The Singapore government said it is prepared to relook the language guidelines under the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), possibly expanding the space for dialects, while continuing to uphold the importance of Mandarin.

Speak Mandarin Campaign

The interest and issues surrounding the Teochew dialect film "Dear You" were addressed in parliament on Jul. 7.

In response to questions raised by Member of Parliament (MP) Cai Yinzhou and Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) Eileen Chong Pei Shan, Acting Minister for Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth David Neo said the campaign was introduced to promote a common language among Singapore's Chinese community.

The Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MP and NCMP had raised questions regarding the relevance and effectiveness of the Speak Mandarin Campaign.

Neo said the long-standing campaign has enabled Chinese Singaporeans from different dialect backgrounds to communicate more easily, while preserving access to Chinese culture through a shared language rather than separate dialects.

It also gives the country's bilingual policy the best chance to succeed, he added.

Neo said the Promote Mandarin Council regularly reviews the campaign to ensure its messaging and objectives remain relevant in Singapore's multicultural society.

However, he noted that as more families in Singapore are using English at home, there may be fewer opportunities for younger generations to develop their proficiency in Mandarin.

"Hence, the campaign has evolved from promoting Mandarin as a common language, to strengthening the appreciation for our Singapore Chinese cultural identity and making the learning of Mandarin fun and enjoyable," he said.

Neo further added that the government increasingly views dialect artistic materials not as competing with Mandarin, but as part of Singapore's cultural heritage.

"We will continue to take in feedback and will work with the community to consider carefully what further steps are appropriate to support and to promote our distinctive Singapore Chinese culture within our multicultural society," he said.

More screenings of "Dear You" approved

Separately, Senior Minister of State for Digital Development and Information Tan Kiat How addressed questions on IMDA's decision to require a Mandarin-dubbed version of "Dear You" for most commercial cinema screenings.

IMDA's language guidelines support the government's longstanding policy of promoting Mandarin as one of Singapore's four official languages, Tan said, adding that they have "generally served us well".

However, he acknowledged that Singapore's language environment has evolved, and said IMDA has adopted a more flexible approach in implementing the guidelines by allowing more dialect content in films.

About 30 to 40 dialect-language films are screened at local film festivals each year, he said, adding that IMDA has also permitted unrestricted screenings of films with substantial dialect dialogue, such as "881", "Long Long Time Ago" and "Wonderland".

Tan said IMDA has not only approved a total of 272 screenings of the original Teochew version of "Dear You", but is also prepared to authorise additional screenings if distributors request them in response to audience demand.

He noted that several MPs had called for the guidelines themselves to be reviewed.

"We recognise that the circumstances have changed since the guidelines were first introduced," he said. "There is therefore scope to consider how we can expand the space for dialects, while continuing to uphold the importance of Mandarin."

He added that any review would also consider differences across media platforms.

There are no dialect restrictions for arts performances or content on the internet and online streaming services, he said.

The government believes that Mandarin should continue to be the mainstay on free-to-air television and radio, he added.

At the same time, he said IMDA is prepared to allow more screenings of dialect-language films to give audiences greater access to such content.

"We appreciate the feedback from members and will carefully consider what further steps are appropriate," Tan said.

A 27-year-old man has been sentenced to 22 years' jail with 24 strokes of the cane for violently raping a 13-year-old girl and suggesting she prostituted herself for money.

The sexual nature of the pair's relationship included other forms of violence, including him burning the girl with cigarettes, cutting her with a metal key and slapping her.

According to court documents, the accused, Foong Yong, faced 20 charges in total for offences in the sexual nature.

He pleaded guilty to six charges of statutory rape, The Straits Times reported. Another 14 charges for other sexual offences were taken into account during sentencing.

Underage victim

Court documents seen by Mothership stated that Foong and the victim became acquainted on May. 19, 2023 via online video conferencing platform Omegle.

The girl cannot be named due to a gag order protecting her identity.

Foong, then 25, asked the victim if she was interested to have sex with him despite knowing she was 13 years old, to which she agreed.

The pair then shifted their conversation to Telegram where Foong asked her to send him naked pictures of herself.

In exchange, he sent her nude pictures of his genitals.

They then agreed to meet at Foong's house later that day.

"Forceful" sex

There, Foong and the girl engaged in various forms of sexual acts, including using a vibrator and handcuffs.

At one point, he slapped her multiple times and asked if she liked it, to which she did not reply out of shock.

Foong then had "forceful" sex with her without a condom.

After he was done, the victim washed up in the toilet and left the unit.

Around noon on May 20, 2023, the pair met in the vicinity of Boon Keng MRT.

Just as they were about to reach Foong's house, his mother called and said she would be home soon.

Foong and the victim headed to a staircase landing nearby instead, where he raped her again without a condom.

He began to smoke midway and burnt the victim's buttocks with his lit cigarette butt twice, saying that he would treat her as his "ashtray".

The action left white burn marks on the victim's skin, court documents noted.

Foong also choked the victim, causing her to become light-headed and be unable to stand properly.

They then returned to his house where the engaged in further sex acts.

Encouraged her to prostitute herself

On the same day, Foong told the victim that he had no money and asked to borrow S$200 to S$300 from her.

He also encouraged her to have sex with other men for money by telling her she "would be losing out" to others who did the same.

He added that she could charge more for men who refused to use a condom.

After the victim agreed, Foong gave her a list that detailed how much she should charge others in exchange for sexual acts.

He also publicised her Telegram username and offer of sexual services on Omegle, posting the same advertisement every 40 seconds for hours each time.

He did the same on online application "Heymandi".

By his estimation, he potentially reached out to over a thousand people, some who contacted the victim for sex.

Foong only stopped sometime before Jun. 5, 2023 as he had grown lazy and the victim wished to take a break from providing sexual services as she was overwhelmed.

During the period where the victim prostituted herself, Foong would received money either in cash or through Paylah from strangers.

He received a total of about S$3,000 during this time.

Threatened to leak nudes

On Jun. 1, 2023, Foong raped the victim again at a staircase landing near his house.

Sometime during the act, he dragged his metal house keys across her chest, leaving red marks.

Sometime between then and Jun. 5, 2023, also he threatened to leak the victim's nudes online if she did not give him S$5,000.

On Jun. 5, 2023, the victim met a man for sex in Bedok in exchange for money, but did not receive the payment.

She texted Foong about the incident and apologised to him, but he told her to "chill" and meet for sex at his house.

There, he raped the victim again and slapped her, after which the victim asked to leave.

When Foong asked why she had left in a hurry, she said she was very scared as she believed Foong had slapped her out of anger.

Victim confessed to her mother

On Jul. 9, 2023, Foong came across the victim's sex videos while scrolling a Telegram channel that shared sexual tapes.

He forwarded the clips to the victim and told her to go his house. He then raped her at a staircase landing.

Later that day, the victim texted him that she was afraid of becoming pregnant, as she had previously missed her period.

The next morning, she told her mother that she had been raped.

Her mother then lodged a police report, and Foong was arrested on the same day.

He was charged in court on Jul. 12, 2023 and released on bail on Dec. 12, 2023.

In court, the deputy public prosecutors sought a "stiff and substantial" sentence of 22 to 26 years' imprisonment and 24 strokes of the cane for Foong.

They cited his exploitation of the victim for his own benefit with the full knowledge that she was underaged, as well as his use of violence to degrade her.

There is currently no evidence to suggest that the 14 online social media posts, which seemingly targeted the Indian community in Singapore, are a coordinated campaign by any particular government or organisation, said Minister of State for the Ministry of Home Affairs Goh Pei Ming.

He was speaking during the parliament session on Jul. 7 in response to questions posed by Members of Parliament (MPs) on the social media posts.

Earlier on Jun. 6, the authorities ordered social media platforms to block access to the 14 online posts, which contained inflammatory narratives suggesting that Singapore was being "overrun by Indians".

Likely originated from China-based platform

Investigations revealed that the content likely originated from a China-based platform and was subsequently carried on other platforms and websites, Goh said.

"The posts attempted to sow discord by inciting ill-will against our Indian community and sought to undermine Singapore’s model of multiculturalism," Goh added.

The government has since issued Disabling Directions under the Online Criminal Harms Act (OCHA) to block access by Singapore users to the 14 online social media posts.

Goh noted that there has been an increase in AI-enabled and inauthentic content that has seeped into Singapore’s online infospace in recent years.

"We monitor the infospace closely, and will not hesitate to take measures if it is in Singapore’s interests," he said, adding that they will regularly review laws to deal with the evolving landscape.

The 15-year-old girl who stabbed her classmate 14 times in a secondary school in Banting, Selangor, Malaysia had not attended school for months, it was found.

She was said to be undergoing medical treatment at the time of the offence.

According to her lawyer, she is also autistic.

"My client is autistic. That is all I can say," said the lawyer, as reported by The Star.

Four-day remand

The accused was taken into remand for four days for police to carry out investigations, an officer in charge said.

She was arrested following the incident, which occurred on the morning of Jul. 6, where she allegedly stabbed another 15-year-old Form Three student.

In a video circulating online, students were seen running away from the alleged assailant.

The attacker, who wore a black shirt, a black cap and red-checkered pants, was seen holding a knife in her right hand.

Witnesses claimed that she apparently entered the school compound through the main gate.

According to The Star, a teacher reportedly managed to calm her down near the school's prayer room.

The victim was conveyed to the hospital and is said to be in a stable condition.

Her father, 43-year-old Mohd Firuz Ibrahim, told the media that his daughter suffered multiple injuries, including to her left lung.

A majority of her stab wounds were to her back, though other injuries were found on her face and head.

The case has been classified as attempted murder.

Alleged hit list

An unverified hit list, believed to be written by the suspect, surfaced following the incident, with the victim listed at number 10.

However, Firuz denied online claims that his daughter had been listed for bullying the suspect.

"I want to stress that my daughter is not a bully," he said.

"She just goes about her own business. She barely ever leaves the house. If she goes anywhere, it's either with her mother or me. She's never gone out on her own with schoolmates."

Speaking to the media, he reportedly declined to speculate on what the list meant or what motivated the attack.

"We don't know what her motive was. If she's really unwell, would she really be able to plan something like this? Let the police do their job," he said.

The suspect and victim were said to know each other as they were classmates in 2025, though Firuz claimed his daughter had never mentioned the other girl.

After supposedly being subjected to late-night noise emanating from the unit above for years, a 62-year-old resident at Block 186 Boon Lay Avenue took matters into her own hands, hitting back with metal pots and a screaming rubber chicken.

Noise in the middle of the night

According to Shin Min Daily News, the 62-year-old female resident complained that the unit upstairs has seen regular changes in tenants since 2020.

During those years, noise, such as the dragging of luggage in the middle of the night and sounds of footsteps, would emanate from the unit.

The resident revealed that the current tenants are a Malaysian couple with a young child.

"This estate is over 50 years old. The noise insulation isn't great initially, and noise can easily be heard. Especially when they return home from work, from 7pm to 1am at night," she said.

The resident claimed that the most frequent noises heard are the sounds of tiles grinding, flushing noises and heavy objects falling.

The noises would wake her from her sleep.

"I don't sleep well at night, which has affected my mental state. It's difficult," the female resident said.

Screaming rubber chicken

As things did not improve over time, the female resident has taken matters into her own hands and adopted a retributive approach.

According to Shin Min, she had specially purchased a rubber screaming chicken, a broomstick, as well as pots and pans.

As long as she hears noise from above, she would hit back by generating her own noise.

"They make noise, I hit back," she commented.

Mediation did not work

The resident had written to the authorities and had also called the police multiple times.

On one occasion, she called the police three times in a week.

HDB has replied to her, saying it has received many complaints since 2020, and also indicated that it had written to both parties and arranged for mediation, Shin Min wrote.

HDB also mentioned in the letter that the complainant had not accepted further mediation.

The housing authority also reiterated that noise and smells do not constitute a breach of rental terms.

HDB recommended the resident seek assistance from the Community Mediation Centre.

The 62-year-old said she would not be doing so, Shin Min wrote.

Landlord tried giving S$200

Although the unit above is rented out, the 62-year-old feels that the landlord should be responsible and help rein in the tenants.

According to the resident, the landlord is overseas most of the time, and they rarely cross paths.

Sometime in mid-2024, the landlord had paid her a visit in hopes of settling the issue, the 62-year-old said.

She claimed that the landlord offered her S$200 in "mental health fees" and explained that they relied on rental for income.

The landlord also said that they could give her another S$100, bringing the total to S$300, if the number of tenants goes up in the future.

However, the resident said she decided against accepting the money. "Accepting it will be like accepting hush money, and I won't be able to make complaints about the noise issue anymore."

Neighbouring resident did not hear noises

When Shin Min visited the upstairs unit, the lights were off and there was no noise coming from it.

A nearby resident told the Chinese-language paper that the unit is rented out to young people and they did not hear noise coming from it.

According to this resident, the current tenant moved in about two years ago.

They typically leave the house early in the morning and only return late in the evening.

In between, there isn't much noise.

"Previously, I've seen the police making a call, and they had also asked me about noise issues," the nearby resident said.

Singapore is proposing a new offence to target the misuse of a vehicle as a dangerous weapon.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) tabled the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill in parliament on Jul. 7.

Under the proposed offence of purposeful endangerment using a vehicle causing death or grievous hurt, culprits can face penalties more proportionate to their culpability and harm caused, MHA said.

Currently, such drivers cannot be convicted for murder or culpable homicide, unless it can be proven beyond reasonable doubt that they intended to kill or knew that the act was likely to cause death, MHA also noted.

Grievous hurt has been included in the offence as whether a victim ultimately dies may be beyond the offender's control, MHA added.

Past cases

In the case of Jarrett Tee Lee Kiat, he was sentenced to five years and eight months’ jail after pleading guilty to dangerous driving.

He had showed no remorse after causing the death of a teen, 18, during a race along the expressway.

Under the new proposed offence of purposeful endangerment using a vehicle causing death or grievous hurt, those guilty can be jailed for up to 15 years, fined, caned and disqualified from driving for life.

The minimum jail term is at least 10 years, if there are special reasons.

Currently, a first-time offender is likely to be charged with dangerous driving causing death instead, which carries a maximum eight years’ jail.

The Bill also increases penalties for dangerous and careless driving causing grievous hurt.

In the case of Yoong Kok Kai, he had his jail term increased from three-and-a-half years to five years for causing an accident while drunk.

He had driven drunk and hit an auxiliary police officer at Tuas Checkpoint that left the man in a vegetative state.

For dangerous driving causing grievous hurt, the Bill will see the maximum jail time raised.

First-time offenders can be jailed up to seven years instead of five years.

Repeat offenders can be jailed up to 13 years instead of 10 years.

There are no proposed changes to the maximums for careless driving causing grievous hurt.

The additional penalties due to aggravating factors will also be raised for both offences.

Serious offenders will face up to 18 months additional jail time.

It is currently one year.

Serious repeat offenders will face additional jail time of up to three years and six months.

It is two years maximum currently.

The Bill also shifts the commencement of the disqualification period to after the convicted person's release from prison, even if the jail term is for an unrelated offence.

The court can also order the vehicle to be forfeited.

Merely holding a phone while driving in Singapore could soon be criminalised under a proposed new law.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) tabled the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill on Jul. 7.

Drivers who hold a mobile communication device while their vehicle is in motion will commit an offence under amendments to Singapore's road traffic laws.

The changes, introduced under the Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill, remove the requirement to prove that a driver was operating the device while behind the wheel.

A mobile communication device refers to a mobile phone, or any wireless handheld device or wearable device designed or capable of being used for communication, and includes tablets and smart watches.

No need to prove usage of device

The amendment removes the need to prove that the driver was using the device.

Instead, it will be an offence for a driver to hold a mobile communication device in hand while the vehicle is moving, regardless of whether the device is being used.

The change will also allow traffic police to enforce the offence using camera footage or photographic and video evidence submitted by the public, improving the detection of such offences.

However, the amendment does not affect the use of devices mounted on a holder, which remains permitted.

Drivers may also hold their mobile devices when their vehicle is stationary.

No changes in penalties

There will also be no changes to the penalties for this offence.

First-time offenders prosecuted in court face a maximum fine of S$1,000, up to six months' jail, or both.

Repeat offenders may be fined up to S$2,000, jailed for up to 12 months, or both.

Offences committed in school zones, silver zones, or Friendly Zones Streets incur two additional demerit points and an additional S$100 fine.

Under the current law, a driver commits an offence if he or she holds a mobile communication device and uses any of its communicative or other functions while the vehicle is in motion.

No proof of harm is required.

In response to media queries, MHA said "There is no reason for a driver to hold a handphone while the vehicle is in motion, at the risk of distracting the driver and endangering road users. And as such, it would be considered an offence."

The Road Traffic Act was amended in 2014 to make it an offence to hold and use any type of mobile communication device while driving.

The law was expanded to include surfing the web, visiting social media platforms and downloading material and not just prohibiting calling or texting.

Hong Kong martial arts superstar Jackie Chan made an appearance at Pei Chun Public School on the morning of Jul. 7.

He walked into the school hall at around 8am to much fanfare, accompanied by the school's lion and dragon dance performers.

Students were also seen cheering for him while holding onto Chan's movie posters.

The 72-year-old actor sat among Minister for National Development Chee Hong Tat, Speaker of Parliament Seah Kian Peng, and director of the Singapore Olympic Foundation Kiat Lim.

Chan was also seen enjoying a wushu performance put up by students and alumni of Pei Chun Public School, sang some songs, and even played the drums.

As part of his appearance, he took part in the school's auspicious dragon eye-dotting ceremony.

As expected of the legendary martial artist, he also showed off some moves with the dragon's pearl.

The actor took the stage to give a speech to guests, including about 900 primary school students and recipients of the Singapore Olympic Foundation-Peter Lim Scholarship 2026.

"You must have dreams"

Speaking in Mandarin, he shared his time as a young student at a Peking opera school, adding that he has been in the entertainment industry for 64 years.

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Mothership (@mothershipsg)

"You all grew up watching my movies, but the younger ones are only just starting to watch them," he said.

Chan also encouraged the students to follow their dreams:

"You must have dreams. Dreams may not necessarily lead to success, but without dreams, you'll never succeed. So children, work towards your dreams. Keep moving towards your goal, you can do it!"

Some students also had the chance to ask the veteran artiste some questions, including if he's ever felt scared to perform his stunts and the challenges he faced in filmmaking.

In response, Chan said that he's "very scared" of many of the stunts he's had to do, but he knew that he wanted to do a good job for every movie.

"I used to want to skive. But whenever the movie is out, I'll always regret it deeply — why didn't I do it properly? But it would be too late by then."

Before leaving the school, he spontaneously sang his song "Hard to Say Goodbye".

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Mothership (@mothershipsg)

Parliament will not take further action regarding the conduct of Workers' Party’s Sylvia Lim and Faisal Manap in relation to the Committee of Privilege’s findings for the Raeesah Khan case.

Leader of the House Indranee Rajah delivered a ministerial statement in parliament on Jul. 7 to explain that this is because their conduct had taken place in the 14th Parliament, but the 15th Parliament had begun after the 2025 General Election.

Background

Earlier in January 2026, a motion was filed on WP chief Pritam Singh's suitability to continue as the Leader of the Opposition.

Indranee noted in the motion that the court judgments finding Singh guilty of lying to the COP "have implications for both Ms Lim and Mr Faisal".

She also noted then that the matter would be considered separately.

During the Jul. 7's ministerial statement, Indranee noted that a key issue in the COP inquiry was what was said at the meeting of Aug. 8, 2021, between Khan and the three senior WP leaders: Singh, Lim and Faisal.

All three WP leaders had denied that Khan was told to suppress the fact that she had told an untruth in parliament and that she should “take it to the grave”.

However, the court has "expressly and conclusively found" that at the Aug. 8 2021 meeting – at which all three WP leaders were present – Khan’s untruth was discussed and Singh had lied when he denied that he told Khan to “take it to the grave”.

"The court’s findings directly contradict Lim’s and Faisal’s evidence. It follows logically from the court findings that their evidence to the Committee was not true," Indranee said.

Timeline lapsed

In light of the court's judgement, Indranee said the "unresolved issue" of what to do with Lim and Faisal's case has to be dealt with.

She explained that in principle, if someone gave untrue evidence to a Committee of Parliament and did so knowingly or intentionally, this would be "dishonourable conduct" and a serious contempt of Parliament and would be dealt with under the Parliament (Privileges, Immunities and Powers) Act 1962 (PPIP).

While she would have initiated the PPIPA process ordinarily, the timeline in which the conduct had happened did not meet the timeline criteria for which the process could be initiated.

Under Section 22 of the PPIPA, parliament has the power to punish offences which have been committed in either the preceding session or the last session of the preceding parliament.

However, parliament is now in its first session of the 15th Parliament.

The relevant conduct of Lim and Faisal took place in 2021, during the 1st session of the 14th Parliament and Singh was convicted by the court during the second session of the 14th Parliament.

As such, it is no longer open to the 15th Parliament to impose any penalties in respect of Lim's and Faisal's conduct under the PPIPA, Indranee said.

"This does not mean that parliament is without recourse. The House could, if it wished, pass a motion to express regret at such conduct.  Such a motion would serve to signal Parliament’s disapproval, as it did in Singh’s case in January this year," she highlighted.

However, they had already signalled their clear disapproval of lying to parliament or its committees in the January motion, she added.

"Given the very specific circumstances of this case, it is my view that no further action need be taken by this House in relation to the committee’s finding regarding Lim and Faisal," she said.

She added that she would have proposed a different course of action under different timelines, but their decision to give Lim and Faisal the "benefit of the doubt" in 2021, instead of acting on the committee's findings, led to this outcome.

The hearing for the Law Society of Singapore's (LawSoc) case against Workers' Party chief Pritam Singh is scheduled for Aug. 13, 2026.

This is according to the Court's hearing list.

The case is described as "disciplinary proceedings for advocates and solicitors of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Singapore".

LawSoc's case comes after the court upheld Singh's conviction in the Raeesah Khan case.

A case management conference was previously scheduled on Mar. 12.

What the law says

LawSoc said in March that it initiated disciplinary proceedings against Singh as required under the Legal Profession Act, following his court conviction, CNA reported.

It said it had done so based on information received from the Attorney-General's Chambers that Singh had been convicted of offences involving "fraud or dishonesty", according to The Straits Times.

Section 94A of the Legal Profession Act stipulates that LawSoc must, without further direction, initiate disciplinary proceedings where a regulated legal practitioner has been convicted of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty.

The legal practitioner may be struck off the rolls.

They may also be suspended from practice for up to five years, fined up to S$100,000 or be censured.

According to details on the Court's website, the case will be presided over by Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, alongside Justice Kannan Ramesh and Justice See Kee Oon.

LawSoc is represented by lawyers from Drew & Napier, including its chief executive officer, Senior Counsel Cavinder Bull.

Singh is represented by lawyers from Peter Low Chambers, including Peter Cuthbert Low.