SINGAPORE: Community mediation is set to take on a bigger role
with changes expected to the law to strengthen the use of mediation.
You may remember the Everitt Road saga, where as many as seven
families were involved in a dispute which attracted much public
attention.
Such spats could be resolved by having the police refer disputes
between neighbours to Community Mediation Centres. The aim is to engage
the wider community.
And that is what the Home Affairs Ministry will do by developing
community-based solutions to deal with community-related problems.
It will also explore more streamlined processes for dealing with
the growing number of issues on the ground. This is also to ensure
police resources are deployed efficiently.
Taking it further, the Ministry of Law will increase public
awareness when it comes to community mediation by highlighting the
advantages as well as the process of mediation. More training will be
given to community mediators to further advance their skills.
With the face of terrorism constantly evolving, the various
agencies will also continue to coordinate and collaborate to deal with
the issue.
The Law Ministry says it will continue to build upon Singapore's positioning as an international arbitration venue of choice.
Leveraging heritage and technology, Maxwell Chambers is the world's
first integrated dispute resolution complex, housing hearing facilities
as well as leading international arbitral institutions and
practitioners.
The chambers will have 14 fully-equipped hearing rooms, 12 preparation
rooms and a full suite of supporting services, such as recording,
transcription, catering, concierge and secretarial.
Maxwell Chambers will host the inaugural Singapore International
Arbitration Forum (SIAF) 2010 from January 21 to 22, 2010, in
Singapore.
The event is co-organised by the Singapore International Arbitration
Centre and supported by the International Chamber of Commerce, the
International Centre for Dispute Resolution Singapore, the Permanent
Court of Arbitration and the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators.
The SIAF 2010 will bring together some of the world's most
respected and influential figures in international arbitration for an
open dialogue and exchange of information, best practices, views and
insights on critical issues facing the industry around the central
theme, "The Future for International Arbitration".
The Ministry of Law and Ministry of Information, Communication and
the Arts are jointly leading efforts to develop a national spatial data
infrastructure called the Singapore Geospatial Collaborative
Environment (SG-SPACE).
Under a three-year masterplan, SG-SPACE will facilitate greater sharing
and use of geospatial information for both government agencies and the
private sector through investments to create a geospatial information
exchange system.
The Law Ministry says better access to geospatial information will
help in areas such as security and emergency planning and operations,
communicable disease control and management, public healthcare
planning, environmental and climate change monitoring.
- CNA/yt