Pub Date: 09/02/2007 Pub: ST Page: 3
Day: Friday
Edition: FIRST
Headline: Another S’porean jailed in Malaysia for illegal entry
By: KHUSHWANT SINGH
Page Heading: PRIME
Source: SPH
After reading the article, I felt that there is a tad of unfairness with Malaysia's decision. I appreciate how Malaysia is doing her best to keep their customs safe from rule breakers. However, it is not uncommon for mistakes to be made at the customs, as even on of the officers admitted that there are 10-15 such cases monthly. Moreover, the Singaporeans they caught had no obvious motive to break rules - each had reasons, and some reasons may be attributed to the negligence of both parties. They should be punished for their folly, admittedly, but is there a need to give them a jail sentence? A fine would probably suffice to deter future offenders. As proven by Singapore's law system, fines are an effective way to deter future offenses.
Perhaps a more effective way to stop rule breakers would be to improve the staff training and number of staff at the customs. At least there will not be cases of "empty" booths when visitors are driving through. It would be better for both parties, as Malaysia need not waste time and effort prosecuting innocent people who made a careless mistake, and neither do their visitors have to suffer the severe consequences of jailtime in Malaysia.
Singaporeans who wish to cross borders to Malaysia should also be careful - it is indeed still their responsibility to ensure that their passport have been properly stamped and cleared, as the custom offers who are human will inevitably commit errors. It is not very time consuming, nor hard, to cultivate the habit of checking one's passport before driving on, and it may save them the trouble of breaking the laws of Malaysia unintentionally.
Hopefully, this will be a one-off case only to serve to warn visitors, and not as a permanent new approach.
Perhaps a more effective way to stop rule breakers would be to improve the staff training and number of staff at the customs. At least there will not be cases of "empty" booths when visitors are driving through. It would be better for both parties, as Malaysia need not waste time and effort prosecuting innocent people who made a careless mistake, and neither do their visitors have to suffer the severe consequences of jailtime in Malaysia.
Singaporeans who wish to cross borders to Malaysia should also be careful - it is indeed still their responsibility to ensure that their passport have been properly stamped and cleared, as the custom offers who are human will inevitably commit errors. It is not very time consuming, nor hard, to cultivate the habit of checking one's passport before driving on, and it may save them the trouble of breaking the laws of Malaysia unintentionally.
Hopefully, this will be a one-off case only to serve to warn visitors, and not as a permanent new approach.
2 comments:
I think you are supposed to scan the article, Spencer. Teachers don't have like 10 years of ST archives at their hands, you know.
In response to your comment, I would like to refer you to the Straits Times collection posted onto Asknlearn. You can search for the article easily via the ST archive website.
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