Singapore Armed Forces Bill

Bill No. 2/1972

Read the first time on 7th March 1972.

An Act to provide for the raising, maintenance and discipline of the Singapore Armed Forces and for matters connected therewith and for the repeal of certain enactments relating to existing forces.

Be it enacted by the President with the advice and consent of the Parliament of Singapore, as follows: —

PART I

PRELIMINARY

Short title and commencement

1.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Singapore Armed Forces Act, 1972, and shall, with the exception of sections 191 and 192, come into operation on such date as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint.

(2) The Minister may appoint different dates for the coming into operation of the different Parts of this Act.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“aircraft” means any machine for flying whether propelled by mechanical means or not and includes any description of balloon;

“Armed Forces Council” means the Armed Forces Council established under section 7 of this Act;

“arms” includes parts and accessories of arms, ammunition, explosives whether encased or not and instruments used as aids to operation or adjustment of arms, whether the arms are serviceable or not;

“arrest” includes open arrest;

“civil court” means a court of ordinary criminal jurisdiction constituted under any written law in force relating to courts;

“civil offence” means an offence punishable under any written law in force other than a military offence;

“civil prison” means a prison declared as such under section 3 of the Prisons Act (Cap. 79);

“commander” means, in relation to any person subject to military law, an officer of or above the rank of captain for the time being commanding a unit or units or part of a unit of the Singapore Armed Forces;

“convening authority” means, in the case of a general court martial, an officer of or above the rank of major appointed by the Armed Forces Council for the purpose and, in the case of a field general court martial, a commander referred to in section 81 of this Act.

“detention barracks” means any building or part of a building which is set apart by the Armed Forces Council for the purpose of persons serving sentences of detention;

“disciplinary officer” means a junior disciplinary officer, a senior disciplinary officer and a superior commander each being qualified to be such or being designated as such pursuant to the provisions of Part IV of this Act;

“enemy” includes persons engaged in violent operations against the Singapore Armed Forces, armed mutineers, armed rebels, armed rioters or pirates;

“general orders” includes orders of the Armed Forces Council, General Orders of the Ministry of Defence, standing orders, routine orders and other general orders published in writing in accordance with military usage;

“Military Court of Appeal” means the court established under Part VII of this Act;

“military custody” means any place designated by the Armed Forces Council pursuant to regulations made under this Act which according to military usage is used for keeping offenders under arrest awaiting trial or on remand;

“military documents” includes reports, certificates, returns, pay lists, forms and any other documents in use in the Singapore Armed Forces;

“military offence” means an offence punishable under this Act;

“military policeman” means a serviceman appointed to be a military policeman;

“military prison” means any building or part of a building under the control of the Armed Forces Council which is set apart by the Armed Forces Council for the purpose of persons serving sentences of imprisonment;

“national serviceman” has the same meaning as in the Enlistment Act (Cap. 229);

“officer” means a person appointed by the President of Singapore or the proper authority to hold the rank of officer in the Singapore Armed Forces and includes any person commissioned as an officer under any written law that is repealed by this Act;

“proper authority” has the same meaning as in the Enlistment Act;

“publication” and “words” have the same meaning as in the Sedition Act (Cap. 106);

“qualified person” has the same meaning as in the Legal Profession Act (Cap. 217);

“regular serviceman” has the same meaning as in the Enlistment Act;

“reservist” means a person liable to render reserve service under the Enlistment Act;

“sentence” means a punishment imposed on a convicted person;

“serviceman” means an officer or a soldier of the Singapore Armed Forces and includes a servicewoman;

“sickness” includes permanent or temporary illness, disability or injury;

“Singapore Armed Forces” means the Singapore Armed Forces raised and maintained under section 6 of this Act;

“Singapore Armed Forces property” includes property in the possession, control or occupancy of the Singapore Armed Forces;

“soldier” means any person, other than an officer, who is a member of the Singapore Armed Forces and includes a servicewoman;

“subordinate military courts” means general courts martial and field general courts martial from the decisions of which by reason of this Act there is a right of appeal to the Military Court of Appeal;

“summary trial” means a trial by a disciplinary officer under Part IV of this Act;

“vessel” includes a hovercraft.

(2) In any written law or any document whatsoever —

(a)	all references to “the Army Board” shall be construed as references to the Armed Forces Council constituted under this Act;
(b)	all references to “court-martial” shall be construed as references to the subordinate military courts constituted under this Act;
(c)	all references to “Singapore armed forces”, “Singapore Army”, “Singapore forces” and “the army, navy or air force of Singapore” shall be construed as references to the Singapore Armed Forces constituted under this Act;
(d)	all references to “an officer” or to “a person holding a commission in the armed forces” shall be construed as references to an officer under this Act; and
(e)	all references to “a soldier, sailor, seaman or airman” or to “a non-commissioned officer” shall be construed as references to a serviceman under this Act.

(3) For the purposes of this Act, if not inconsistent with the context, the expression “on active service” as applied to a person subject to military law means whenever he is attached to or forms part of a force which is engaged in operations against the enemy or is engaged in military operations in a country or place wholly or partly occupied by an enemy, or is in military occupation of any foreign country.

(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (3) of this section, where any part of the Singapore Armed Forces is serving, or due to serve, outside Singapore under conditions that do not, or will not, amount to “active service” as defined in subsection (3) of this section, the Armed Forces Council may declare that that part of the Singapore Armed Forces shall be temporarily subject to this Act, as if that part of the Forces was on active service; and then, on the publication of any such declaration, the forces to which the declaration applies shall be deemed to be on active service until the declaration is cancelled by the Armed Forces Council.

Application

3. The following persons shall be persons subject to military law and this Act shall apply to them: —

(a)	regular servicemen and full-time national servicemen in the Singapore Armed Forces from the time their liability to report for enlistment or service arises until such time as they are lawfully discharged or released;
(b)	reservists from the time that they are ordered to report for enlistment or service, whether they have complied with such order or not, and while in uniform or performing service in the Singapore Armed Forces or the People’s Defence Force pursuant to section 14 of the Enlistment Act (Cap. 229), and while called out for mobilized service pursuant to sections 16 and 17 of that Act or when called out to duty in aid of the civil power;
(c)	all civilians who are in the service of the Singapore Armed Forces when engaged on active service;
(d)	all civilians, not otherwise subject to military law, who are followers of, or accompany, the Singapore Armed Forces when engaged on active service;
(e)	officers and soldiers belonging to a Commonwealth or foreign force when attached to or seconded for service with or otherwise acting as part of or with any portion of the Singapore Armed Forces.

Liability for military offences

4. All persons subject to military law by virtue of section 3 of this Act shall be liable to be tried by subordinate military courts for all the military offences in this Act and by a disciplinary officer for the offences set out in the First Schedule to this Act.

Jurisdiction of civil courts

5. Nothing in this Act shall affect the jurisdiction of civil courts to try a person subject to military law for any civil offence.

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