Community mediation the first step in resolving disputes; preserves S’pore’s social fabric: Edwin Tong

SINGAPORE – Community mediation has to be the first step in resolving disputes between neighbours, and Singapore’s approach is less about determining fault and more about preserving relationships, said Law Minister Edwin Tong on April 11.

He said that the Community Mediation Centre shows that mediation works – about 80 per cent of its cases are successfully resolved.

“Mediation tends to be successful if you bring parties together,” he said at the International Institute of Mediators’ annual conference at York Hotel Singapore.

“They know that they are neighbours, they know that they are contracting parties. They know that they’ve got to work with one another... (Mediation) is therefore a natural first step in resolving community disputes and, overall, preserving that very important social fabric and trust in Singapore.”

But it remains a challenge for people to choose mediation, if it is left to the parties to do so on their own, he said.

Fewer than 30 per cent of cases registered with the centre proceed to mediation, as parties may hesitate over who should make the first move.

There are concerns about pride, appearing weak or “losing face”, Mr Tong said.

To address this, legislative changes were introduced in 2025 to give authorised officers the power to require disputing parties to attend mandatory mediation sessions.

If disputes persist, the Community Relations Unit can step in with abatement orders to address the underlying nuisance directly.

The framework has been piloted in Tampines over the past year. Mr Tong said the Government has studied its effectiveness and is refining its processes before expanding it.

Mediation sessions are not about establishing blame, he stressed.

“It is not about determining... fault or who is liable. It is about finding a solution that is common to both,” he said, noting that officers do not need to establish who is right or wrong before issuing a mediation direction.

“I believe that mediation sits at the heart of Singapore’s ethos,” he said.

Building Singapore into a dispute resolution hub is important, but mediation sits at the heart of this process, he said.

“Ultimately and fundamentally, we want to resolve disputes in a way which preserves the relationships as far as we can.”

These instincts, Mr Tong added, are not accidental but have been cultivated over time through laws, institutions and the quiet practice that favours dialogue over conflict.

“That has been our style, that has been our value, and that has been the way in which we run Singapore as a cohesive, multicultural, multi-religious, harmonious society,” he said.

It reflects the belief that even in moments of disagreement, solutions are best found through understanding, trust and mutual respect, he said.

“We can never give up the fact that we live as Singaporeans, or with our friends from overseas in Singapore, side by side, and it is that mutual trust that stands at the heart of why we want to drive mediation as a valuable ethos (in) solving our problems.”