In forceAmended2020 Revised Edition

Contents

Public Order Act 2009 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 2 · Assemblies and Processions

14. Unrestricted areas

Amended

Last amended by an amending law of 2018.

(1)

If the Minister is of the opinion that, having regard to the natural environment of any public place and the likelihood of any serious disruption to the life of the community (such as but not limited to the rights of members of the public to enjoy the natural environment and the rights of persons to carry on business), it is appropriate to allow citizens and other persons to exercise the right to participate in assemblies and processions in that public place, the Minister may, by order in the Gazette, designate that public place (called in this Act an unrestricted area) to be an area whereby no notice under section 6, and no permit under section 7, is required for the holding of all assemblies or processions or both in that public place.

(2)

An order made under subsection (1) must —

(a)

describe the unrestricted area, whether by means of a description, map or other document;

(b)

state any period for which the order is in force; and

(c)

state the conditions (if any) that apply to the organising of, or taking part in, any assembly or procession within that unrestricted area.

(3)

An order made under subsection (1) may —

(a)

provide that any contravention of any condition in the order that is applicable to the organising of, or taking part in, any assembly or procession within the unrestricted area subject to the order shall be an offence punishable with a fine not exceeding $10,000 or with imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or with both; and

(b)

provide for any transitional, saving and other consequential, incidental and supplemental provisions as the Minister considers necessary or expedient.

(4)

However, an order under subsection (1) designating a public place as an unrestricted area immediately expires if —

(a)

a special authorisation is granted under section 11 of the Public Order and Safety (Special Powers) Act 2018 pursuant to the giving of an activation order under that Act; and

(b)

the public place, or any part of the public place, falls within the target area of the special authorisation.

(5)

All orders made under this section must be presented to Parliament as soon as possible after publication in the Gazette.

(6)

This section has effect subject to section 33.

Terms defined in s 2

assembly
Defined · s 2
“assembly” means a gathering or meeting (whether or not comprising any lecture, talk, address, debate or discussion) of persons the purpose (or one of the purposes) of which is —(a)to demonstrate support for or opposition to the views or actions of any person, group of persons or any government;(b)to publicise a cause or campaign; or(c)to mark or commemorate any event,and includes a demonstration by a person alone for any purpose mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c);
Open s 2
permit
Defined · s 2
“permit” means a permit granted under section 7 in respect of a public assembly or public procession;
Open s 2
procession
Defined · s 2
“procession” means a march, parade or other procession, whether or not involving the use of vehicles or other conveyances —(a)comprising 2 or more persons gathered at a place of assembly to move from that place substantially as a body of persons in succession proceeding by a common route or routes; and(b)the purpose (or one of the purposes) of which is —(i)to demonstrate support for or opposition to the views or actions of any person, group of persons or any government;(ii)to publicise a cause or campaign; or(iii)to mark or commemorate any event,and includes any assembly held in conjunction with such procession, and a march by a person alone for any purpose mentioned in paragraph (b)(i), (ii) or (iii);
Open s 2
public place
Defined · s 2
“public place” means —(a)any place (open to the air or otherwise) to which members of the public have access as of right or by virtue of express or implied permission, whether or not on payment of a fee, whether or not access to the place may be restricted at particular times or for particular purposes, and whether or not it is an “approved place” within the meaning of the Public Entertainments Act 1958; or(b)a part of a place that the occupier of the place allows members of the public to enter, but only while the place is ordinarily open to members of the public;
Open s 2
unrestricted area
Defined · s 2
“unrestricted area” means a public place specified in an order made under section 14.
Open s 2

Report

Read on from s 15

Part 3

Special Events Security

Read on from Part 3

Part 4

Powers to Preserve and Maintain Public Order

Read on from Part 4

Part 5

Miscellaneous

Read on from Part 5

Details

Public Order Act 2009 · s 14

Saving and following need a free account.Sign in

Judgments that cite this Act

7 in all

Appeal dismissed: convictions for promoting ill-will between racial groups stood SummarySubhas Govin Prabhakar Nair v Public Prosecutor · [2025] SGHC 18
An applicant with a serious academic offence was not yet fit for the Bar SummaryRe Ariffin Iskandar Sha bin Ali Akbar and other matters · [2025] SGHC 156
Appeal allowed: organisers ought to have known the event was in a prohibited area SummaryPublic Prosecutor v Annamalai Kokila Parvathi and other appeals · [2026] SGHC 121

Where this comes from

Singapore Statutes Online · Public Order Act 2009, 2020 Revised Edition. Reader record updated on 7 Oct 2026.

Singapore legislation is Government copyright, used with the permission of the Attorney-General’s Chambers. Check Singapore Statutes Online for the latest version.

Open the official text