The Singapore Police has replied to The Online Citizen’s queries about the presence of closed-circuit cameras (CCTVs) at Speakers Corner (Hong Lim Park). (See our article here and here.)
The following were the questions we posed to the police:
– When were the CCTVs installed?
– What purpose are they for?
– Did Nparks install the cameras or were they installed by the police?
– Does the presence of the cameras contradict the liberalisation of Speakers’ Corner rules as announced by the Prime Minister in 2008?
– What was the cost involved in the installation of the cameras?
– Who will have possession of the footage of the cameras?
– Who is in charge of monitoring the cameras?
– Does MHA feel that the presence of the CCTVs will deter Singaporeans
from holding further events there?
The police’s reply essentially is the same as the one they gave to the Today newspaper. See here.
Here is the police’s email reply to The Online Citizen:
Dear Sir
I refer to your email of 24 July 2009.
It should be noted that CCTVs are used to complement Police presence on the
ground and to project a greater sense of security. For this reason, the
Police have installed CCTVs in public areas such as Suntec and Boat Quay.
CCTVs are also installed in common areas of public housing estates as well
as multi-storey carparks. As part of an on-going initiative to enhance
security in the neighbourhoods, Police have been extending CCTV coverage to
other parts of the island. Hong Lim Park is one such area. These CCTVs do
not record audio inputs and are installed for safety and security.
Regards,
Rahemah Md Din (mdm)
for Quality Service Manager
Singapore Police Force
