Visiting Forces Act 1960 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 2 · Visiting Forces
7. Restriction as respects certain offences, of trial of offenders connected with visiting force
Feedback & supportNo prosecution for an offence alleged to have been committed by a member of a visiting force shall be instituted in any court of Singapore unless —
member
“member”, in relation to a visiting force, means a member of the force of a sending country, being one of the members of the force for the time being appointed to serve with that visiting force, and includes any person in Singapore for the time being voluntarily enlisted in that force;
the Public Prosecutor certifies —
that the offence is one in relation to which the Singapore authorities have the right to exercise exclusive jurisdiction or the primary right to exercise jurisdiction under any treaty, agreement or arrangement to which the Government is a party; and
that such authorities have not waived their right of jurisdiction in respect of that offence; or
the Public Prosecutor certifies that, although the offence is one in respect of which the service authorities of the visiting force have the primary right to exercise jurisdiction under such a treaty, agreement or arrangement, that right has been waived in respect of the offence by such authorities or by the government of the country to which such visiting force belongs.
Where a person has been tried by a service court of a country under the powers referred to in section 6(1) duly exercised in accordance with the provisions of any treaty, agreement or arrangement between Singapore and that country, he shall not be tried for the same offence by any court of Singapore.
service court
“service court” means a court established under service law and includes any authority of a country who under the law of that country is empowered to review the proceedings of such a court or to try or investigate charges brought against persons subject to the service law of that country; and references to trial by, or to sentences passed by, service courts of a country shall be construed respectively as including references to trial by, and to punishment imposed by, such an authority in the exercise of such power;
The President may by order direct that subsection (1) shall apply in like manner as it applies to members of a visiting force to such other persons or class of persons having a relevant association with a visiting force as he may by such order specify.
visiting force
“visiting force”, for the purposes of any provision of this Act, means any body, contingent or detachment of the forces of a country to which that provision applies, being a body, contingent or detachment for the time being lawfully present in Singapore pursuant to any treaty, agreement or arrangement to which the Government is a party.
Subject to section 9, a person charged with an offence may, notwithstanding this section, be arrested or a warrant for his arrest may be issued or executed, and any such person may be remanded in custody or on bail notwithstanding that the Public Prosecutor has not given a certificate under subsection (1), but the case shall not be further prosecuted until such a certificate has been given.