More Openness needed in Singapore

In response to the TODAY online news report of, "Mystery of the no-go Feelin' Good Party", I wrote a letter to the press.



What appears to be a mystery about the no-go 'Feeling Good' Party is the lack of written or recorded documentation from the various parties.

Nevertheless, the episode appears to be a repeat of the PLU3 open/closed meeting at the new National Library's Visitor Centre on 10 November 2005. The National Arts Council prevented the group from holding the event at the very last minute even though PLU3 has assured the body that the meeting will not touch on certain issues.

In both instances, it appears the “middle man” are forced into a difficult position in which they are forced to remain silent on the controversies.

Both episodes highlight the the need for local governmental bodies; whether be it the National Arts Council or the police to take an active approach in providing written documentation on their side of the story, so that they would not be accused of being prejudicial. Using phone calls to communicate is by no means professional.

Therefore, organisations which are either the middle-man or who are organising large-scale events should also be wary of further disputes and demand written proofs from the authorities.

While it appears that Fridae is the party that have suffered economic losses; we should also consider the party-goers who have been denied a chance to experience the music of Kate Monroe. As consumers, they have a right to know what has transpired.

This no go party highlights the need for more openness and transparency within our bureaucracies and business. To become a fairer society, whether to companies, consumers or citizens, the bureaucracy, especially, needs to be made more accountable.

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This is the original article which appeared on TODAY online...

Mystery of the no-go Feelin' Good Party
Advertised extensively, then cancelled at the very last minute
Tuesday • March 28, 2006

Vinita Ramani
vinita@newstoday.com.sg

THE party was to have taken place on Sunday, but it was called off at the last minute — on its eve.

And no one seems able to agree on why the Feelin' Good Party, organised by gay and lesbian media events company Fridae.com, was suddenly cancelled.

Boasting Ministry of Sound as its venue, the party — which was advertised in local publications such as I-S and Juice, as well as on radio — was going to feature Australian house music DJ Kate Munroe.

According to a press statement issued and published on its website by the organiser, the same entity behind the banned annual Nation gay party, the "Ministry of Sound received a telephone call from local police demanding that the party be cancelled".

Its CEO Stuart Koe added: "Feelin' Good is simply a party, not unlike any other party held at clubs all around Singapore."

A police spokesperson, however, denied that they had intervened in any way.

What they did after receiving "information from the public" about the party on March 24 was to contact the Ministry of Sound's management to "obtain more details" to plan for possible "traffic or law and order situations that might arise".

Said the spokesperson: "At no time did we advise the management of the Ministry of Sound to cancel the event."

Mr Clement Lee, executive director of the venue's parent company LifeBrandz, also said that Fridae.com's statements were "not completely true" and hinted at other underlying reasons.

"If everything had been above board, the Ministry of Sound would have allowed the party to go on as planned," he said, declining to explain what he meant.

Up to 1,000 tickets had been sold for the event, which was planned with a capacity of 3,800 in mind. The organiser is now offering refunds on the $20 tickets.

DJ Kate Munroe played at Happy, a bar in Tanjong Pagar, instead.

Last year, the Nation party, touted as Asia's largest gay celebration and held here annually since 2001, was thrown into the spotlight after police here denied its organisers a licence.

The party was eventually moved to Phuket.

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