co-ordinator for Singapore and Malaysia, Amnesty International Canada
Your editorial Shadow Over Singapore (May 9) gets to the point of Singapore's reality. The population lives in a climate of fear, intimidated and silenced. Increased restrictions placed on the opposition during the recent election clearly show this lack of progress. Only by external pressure from foreign governments such as Canada will Singapore change.
Ottawa, for instance, could press the Singapore government to give its opposition the freedom to express openly its concerns about governance; urge Singapore to end its death penalty; insist that international observers attend political trials; and meet dissidents and human-rights activists -- they may be tomorrow's leaders.
3 comments:
what stupidity - to get external help. They might shipwreck whatever good the opp is doing. And these foreigners will not be accepted by any one, not even the opp. (unless he is Chee Soon Juan, who is stupid enough to "sell" out to foreigners).
The key issue is: Is it possible to impose freedom from outside-in? I prefer to think so(the US operation in Iraq being one example), but the converse could also be true. If a populace does not want, or need, that freedom enough to fight for it, then why should it be given to them?
It cheapens the concept of liberty.
Shit. Why stop there? Why not invade Singapore and oust the PAP, like they did in Iraq.
Man, what a dumb idea. You guys are grasping at straws. You don't have the guts to take it to the streets... and out yourselves in harms way - instead expect "outside help".
Civil disobedience, my arse.
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