05.16.2005, 02:54 AM
SINGAPORE (AFX) - A US democracy activist has been banned from entering Singapore indefinitely for interfering in the nation's domestic politics, the government said.
Yeshua Moser-Puangsuwan, the Southeast Asian coordinator for the group Nonviolence International, was turned away from Changi Airport and sent back to Thailand when he tried to enter Singapore on Friday.
Opposition politician and Singapore Democratic Party secretary general Chee Soon Juan told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that Moser-Puangsuwan had been invited to Singapore to give a lecture at a weekend training workshop on non-violent political action.
The Home Affairs Ministry said in an e-mailed statement sent to AFP: 'Foreigners like Yeshua with no stake in the future of Singapore and of Singaporeans will not be allowed to interfere in Singapore's domestic politics, much less to instigate, agitate and promote civil disobedience among targeted segments of society, against the laws of the country.'
The statement concluded: 'The government has therefore decided to bar Yeshua Moser-Puangsuwan from entering Singapore indefinitely.'
The Nonviolence International website says Moser-Puangsuwan, a US citizen, is the organization's 'main facilitator of training programs in movement strategy and political struggle' in Southeast Asia.
Human Rights
The real reasons why the government opposes foreigners' involvement in Singapore politics:
ReplyDelete1. If the government starts turning up the heat on them, they can always return to their own countries until things simmer down
2. They cannot be threatened with the seizure of their material or financial assets, because they don't have any in Singapore. This deprives the government of one of its most powerful tools in the suppression of political dissent
3. They cannot be locked up without sparking a diplomatic incident with their home countries
If a Communist leader come to visit Singapore let say the North Korea Leader Kim Jong il. I think they will ban it if the communist korea want to have good ties with Singapore even though they have their embassy in Singapore. The government won't allow as they don't support communism, democracy or facism. Tell me what they support??? They should open up to let people have the freedom to talk whatever they want or else others think Singapore is like the former USSR restricting any anti-coomunist to come to visit unless country officials like USA or Britan
ReplyDelete"Promote civil disobedience". I guess that shows how the PAP demands our absolute, unquestioning obedience to them.
ReplyDeleteTo the 2nd anonymous, despite your incoherent comment, I'd like to point out that Kim Jong Il's son was in Singapore not too long ago. Alas, like most other tourists, he was just transiting via Changi on his way to somewhere more interesting. Like Tokyo Disneyland for example.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/dprk/kim-jong-nam.htm
Wouldn't it be interesting to see if Steve McDermott can make it through Singapore customs? ;)
ReplyDeletehaha!!! that's a good one.. but definitely he's gonna try it.. :D
ReplyDeleteWonder if he really can get thru.. steve, wat do you think? :D they dun have the authority to detain you isnt it?
We will find out this December 2005. I haven't been sued for defamation and have never been asked to remove the blog by an official, so I think I should have no problems. what do you think?
ReplyDeletebeing non-singaporean, i suppose you wouldn't be sued isn't it.. and moreover those that's written by you isn't directed to anyone but rather the structure.
ReplyDeleteWhy you're not asked to remove should be because there isn't .sg behind?
HAHA! but still i really dunno whether you will be thru.. cos gubermen got lots of toys up their sleeves.. :P haha! they are totally unpredictable towards such things.. hope that you'll be let thru.. :D
Who knows? Between now and December 2005, you might do something really evil such as win a Reporters Without Frontiers award for promoting press freedom in Singapore.
ReplyDeleteThen you definitely won't be let in, haha.
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