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The Ministry of Health has published the draft Human Biomedical Research Bill ("HBR Bill") for public consultation and the public consultation ended on 18 December 2014.
The HBR Bill aims to further strengthen the international standing of Singapore's research community and will provide clarity regarding the roles and responsibilities of individuals and organisations involved in human biomedical research. It will also ensure that human biomedical research, tissue collection and banking activities are carried out under good research and ethical practice principles.
In particular, the HBR Bill will enhance the protection of the safety and welfare of research participants, regulate categories of restricted research (such as human-animal combination stem cell research), protect the safety and welfare of tissue donors, and prohibit the commercial trading of human tissues regardless of whether it is used in research.
The HBR Bill is intended to be enacted in 2015.
The Prevention of Human Trafficking Bill was passed in Parliament on 3 November 2014. The Act criminalises trafficking in persons ("TIP") and related activities and was crystallised as a dedicated anti-TIP legislation to deal with TIP and related activities in a more targeted manner.
The definition of the various forms of exploitation of trafficked victims are largely based on relevant international treaties to which Singapore is a party, and the Model Law against Trafficking in Persons developed by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
To make out the offence of TIP, three elements - based on article 3(a) of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organised Crime ("The UN TIP Protocol") - must be proved:
(i) there must be an act of recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of a person;
(ii) the act must have been carried out by means of threat, abduction, fraud or deception, the abuse of power, the abuse of the position of vulnerability, or the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to secure that other person's consent; and
(iii) the act must be for the purpose of exploitation (whether in Singapore or elsewhere).
TIP is gender-neutral and the consent of the trafficked victim (or of the parent or guardian, if the victim is a child) is immaterial in determining whether the offence is made out.
To serve the legislation's deterrent purpose, mandatory imprisonment terms, fines and caning will be imposed. For first time offenders, the penalty for the TIP offence is imprisonment for up to 10 years, a maximum fine of $100,000 and caning not exceeding 6 strokes. For repeat offenders, the penalty will be imprisonment for up to 15 years, a maximum fine of $150,000 and caning not exceeding 9 strokes.
Legislative changes paving the way for the Singapore International Commercial Court ("SICC") to be set up were passed in Parliament on 4 November 2014.
When established, the SICC will be a division of the Singapore High Court and part of the Supreme Court of Singapore. A panel of SICC judges, comprising existing Supreme Court judges and associate judges (draw from key jurisdictions around the world) will be appointed. The SICC will deal primarily with international commercial disputes.
Representation of parties will follow the rules of representation before the Singapore High Court, in that only members of the Singapore Bar can represent parties, subject to the discretion of the court to admit Queen's Counsel or foreign lawyers on an ad hoc basis. Special rules will apply for cases which have no substantial connection to Singapore – in such cases, foreign counsel may appear before the SICC if they are registered with the court.
SICC proceedings will generally take place in open court, but parties may apply for proceedings to be heard confidentially.
In general, decisions of the SICC will be appealable to the Court of Appeal, although parties are allowed to contractually exclude or limit this right to appeal.
The SICC is expected to be established in early 2015.
Please note that whilst the information in this Update is correct to the best of our knowledge and belief at the time of writing, it is only
intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter and should not be treated as a substitute for specific professional advice.
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Rajah & Tann Singapore LLP
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Contacts: Francis Xavier, SC, PBMPartnerD +65 62320551francis.xavier@rajahtann.comChia Kim HuatPartnerD +65 62320464kim.huat.chia@rajahtann.comAndrew CL OngPartnerD (65) 62320259andrew.c.ong@rajahtann.comHoward CheamPartnerD +65 62320685howard.cheam@rajahtann.comRajah & Tann Asia is a network of legal practices based in Asia. | Member firms are independently constituted and regulated in accordance with relevant local legal requirements. Services provided by a member firm are governed by the terms of engagement between the member firm and the client. | This update is solely intended to provide general information and does not provide any advice or create any relationship, whether legally binding or otherwise. Rajah & Tann Asia and its member firms do not accept, and fully disclaim, responsibility for any loss or damage which may result from accessing or relying on this update. |
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