PUBLISHED ONAugust 26, 2025 2:30 AMBYKoh Xing YingA large majority of people in the region are aware of Singapore's laws against serious crimes, with most believing that these strict laws have helped deter criminal activity.
In a report released on Monday (Aug 25), the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said it conducted an online survey in 2024 to better understand how people in the region perceived Singapore's crime situation and legal system.
The survey gathered responses from 12,000 individuals aged 20 to 64 across six regional cities.
These cities were selected based on the significant number of visitors they have contributed to Singapore in recent years.
According to MHA, findings revealed that 82.3 per cent of respondents felt safe when travelling in Singapore, while 87.3 per cent said they trusted Singapore's law enforcement officers to keep them safe during their visit.
The survey also found a high level of awareness regarding the Republic's laws and penalties for serious crimes, with at least 95 per cent noting that they were aware that drug consumption and/or trafficking is a crime here.
Additionally, 85.6 per cent of respondents were aware that the death penalty can be imposed for serious crimes such as intentional murder and firearm smuggling, while 86.8 per cent knew that trafficking a substantial amount of drugs could result in the death penalty.
It was also reported that 75.6 per cent of the respondents were aware that, over the past year preceding the survey, there were executions carried out for offences that involved the trafficking of a substantial amount of drugs into Singapore.
The 2024 survey also found that a large majority of respondents agreed that Singapore's laws deter crime and that its law enforcement efforts are effective.
"89.6 per cent of respondents believed that Singapore's laws against crimes are strict, (while) 88.6 per cent believed that the strict laws have been effective in preventing crime," said the ministry.
Respondents also expressed confidence in the law enforcement system, with 86.8 per cent saying that law enforcement officers are effective in catching criminals, and 84.7 per cent believing that people would hesitate before committing crimes in Singapore.
A large majority of respondents agreed that the death penalty is an effective deterrent against serious crimes here.
About 83.9 per cent believed it deters people from committing serious crimes in general, while 84.2 per cent felt it deters individuals from trafficking substantial amounts of drugs into the country.
In addition, 82.1 per cent believed that executions of drug traffickers in the past year had deterred others from smuggling large quantities of drugs into Singapore.
The survey also revealed that around 81 per cent of respondents believed the death penalty is more effective than life imprisonment in discouraging serious crimes, while 82.5 per cent felt it is more effective in deterring drug trafficking.
A majority of respondents also expressed confidence in the fairness of Singapore's criminal justice system and its courts, with 79.4 per cent believing the system is fair to all, and 80.4 per cent believing that the Singapore courts act fairly.
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xingying.koh@asiaone.com