SINGAPORE: Singapore intends to amend the Foreign Interference (Countermeasures) Act (FICA) to counter increasingly sophisticated foreign interference tactics, said Home Minister K. Shanmugam.
FICA was passed in October 2021 to strengthen the country’s ability to prevent, detect and disrupt foreign interference in domestic politics conducted through online hostile information campaigns (HICs) and the use of local proxies.
“We plan to amend the Road Traffic Act to deal with the worsening road safety situation. We are also working on strengthening legislation to deal with challenges such as scams and drugs,” he said on Friday in the Home Ministry’s (MHA) addendum to the President’s Address at the opening of the 15th Parliament on Sept 5.
The addendum outlined MHA’s key initiatives and focus areas under the theme “Strengthening Our Sense of ‘We’ and Social Cohesion”.
Shanmugam said Singapore will also introduce the Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill later this year to further rationalise the country’s criminal laws, better protect vulnerable victims, and tackle emerging crime trends.
He said strengthening Singapore’s laws, deepening partnerships, and aggressively harnessing technology are part of MHA’s continuous efforts to respond to threats in an increasingly volatile global security environment.
Shanmugam said that the Home Team Departments will step up efforts to harness technology as a force multiplier by working closely with the Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX).
“In particular, we are investing heavily in Artificial Intelligence (AI), and have launched a dedicated HTxAI movement to ramp up our capabilities,” he said. – BERNAMA
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