Singapore legislation

Clause 5

of Undesirable Publications (Amendment) Bill

Clause 5

New sections 8A, 8B and 8C

The principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after section 8, the following sections:“Offences involving obscene publications8A. Any person who —

(a)

makes or reproduces, or makes or reproduces for the purposes of sale, supply, exhibition or distribution to any other person;

(b)

imports or has in his possession for the purposes of sale, supply, exhibition or distribution to any other person; or

(c)

sells, offers for sale, supplies, offers to supply, exhibits or distributes to any other person,any obscene publication (not being a prohibited publication) knowing or having reasonable cause to believe the publication to be obscene shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or to both.Offences involving objectionable publications8B. Any person who —

(a)

makes or reproduces, or makes or reproduces for the purposes of sale, supply, exhibition or distribution to any other person;

(b)

imports or has in his possession for the purposes of sale, supply, exhibition or distribution to any other person; or

(c)

sells, offers for sale, supplies, offers to supply, exhibits or distributes to any other person,any objectionable publication (not being a prohibited publication) knowing or having reasonable cause to believe the publication to be objectionable shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both.Search for and seizure of obscene or objectionable publications8C.—

(1)

If information is given upon oath to a Magistrate that there is reasonable cause to suspect that there are in any premises or place any obscene or objectionable publications (not being prohibited publications) by means of or in relation to which any offence under section 8A or 8B has been or is about to be committed, or any equipment used or intended to be used for the purpose of exhibiting, making or reproducing those publications, he may issue a warrant under his hand by virtue of which any police officer, controller or authorised officer named in the warrant may —

(a)

with such assistance and by such force as is necessary, enter and search the premises or place;

(b)

seize the publications and any equipment used in the exhibition, making or reproduction of those publications; and

(c)

take into custody any person reasonably believed to be in possession of those publications or equipment.(2) The court before which a person is charged with an offence under section 8A or 8B may, whether he is convicted of the offence or not, order that any publication that appears to the court to be a prohibited publication, an obscene publication or an objectionable publication, and any equipment used or intended to be used for exhibiting, making or reproducing the publications in the possession of the alleged offender or before the court, be destroyed or delivered up to the Minister for disposal in such manner as the Minister may direct.(3) Where —

(a)

in proceedings brought under section 8A or 8B in connection with the offence no order is made under subsection (2) as to the publication or equipment; or

(b)

no such proceedings are instituted within 3 months of the seizure,the publication or equipment shall be returned to the person from whom they were seized or, if it is not reasonably practicable to return it to that person, shall be disposed of in accordance with the law regulating the disposal of lost or unclaimed property in the hands of the police.”.

Clause 5 — Undesirable Publications (Amendment) Bill