07/05/2025
that Singapore once had an open-concept ‘prison island’? Pulau Senang 🏝️, meaning “island of ease” in Malay, was 13 km from the mainland. Its remote location, coupled with shark-infested waters and strong currents, made escape difficult. 🦈🌊
In 1960, a unique penal settlement with neither bars nor fences was set up on this island to cope with overcrowding in Outram and Changi prisons. Detainees were free to roam the island, with guards going unarmed. Secret society members arrested under the 1955 Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) were sent here to rehabilitate.
This bold experiment was hailed as visionary for its low re-offending rate until tragedy struck in the form of a deadly riot on 12 July 1963. In three short years, the hope of an open-air prison on an offshore island turned to ashes, with the island settlement burned to the ground. A superintendent and three other prison officials were killed.
Today, Pulau Senang, along with other nearby islands, is part of the Southern Islands Live Firing Range, where military exercises are conducted.
📸: Detainees at work in Pulau Senang (Credits to: NAS)
