Foreign men warned of molest scams here

[MarrickG]

At least two foreign missions in Singapore have seen fit to warn their citizens of possible scams that involve women crying molest, and then settling the matter with an out-of-court compensation.

With more cases of women making claims against expatriate men for touching them inappropriately, such as on their breasts and buttocks, the British High Commission and French Embassy have put up warnings on their websites. The former advises travellers to 'avoid any action that could be interpreted as molestation. Scams involving false claims of molestation are thought to exist.'

On the French website, it says: 'Behaviour towards women, especially in public, should never be ambiguous. There has been an increase in cases where the victim proposes to not file a complaint of molestation in exchange for immediate financial compensation.'

Representatives from both missions told The Straits Times they do not know of specific cases, but felt they should warn their citizens.

And it did not help that most foreigners are unaware of a ruling here that makes touching women on any parts of their body a crime of molestation if a woman complains, said Mr Chia Boon Teck, a partner at Chia Wong LLP.

If found guilty, they may face a jail term of up to two years, caning, fines, or a combination of the above.

In order to avoid facing a public trial and a real possibility of losing their jobs, they choose to settle the offence out of court, with the offenders paying compensation of between $5,000 and $10,000. The men also have slim chances of persuading a judge to believe in their innocence.

Mr Chia also added that some women make take advantage of the situation.

About 707 cases of molest cases were reported in the first half of this year, a nine percent increase from the same period last year. However, molest cases in clubs and nightspots fell from 108 in 2009 to 96 last year.

 

[shOUTloud]

Ha! We Singaporean guys have been living with this draconian ruling forever. Now that the angmohs are feeling the heat, will the embassies start exerting pressure on the govt to soften this ruling?

 

[saratogas]

How about countries like Romania... Their embassy still encourage drink driving, "meetings" in Hotels?

...The former Romanian charge d'affaires to Singapore, Dr Silviu Ionescu, had been drinking alcohol the night his embassy car was involved in a fatal hit-and-run accident.

This was revealed at a coroner's inquiry on Wednesday by a witness who said she was with Dr Ionescu that night.

Korean opera singer Jeong Ae Ree cut a glamorous figure in court as she detailed her night out with Dr Silviu Ionescu on December 14.

Ms Jeong said they went to the Shangri-La Hotel for a function, where the former diplomat had a few glasses of white wine.

$$$ will attract Bees..

 

[red amoeba]

just one word..those ang mohs think they are being friendly by touch here touch there...

but in actual fact, they are hum sup !

Of cse, there are SPGs who dun mind being touched.

 

[Kid278]

Ha! We Singaporean guys have been living with this draconian ruling forever. Now that the angmohs are feeling the heat, will the embassies start exerting pressure on the govt to soften this ruling?

It's not so much about ruling or rather nothing to do with ruling. In most if not all molestation cases basically there's no evidence, only testimonies of victims. An alleged offender may sometimes be a victim as innocence can only be argued by persuading someone's thought or judgment. The question is can human not be bias, is justice really blind.