It doesn't take much to be a rebel in Singapore.
Throw a cigarette out the window, spit on the street.
Or more seriously, be a film student and make a documentary about an opposition leader, or write openly on the internet about being gay.
But increasingly, young Singaporeans are taking more risks and demanding a politically open society, where they're free to express themselves.
And, as Rebecca Henschke reports they're using the freedom of the internet and of music to create a quiet revolution.
4 comments:
This is a phenomenon that has also been observed in countries of the Communist bloc.
A 'parallel culture' is created alongside the mainstream one, as an agglomeration of all efforts to think and live independently.
This alternative culture may go one of two ways. The first is that it applies pressure to the existing one to adopt certain aspects of it as it gains prominence amongst the population. The second is that it provokes the system and is subsequently crushed.
There is no way this culture can exist without affecting the current system in some way.
It is wrong, however, to think of it as a rebel movement. Such a culture can only be beneficial if it is a result of individuals trying to be true to their beliefs and reason, and not as a reaction, a deliberate challenge to authority. That would be little better than the old system.
Fear of the word "rebel" resonates in your post. A baggage you seem to carry from 47 years of PAP education.
Rebel = Maverick = Non-conformist = Unconventional
re·bel ( P ) Pronunciation Key (r-bl)
intr.v. re·belled, re·bel·ling, re·bels
1. To refuse allegiance to and oppose by force an established government or ruling authority.
2. To resist or defy an authority or a generally accepted convention.
3. To feel or express strong unwillingness or repugnance: She rebelled at the unwelcome suggestion.
I'm afraid you do not see my point. Rebellion may be the means, but must never be the ends of any effort to true independence. If you are going to rebel for the sake of rebelling, then at least don't do it in the name of liberty, because you are relegating it to the realm of reactionary politics. I hope you are clear about what you are fighting for here, whether you want true freedom or simply an antithesis of everything mainstream.
people are desperate to see signs of opening up, despite what happened during and after the election showing things are unchanged
Post a Comment