From SBS Radio15.5.2006 17:23:39
The tourist promotion for Singapore boasts that the island state is unique -- "Uniquely Singaporean".
This is also how many describe the country's democracy and its media.
The People Action Party of Singapore -- known as the PAP -- has ruled the country for 47 years.
And, following the recent election, it continues to hold a firm grip.
The PAP controls 82 out of the 84 seats in parliament.
In the courts, opposition candidates from the Singapore Democracy Party are fighting defamation suits filed by the ruling party. And a candidate from the Workers Party is facing a criminal intimidation charge from the government electoral commission.
As Rebecca Henschke reports, this continues a long-held policy of the PAP -- to silence its critics through the courts.
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SOURCE: World View
A view from overseas:
ReplyDeleteIn most robust democracies, heads would have rolled for conceding 33% votes to the opposition.
Having just three opposition voices to represent one third of the voting population is simply bizarre.