Singapore MFA confirms officer named in UK report on child neglect case

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has confirmed that a Singaporean public officer was named in the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO)’s 2023 annual report to Parliament on serious offences involving diplomatic immunity.

The case, categorised as one of alleged child neglect, occurred in September 2023.

In response to TOC’s queries, an MFA spokesperson stated that the unnamed officer was attached to the Singapore High Commission in London at the time.

Details of the incident

The MFA explained that the officer left his children at home while they were asleep to pick up his spouse at night.

During this time, one child woke up, managed to exit the locked house, and was later found a short distance away. This led to local police involvement.

UK authorities investigated the incident and subsequently closed the case with no further action required.

MFA stated that the officer fully cooperated with the investigation and that diplomatic immunity was not invoked.

The officer has since completed his posting at the High Commission as scheduled. Following the incident, the officer was counselled and issued a warning.

UK report on diplomatic immunity

The UK Parliament’s report, presented by the FCDO, highlighted nine serious offences involving individuals entitled to diplomatic or international organisation-related immunity in 2023.

Serious offences, as defined by the FCDO, include crimes carrying potential penalties of 12 months’ imprisonment or more or involving significant matters such as child neglect.

The offences listed in the report were:

• Possession/distribution of indecent images of children: Iraq (1).
• Driving without insurance: Fiji (1), Pakistan (1).
• Assault: Ghana (1), Libya (1), Mongolia (1).
• Sexual assault: Libya (1).
• Indecent exposure: Portugal (1).
• Cruelty/neglect of a child: Singapore (1).

The report emphasised that, among the 26,500 individuals entitled to diplomatic immunity in the UK, such cases are rare but are taken seriously by UK authorities.

MFA’s statement

An MFA spokesperson confirmed: “MFA expects all its staff and other officers attached to its missions to uphold the highest standards of conduct and to abide by the laws of their host countries.”

The spokesperson added that MFA appreciates the professionalism of local police in handling the situation.