Singapore bans alcohol this weekend in Little India
This coming weekend, on December 14 and 15, Singapore will ban the sale and consumption of alcohol in the Little India district of its Chulia Kampong area. The ban is a response due to a riot – the first one the country has faced in four decades.
On December 10, Singapore’s Police Force said on its Facebook page that eight Indian nationals were detained. One is out on bail, three have been charged in court, and four were released due to being falsely accused. Twenty-four Indian nationals were charged with rioting in the Singapore Subordinate courts.
On the night of December 8, a 55-year-old Singaporean bus driver who was later arrested for death by negligent act, ran over and killed a 33-year-old Indian national in the Little India district, according to the police. Around 16 police cars, multiple private automobiles, and an ambulance were engulfed in flames, toppled, and heavily damaged due to the accidental killing. The riot involved around 400 people. An estimated 22 out of the 300 police officers were hurt in the riot, according to the police. The situation was under control in an under an hour.
“Alcohol consumption was a contributory factor” to the riot, Second Minister of Home Affairs S. Iswaran said.
“All sale and consumption of liquor will be banned in the affected area for this coming weekend. This will help stabilise the situation,” he added.
But not everyone agreed with the temporary prohibition. Non-governmental organisational Transient Workers Count Too said in a statement that, “Making it an alcohol-free zone is going too far and will deprive workers of one of the few things they enjoy. Alcohol has been consumed for years in the area with no incidents on this scale.”
The rioters who were charged were accused of “being members of an unlawful assembly whose common object was to overawe, by a show of criminal force.”
The detained rioters will be held for a week until further investigation is cleared up – the next hearing is scheduled for December 17. The maximum jail sentence could be up to seven years.
This coming weekend, on December 14 and 15, Singapore will ban the sale and consumption of alcohol in the Little India district of its Chulia Kampong area. The ban is a response due to a riot – the first one the country has faced in four decades. On December 10, Singapore’s Police Force said on its Facebook page that eight Indian nationals were detained. One is out on bail, three have been charged in court, and four were released due to being falsely accused. Twenty-four Indian nationals were charged with rioting in the Singapore Subordinate courts. On the night of...
This coming weekend, on December 14 and 15, Singapore will ban the sale and consumption of alcohol in the Little India district of its Chulia Kampong area. The ban is a response due to a riot – the first one the country has faced in four decades.
On December 10, Singapore’s Police Force said on its Facebook page that eight Indian nationals were detained. One is out on bail, three have been charged in court, and four were released due to being falsely accused. Twenty-four Indian nationals were charged with rioting in the Singapore Subordinate courts.
On the night of December 8, a 55-year-old Singaporean bus driver who was later arrested for death by negligent act, ran over and killed a 33-year-old Indian national in the Little India district, according to the police. Around 16 police cars, multiple private automobiles, and an ambulance were engulfed in flames, toppled, and heavily damaged due to the accidental killing. The riot involved around 400 people. An estimated 22 out of the 300 police officers were hurt in the riot, according to the police. The situation was under control in an under an hour.
“Alcohol consumption was a contributory factor” to the riot, Second Minister of Home Affairs S. Iswaran said.
“All sale and consumption of liquor will be banned in the affected area for this coming weekend. This will help stabilise the situation,” he added.
But not everyone agreed with the temporary prohibition. Non-governmental organisational Transient Workers Count Too said in a statement that, “Making it an alcohol-free zone is going too far and will deprive workers of one of the few things they enjoy. Alcohol has been consumed for years in the area with no incidents on this scale.”
The rioters who were charged were accused of “being members of an unlawful assembly whose common object was to overawe, by a show of criminal force.”
The detained rioters will be held for a week until further investigation is cleared up – the next hearing is scheduled for December 17. The maximum jail sentence could be up to seven years.
