Personal Protection Orders (PPO) and Family Violence in Singapore

Domestic abuse can take many forms. While some cases involve physical violence, others may involve threats, intimidation, sexual coercion, emotional harm, neglect, or controlling conduct within the family.

In Singapore, the law recognises domestic abuse as a serious matter. Victims may seek help from the police, social service agencies, and the courts. In appropriate cases, the courts will grant protection orders to stop the abuse and protect the victim.

What is Domestic Abuse?

Domestic abuse, also referred to as family violence, is defined under the Women’s Charter 1961. Domestic abuse may include one or more of the following:

• Physical Abuse: This includes acts that cause physical injury or pain. It can also include threats, wrongful confinement, or wrongful restraint.
• Sexual Abuse: This refers to conduct that coerces, or attempts to coerce, a person into engaging in sexual activity.
• Emotional and Psychological Abuse: This includes conduct that torments, intimidates, harasses or distresses a person, or causes mental harm. This may include conduct that leads to suicidal thoughts or self-harm.

Domestic abuse does not always have to involve repeated incidents. Depending on the circumstances, it may involve a single incident or a pattern of conduct over time.

Who Can Be a Victim of Domestic Abuse?

For conduct to fall within domestic abuse or family violence under the Women’s Charter, the victim and perpetrator must generally be family members. Under Section 58A of the Women’s Charter, a victim may include:

• Spouse or Former Spouse: This includes a current or former husband or wife.
• Children: This includes adopted children and stepchildren.
• Parents and Parents-in-Law: This includes parents or parents-in-law.
• Siblings: This includes brothers and sisters.
• Other Relatives: In some cases, relatives may also be treated as a family member, depending on the circumstances.

Can Discipline Be Considered Abuse?

Parents and caregivers may sometimes discipline a child. However, discipline can cross the line into abuse when it becomes excessive, unreasonable, or causes unnecessary harm.

Under the Children and Young Persons Act 1993, ill-treatment of a child or young person may include:

• Physical or Sexual Abuse: This includes acts of physical violence or sexual abuse against a child or young person.
• Unnecessary Physical Pain or Injury: This includes wilfully or unreasonably causing unnecessary pain, suffering, or injury.
• Emotional Harm: This includes conduct that wilfully or unreasonably causes emotional harm to the child.
• Harm to Health or Development: This includes conduct that injures, or is likely to injure, the child’s health or development.

It is also important to note that a person may be liable not only for directly abusing a child, but also for permitting a child to be abused or ill-treated by another person.

Can Neglect Be Considered Abuse?

Yes. Abuse does not only involve actively causing harm. In some cases, failing to act can also amount to abuse or ill-treatment.

Under Section 6(3)(c) of the Children and Young Persons Act, a person may commit ill-treatment by wilfully or unreasonably neglecting or abandoning a child, or exposing the child to circumstances likely to endanger the child’s safety or cause harm.

This may include situations where a child’s basic needs, safety, health, or welfare are seriously neglected.

Is Domestic Abuse Against the Law?

Yes. Domestic abuse is punishable under Singapore law.

Depending on the facts, domestic abuse may be dealt with under several statutes, including the Women’s Charter, the Children and Young Persons Act, and the Penal Code.

How Can I Help Myself or Someone Who Is Being Abused?

If there is immediate danger, the first step should be to contact the police.

Where children are involved, help may also be sought from the child’s school counsellors, teachers, or the Child Protective Service under the Ministry of Social and Family Development.

There are also community resources available, including Family Service Centres across Singapore, which can provide support and guidance.

If you suspect that someone is being abused, especially a child, elderly person, or vulnerable family member, it is better to raise the concern early. Even if you are unsure, reporting or seeking advice may help prevent further harm.

If you are personally experiencing abuse, it is important to know that help is available. You do not have to continue living with the abuse, and there are legal and social support avenues that can assist you.

What Do I Need If I Want to Make a Court Application?

If you wish to apply for protection from domestic abuse, it is important to prepare a clear and truthful account of what happened.

Where possible, your account should be set out chronologically, with dates, details, and supporting evidence.

Applications for a Personal Protection Order may be made online through the courts’ website, or in person at the courts.

Common orders under the Women’s Charter include:

• Protection Order: This is the main order restraining the perpetrator from committing domestic abuse against the victim.
• Domestic Exclusion Order: This may exclude the perpetrator from the home, or part of the home, where necessary.
• Counselling Order: This may require the perpetrator to attend counselling if the Court considers it necessary.
• Mandatory Treatment Order: This may require psychiatric treatment where there are grounds to believe that a psychiatric condition is contributing to the abusive conduct.

Once the application is filed, you should be prepared to attend Court and explain why the orders are necessary.