Overview of Safety and Security Situation in 2019

Singapore Continues to Remain Safe and Secure

1.     Singapore continued to be a safe and secure home for all. The 2019 Global Law and Order Report ^[1] ranked Singapore first in law and order, ahead of Norway, Switzerland and Finland.

2.     While the overall crime rate increased slightly in 2019, this was mainly due to an increase in scams. The number of cases of motor-vehicle and related theft, snatch theft, robbery and housebreaking fell. There were also decreases in the number of road traffic accidents resulting in fatalities, the number of such fatalities, and the number of drink-driving accidents.

3.     Singapore’s drug situation remained under control despite the challenging global and regional drug situation. The overall recidivism rate among ex-offenders also remained low and stable.

4.     The number of immigration offenders arrested fell, and the number of contraband cases detected at Singapore checkpoints decreased.

5.     There was a drop in the number of fire incidents in residential premises. The total number of non-emergency and false alarm medical calls fell, which could be mainly attributed to the Singapore Civil Defence Force’s (SCDF) intensive public education efforts on its Emergency Medical Services Tiered Response Framework ^[2] .

Trends of Concern

6.     There are several trends of concern. The proportion of new drug abusers remained high. While the number of heroin abusers arrested decreased, there was an increase in the number of abusers arrested for abusing new psychoactive substances and methamphetamine.

7.     The number of road traffic accidents involving elderly pedestrians increased significantly, while the number of red-light running accidents also increased. The number of speeding-related accidents and accidents involving motorcycles increased slightly.

8.     There was also a sharp increase in the number of fires involving Personal Mobility Devices.

9.     The rising cases of scams and the number of outrage of modesty cases reported remain areas of concern as well.

Sustaining Momentum with SGSecure

10.     SGSecure has achieved good progress in galvanising the community to take ownership of preparedness against the terror threat. More people are participating in SGSecure-related programmes and picking up emergency preparedness skills.

11.     In a survey conducted in 2019, nine in 10 residents said that they were committed to help others affected by a terrorist attack, and six in 10 residents said they were familiar with at least one emergency preparedness skill such as improvised first aid, assisting with evacuation and the application of CPR-AED.

12.     The Home Team will continue to work with partner agencies to make participation and training opportunities for individuals and institutions more accessible, to enable the community to become more united and resilient in the fight against terrorism.

[1] The 2019 Global Law and Order Report interviewed close to 150,000 residents in 142 countries and areas in 2018. Respondents were asked about their confidence in the local police, and whether they had been recent victims of crime.

[2] SCDF’s Emergency Medical Services Tiered Response Framework ensures that the scale of SCDF’s response to a medical call matches its severity. Life-threatening emergencies will be prioritised over minor emergencies and non-emergencies, and receive faster and enhanced medical response.