SINGAPORE: Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam has rebuked the Law Society of Singapore’s vice-president for his comments on the case of a former actor convicted of rape.
Mr Shanmugam said in a Facebook post on Monday (Mar 24) that he was “surprised” by lawyer Chia Boon Teck’s comments, made in a LinkedIn post over the weekend.
Mr Chia, who is the co-managing director of law firm Chia Wong Chambers, commented on the high-profile case of ex-Wah!Banana actor Lev Panfilov, who was convicted last Friday by the High Court on charges of rape, sexual assault by penetration, and molest, all involving the same female victim.
In his post, Mr Chia appeared to question the victim’s actions during the offences.
In his Facebook post, Mr Shanmugam pointed out that Mr Chia was suggesting that the victim in Panfilov’s case “should not be believed” even though the High Court had found the victim “an unusually convincing witness”, whose evidence was “internally and externally consistent”.
While the minister acknowledged Mr Chia had “expressed his personal views”, he also noted his institutional position at the Law Society.
Mr Shanmugam said: “My concern is that some people might actually think that the views he has expressed indicate the norms in Singapore. And I worry what impact his statement may have on other victims.”
The minister then set out his own views and what his two ministries have been doing to help victims of sexual assault, including how a provision in the Evidence Act – which allowed defence lawyers to question an alleged victim of rape in an attempt to show that the victim was of generally immoral character – was repealed in 2012.
In 2020, marital immunity for rape was abolished, ensuring that a husband could not have sex with his wife without her consent.
Two years later, penalties for sexual offences, including molest, were increased.
“As I said earlier, we have been moving quite in the opposite direction from the personal views Mr Chia has expressed, no matter what institutional position he holds,” said Mr Shanmugam, after listing some of the changes to the law over the years.
“I hope that we will continue to be a society that provides a proper framework to protect women in sexual assault cases. Too often victims remain silent. We need to help them come forward and report.”
He added that lawyers, particularly those in senior positions, have to be mindful when making statements which “minimise or dismiss victims’ concerns”, as that can have a “disproportionate impact on others” who may then not be willing to report what happened to them.
While this did not mean that every allegation by a woman against a man should be taken at face value, lawyers should still observe proper boundaries in court, the minister added.
“Shaming and blaming victims steps over the line. And misogyny should have no place in our society,” Mr Shanmugam said.
Mr Chia’s words has drawn backlash from The Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE) and the legal fraternity, with some likening his comments to victim-shaming. Others called for him to apologise and step down from his Law Society post.
Mr Chia has since taken down the post and told CNA that it was meant to draw people’s attention to their situational awareness and not to cast blame on any party.
