Misuse of Drugs Act
(Chapter 185, Section 44)
Misuse of Drugs (Approved Institutions) (Discipline) Regulations
Rg 5
G.N. No. S 137/1979

REVISED EDITION 1999
(1st July 1999)
[29th June 1979]
Citation
1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Misuse of Drugs (Approved Institutions) (Discipline) Regulations.
Definitions
2.  In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —
“centre” means any approved institution as defined in the Act;
“Committee” means an Institutional Discipline Advisory Committee appointed under regulation 2A;
[S 454/2008 wef 15/09/2008]
“Director of Prisons” has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Prisons Act (Cap. 247);
“inmate” means any drug addict or abuser who is detained in a centre;
“medical officer” means a registered medical practitioner who is for the time being appointed by the Director of Prisons to perform the functions of a medical officer under these Regulations;
[S 406/2003 wef 26/08/2003]
“officer” means the Superintendent of a centre and includes any other rehabilitation or custodial officer who is attached to the centre;
“probation officer” means a person appointed as a probation officer or volunteer probation officer under section 3 of the Probation of Offenders Act (Cap. 252);
“supervision officer” means any person appointed by the Minister under regulation 15(1) of the Misuse of Drugs (Approved Institutions and Treatment and Rehabilitation) Regulations (Rg 3);
“visitor” means a member of the Board of Visitors appointed under regulation 3 of the Misuse of Drugs (Board of Visitors for Approved Institutions) Regulations (Rg 4), and includes any other person authorised by the Minister or the Director of Prisons to visit a centre.
Institutional Discipline Advisory Committee
2A.—(1)  The Minister may appoint one or more committees, each to be known as an Institutional Discipline Advisory Committee, to render an opinion on whether, in any case where a Superintendent of a centre has ordered that corporal punishment be imposed on an inmate, the punishment imposed on the inmate is excessive.
(2)  A Committee shall consist of —
(a)a Chairman; and
(b)not more than 3 other members.
(3)  Each Chairman or member of a Committee shall hold office for such period, not exceeding 2 years, as the Minister may determine and shall be eligible for re-appointment.
(4)  A Chairman or member of a Committee may resign from his appointment at any time by giving notice in writing to the Minister.
(5)  The Minister may at any time revoke the appointment of any Chairman or member, or fill any vacancy in the membership, of a Committee.
(6)  A Chairman of a Committee shall preside at every meeting of the Committee at which he is present, and in his absence, the remaining members of the Committee shall elect one of their number to preside at the meeting of the Committee.
(7)  The Committee shall sit in private and shall not be required to interview any inmate or other person.
(8)  Each Committee may determine its own procedure.
(9)  The Minister may give directions to a Committee as to the matters to be taken into account by the Committee when discharging its functions.
[S 454/2008 wef 15/09/2008]
Duties of inmates
3.—(1)  An inmate of a centre shall work in such workshop or do such work as may be assigned to him by the Superintendent of the centre.
(2)  An inmate shall keep his bedding, personal effects and all the surrounding areas and the toilets of his living quarters clean and tidy.
Enforcement of discipline
4.  Every officer shall treat every inmate justly and firmly in the enforcement of discipline.
Use of force
5.—(1)  Every officer may use reasonable force against any inmate who —
(a)is escaping or attempting to escape from a centre;
(b)is engaged in a mutiny or an outbreak by himself or with other inmates;
(c)attacks the officer or any other person; or
(d)without any reasonable excuse, repeatedly refuses to obey a lawful order given by the officer.
(2)  Where force is used against an inmate under paragraph (1), the inmate shall be examined by a medical officer as soon as possible.
Discipline of inmates outside centre
6.  Every person, while being taken to or from any centre to which he has been lawfully committed under the Act or while working outside the centre, or is otherwise beyond the premises thereof, in or under the lawful charge or control of an officer, shall be subject to the same discipline and to the same constraints as if he were within the centre.
Punishments for minor offences
7.  An inmate of a centre who contravenes or fails to comply with regulation 3 or commits any of the minor offences set out in Part I of the Schedule shall be liable, in addition to or in lieu of any other punishment which may be imposed under the Act or any other written law, to any one or more of the following punishments to be imposed by the Superintendent of the centre:
(a)deprivation of not more than 2 visits by relatives and friends of the inmate;
(b)deprivation of the privilege to use or patronise the centre’s canteen for a period not exceeding one month;
(c)stoppage or reduction of earnings for a period not exceeding one month;
(d)reprimand.
Punishments for major offences
8.  An inmate of a centre who commits any of the major offences set out in Part II of the Schedule shall be liable, in addition to or in lieu of any other punishment which may be imposed under the Act or any other written law, to any one or more of the following punishments to be imposed by the Superintendent of the centre:
(a)deprivation of not more than 4 visits by relatives and friends of the inmate;
(b)deprivation of the privilege to use or patronise the centre’s canteen for a period not exceeding 2 months;
(c)solitary confinement in a ward for a period not exceeding 7 days;
(d)stoppage or reduction of earnings for a period not exceeding 2 months;
(e)corporal punishment not exceeding 6 strokes with a rattan.
Records of punishments
9.—(1)  Any punishment imposed on an inmate under these Regulations shall be recorded in a register.
(2)  The number and name of the inmate, the nature of the offence for which the punishment is imposed and such other details thereof as the Director of Prisons may require shall also be recorded in the register.
Director to be informed of offences
10.—(1)  Where the Superintendent of a centre has found an inmate guilty of an offence, he shall notify the Director of Prisons of the facts of the case not later than 7 days after the inmate has been found guilty of the offence.
(2)  The Director of Prisons may amend, alter or vary any punishment imposed by the Superintendent of a centre under these Regulations.
(3)  In any case where a Superintendent of a centre has ordered that corporal punishment be imposed on an inmate, the Director of Prisons shall refer the case to a Committee for its opinion on whether the punishment imposed on the inmate is excessive.
[S 454/2008 wef 15/09/2008]
(4)  The Committee shall render its opinion to the Director of Prisons within such period as the Minister may determine after the case has been referred to the Committee.
[S 454/2008 wef 15/09/2008]
(5)  The Director of Prisons may, but shall not be required to, have regard to the opinion of the Committee when performing his functions and duties under paragraph (2).
[S 454/2008 wef 15/09/2008]
Right to be heard
11.  No inmate shall be punished under these Regulations until he has had an opportunity of hearing the charge and the evidence against him and of making his defence.
Corporal punishment
12.  Corporal punishment shall not be imposed under these Regulations on —
(a)women;
(b)males who are above 50 years of age; or
(c)any inmate unless a medical officer is present and certifies that the inmate is in a fit state of health to undergo such punishment.
Offences
13.—(1)  Any person who without lawful authority —
(a)conveys, supplies or causes to be conveyed or supplied to any inmate or hides or places for the use of any inmate any letter, document, intoxicating liquor, tobacco, drug, money, clothing, provisions or any other article;
(b)brings or attempts by any means to introduce into any centre, or places or attempts to place where inmates work, any letter, document, intoxicating liquor, tobacco, drug, money, clothing, provisions or any other article to be sold or used therein;
(c)brings or attempts to bring out of any centre or conveys from any inmate, any letter, document or other article; or
(d)communicates with any inmate,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both.
(2)  Every officer of a centre who without lawful authority —
(a)knowingly suffers any intoxicating liquor, tobacco, drug, money, clothing, provisions, letter, document or other article to be sold to or received or used by any inmate;
(b)lends or gives to any inmate any such intoxicating liquor, tobacco, drug, money, clothing, provisions or other article; or
(c)knowingly suffers any letter, document or other article to be brought out of any centre, or to be conveyed from any inmate,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both.
[G.N. Nos. S 137/79; S 182/82; S 51/90; S 325/91; S 278/95]