Public consultation to seek views on improving the management of community disputes

Feedback from the public will help to shape framework for the management of private disputes between neighbours

1. The Government is seeking views from the public on how to encourage good neighbourliness and to improve the management of disputes between neighbours.

2. Annually over 70,000 noise complaints are received in addition to other disputes between neighbours. In light of this, the Government has taken an inter-agency approach to look at this issue from different angles: from suasion to enforcement, from mediation to adjudication.

3. Presently, the Community Mediation Centre conducts formal mediation for disputes between neighbours. CMC receives a total of about 1,500 applications each year. However, attendance is not mandated and the no-show rate is about 60%. Out of the 600 or so cases CMC mediates annually, 70% reach some understanding and agreement.

4. In May 2013, Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong raised the idea of having a more robust community dispute resolution framework to help residents who are dealing with conflicts with their neighbours.

5. Since then, 17 focus group discussions have been held involving Government agencies, associations, and community and grassroots leaders. The public engagement efforts so far have helped with the development of the proposed key themes:

   1. Encourage good neighbourliness and considerate behaviour

   2. Role of the Government in improving the management of community disputes 

   3. Access to effective mediation in the community

   4. Adjudication to resolve difficult disputes only where mediation has failed

6. The views gathered from this public consultation exercise will be used to strengthen the framework for the management of disputes between neighbours. This framework aims:

   1. to promote good neighbourliness to minimise the likelihood of disputes to begin with; 

   2. to encourage neighbours to resolve issues amicably between themselves in the first instance, and

   3. to turn to mediation as the primary source of assistance, if they need help to settle differences and  mend neighbourly relations where disputes arise; and 

   4. to establish a tribunal to adjudicate the small number of intractable cases where both parties are unable to resolve their disputes amicably, despite going through mediation.

Public Consultation

7. The consultation will open for six weeks, from 9 March to 21 April 2014 and the Consultation Paper is available on:

   1. MCCY website

   2. REACH portal

Members of the public may send their feedback by e-mail to: community_dispute@mccy.gov.sg.

Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth
8 March 2014

Annex A [PDF, 286 KB]: Public consultation paper

Annex B [PDF, 480 KB]: Public education efforts