Sengkang MP Raeesah Khan to be questioned over police misconduct

Sengkang Member of Parliament Raeesah Khan will be questioned by the police for not disclosing details about an officer she said spoke inappropriately to a rape victim,a top minister said today.

After failing to force Raeesah reveal more details today in Parliament, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam ended an awkward back-and-forth exchange by saying the police would press her for more information about her comments two months ago in a speech on women’s empowerment. 

“The police will investigate this very serious matter further. The officers in charge in the police will interview Ms. Khan, and any allegations of misconduct concerning specific officers will be referred to internal affairs office for further investigation,” Shanmugan said. 

Raeesah, of the opposition Workers’ Party, has refused to divulge details of what happened, citing confidentiality and the risk of retraumatizing the victim – something Shanmugam tried to address by assuring that the victim would not be named. 

In her early August speech, Raeesah urged law enforcement to be more sensitive toward sexual assault victims. She cited an incident three years ago in which she took a victim to a police station where officers commented on her clothing and alcohol consumption. Raeesah suggested deploying counselors to police stations. 

From how seriously violence against women is handled by the courts on down, data show a large gap in allegations of sexual assault and prosecution.

More than 2,300 sexual assault cases, including rape, were reported to the police on average each year from 2017 to 2019. According to police data, fewer than 330 of convictions have been obtained annually in 14 years ending in 2019.

Shanmugam said the police could not find any record of the incident Raeesah had described and asked for details such as the date, location, and descriptions of the officer or officers involved. 

“I wanted to give her the option of giving us the best information she has but she confirms that such an incident happened, that she had accompanied this victim to the police station, and that she does not wish to divulge the information only because of confidentiality,” Shanmugam said. 

He added: “Speaker, members would know that confidentiality doesn’t extend to not telling us which police station.”

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