9 weeks in jail for NS defaulter
Singaporean who grew up in Hong Kong defaulted on his NS obligations for over 4 years, had no valid exit permit
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Jonathan Lee Han Wen returned to Singapore on Sept 3 last year and enlisted a month later.
A Singaporean man who was born here in 1996 but left for Hong Kong the following year decided to continue his studies at England's Lancaster University even though the Central Manpower Base (CMPB) had rejected his request for a deferment.
After defaulting on his national service (NS) obligations for four years, eight months and 30 days, Jonathan Lee Han Wen, 22, returned to Singapore on Sept 3 last year and enlisted a month later.
Lee, who is now serving his full-time NS with the Singapore Armed Forces, was sentenced yesterday to nine weeks in jail after pleading guilty to four charges under the Enlistment Act. He was not in possession of a valid exit permit between 2013 and last year, the court heard.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Gabriel Lim said Lee's mother, Ms Lim Kim Lian, is a Singaporean, and his father a British citizen and Hong Kong permanent resident. Lee and his family left for Hong Kong on Jan 19, 1997.
The DPP added that Lee was subjected to the Enlistment Act on June 17, 2013, when he turned 161/2 years old. He registered for NS about two months later. Between Aug 26 and Sept 12 that year, Ms Lim corresponded by e-mail with CMPB for a renewal of her son's exit permit.
The DPP said: "Ms Lim was informed of the need for a bond, in the form of a bank guarantee or deed, to the amount of $75,000 to be furnished before such EP (exit permit) can be issued. The return date of the deed was extended multiple times for Ms Lim or the accused's family to furnish the bond.
"Such bond was not furnished. A valid EP was, accordingly, not issued."
Ms Lim also applied several times for NS deferment for her son, pending a renunciation of his Singapore citizenship. The applications were rejected, with the CMPB explaining to her that male Singapore citizens have to fulfil their full-time NS obligations before requests to renounce their citizenship can be considered.
Lee went to Lancaster University for his course, which started in September 2014. He sent an e-mail to CMPB about a year later to ask for a deferment, but was rejected.
He obtained his bachelor's degree on July 10 last year and returned to Singapore about two months later.
In a statement yesterday, the Ministry of Defence said all male Singapore citizens and PRs have a duty to serve NS, adding that it is important that NS has the support and commitment of all Singaporeans.
It noted that since the High Court set out the sentencing framework for NS defaulters in 2017, 13 defaulters, including Lee, have been sentenced to imprisonment.
