Source: www.ns.sg
Military Justice System in the
SAF
1. Overview
The military justice system in the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) is
expected to treat every service personnel fairly and equally,
regardless of race, rank or vocation.
2. Multi-levelled Approach
The military justice system is based on the SAF Act, which was implemented in 1972. All servicemen are subjected to the SAF Act, SAF Regulations, and orders of whatever form issued pursuant to them.
While discipline is paramount in the military, not all offences committed by SAF servicemen are dealt with by formal investigations and charges. Essentially, offenders can be dealt with either by way of informal or formal punishment systems.
3. Informal Punishment System
Commanders are empowered to mete out informal punishments like
push-ups and weekend confinement to servicemen who have committed
disciplinary breaches, like being late, sluggish, or improperly
dressed.
4. Formal Punishment System
If the offence that a serviceman committed is of a more serious
nature, he may be formally dealt with by his disciplinary officer
by way of a summary trial, or brought before a subordinate military
court (more commonly known as the General Court Martial or
GCM).
(a) Summary Trial
The offences that can be dealt with by summary trial are essentially military offences, such as absence without leave (AWOL), non-compliance with lawful orders or insubordination.
Depending on the rank of the serviceman in question, and the type of the disciplinary body hearing the case, the possible sentences that may be imposed can vary, and these can include fines or detention.
The summary trial is carried out in accordance with relevant SAF regulations, and the records of the summary trial are sent to the office of the Director, Legal Services of the SAF.
(b) General Court Martial
The General Court Martial exists as a separate forum from that of the summary trial. Unlike the summary trial, the GCM can deal with a wider range of offences, and can impose a wider range of punishments including imprisonment and discharge, on top of sentences like detention and fines. The GCM is also a more public and open forum, and its proceedings are conducted using similar legal rules and procedures as those used in a civil criminal court.
Generally, only serious offences investigated by the Military Police Command, and which are referred to the office of the Director of Legal Services, will result in the accused serviceman being charged in a GCM. In such a case, a military prosecutor will draw up a formal charge sheet and present it before the GCM.
General Courts Martial can be further sub-divided into two categories, namely the Panel Courts Martial - consisting of a President and usually two other members, and Judge Courts Martial - consisting of a single President only.
Currently, the practice is for military offences to be heard by Panel Courts Martial, while civil offences like misuse of drugs and penal code offences may be dealt with by a Judge Court Martial.
The current policy is also for an NSman, who is or was a District
Judge in the Subordinate Courts, to preside in a GCM. There are
currently 10 NSmen who have been appointed by the Armed Forces
Council to perform duty as President of a court martial. They are
rostered by the Registrar of the Subordinate Military Court to hear
cases during their in-camp training. In the case of a Panel Court
Martial, the other two members are rostered from among some 155
military officers appointed by the Chief of Defence Force.
5. Ways to Seek Redress
There are numerous safeguards and avenues set out in the military justice system for an SAF serviceman to seek redress if he is unhappy about the punishment imposed on him.
Generally, a serviceman who is dissatisfied with an informal punishment meted out to him may request a higher level commander to review the punishment, or request for formal disciplinary dealing.
In the case of a summary trial, a serviceman brought before the disciplinary officer may elect instead to be tried by a court martial. Alternatively, an aggrieved serviceman may request that his conviction or punishment imposed at the summary trial be reviewed by MINDEF's Director Manpower (a delegated authority of the Armed Forces Council).
In the case of a GCM, a serviceman may choose to be represented by a lawyer or an SAF defending officer if his case will be heard by a court martial. The SAF has about 200 trained defending officers. While an SAF defending officer comes free to the serviceman, he has to bear the cost of engaging a lawyer. At the end of the trial, a serviceman who is dissatisfied with the decision of the court martial may petition the Reviewing Authority (the AFC or a committee of its members) for a review of his case. The serviceman can also appeal to the Military Court of Appeal (MCA) for a reconsideration of his conviction, or his sentence, or both.
The MCA, when convened to hear an appeal, sits as a panel of five members. Heading the MCA is a President, who is appointed by the Chief Justice. By law, he must be a person qualified to be a Judge of the Supreme Court. The current President of the MCA is Justice Choo Han Teck. Four other members - two civilian members who are qualified legal practitioners with at least five years experience each, and two senior military officers - make up the rest of the MCA. The MCA is the highest court in the military justice system.
6. Impartial Hearings
It is important to recognise that the GCM and the MCA are tribunals
headed by presidents who are outside the SAF chain of command.
Being an "outsider", the president of these forums will hear the case impartially like any other civil criminal case. The proceedings in the GCM and the MCA are also heard in a public forum, and these military courts adopt many of the same legal procedures and safeguards as that used in the civil criminal courts. All servicemen formally charged with an offence can bring their case to these forums.