Singapore’s Minister of State for Home Affairs Sun Xueling said on Monday ( Sep 9 ) that a visa regime is not a foolproof way to prevent unwanted characters from entering the country.  ,
No visa program did” completely weed out” unwanted visitors or prevent them from committing crimes here, she added, despite the fact that a visa program allows the government to monitor people before they travel to Singapore.  ,
Ms. Sun, who is also the Minister of State for Social and Family Development, was responding to a parliamentary inquiry from Non-Constitutional Member of Parliament (NCMP ) Leong Mun Wai regarding whether the number of Chinese nationals who have been detained has increased since a 30-day visa exemption program was put in place in February.  ,
He also questioned whether the Changi Airport’s integrated roads, which were operational in May, have increased the likelihood of people entering Singapore who “are not bona fide travellers.”  ,
Ms. Sun questioned whether Mr. Leong’s inquiry was connected to the new wave of larceny incidents in private residential areas, which the authorities have linked to Chinese nationals.  ,
Three Chinese nationals have already been detained and charged in jury, while 14 others are now not in Singapore are still being sought by the police. The suspects are alleged to be temporary travelers who entered Singapore with Social Visit Passes, typically one or two days before the crime, according to the authorities in August.  ,
Since the mutual visa exemption arrangements were implemented in February, there has n’t been a decrease in the number or percentage of short-term visitors from China who have been detained in Singapore, according to Ms. Sun’s response on Monday.  ,
The portion of Chinese visitors arrested in Singapore is also lower than the corresponding percent in 2023, she continued, even after accounting for the 14 Foreign nationals who are” of attention” to the authorities.  ,
” We can only be certain that foreigners wo n’t break into our country by closing our borders to them,” said one expert. But doing so would eliminate Singapore’s economy”, said the minister of state.  ,
Ms. Sun referred to the decision to exempt China from the shared visa as” properly evaluated and weighed.”  ,
She said that the government felt that the security, unlawful, and immigration risks were tolerable, and that the economic and diplomatic benefits may be significant. She added that it was in Singapore’s best interests to have this arrangement with China nevertheless.  ,