LAWS MUST KEEP PACE WITH CHANGE
In his keynote speech, Mr Lee highlighted how today’s challenges are vastly different from those faced by Singapore’s pioneers.
He noted that technology has transformed how people live and communicate, economic activity has become more global and complex, social norms and expectations of governance have shifted, while new physical and digital threats have emerged.
“To sustain the rule of law, our legal system must keep abreast of all these changes,” he said.
Law reform has never been treated as an occasional or one-off exercise. Instead, each generation must review the legal system it has inherited, decide what remains “fit for purpose”, update or repeal outdated laws, and design new ones to address new circumstances.
Mr Lee said the book series chronicles one chapter of that continuing journey while examining a broader question of what a good legal system should achieve. In that regard, laws must fulfil four broad functions.
They must address enduring national imperatives such as safeguarding racial and religious harmony, responding to new challenges like online harms, responding swiftly in times of crisis and also addressing social change, such as evolving values and norms.
On responding swiftly to crises, Mr Shanmugam said the first COVID-19 legislation was conceptualised and drafted in a record nine days.
“We were introducing novel legislation, with no precedent anywhere in the world with impact on thousands of people, commercial tenants all across Singapore, couples who had paid deposits to hold weddings, receptions in hotels and restaurants, others who had made event bookings. The economic impact was tens of billions of dollars,” Mr Shanmugam said.
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