Salt * Wet * Fish

Someone who joined the Singapore feedback as a forum citizen (www.reach.gov.sg) was invited to a focus group (for women) on proposed changes to our penal code.

One of the proposal is as follows:

10. Currently, s.377 criminalises all forms of carnal intercourse against the order of nature, other than vaginal intercourse, between a man, woman, or an animal, regardless of whether consent was obtained or if the act was performed in a public or private place.

It is proposed that s.377 be re-scoped such that anal and oral sex, if done in private between a consenting adult heterosexual couple aged 16 years old and above, would no longer be criminalised. As part of the re-scoping, the obsolete term “carnal intercourse against the order of nature” will be removed. The offence of bestiality currently covered under s 377 will be expanded to cover the scenario where a person was compelled by another person to perform bestiality without his consent.

What I don’t understand is who our lawmakers think they are? Are laws meant to foster security and protect the people or should they be used to govern behaviors (sexual and otherwise) in our own private lives? Provided that there is no harm done and there is consent, what logic can be used to up hold a law that says its okay for heterosexual couple (aged 16 and above) to have anal and oral sex, but not 2 women or 2 men?

Interestingly enough, apparently there was no mention of 377a in the proposed amendments, which means that even if 377 is amendment, 377a is still there to criminalize consenting males from having sex.

I am interested to know how they will word 377 to give it its heterosexists bias. So now we have a piece of law that is neutral (albeit archaic and ridiculous) and we are changing it to purposely criminalize gay people. So much for the progress.

I hope that more people can join Reach and the focus groups and put a rational voice to our penal codes.

From Wikipedia

The Singapore Penal Code, Chapter XVI (Offences Affecting the Human Body), Section 377 (Cap. 224) states that:

Whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animals, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Explanation. Penetration is sufficient to constitute the carnal intercourse necessary to the offence described in this section.

Section 377A (Outrages on decency) states that:

Any male person who, in public or private, commits, or abets the commission of, or procures or attempts to procure the commission by any male person of, any act of gross indecency with another male person, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years.