Debated in Parliament on 9 Sep 2026.
Ms Sylvia Lim asked the Senior Minister, Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs (a) what proportion of the 227 recorded cases of outrage of modesty in the first half of 2026 within residential premises involved offenders who exploited positions of trust or power; (b) what proportion of these cases involved victims under the age of 16; and (c) whether the Police are considering further public education to encourage reporting in domestic contexts.
Mr Speaker, Sir, the Police do not track the number of outrage of modesty cases involving offenders who exploited positions of trust or power. Of the 227 recorded cases of outrage of modesty that occurred within residential premises in the first half of 2026, 38% of these cases involved victims under the age of 16.
The Government takes a serious view of sexual crimes. The Police have implemented various measures to raise awareness and to encourage reporting of such crimes. For instance, the Police work with the Ministry of Education (MOE) and schools to raise students' awareness of sexual crimes and to encourage students to report their concerns and seek help from trusted adults.
The Police have also launched an action protocol for people to respond to sexual crimes, including outrage of modesty. The key principles are, using the acronym S.P.O.T. – first, "S", to spot it; second, "P", to protect the victim and oneself; third, "O", observe key details; and fourth, "T", tell the Police.
Consistent with these principles, parents, siblings and other family members should remain attentive to changes in behaviour that may indicate a person is at risk or in need of support and apply this action protocol when appropriate.
Ms Lim.
Thank you, Speaker. I have two supplementary questions for the Minister of State.
I wonder if he would agree with me that the 227 recorded cases which were recorded for molestation within residential premises are probably not the full figure, meaning that there will probably be many cases that are unreported to the Police for various reasons – because it is domestic; it is a known perpetrator; maybe reporting a breadwinner and so on. So, I would like the Minister of State's confirmation that it is very likely that this is an under-report, that there are unreported cases not surfaced.
My second question is whether there are any Government initiatives to ascertain the extent of unreported crime in Singapore. For example, in the United Kingdom, the Government does a crime survey of the general population to ask them about their experiences of victimisation, which helps to also be compared with the official figures to see what are the unreported crimes. So, I would like to know whether the Government has any initiatives to do a general crime survey to find out about unreported cases and also, why people are not reporting? Because I think it is important to address those as well.
Mr Speaker, I thank Ms Lim for the questions. Generally, it is indeed a concern if victims or families are not reporting sexual crimes that happen within residential homes.
Having said that, we have embarked upon a whole-of-society effort to increase the awareness and facilitate the reporting of such incidents in residential homes. For example, victims reporting sexual crimes at Police stations can already select "crime report" option at queue management kiosks. This ensures that they are prioritised and they are attended to in a private area, protecting their privacy and reducing exposure to public spaces.
Secondly, the One Safe Centre established with KK Women's and Children's Hospital, National University Hospital and Singapore General Hospital, allows victims to undergo Police interviews and forensic medical examinations at the single location.
For younger victims, there are the multi-disciplinary interviews that are conducted with the Ministry of Social and Family Development, and the KK Women's and Children's Hospital.
All of these allow for the victims and also people within the setting of the victims as a trusted adult to help, not just increase the awareness, but to ensure that the reporting process goes smoothly and they can report the crime holistically.
Beyond the investigative support, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) also works with community partners to provide longer-term counselling and emotional support for the victims. These include our Care Corner Project StART, PAVE and TRANS Family Services.
Whether or not the figures are under reported, that is not something that I can ascertain, or I can confirm. However, I am not in the position to agree that whether it is likely that it is under-reported, but the full extent of public awareness and the machinery between SPF, working together with the Ministry of Social and Family Development, the Ministry of Education and the schools, is at work. It takes a whole-of-society effort to increase the awareness, so that victims are not silenced, victims are being heard and the perpetrators can be brought to justice and for their day of reckoning.
For the second supplementary question, I thank the Member for the suggestion. This is something we will take back – whether or not there can be other kinds of parameters that we can take and ascertain, to study whether there are indeed such and the extent of under-reporting. However, what we have done is to increase or to make sure that the facilitation of reporting has been smoothened and victims know where to get the support that they need.
Ms Lim.
Thank you, Speaker. I just wanted to point out that in all likelihood, based on the experiences of other countries, such crimes as these tend to be under reported. And Mr Speaker, I will follow up in at a future occasion for more information on the Government's possible initiatives.
Minister of State Zulkarnain, would you like to respond?
Thank you. I thank the Member.
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