STREET TALK
Don't jail them just because they can't pay fines
By Reggie J
November 09, 2008
YES, we have long been known - only partly in jest - as a 'fine' city.
And that, well, is fine.
But why is it that we send those who can't pay a fine to jail?
Is it necessary or advisable to jail those who may originally have been involved in a minor offence? And why is jail still a punishment option for relatively minor offences anyway?
Two Night Courts were established in April 1992 to deal with the high volume of regulatory and traffic offences.
And each weekday evening, you can't help but get a whiff of the money, especially in Court 25N, which deals with road traffic offences.
Fair is fair. One is given ample opportunity to avoid court and pay the fine beforehand. But it is evident there are still, perhaps, too many who appear in court for not having paid their fines.
If the fine is not paid, the offender can be locked up, though I would think only a few recalcitrant ones actually end up in jail these days.
But would it not be better, from the point of view of rehabilitation, to get the offenders to do community work instead and, if necessary, get them to pay the fine in instalments?
Only those failing to meet this obligation should be arrested, and only then should the prison option be considered.
Community service orders should be enforced rigorously, but organising and supervising the process can be outsourced to the private sector.
Wouldn't this be better than sending the offender to jail, with all the security expenditure that it entails?
Don't get me wrong. I am not suggesting an easy let-off.
I am merely asking why it is necessary to lock up minor offenders, who are unlikely to abscond.
At most perhaps, their passports could be held by the authorities till they have paid their dues.
The number of traffic summonses in the past year exceeded 260,000. And there are other minor offences that carry fine and jail sentences.
These include anything from not paying TV licence fees to littering to jaywalking.
I feel these are offences that should not in themselves lead to a jail term.
If the offenders do not pay the fine or perform community service, there should be other ways of going after them.
After all, no man can really be an island - unknown and untouchable - on this little island of ours.
The writer is a former Singaporean marketing professional.
Don't jail them just because they can't pay fines
By Reggie J
November 09, 2008
YES, we have long been known - only partly in jest - as a 'fine' city.
And that, well, is fine.
But why is it that we send those who can't pay a fine to jail?
Is it necessary or advisable to jail those who may originally have been involved in a minor offence? And why is jail still a punishment option for relatively minor offences anyway?
Two Night Courts were established in April 1992 to deal with the high volume of regulatory and traffic offences.
And each weekday evening, you can't help but get a whiff of the money, especially in Court 25N, which deals with road traffic offences.
Fair is fair. One is given ample opportunity to avoid court and pay the fine beforehand. But it is evident there are still, perhaps, too many who appear in court for not having paid their fines.
If the fine is not paid, the offender can be locked up, though I would think only a few recalcitrant ones actually end up in jail these days.
But would it not be better, from the point of view of rehabilitation, to get the offenders to do community work instead and, if necessary, get them to pay the fine in instalments?
Only those failing to meet this obligation should be arrested, and only then should the prison option be considered.
Community service orders should be enforced rigorously, but organising and supervising the process can be outsourced to the private sector.
Wouldn't this be better than sending the offender to jail, with all the security expenditure that it entails?
Don't get me wrong. I am not suggesting an easy let-off.
I am merely asking why it is necessary to lock up minor offenders, who are unlikely to abscond.
At most perhaps, their passports could be held by the authorities till they have paid their dues.
The number of traffic summonses in the past year exceeded 260,000. And there are other minor offences that carry fine and jail sentences.
These include anything from not paying TV licence fees to littering to jaywalking.
I feel these are offences that should not in themselves lead to a jail term.
If the offenders do not pay the fine or perform community service, there should be other ways of going after them.
After all, no man can really be an island - unknown and untouchable - on this little island of ours.
The writer is a former Singaporean marketing professional.
