Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill

Bill No. 33/1993

Read the first time on 12th October 1993.

An Act to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act (Chapter 185 of the 1985 Revised Edition).

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

Short title and commencement

1. This Act may be cited as the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Act 1993 and shall come into operation on such date as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint.

Amendment of section 2

2. Section 2 of the Misuse of Drugs Act (referred to in this Act as the principal Act) is amended —

(a)

by deleting the definitions of “cannabis” and “cannabis resin” and substituting the following definitions:

“ “cannabis” means any plant of the genus Cannabis, or any part of such plant, by whatever name it is called;

“cannabis mixture” means any mixture of vegetable matter containing tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabinol in any quantity;

“cannabis resin” means any substance containing resinous material and in which is found tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabinol in any quantity;”; and

(b)

by inserting, immediately after the definition of “officer of the Bureau”, the following definition:

“ “opium” means any substance containing in any quantity morphine and one or more of the following, namely, codeine, narcotine, papaverine and thebaine but does not include poppy straw which is not mixed in any such substance;”.

Amendment of section 5

3. The principal Act is amended by renumbering section 5 as subsection (1) of that section, and by inserting immediately thereafter the following subsection:

“(2) For the purposes of this Act, a person commits the offence of trafficking in a controlled drug if he has in his possession that drug for the purpose of trafficking.”.

Amendment of section 17

4. Section 17 of the principal Act is amended —

(a)

by inserting, immediately after paragraph (d), the following paragraph:

“(da)

30 grammes of cannabis mixture;”; and

(b)

by deleting the words “, until the contrary is proved, be presumed to traffic in that controlled drug” at the end thereof and substituting the following words:

“be presumed to have had that drug in possession for the purpose of trafficking unless it is proved that his possession of that drug was not for that purpose”.

Amendment of First Schedule

5. The First Schedule to the principal Act is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “Opium, whether raw, prepared or medicinal.” in paragraph 1 of Part I and substituting the word “Opium.”;
(b)	by deleting the definitions of “medicinal opium” and “raw opium” in Part IV; and
(c)	by deleting the semi-colon at the end of the definition of “poppy straw” in Part IV and substituting a full-stop.

Amendment of Second Schedule

6. The Second Schedule to the principal Act is amended —

(a)

by inserting, immediately after the words “1200 grammes” in paragraph (a) in the second column, against section 5 in the first column relating to “Unauthorised traffic in opium”, the words “and containing not less than 20 grammes of morphine”;

(b)

by inserting, immediately after the words “1200 grammes” in paragraph (b) in the second column, against section 5 in the first column relating to “Unauthorised traffic in opium”, the words “and containing more than 30 grammes of morphine”;

(c)

by inserting, immediately after paragraph (b) of the entry relating to “Unauthorised traffic in cannabis” against section 5 in the first column, the following entries in the second and sixth columns as shown hereunder:

Punishment

Section creating offence

General nature of offence

Class A drug involved

Class B drug involved

Class C drug involved

Specified drug or quantity thereof or drug with specified content involved

General

“Unauthorised traffic in cannabis mixture where the quantity is —

(a)	not less than 660 grammes and not more than 1000 grammes

—

Maximum 30 years and 15 strokes

Minimum 20 years and 15 strokes

—

(b)	more than 1000 grammes

—

Death

—”;

(d)

by inserting, immediately after the words “1200 grammes” in paragraph (a) in the second column, against section 7 in the first column relating to “Unauthorised import or export of opium”, the words “and containing not less than 20 grammes of morphine”;

(e)

by inserting, immediately after the words “1200 grammes” in paragraph (b) in the second column, against section 7 in the first column relating to “Unauthorised import or export of opium”, the words “and containing more than 30 grammes of morphine”; and

(f)

by inserting, immediately after paragraph (b) of the entry relating to “Unauthorised import or export of cannabis” against section 7 in the first column, the following entries in the second and sixth columns as shown hereunder: