state appointed by parliament and was largely a ceremonial role with some reserve powers. As a result of constitutional changes in 1991, the president is now directly elected to office for a six-year term by popular vote. However, an election has never taken place. The government-appointed Presidential Elections Committee has so far always disqualified all but one candidate. This handpicked candidate was then declared President and is referred to as the elected president. The president now exercises powers over the following:

appointment of public officers
government budgets
examine government's exercise of its powers under the Internal Security Act
examine government's exercise of its powers under religious harmony laws
investigations into cases of corruption

However, the president must consult the Council of Presidential Advisers before taking a decision on some of these matters. The council comprises of:

2 members appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister
1 member appointed by the president on the advice of the chief justice
1 member appointed by the president on the advice of the chairman of the Public Service Commission

A member of the council serves a six-year term and are eligible for re-appointment for further terms of four years each.

Similar to the Speech from the Throne given by the heads of state in other parliamentary systems, the president delivers an address written by the government at the opening of parliament about what kind of policies to expect in the coming year.

Cabinet

The cabinet forms the executive or the government and it is answerable to parliament. It consists of sitting members of parliament and is headed by a prime minister, the head of government.

Neither the prime minister nor members of the cabinet are elected by parliament. Instead, the prime minister is appointed by the president, who in their view is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the parliament. Cabinet members, also known as ministers, are appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister.

Unlike the cabinet in the United States where it functions largely as an advisory council to the head of government, the cabinet in Singapore collectively decides the government's policies and has influence over lawmaking by introducing bills.

Parliament

The unicameral parliament is the legislature in Singapore with the president as its head. Before independence in 1965, it was known as the Legislative Assembly. It currently consists of 84 members of parliament. Based on the concept of parliamentary sovereignty in the United Kingdom, it is supreme to all other government institutions and may change or repeal any legislation passed by previous parliaments with a majority. The maximum term of any one parliament is five years, after which a general election must be held within three months of the dissolution of parliament.

The 84 elected members of parliament (MPs) are elected on a plurality voting basis and represent either single-member constituencies (SMCs) or group Representation Constituencies (GRCs). In GRCs, political parties field a team of between three to six candidates. At least one candidate in the team must belong to a minority race.

Formerly, there were no GRCs, and all constituencies of Singapore were represented by one member, but amendments to the Parliamentary Elections Act in 1991 led to the creation of GRCs, thus creating a plurality voting system in the process.

This development has led to complaints from opposition parties that they are often unable to field one, let alone three or more candidates. Out of the 84 members of parliament, 10 are female. In the last general election in 2006, the incumbent People's Action Party (PAP) won 82 of the 84 seats, with the same configuration as the previous election in 2001, but with a loss of 9% of the popular vote.

The constitution also provides for the appointment of other members of parliament not voted in at an election. Up to six Non-Constituency Members of Parliament from the opposition political parties can be appointed. Currently, there is one Non-Constituency Member of Parliament.

A constitutional provision for the appointment of up to nine Nominated Members of Parliament (NMPs) was made in 1990. NMPs are appointed by the president for a term of two and a half years on the recommendation of a Select Committee chaired by the Speaker of Parliament and are not connected to any political parties. In 2005, nine NMPs were sworn in, out of which five were female.

Both non-constituency and nominated members of parliament cannot vote on the following issues:

amendment of the constitution
removing the president from office
vote of no confidence in the government
public funds

Law Making

Before any law is passed, it is first introduced in parliament as a draft known as a bill. Bills are usually introduced by a minister on behalf of the cabinet, known as Government Bill. However, any member of parliament can introduce a bill, known as a Private Member's Bill. All bills must go through three readings in parliament and receive the president's assent to become an Act of Parliament.

Each bill goes through several stages before it becomes a law. The first stage is a mere formality known as the first reading, where it is introduced without a debate. This is followed by the second reading, where members of parliament debate on the general principles of the bill. If parliament opposes the bill, it may vote to reject the bill.

If the bill goes through the second reading, the bill is sent to a Select Committee where every clause in the bill is examined. Members of parliament who support the bill in principle but do not agree with certain clauses can propose amendments to those clauses at this stage. Following its report back to parliament, the bill will go through its third reading where only minor amendments will be allowed before it is passed.

Most bills passed by parliament are scrutinised by the Presidential Council for Minority Rights which makes a report to the Speaker of Parliament stating whether there are clauses in a bill which affects any racial or religious community. If approved by the council, the bill will be presented for the president's assent.

The last stage involves the granting of assent by the president, before the bill officially becomes to become a law.

Military

The military of Singapore serves primarily as a deterrent to potential invaders of the island. Singapore has mutual defence pacts with several countries, most notably the Five Power Defence Arrangements.

The military of Singapore includes the Singapore Army, the Republic of Singapore Navy and the Republic of Singapore Air Force, collectively known as the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). Various agencies of the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) and some private companies also play a supporting role. The military of Singapore is one of the most modern in Asia, with its advanced equipment and high level of training reflecting the continued emphasis of the government on military defence - military expenditures dominate the annual government budget.

Singapore subscribes to a philosophy of Total Defence, in which five aspects of a holistic national defence are identified. Non-military aspects of total defence include:

civil defence, which is carried out by the Singapore Civil Defence Force
economic defence, which stresses the need for a robust economy in order to maintain a viable society
psychological defence, which calls for a patriotic citizenry willing to do all in the name of its country
social defence, in which the need for a population at harmony with itself and strongly identified with each other is emphasised

The recent rise in unconventional warfare and terrorism has cast increasing emphasis upon the non-military aspects of Total Defence. The Gurkha Contingent, which is part of the Singapore Police Force, is also a counter-terrorist force.

Singapore's defence resources have been used in international humanitarian aid missions, including United Nations peacekeeping assignments in Kosovo, Kuwait and East Timor, and participating in the multinational force in Iraq. One notable incident of terrorism in Singapore prior to its independence was the bombing of MacDonald House during the Confrontation that took place between Malaysia and Indonesia in the early 1960s. More recently, the Shell Oil refinery on Pulau Bukom was attacked by members of the Japanese Red Army and the PFLP in the Laju Incident of 1974; and in 1991, the hijacking of Singapore Airlines Flight 117 ended in the storming of the aircraft and the subsequent deaths of all four hijackers. A current concern is Jemaah Islamiyah, a militant Islamic group operating in South East Asia known to be responsible for several bombings around the region, as well as planning in 2001 an ultimately foiled attack on American interests in Singapore.