Toy Guns That Might Get You Into Trouble

Retailers and toy-gun enthusiasts told my paper that hobbyists are now customising guns which fire foam pellets with suction cups, a practice which may potentially cause them to run afoul of the law.

CUSTOMISING toys to give them that little extra edge may seem innocuous to hobbyists, but certain new toy-gun modifications may land them in hot water.

Retailers and toy-gun enthusiasts told my paper that hobbyists are now customising guns which fire foam pellets with suction cups, a practice which may potentially cause them to run afoul of the law.

When contacted, a police spokesman said that all toy-gun imports must have the approval of the police's Licensing Division, and that only approved toy guns are allowed to be sold in Singapore.

"Modifications to an approved toy gun may result in it being defined as 'arms' under the Arms and Explosives Act. Any person who modifies or is found in possession of such a toy gun may be guilty of offences under the Act," the spokesman said.

He added that even if the modified toy gun does not fall under the category of "arms", action may still be taken against the owner depending on how the modified toy gun is used.

Hobbyists said the modifications range from adding an extra magazine to changing the firing mechanism to increase projectile range.

Sales retail manager Su Guang Hui, 33, said he customises his guns for convenience and a "cool factor".

"It's about personalising the toy gun, like how people customise their cars," he said.

The toy-gun community numbers about 600, with half of them aged 20 to 40.

Mr Su said that the community advocates the responsible handling of toy guns and insists that goggles and covered footwear be worn during toy-gun matches.

Singapore's Not Ready

Law Minister says Govt careful of being ahead of public opinion

FOLLOWING an Indian high court's recent landmark decision last week which overturned a 150-year-old British colonial era law criminalising homosexuality, is it time for Singapore - whose laws are "copied" from India - to repeal Section 377A?

The answer is no, says Law Minister K Shanmugam, because Singapore society is "not ready" for that. "There is a group that is actively committed to saying that homosexuality is okay," said Mr Shanmugam, who is also the Second Minister for Home Affairs.

"But probably a majority of Singaporeans are still very conservative and say that this is totally not acceptable. So, the Government has to respect both sides."

He was responding to a question posed by a resident, Ms Khartini Abdul Khalid during a dialogue session when he visited Punggol Central Division yesterday.

While the Government has to "set the standards" on many issues, it must "be careful about being ahead of public opinion," he said.

"If the majority of our population is against homosexuality, then it's not for the Government to say we are going to force something against the wishes of the people," he said, reiterating the Government's stance when a motion to repeal the law banning homosexual acts in Singapore was intensely debated in Parliament in 2007.

Section 377A - which makes those convicted liable to imprisonment up to two years - was not repealed eventually, even though the Government said it would not actively enforce it.

Mr Shanmugam explained that India's laws on homosexuality have not changed. Instead, it was the New Delhi High Court's interpretation that "with the current evidence available and the current social situations in many parts of the world ... you can no longer consider homosexuality to be a wrongful sexual activity", he said.

Mr Shanmugam stressed that Singapore's courts are likewise free to interpret the law the same way.

"Whether the courts will take the same interpretations, I don't know, but it's up to the courts."

Malaysian lawyers oppose judge's bid to cane offender

Malaysia's bar council said Sunday it was opposed to a judge's plan to cane an offender in his court, saying he could not be both "judge and executioner."

Sessions court Judge Zainal Abdidin Kamarudin said Friday he planned to cane 20-year-old sales promoter Syafiq Abdul Wahab in his courtroom on July 15, after he found him guilty of gang robbery.

Zainal also ordered Syafiq's parents to be present in the courtroom where he would mete out the punishment of 10 strokes of the cane, known locally as the "rotan."

"Judges must understand their role and what they are and are not allowed to do as we have checks and balances and a separation of powers under the law," law society president Ragunath Kesavan told AFP.

"He cannot be the judge and executioner and moreover judges do not have the experience or training to carry out such punishment," he added.

Kesavan said Malaysia's law allowed a judge to inflict corporal punishment, but added that this had last been done over 30 years ago, with the high court swiftly reprimanding the judge for doing so.

Chief Justice Zaki Azmi told the Star daily the planned caning would be investigated.

"I am asking the senior judge in the Kuala Lumpur High Court to look into it and take the appropriate action," he told the paper.