Written Reply to Parliamentary Question on Number of Persons Investigated or Prosecuted Under Section 6(1) of the Children and Young Persons Act 1993 in the Past Five Years

Question:

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs for each year in the past five years, how many persons have been (i) investigated and (ii) prosecuted respectively under section 6(1) of the Children and Young Persons Act 1993 (CYPA) for causing emotional harm to a child or young person as defined under sections 6(3)(b)(ii) and 6(3)(c)(ii) of the CYPA.

Answer:

Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law:

1. Police do not track the number of cases under Section 6(1) of the Children and Young Persons Act 1993 according to the specific type of harm or injury caused.

2. For each case of ill-treatment of a child or young person, the Police and the Attorney-General’s Chambers will assess the facts and circumstances and determine the most appropriate charges, recognising that there may be multiple forms of harm involved in a single case.

3. From 2021 to 2023, 89 persons were investigated for ill-treatment of a child or young person under the CYPA. 11 were prosecuted.