SIAM THIS MORNING
Mahathir supports Thailand in S'pore row
Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad threw his support behind Thailand's diplomatic spat with Singapore, accusing the city-state of interfering in the country's internal affairs and violating diplomatic norms by permitting a senior government official to meet ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
In an interview with Nation Channel's Thepchai Yong over the weekend on this island resort, Mahathir said Singapore had permitted Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister S Jayakumar to meet Thaksin in spite of their awareness that such an act would seriously upset Bangkok.
[See full interview]
"Singapore doesn't really care about the opinion of its neighbours," said Mahathir, adding that the decision was "unfeeling and not sympathetic".
"Singapore believes the most important thing is what profits Singapore," he said.
Thai-Singapore relations have hit one of its lowest points following the controversial meeting. The Foreign Ministry insisted that it had given the island-state prior warning about Thailand's strong objection to the meeting.
Two weeks ago, army chief General Sonthi Boonyaratglin accused Singapore of spying on Thailand by eavesdropping on telephone conversations, adding more fuel to what was billed as an already difficult situation between the two countries.
"That's the kind of things they do," Mahathir said.
The Singaporean government dismissed Sonthi's claim.
When asked about his 22 years of dealing with Singapore, Mahathir said "You'll get nowhere with them either by being nice or by being tough, they only think of themselves," Mahathir said.
Nevertheless, Mahathir said both sides need to patch things up but in away "that is honourable", which, he said, should start with an apology from Singapore.
The former Malaysian leader said he would welcome a meeting with Thaksin only if the former Thai premier asked for it - but then quickly downplayed the idea, saying: "I don't have anything to discuss with him."
Thaksin has publicly praised Mahathir as his role model during his time in office.
"Although he has said I was his friend and he wants to follow my way, many of his ways are not my way," Mahathir said.
Thaksin has been living in exile since he was ousted in September. The former premier has launched a media campaign to discredit the military-appointed government in Bangkok and the junta itself, accusing them of mismanagement and being undemocratic.
The purchase of the Thaksin family-controlled Shin Corp in January by Singapore's investment arm Temasek Holdings triggered an outcry in Thailand and exploded into a national scandal that precipitated his downfall after it was disclosed the family paid no taxes on the Bt73-billion deal.
The deal allowed Temasek to control operation of mobile phones, satellite and television networks, which the junta deemed as a possible access to areas of security concern.
Mahathir said Thailand had benefited economically under Thaksin but added that his handling of policy and controversies were not very diplomatic.
Mahathir dismissed a suggestion that Thaksin had followed in his footsteps by meddling with the freedom of the press. He said his outspokenness against Western countries was responsible for his being cast in a bad light in the foreign press.
Malaysian former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad's interview with Thepchai Yong will be aired on Channel 5's "Siam This Morning" on Wednesday at 6.15am.
Don Pathan
The Nation
Langkawi, Malaysia
31 Jan 2007
Mahathir supports Thailand in S'pore row
6 Falun Gong followers stand trial in Singapore over alleged protest
The Star Online
SINGAPORE (AP) - Six Singapore-based followers of the Falun Gong spiritual movement were in court on Wednesday facing charges of holding a protest without a permit in the tightly controlled city-state.
The group, made up of ethnic Chinese women aged from 37 to 55 years, were charged in April last year with taking part in an unauthorized assembly the previous October in the busy Orchard Road shopping area. If convicted, they face a maximum fine of 1,000 Singapore dollars (US$630; euro500).
The court on Wednesday was shown police security footage shot at the scene in which the women were seen carrying banners and distributing flyers in pairs or groups of three as they walked along the main shopping avenue.
The printed material was said to describe the alleged atrocities committed against Falun Gong followers in China, where authorities have outlawed the group and violently suppress it as a cult.
The defendants - who are Pang Su Chin, 55, You Xin, 37, Wang Yuyi, 50, Ang Soh Yan, 47, Ng Chye Huay, 41, and Cheng Lujin, 38 - have denied the charges.
They were representing themselves in the trial because they could not find a lawyer who was willing to defend them, said Wang, one of the defendants and spokeswoman of Singapore's Falun Buddha Society.
"Worldwide, people go to Chinese embassies to protest, to tell the truth about the persecution of the Falun Gong members in China,'' Wang said outside court. "We are Falun Gong practitioners outside China. We are lucky we have access to the international media, and the best thing we can do is to tell the truth.''
Falun Gong is not outlawed in Singapore, but public assemblies require prior permission from police, and authorities have previously arrested members on similar charges. Protests and demonstrations are rare in the Southeast Asian country.
Singapore's authorities regularly come under fire from international human rights groups for tightly restricting speech and assembly. The authorities say such controls provide the stability that has helped turn the Southeast Asian city-state into a global economic powerhouse.-AP
30 Jan 2007
Singapore. Stop deceiving innocent school children by makin them sing the national pledge.
From Singapore Dissident
to continue reading...
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Singapore national pledge, required to be sung by schoolchildren each morning of their school going lives reads as follows:
"We, the citizens of Singapore
pledge ourselves as one united people
regardless of race, language or religion
to build a democratic society
based on justice and equality
so as to achieve happiness, prosperity and
progress for our nation"
Schoolchildren who are required by their teachers to sing this each morning are not aware, becasue of their youth and innocence, that almost every line in this pledge contains shameless falsities and untruths of which the Lee government is fully aware, and yet, deliberately, without any regard of the fact that they are deceiving young innocent minds, continue to make them utter this falsity, realizing fully, that they are doing a great injustice to them at a young age, being innocent children, into believing something that is patently false.
This deliberate and wilful deception on the minds of young schoolchildren by the Lee government is a crime and I ask them to cease and desist forthwith this deliberate deception on these children. I also ask parents of the children to ask them not to sing the pledge, when next they are in school, on the grounds that it is shameless lie, deliberately perpetuated by the Lee government.
We can take this line by line.
Pledge ourselves as one united people
There is no unity among the people. We have in Singapore a privileged class. These are the government (Peoples Action Party) supporters and cronies who are given given jobs, well paid and live a life of comfort, just as you find in all other Fascist and dictatorial countries who reward unconditional submission and obedience from its subjects. Then there are those who are unable to be card carrying members of the PAP either by reason of conscience or because they have more pride as human beings than those card carrying sycophants. These suffer from not getting the good jobs and financial disadvantage thereof. What you have is 2 classes, as expected in all Fascist societies like Singapore. The privileged government connected people and those who are not. There is no unity among such a people.
to continue reading...
Tight restrictions force topless bar to kiss Singapore goodbye
Describing a city that has legal prostitution as prudish is in my mind rather strange. I have not really been following the announced closure too much other than what I have been reading on other sites. I thought all the male tourists were simply visiting other 'dens of debauchery'.
I was not aware that Crazy Horse was restricted in its advertising campaign. It is no great surprise that the authorities would block adverts with scantily clad women in them. So it would be interesting to see the actual adverts that were blocked. Or were they simply refused permission to advertise at all at airports and in taxis?
I also remember the Australian Tourism Board having difficulty over an advert that contained the utterance, 'bloody'.
Guess this site is never going to go mainstream unless I change the name.
· Parisian revue to shut down after advertising ban
· Closure a setback for city-state's tourism drive
Ian MacKinnon, south-east Asia correspondent
Tuesday January 30, 2007
The Guardian
Singapore's efforts to cast off its joyless "nanny state" image and rebrand itself as a carefree, fun city that is a magnet for tourists has stumbled with the closure of a Parisian topless revue barely a year after it opened.
The Crazy Horse Paris cabaret, on the south-east Asian city-state's riverfront, was unveiled with great fanfare. It was hailed as a leading attraction in Singapore's battle to boost visitor numbers. But tomorrow night the 15 dancers in little more than wigs, g-strings and stilettos - mostly French, with a smattering of other Europeans - will strut their stuff for the last time 13 months after their first outing.
The Eng Wah Organisation beat off strong competition from other Asian cities, notably Hong Kong and Tokyo, to bag the franchise. Yet it said poor audiences had brought mounting losses after tough advertising restrictions barred images of the women in an attempt to safeguard public morals.
The Crazy Horse venture had secured the endorsement of the city-state's founding father, Lee Kuan Yew, the man largely responsible for its prudish squeaky-clean image, and even of its tourism authority.
But Singapore's ministry of information, culture and the arts blocked advertising at the city's international Changi airport, in taxis and on television and radio. Even newspaper and magazine advertisements faced tight restrictions.
The twice-nightly, 100-minute mix of music and light that has played to sell-out audiences since it opened in Paris 55 years ago, could barely half-fill the 400-seat theatre most nights, despite its prime spot in the buzzy Clarke Quay entertainment district.
The closure will force Eng Wah to write off losses of $4.6m (£2.3m). Its managing director, Goh Min Yen, said Singapore might not have been ready for the show. "We may have brought it a little early," she said. "I believe that Singapore has the potential to support a vibrant nightlife and there will be future opportunities that we can explore."
But the dark theatre does not augur well for Singapore's goal to double tourist numbers to 17 million annually by 2015 with new entertainment. Two casino resorts are planned, a further sign that some in Singapore wish to continue easing social controls.
Bar-top dancing is no longer illegal and Singaporeans can now buy chewing gum at pharmacies. The ban in place for 12 years after Mr Lee was alarmed by the sticky mess on Singapore's famously clean streets was lifted two years ago - provided buyers give their name and identity card number when they make the purchase.
Some Inconsistencies in This Report
The article below either contains information that points to a third individual who was supposed to be hanged on the same day as Tochi or is mis-reading the situation. I know that South Africa denied claims that a South African was hanged by Singapore, not because he received clemency at the last minute but that the South African government denied that Malachy was South African. Tochi and Malachy were both hanged, but there has been no reference to a third individual being granted clemency.
Aside from that the article does shift some of the blame of Tochi's death to the Nigerian government.
Such references to Mbeki in the first extract do give the existence of a third person credibility. Can anyone clarify this matter.
Ripples over hanging of Nigerian teenager in Singapore
TUNDE AKINGBADE
Posted to the Web: Sunday, January 28, 2007
THE authorities in Singapore, Friday, hanged a 19-year-old Nigerian Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi, under questionable and controversial circumstances. The teenager was said to have had on his person some quantities of hard drug when he was arrested in Singapore. He was not alone in the matter that eventually made him to pay the supreme price. Another African was hanged along with him. But, a South African, who was also sentenced to death by the Singaporeans along with Amara Tochi over drug related issues had his sentence reversed, following the intervention of President Thabo Mbeki who appealed to the authorities in Singapore to temper justice with mercy. For weeks, Amara Tochi stood trial over the drug matter after he was alleged to have been found with 727.3 grammes of heroin which was punishable by death under the Misuse of Drugs Act, 1973 of Singapore.
Aside from that the article does shift some of the blame of Tochi's death to the Nigerian government.
However, there are ample reasons for the Nigerian government, the Ministry of Information and National Orientation Agency (NOA) to educate Nigerian citizens about countries that operate primitive laws and generally ask them to avoid such countries like plagues no matter the economic benefits therein and technological advancement.
Such references to Mbeki in the first extract do give the existence of a third person credibility. Can anyone clarify this matter.
29 Jan 2007
Singapore's Death Penalty and Blog Posts
Below is written by me for me. Comment if you like.
I am concerned with using technology or software to understand the discourse of the Singapore blogosphere.
I am very much aware of the limitations of using technorati to monitor topics online, and I am faced with the issue of which terms/words to search for, Singapore, Death Penalty, Singapore Death Penalty, can merely give an indication of the number of blog posts referring to the terms that I have decided to isolate. 'Penalty' could of course refer to football. There are other terms and words as well as events that may have increased the use of these terms by Singaporean bloggers but have nothing to do with the Singapore geographic context. One example is the recent Saddam hanging.
So what can I claim, I think I can claim that the graphs show 1,600 in December to just over 200 on Jan 29th posts on the global blogosphere mentioning the term death penalty, pro or against cannot be ascertained. While during the same period around 25 posts containing Singapore and the death penalty occurred. Again pro or against is not discernible. For the same 30 day period 1,200 to 1,600 posts contained 'Singapore' in the item. But am I able to assert that 1,200 blogger wrote about Singapore and 25 wrote about the death penalty, I think that is an inference too far, if simply based on using a technorati search engine.
Posts that contain Singapore per day for the last 30 days.
Posts that contain Death Penalty per day for the last 30 days.
Posts that contain Singapore, Death Penalty per day for the last 30 days.
So are the Singapore aggregator blogs simply showing a 'truer' picture of the Singapore blogosphere's dscourse? Or are all Singapore bloggers uninterested in the death penalty. Recent posts have indicated that there are bloggers prepared to air their views on the death penalty both pro and against. Maybe posts about the death penalty are just in the minority and reflecting the local dis-interest or possibly global dis-interest.
These graphs are very limited in terms of looking at the linguistics and the social and political concerns of the bloggers but they do raise some interesting debates. For the same 30 day period 'The Straits Times' appeared in blog posts between 50 and 100 times (approx.). Possibly the writers are attacking and undermining reporters errors, maybe the are linking to snippets of articles or the forum pages. I have no idea.
Posts that contain Straits Times per day for the last 30 days.
The international press picked up on a story that they feel has a global relevance, global being the operative word.
What I am concerned with, as well as Tochi and Malachy's hanging, is what I experience on a daily basis of reading Singapore aggregators and Singapore blogs is that there is almost zero and I mean zero concern with issues on a global scale.
Is the Singapore blogosphere isolated from the wider global blogophere?
Related Links
Singapore Blogosphere - No Topic
Mapping the Blogosphere By Elia Diodati
Data Mining: Text Mining, Visualization and Social Media
Another way to search for trends is via blogpulse.
Singapore and Death Penalty is the just visible green line at the bottom
I am concerned with using technology or software to understand the discourse of the Singapore blogosphere.
I am very much aware of the limitations of using technorati to monitor topics online, and I am faced with the issue of which terms/words to search for, Singapore, Death Penalty, Singapore Death Penalty, can merely give an indication of the number of blog posts referring to the terms that I have decided to isolate. 'Penalty' could of course refer to football. There are other terms and words as well as events that may have increased the use of these terms by Singaporean bloggers but have nothing to do with the Singapore geographic context. One example is the recent Saddam hanging.
So what can I claim, I think I can claim that the graphs show 1,600 in December to just over 200 on Jan 29th posts on the global blogosphere mentioning the term death penalty, pro or against cannot be ascertained. While during the same period around 25 posts containing Singapore and the death penalty occurred. Again pro or against is not discernible. For the same 30 day period 1,200 to 1,600 posts contained 'Singapore' in the item. But am I able to assert that 1,200 blogger wrote about Singapore and 25 wrote about the death penalty, I think that is an inference too far, if simply based on using a technorati search engine.
Posts that contain Singapore per day for the last 30 days.
Posts that contain Death Penalty per day for the last 30 days.
Posts that contain Singapore, Death Penalty per day for the last 30 days.
So are the Singapore aggregator blogs simply showing a 'truer' picture of the Singapore blogosphere's dscourse? Or are all Singapore bloggers uninterested in the death penalty. Recent posts have indicated that there are bloggers prepared to air their views on the death penalty both pro and against. Maybe posts about the death penalty are just in the minority and reflecting the local dis-interest or possibly global dis-interest.
These graphs are very limited in terms of looking at the linguistics and the social and political concerns of the bloggers but they do raise some interesting debates. For the same 30 day period 'The Straits Times' appeared in blog posts between 50 and 100 times (approx.). Possibly the writers are attacking and undermining reporters errors, maybe the are linking to snippets of articles or the forum pages. I have no idea.
Posts that contain Straits Times per day for the last 30 days.
The international press picked up on a story that they feel has a global relevance, global being the operative word.
What I am concerned with, as well as Tochi and Malachy's hanging, is what I experience on a daily basis of reading Singapore aggregators and Singapore blogs is that there is almost zero and I mean zero concern with issues on a global scale.
Is the Singapore blogosphere isolated from the wider global blogophere?
Related Links
Singapore Blogosphere - No Topic
Mapping the Blogosphere By Elia Diodati
Data Mining: Text Mining, Visualization and Social Media
Another way to search for trends is via blogpulse.
Singapore and Death Penalty is the just visible green line at the bottom
Singapore youth scorn abstinence
This topic seems to have reared its head again and I refer to a previous article posted on 31st July 2006...
Singapore youth scorn abstinence
Surely a better policy would be to promote 'abstinence' with younger children but with teenagers who may already be sexually active promote safe-sex. To assume that teenagers and young people are a single group that can be approached with one singular campaign denies the activities and attitudes of different cohorts in the target community.[...]
Singapore youth scorn abstinence
Singapore (dpa) - Youths in Singapore are fed up with campaigns promoting sexual abstinence, a published survey said Monday.
Among 16 sexuality topics, two-thirds of 1,383 secondary school students ranked "building healthy relationships with the opposite sex" as the top priority.
Commitment to abstinence from premarital sex ranked 12th, according to the findings in The Straits Times.
The survey showed that 81.9 per cent of students had not spoken to any adult about intimate issues, and 17.8 per cent said they perceive adults to be awkward in dealing with the subject of sex.
"The abstinence message could be harmful despite its good intentions because it doesn't reflect reality," Bernise Ang, founder of the Singapore International Youth Council, was quoted as saying.
A 15-year-old student said, "You hear it once, then when the next person tells you not to have premarital sex, you can practically repeat everything."
With the message clearly needing updating, the Health Promotion Board is using peer influence to promote a healthy lifestyle, including refraining from promiscuous sex.
See Ya Later Gayle
It is with sadness that I came across this post about i-speak's closure. A blog run by Gayle Goh for over a year now. References to impostors posting on her blog seems to have a certain resonance with this blogs current situation.
to read Gayle's final post click here.
You will be sadly missed.
Once I did this because I wanted to make others aware, to encourage public discourse, to help people think. Today, I don't feel like you all need any help from me in that department. I've seen the blogosphere boom, and there are hundreds and hundreds of bloggers who now post insightfully, astutely and with thought and passion. The good, the bad and the ugly have all crowded their way into the blogosphere, and I can see this in my readers -- more and more of the latter, perhaps. Most recently some have taken to being impostors, posting under my name. Others accuse me of posting under another name. Then of course, the name-callers and hecklers have never gone away. All this is going on when my identity is public. It puts me in a vulnerable position and makes it almost personal. And so the more I write, these days, the less I feel I'm helping others, and the more I feel I'm hurting myself.
to read Gayle's final post click here.
You will be sadly missed.
Thai protestors burn effigy of Singapore's deputy premier
Jan 29, 2007, 9:30 GMT
Bangkok - Hundreds of Thai protestors burned an effigy of Singapore's deputy prime minister outside the Singapore embassy on Monday, after failing to receive an apology from the city-state over a recent diplomatic tiff.
The 200 to 300 protestors, coming from various groups such as Ramkhamhaeng University and Alliance for Northeastern People, burned an effigy of Singapore's deputy premier S Jayakumar to protest his 'private meeting' with Thailand's ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra earlier this month.
'We are here to announce how stupid the Singapore government was to meet with Thaksin,' said Sathorn Sinpru, deputy leader of the Alliance of Northeastern People, believed to be an offshoot of the People's Alliance for Democracy that led the anti-Thaksin protests last year.
The protestors last week had demanded an apology from the Singapore embassy for the Jayakumar meeting but none was forthcoming.
'If Singapore continues to deny us an apology we will take our protest to Udon Thani Airbase in North-east Thailand and chase their air force off the base,' said Sathorn.
Thailand and Singapore have enjoyed close diplomatic and military ties for decades, and bilateral relationship became even closer under former premier Thaksin, a billionaire telecommunications tycoon who was prime minister between 2001 to 2006.
But things have changed since Thaksin was ousted by a military coup on September 19.
His high-profile activities in exile, including his meeting with Jayakumar and his use of Singapore to conduct interviews with CNN and the Wall Street Journal, drew protests from the Thai government.
The Thai foreign ministry has argued that Singapore's stance towards Thaksin was inappropriate given the city-state's close business relations with his family.
A year ago Temasek Holdings, the Singapore government's investment arm, bought his family's 49-per-cent stake in Shin Corp, Thaksin's business empire, for 1.9 billion dollars in a tax-free deal.
Many Thais regarded the purchase as selling off sensitive national assets to a foreign company.
Shin Corp's holdings include Advanced Info Service, Thailand's largest mobile phone service, Shin-Sat, the national satellite network; and ITV television.
The sale sparked both anti-Thaksin and anti-Singapore protests in Bangkok last March and April.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur
27 Jan 2007
Singabloodypore Has Been Hacked
I am turning off the comments for awhile as someone has hacked them and is pretending to be me - soci and also singapore elections. I have tried to correct this in the normal manner and yet they are still posting comments under my name.
I will not be commenting today and no more posts will be made by me. I have a life to get on with.
I will not be commenting today and no more posts will be made by me. I have a life to get on with.
26 Jan 2007
EXECUTION OF CONVICTED DRUG TRAFFICKERS
Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi (Tochi), a 21-year old Nigerian was charged for importing into Singapore a controlled drug under section 7 of The Misuse of Drugs Act (Chapter 185). Okeke Nelson Malachy (Malachy), aged 35, stateless, was charged for having abetted the commission of the offence of importing into Singapore a controlled drug under section 7 read with section 12 of the Misuse of Drugs Act (Chapter 185). The Misuse of Drugs Act provides that the death penalty is mandatory if the amount of diamorphine or pure heroin imported exceeds 15g. Tochi had unlawfully brought into Singapore 727.02g of high grade pure heroin worth about $1.5 million.
The appeals of both Tochi and Malachy to the Court of Appeal and to the President for clemency have been turned down. Their sentences were carried out this morning at Changi Prison.
Central Narcotics Bureau
26 January 2007
Last updated on 26-Jan-2007
'Integrity' I am going to have go and get my dictionary out and look that word up. Someone must have recently changed its meaning because I see no 'integrity' in hanging one man who, as the judge confirmed, had no idea what he was carrying and secretly executing another man without informing anyone.
Singapore Blog Aggregators
A front for the Peoples Action Party?
While the world reacts to the hanging of two men in Singapore, it would appear, if you look at the aggregators, that few in the Singapore blogosphere have even noticed. Below is a small selection from 123 members of the international media...
Singapore executes Africans for drugs
Irish Times, Ireland - 1 hour ago
Singapore executed two African men for drug trafficking today despite pleas for clemency by Nigeria's president, the United Nations and human rights groups. ...
Singapore hangs drug smugglers
TVNZ, New Zealand - 2 hours ago
Singapore hanged two African men on Friday for drug smuggling after the city-state's prime minister rejected international clemency pleas, saying its tough ...
Singapore executes drug smugglers
BBC News, UK - 2 hours ago
Singapore has executed two African men for drug smuggling after rejecting appeals for clemency by Nigeria's president, the UN and rights groups. ...
Singapore executes 2 despite international appeals
Globe and Mail, Canada - 3 hours ago
AP. SINGAPORE — Singapore executed two Africans on drug trafficking charges Friday despite pleas for clemency by Nigeria's president, the United Nations and ...
Clemency calls fall on deaf ears
Independent Online, South Africa - 4 hours ago
BY Ruth Youngblood, DPA. Two Africans convicted of drug trafficking were hanged before dawn at a Singapore prison on Friday while human rights activists ...
Singapore hangs Nigerian drug smuggler
Reuters South Africa, South Africa - 5 hours ago
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore hanged a 21-year-old Nigerian man for drug smuggling on Friday, despite pleas from the Nigerian president, ...
Singapore Executes 2 Africans For Drugs
Guardian Unlimited, UK - 8 hours ago
From AP. SINGAPORE (AP) - Singapore executed two Africans on drug trafficking charges Friday despite pleas for clemency by Nigeria's president, ...
Singapore hangs Nigerian drug smuggler
Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - 9 hours ago
Singapore hanged a 21-year-old Nigerian man for drug smuggling, despite pleas from the Nigerian president, the United Nations and international human rights ...
While the major Singapore blog aggregators such as Tomorrow.sg on January 26, 2007 is more concerned with...
Why you should watch Crazy Horse Paris before they finally leave Singapore
or the Intelligent Singaporean
Aggregators of the Singapore blogosphere that have a human deciding on which blog posts to highlight are either extremely pro-death penalty or pro-PAP. While they continue to follow the editorial briefing of the Straits Times they are as good as working for the state controlled media.
Prove me wrong.
While the world reacts to the hanging of two men in Singapore, it would appear, if you look at the aggregators, that few in the Singapore blogosphere have even noticed. Below is a small selection from 123 members of the international media...
Singapore executes Africans for drugs
Irish Times, Ireland - 1 hour ago
Singapore executed two African men for drug trafficking today despite pleas for clemency by Nigeria's president, the United Nations and human rights groups. ...
Singapore hangs drug smugglers
TVNZ, New Zealand - 2 hours ago
Singapore hanged two African men on Friday for drug smuggling after the city-state's prime minister rejected international clemency pleas, saying its tough ...
Singapore executes drug smugglers
BBC News, UK - 2 hours ago
Singapore has executed two African men for drug smuggling after rejecting appeals for clemency by Nigeria's president, the UN and rights groups. ...
Singapore executes 2 despite international appeals
Globe and Mail, Canada - 3 hours ago
AP. SINGAPORE — Singapore executed two Africans on drug trafficking charges Friday despite pleas for clemency by Nigeria's president, the United Nations and ...
Clemency calls fall on deaf ears
Independent Online, South Africa - 4 hours ago
BY Ruth Youngblood, DPA. Two Africans convicted of drug trafficking were hanged before dawn at a Singapore prison on Friday while human rights activists ...
Singapore hangs Nigerian drug smuggler
Reuters South Africa, South Africa - 5 hours ago
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore hanged a 21-year-old Nigerian man for drug smuggling on Friday, despite pleas from the Nigerian president, ...
Singapore Executes 2 Africans For Drugs
Guardian Unlimited, UK - 8 hours ago
From AP. SINGAPORE (AP) - Singapore executed two Africans on drug trafficking charges Friday despite pleas for clemency by Nigeria's president, ...
Singapore hangs Nigerian drug smuggler
Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - 9 hours ago
Singapore hanged a 21-year-old Nigerian man for drug smuggling, despite pleas from the Nigerian president, the United Nations and international human rights ...
While the major Singapore blog aggregators such as Tomorrow.sg on January 26, 2007 is more concerned with...
Why you should watch Crazy Horse Paris before they finally leave Singapore
or the Intelligent Singaporean
Daily Reads Jan 26
Posted by inspir3d on January 26th, 2007
If I Am Not Sick, Why Do I Need Medicine?
from Wanderings, Musings and Happenings from Ian on S
Adventures of Elite Girl ep0025
Why is marriage a criterion for maternity leave?
from Coffee and Cigarettes.
Speech at Parliament Sitting on 22 Jan - Dr Fatimah…
from P65 Blog
Singapore Feels Heat On Economic Agenda
from SingaporeSurf
Old rules apply in cyberspace
from Singabloodypore
Aggregators of the Singapore blogosphere that have a human deciding on which blog posts to highlight are either extremely pro-death penalty or pro-PAP. While they continue to follow the editorial briefing of the Straits Times they are as good as working for the state controlled media.
Prove me wrong.
Singapore executes 2 Africans on drug charges despite international clemency appeals
SingaBLOODYpore.
Why didn't we know about Okeke Nelson Malachy, 35?
The Death Penalty in Singapore is still clouded in secrecy...
I am so angry I have decided to remain silent...
Why didn't we know about Okeke Nelson Malachy, 35?
The Death Penalty in Singapore is still clouded in secrecy...
The Associated PressPublished: January 25, 2007
SINGAPORE: Singapore executed two Africans on drug trafficking charges Friday despite pleas for clemency by Nigeria's president, the United Nations and human rights groups.
Nigerian Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi, 21, was hanged at dawn in the city-state after being convicted of trafficking 727 grams (26 ounces) of heroin — nearly 50 times the 15 grams (0.53 ounces) of the drug that draws a mandatory death penalty in Singapore, the Central Narcotics Bureau said in a statement.
A stateless African named Okeke Nelson Malachy, 35, who was convicted as the person to whom Iwuchukwu was supposed to deliver the drugs, was also executed Friday, the statement said.
About a dozen activists held an overnight vigil outside maximum-security Changi Prison, where the execution was carried out. Just before the hanging, they stood or sat with their heads bowed, holding roses in the flickering glow of candles on the ground around photos of Iwuchukwu and a red-and-white soccer jersey said to belong to him.
Prominent Singapore-based art critic Lee Weng Choy, 43, said he disagreed with Singapore's mandatory death sentence regulation, which he said takes away the discretionary power of the judiciary.
"I also disagree with its justification as a deterrent. The reality is that drug trafficking has not been reduced to zero, neither has drug use," he said at the vigil.
The execution was carried out despite an appeal by Nigerian President Olesegun Obasanjo, who asked Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong earlier this week to commute the death sentence.
Lee replied Thursday that Iwuchukwu had committed a serious offense under Singapore law and had exhausted all legal options.
"We did not take the decision lightly," Lee wrote in a letter. "I realize that Mr. Tochi's family will find Singapore's position difficult to accept, but we have a duty to safeguard the interests of Singaporeans, and protect the many lives that would otherwise be ruined by the drug syndicates."
Singapore's strict drug laws made international headlines — and triggered an outcry in Australia — in December 2005 when the city-state executed a 25-year-old Australian heroin trafficker despite numerous appeals from the Canberra government.
Singapore has said its tough penalties for drug trafficking are an effective deterrent against a crime that ruins lives, and that foreigners and Singaporeans must be treated alike.
Human rights group Amnesty International says Singapore has the world's highest per capita execution rate. Last week it urged its members to push Singapore's government to grant Iwuchukwu clemency and for a moratorium on all executions in the country.
The United Nations also urged Singapore on Thursday not to execute Iwuchukwu because it would violate international legal standards on the use of the death penalty.
"The standard accepted by the international community is that capital punishment may be imposed only when the guilt of the person charged is based upon clear and convincing evidence leaving no room for an alternative explanation of the facts," said a statement by Philip Alston, the U.N. special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.
Iwuchukwu, a footballer, was arrested in November 2004 at Singapore's Changi Airport after arriving from Dubai with 100 capsules containing heroin that authorities estimated to be worth 1.5 million Singapore dollars (US$970,000; €795,930).
At the time of his arrest, Iwuchukwu told narcotics officers the pills were African herbs that he was supposed to give to a sick friend. He also told officers that he came to try out for soccer teams playing in the Singapore League.
Iwuchukwu's family, who live in Nigeria, could not afford to travel to Singapore to see him while he was on death row, said Princewill Akpakpan, a lawyer with the Civil Liberties Organization, Nigeria's largest human rights group.
"The execution will place Singapore in a negative spotlight among civilized nations of the world," Akpakpan said by telephone on Thursday.
I am so angry I have decided to remain silent...
Singapore hangs Nigerian drug smuggler
Peoples Action Party BASTARDS...
.
Fri Jan 26, 2007
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore hanged a 21-year-old Nigerian man for drug smuggling on Friday, despite pleas from the Nigerian president, the United Nations and international human rights groups to spare his life.
Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi was hanged at about 6 a.m. (2200 GMT) at the city-state's Changi prison, Stanley Seah, assistant superintendent at Singapore's Central Narcotics Bureau, told Reuters.
No further details were immediately available.
Tochi was arrested at Singapore's Changi Airport in November 2004 for carrying about 727 grams of heroin.
Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo asked the Singapore government on Tuesday to grant a reprieve to Tochi, who was a champion football player in Nigeria according to human rights group Singapore Anti-Death Penalty Campaign.
In Geneva, the United Nations' special investigator for extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions said on Thursday that Singapore would be violating international legal standards on the use of the death penalty if it went ahead with the hanging.
The death sentence is mandatory for anyone caught carrying more than 15 grams of heroin in Singapore, which enforces one of the harshest anti-drug laws in the world
25 Jan 2007
UN expert calls on Singapore not to hang Nigerian on drug charges, says breaches rights
As much as I would love to be able to offer hope for all of you who are now experiencing Singapore's 'justice' for the first time, I am unable to offer any.
For those of us who have watched similar mis-carriages of 'justice' in Singapore we know one thing.
They will kill him tomorrow morning, Friday 26th Jan 2007 at 6am.
No requests for clemency will be granted and in the case of a mandatory death sentence there are no legal safe-guards to protect human rights in this land.
Yet again I sit with a heavy heart.
UN News Centre
25 January 2007 – An independent United Nations human rights expert today called on Singapore not to proceed with tomorrow’s planned hanging of a Nigerian for heroin trafficking, charging that the island state’s Government has failed to ensure respect for relevant legal safeguards under international standards.
“It is a fundamental human right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty,” UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions Philip Alston said in a statement, noting that the trial judge ruled that although there was no direct evidence that Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi knew the capsules contained heroin ignorance did not exculpate him.
“The standard accepted by the international community is that capital punishment may be imposed only when the guilt of the person charged is based upon clear and convincing evidence leaving no room for an alternative explanation of the facts,” Mr. Alston added. “Singapore cannot reverse the burden and require a defendant to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he didn’t know that he was carrying drugs.”
The appeal court rejected the trial court’s suggestion that it was irrelevant whether Mr. Tochi had knowledge of what he was carrying but still upheld his conviction, reasoning that under Singapore law such knowledge is presumed until the defendant rebuts that presumption “on a balance of probabilities” and not merely by raising reasonable doubt.
Mr. Alston also said that Singapore law making the death penalty mandatory for drug trafficking was inconsistent with international human rights standards, because it keeps judges from considering all of the factors relevant to determining whether a death sentence would be permissible in a capital case.
Mr Tochi’s co-defendant, Okele Nelson Malachy of South Africa, was convicted of having abetted Mr. Tochi’s offence and was also sentenced to death. There has reportedly been no date set for his execution, but it would raise similar grave human rights issues, Mr. Alston stressed.
“One of the tasks given to me by the UN Human Rights Council is to monitor states’ respect for those safeguards in order to protect the human rights of those facing the death penalty,” he said. “In the case of Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi, the Government of Singapore has failed to ensure respect for the relevant legal safeguards. Under the circumstances, the execution should not proceed.”
Special Rapporteurs are unpaid, independent experts who report to the Council.
Old rules apply in cyberspace
By Isabelle Chan, ZDNet Asia
Thursday , January 25 2007 06:28 PM
to continue reading...
Thursday , January 25 2007 06:28 PM
There is a clear legal line when it comes to blogging, and those that spread false information electronically may land themselves in legal hot water, lawyers say.
Commenting on the recent case where two Malaysian bloggers were sued for defamation by the New Straits Times, Singapore-based lawyer Vijai Parwani at Parwani & Co, said: "It must be remembered that defamation is a legitimate action in most Commonwealth jurisdictions. The only country which champions free speech over defamation is the United States, where the law requires proof of 'actual malice' in order to succeed where the party defamed is a public figure.
"So, it is not surprising that the action in Malaysia has taken its current course," Parwani added.
Be it publishing in a traditional medium like print, or the Internet, the same rules apply.
IT lawyer Bryan Tan at Keystone Law Corp said: "Blogging is just like publishing, and just because it feels like you are writing your diary does not mean it is like your diary. A blog is a publication open to the whole world."
Mark Lim, director of law firm Tay Peng Chin, also noted an area where there is still a lack of definition. "Jurisdictional issues are still evolving", he said, noting that Web sites cross geographical boundaries, but "the law is still unclear in this area" of cross-border legislation.
Another potential legal issue pertains to third-party comments on blogs. Parwani noted: "Some blogs allow a third party to post comments, and this is where it gets complicated. To what extent would the blogger be liable for the contents posted on the blog by a third party?"
According to lawyers, disclaimers only go so far.
Parwani explained: "Certainly a disclaimer clause would aid the blogger in a claim against defamation, but common sense dictates that a disclaimer clause surely cannot be the panacea for the blogger if he knows the contents posted on his blog are defamatory of someone, but chooses to do nothing about it."
He added: "I am not aware of any recent case where the courts have held that a disclaimer clause would absolve the blogger of all liability, and I dare venture to add that the courts would not allow a blogger to take absolute refuge behind the cloak of a disclaimer clause if the issue were to arise."
And what about media companies that host blogs written by third parties who are not full-time employees? Well, they can still be liable, said Tan.
"I think if it is non-staff, these companies can claim they are like network service providers who enjoy protection under section 10 of the Electronic Transactions Act," he explained. "But their liability starts once they have notice of these offensive postings."
He added: "Companies running blog sites should remove blogs when requested to do so either by the authorities or the courts."
Parwani said a dose of common sense and taking responsibility for their blogs will help bloggers go a long way in avoiding a potential defamation lawsuit.
"Even if the claim is thrown out by the court at the end of the day, you certainly do not want to go down the road of having to defend the matter and incurring unnecessary legal costs along the way," he added.
For those who want to stay on the right side of the law, Parwani advised: "Keep the blog about yourself and your thoughts without having to make specific references to any particular individual.
"If you have to make reference to someone, then ensure that it is the truth and nothing but the whole truth," he added.
to continue reading...
Singapore feels heat on economic agenda
By John Burton in Singapore
Published: January 24 2007 00:10
As Singapore has prospered as a trading centre in a region with its fair share of economic laggards, the city-state has often stood accused of economic imperialism. Especially as Temasek, its investment arm, has acquired a growing list of assets in often strategic industries in neighbouring countries.
In what Singapore’s officials say are purely commercial investments by Temasek, local opponents have long seen “dollar diplomacy” at work and a political as well as an economic agenda.
But mounting efforts by Thailand’s government to reduce Temasek’s stake in Shin Corp, the telecoms group, have raised the regional political pressure on Singapore and Temasek to a new level. The stake was bought last year from the family of Thaksin Shinawatra, the prime minister ousted by Thailand’s current military rulers.
Together with other emerging issues – such as a threatened anti-competition probe into telecoms ventures in Indonesia – Temasek’s problems in Thailand have raised questions over whether it might be forced to focus its investments outside the region to where it provokes less controversy.
Chua Hak Bin, a regional economist at Citigroup in Singapore, said: “Recent events show that Singapore has to be cautious in investing abroad and not go into areas that are politically sensitive.”
to continue reading...
24 Jan 2007
Wikileaks
Wikileaks is developing an uncensorable Wikipedia for untraceable mass document leaking and analysis. Our primary interests are oppressive regimes in Asia, the former Soviet bloc, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, but we also expect to be of assistance to those in the west who wish to reveal unethical behavior in their own governments and corporations. We aim for maximum political impact; this means our interface is identical to Wikipedia and usable by non-technical people. We have received over 1.2 million documents so far from dissident communities and anonymous sources.
We believe that transparency in government activities leads to reduced corruption, better government and stronger democracies. Many governments would benefit from increased scrutiny by the world community, as well as their own people. We believe this scrutiny requires information. Historically that information has been costly - in terms of human life and human rights. Wikileaks will facilitate safety in the ethical leaking movement.
Wikileaks opens leaked documents up to a much more exacting scrutiny than any media organization or intelligence agency could provide. Wikileaks will provide a forum for the entire global community to examine any document for credibility, plausibility, veracity and falsifiability. They will be able to interpret documents and explain their relevance to the public. If a document comes from the Chinese government, the entire Chinese dissident community can freely scrutinize and discuss it; if a document arrives from Iran, the entire Farsi community can analyze it and put it in context. Our first sample analysis is available from the news page, providing a look into the future of what Wikileaks can provide.
In its landmark ruling on the Pentagon Papers, the US Supreme Court ruled that "only a free and unrestrained press can effectively expose deception in government." We agree.
The ruling stated that "paramount among the responsibilities of a free press is the duty to prevent any part of the government from deceiving the people and sending them off to distant lands to die of foreign fevers and foreign shot and shell."
We believe that it is not only the people of one country that keep their government honest, but also the people of other countries who are watching that government. That is why the time has come for an anonymous global avenue for disseminating documents the public should see.
Volunteer to help. Almost everyone can be of some assistance. See the FAQ for further details.
Support Wikileaks.
First spotted on Pseudonymity
Authoritarian Despots Visit Authoritarian Despots
President of Uzbekistan to visit Singapore
Posted: 23 January 2007 1902 hrs
President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov will make a state visit to Singapore from January 24-26.
He will be accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Rustam Azimov, Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Norov, Minister of Foreign Economic Relations, Investments and Trade Elyor Ganiev, officials and a business delegation.
President Karimov will be calling on and hosted to a State Banquet by President S R Nathan.
President Karimov will also be meeting Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew.
Speaker of Parliament Abdullah Tarmugi will be hosting President Karimov to lunch.
President Karimov will also be visiting Parliament House.
Singapore's Foreign Ministry says four agreements will be signed during the visit.
They are an Agreement on Cooperation in the field of Standardisation, Metrology and Accreditation, a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan and Singapore on Bilateral Consultations, an Air Services Agreement and a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation between the Singapore Business Federation and the Chamber of Commerce of Uzbekistan. - CNA /ls
The article below makes rather bizarre reading.
Suddenly my belief that Singapore is unique, under threat from Islamic extremists, not ready for democracy, and that tight controls on the media are necessary to get all Singaporeans working together rather than have a Prime Minister having to 'fix' the opposition, is shattered.
But "Singapore is Unique" I hear you argue.
Really?
While reading below just replace the name of the country and the name of the president with that of Singapore and LKY and his cronies.
Uzbekistan from the BBC
President: Islam Abduganiyevich Karimov
Islam Karimov keeps a tight grip on the country
Islam Karimov has dominated the leadership since 1989 when he rose to be Communist Party leader in then Soviet Uzbekistan. The following year he became Uzbek president and continued in the post after independence. A referendum held in 1995 extended his term until 2000 when he won the presidential elections unopposed.
A further referendum in 2002 extended the presidential term from five to seven years. The next presidential elections are due in 2007.
Mr Karimov takes a ruthlessly authoritarian approach to all forms of opposition. The few western observers who monitored parliamentary elections at the end of 2004 condemned them as having failed to meet international standards and pointed out that all the candidates supported the president.
Mr Karimov has been accused of using the perceived threat of Islamic militancy to justify his style of leadership. Observers point out that the combination of ruthless repression and poor living standards provides fertile breeding ground for violent resistance in a volatile region.
[...]
The state maintains tight control of the media. Despite a constitutional ban on censorship and guarantees of press freedom, the media rights body Reporters Without Borders said in 2005 that the use of violence against journalists and disinformation by the authorities were commonplace.
In the aftermath of deadly unrest in the eastern city of Andijan in 2005, journalists were expelled from the area and foreign TV news broadcasts were blocked. The BBC's coverage of the uprising led to the closure of the corporation's bureau in Tashkent some months later.
Pre-publication censorship of the press by the state was abolished in 2002, but self-censorship is widespread.
The US-based Committee to Protect Journalists says that many Uzbeks rely on foreign sources - including Russian TV, the BBC and other broadcasters - as a counterpoint to the stifled domestic news media. The government controls much of the printing and distribution infrastructure.
Private TV and radio stations operate alongside state-run broadcasters. Foreign channels are carried via cable TV, which is widely available.
Uzbekistan had around 675,000 internet users by 2005, according to government figures.
Obasanjo urges Singapore not to hang Nigerian man
Wed Jan 24, 2007 8:36 AM GMT
ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo asked Singapore's government on Tuesday to grant repreive to a 21-year-old Nigerian man due to be executed for drug smuggling.
Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi was arrested at Singapore's Changi airport in November 2004 with 727 grammes of heroin. He is due to be executed on Friday after his appeal to Singapore's president for clemency failed last year.
"It is for the reason of obtaining your kind pardon and clemency for the convicted Nigerian that I write this letter to you ... to earnestly urge you to reconsider the conviction of the Singaporean Court of Appeal and to commute the death sentence to imprisonment," Obasanjo said in a letter to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Obasanjo's appeal came after Saudi Arabia executed a Nigerian man in December for smuggling cocaine into the conservative Muslim kingdom.
Human rights group Amnesty International has also called for clemency for Tochi, saying the judge who convicted the Nigerian "appears to have accepted that he (Tochi) might not have realised that the substance he was carrying was heroin."
The drugs were estimated by the authorities to have a street value of $970,000.
The drug laws of the island nation of 4.4 million people are among the harshest in the world. The death penalty is mandatory for anyone caught with more than 15 grammes of heroin.
Government officials say the location of the city-state close to drug-producing countries forces it to take a tough stance on smuggling.
23 Jan 2007
Thai sale of mobile firm to Singapore 'a mistake'
Jim Pollard, Bangkok
January 24, 2007
THE sale of Thailand's national satellite and mobile phone company to Singapore was a tragic mistake that had compromised the Thai military because Singapore would abuse their access to the communications infrastructure, a top Australian defence analyst said yesterday.
Des Ball, from the Australian National University, said Thailand's new military Government should shoot down the sale of the national satellite to Singapore and not trust the city-state when it comes to defence communications.
Professor Ball said the sale of the ShinSat satellite to Singaporean state investment firm Temasek Holdings - part of a highly controversial deal negotiated last year by deposed Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra - was a tragedy for the Thai military that could cost them hundreds of millions of dollars.
Professor Ball said Bangkok should launch a new satellite to ensure the Thai military's signals could not be intercepted.
"It's not in Thailand's interests to allow Singapore control of such a critically important communications system, through the satellite and mobile phone company," he said.
The sale had "given Singapore direct access to the Royal Thai Army's satellite communications". He added: "They are going to have to have their own independent system, otherwise they hand their military and very sensitive (data) traffic to Singapore on a plate.
"It's a tragedy they've handed that away with the Shin deal and will now have to redesign their own system. If they could get out of this, there are national security reasons why they should ... Launching a new satellite could cost $US250 million ($316million)."
Professor Ball said Australia went through a similar debate five years ago when Singtel purchased the Optus mobile phone company. He was one of a series of analysts who publicly opposed the takeover.
The federal Government eventually allowed the sale to go through, partly to ensure continued close co-operation with the island state, but Australia had to spend a huge sum on fibre-optic cables between its defence bases to ensure its military communications were secure.
Part of the problem, Professor Ball said, was "Singapore has a track record of taking advantage of information for commercial and political purposes".
Singapore had "listened to and photographed Australian military facilities", which had created diplomatic rifts with Canberra, he said.
"They have a history of abusing their access to training in other facilities abroad. That is not what friends are supposed to do - they abused their friendship," Professor Ball said.
Action for Tochi
Chee Siok Chin
23 Jan 07
23 Jan 07
As some of you may have known, 21 year-old Iwuchkwu Amara Tochi, a Nigerian national will be hanged by the Singapore authorities this Friday 26 January 2007.
Our president, Mr. SR Nathan, has refused to grant clemency to this young man. This is perhaps not surprising as Mr. Nathan has never granted clemency to any prisoner on the death row since his presidency in 1999.
However, the greater tragedy in this case lies in the fact that the president will not spare the life of an innocent man. After a 13-day trial, High Court Judge Kan Ting Chui pronounced that "there was no evidence the (Tochi) knew the capsule contained diamorphine". In addition to that the judge had said, "there is nothing to suggest that Smith had told him (Tochi) they contained diamorphine, or that (Tochi) had found that out of his own."
And yet, despite this lack of evidence that Tochi knew that he had drugs on him, the Supreme Court has sentenced him to death. When Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong took over office last year, he had said, "Let me emphasise that the strict, but fair and efficient administration of criminal justice, will remain a key priority...I intend to set up a panel to review how current sentencing and bail guidelines can be further rationalized and improved." Where lies the rationale for a man to be sentenced to death when the CJ's own colleague in the High Court even doubted Tochi knew he had drugs on him?
This cold-blooded and mindless act by the Singapore Government must at least rouse the conscience of the people. If we remain silent, are we not accomplices of this horrible execution? Some of us are moved to act when we witness injustice at its gravest. This is why we have decided to demonstrate our outrage publicly to bring attention to this tragic matter.
Human rights lawyer Mr M Ravi, who has been campaigning tirelessly for Tochi, and I will join a 24-hour hunger strike launched by European Member of Parliament Marco Panella to support the campaign currently taking place in Italy, calling for a worldwide Moratorium on Death Penalty. To sign the Moratorium, please go to: http://www.radicalparty.org/sciopero_moratoria/form.php?lang=en
Mr. Ravi and I will be at Speakers' Corner from 7am on Thursday 25 January and will go on a fast to register our outrage and to keep vigil with Tochi. We will then proceed to the grounds outside Changi Prison after 7pm to continue with this until his execution at 6am on 26 January.
As a mark of support and solidarity for an innocent man whose life will be taken from him in a few days from now, please join us at the Speakers' Corner (Thu, 25 Jan, 7 am–7 pm) and Changi Prison (7 pm onwards).
Singapore single mothers now entitled to maternity leave — if they marry within 3 months
Marry in haste divorce at their leisure...
So how do you get a divorce after being 'coerced' into a shot-gun wedding? Please remember that we are refering to the Singaporean Law and any interpretation will come with a disclaimer,
to continue reading in html format.
to continue reading in word format.
Related Article
More Couples Want Out
The Associated Press.
Published: January 22, 2007
SINGAPORE: Singapore has relaxed its rules on maternity leave, now allowing single mothers to take 12 weeks away from work — as long as they marry the child's father within three months of the birth, a newspaper reported Tuesday.
Previously, women had to be married before the birth in order to be entitled to maternity leave.
The changes were announced Monday in Parliament by Yu-Foo Yee Shoon, state minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports.
She noted that as the government-sponsored leave must be taken with six months of the baby's birth, the marriage must take place within three months in order for the woman to enjoy the full leave, the Straits Times reported.
The change specifies that the mother must marry the father of the child to qualify, not just any man.
In 2004, there were at least 540 out-of-wedlock births, the report said.
It said the government and employer share the maternity leave costs for a woman's first two children. For her third and fourth children, the government handles full reimbursement.
In another change, Parliament also announced that the natural parents of illegitimate children can claim parenthood tax rebates for their second, third and fourth children if they marry before the child turns 6
So how do you get a divorce after being 'coerced' into a shot-gun wedding? Please remember that we are refering to the Singaporean Law and any interpretation will come with a disclaimer,
THIS ARTICLE IS NOT MEANT TO DISPENSE LEGAL ADVICE. YOU ARE ADVISED TO SEEK INDEPENDENT LEGAL ADVICE ON ANY PROBLEMS OR QUESTIONS WHICH YOU MAY HAVE. THE AUTHOR IS NOT TO BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY OF YOUR ACTS OR OMISSIONS IN RELIANCE ON ANY PART OF THIS ARTICLE.
DIVORCE IN SINGAPORE'S CONTEXT THE 10 MOST COMMON BELIEFS/FALLACIES
With Singapore becoming more and more cosmopolitan each day and with more Singaporeans going overseas for studies or work, potential clients seeking to initiate divorce proceedings in Singapore are influenced by the requirements to commence divorce proceedings in the various jurisdictions around the world.
In Singapore, the requirements are set out in the Women's Charter, Chapter 353 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act") and this article aims to dispel the 10 most common beliefs/fallacies with reference to the relevant provisions of the Act.
As the purpose of this article is to highlight the common beliefs/fallacies in relation to divorce proceedings to laypersons, there would not be any reference to case laws or judgments of any courts but broad statements of law with reference to the Act.
Belief No. 1 - So long as parties agree, they can obtain a divorce
This is the most common fallacy and presumably it is due to the fact that adults are not required to seek the consent of any third parties before they are married. Hence, it is assumed that so long as both adults consent to be divorced, why should their decision be dependant on third parties' opinions or consent?
In Singapore, in order for parties to obtain a divorce, they must present a Petition for Divorce as set out in sections 92 and 93 of the Act which provide that the Judge of the High Court of the Republic of Singapore has the jurisdiction to hear such divorce petitions. It is not the common intention or decision of two adults which determine whether they are divorced or not. Whether parties are able to obtain a divorce depends on the decision of the High Court Judge after hearing the divorce petition.
to continue reading in html format.
to continue reading in word format.
Related Article
More Couples Want Out
Singapore. Break the law now.
To paraphrase Rocky - The world is a nasty place and it ain't about how hard you hit but how hard you can be hit, be willing to take the hits and move on. Take the hits and take what you are worth, go out and get what you want.
I feel rather invigorated after reading the article below.
A wonderful addition to the Singapore blogosphere. May I introduce Singapore Dissident. Gopalan Nair
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Singapore. Break the law now.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I say break the law now. This certainly may be an unacceptable statement in most other circumstances, even a criminal one, but in the case of Singapore, I say it, and say it deliberately. I am not referring to laws such as murder and other violations which are criminal by any standards. I am referring to Lee's unjust laws, politically motivated laws to silence dissent, laws intended to keep Lee and his family in perpetual political grip over Singapore, such unjust laws as requiring a permit to speak in public where even if applied for by a political opponent will automatically be denied, laws such as requiring a permit to assemble which again is automatically denied when applied for by the opposition, unjust laws such as requiring a permit to form an association which is a means to keep surveillance on all political activities, all the unjust illegal laws enacted for the political advantage of the dictator Lee Kuan Yew and his family.
Dr. Chee has correctly quoted Gandhi and Martin Luther King having said that there are just laws and unjust laws and that it is the right of a free man, nay not just right, but his bounden duty to break that law and in doing so, in breaking that law, he is in fact being even more law abiding than another who complies with them.
There is no doubt on it. Lee stays in power by breaking laws. He shows such disdain and arrogance over his fellow citizens that he feels he can do anything and get away with it.
The pillars of any state are it's public institutions such as the judiciary, the civil service, the military, the police force, the media, the education system. These institutions need to be kept strong and independent for a country to continue to thrive and advance, but in Singapore, Lee has deliberately denied these institutions to function independently under the rule of law, making each of these institutions weak and entirely beholden to him and him alone. These are clearly illegal acts in violation of the law which has undermined the stability and strength of the country so much so that Singapore is turning into a failed republic before one's very eyes.
He has blatantly interfered with the independance of the judiciary, requiring judges to use their office not to administer the rule of law, but to destroy his political opponents. From the early 1970s till date the list of his victims at the hands of his enforcers in the judiciary goes on. JB Jeyaretnam, the former opposition politician repeatedly sued, charged with criminal offenses, thrown in jail, stripped of lawyer's license, forced to pay millions of dollars in illegal court awards and impoverished.
Mr. Tang Lian Hong, charged and sued for criminal and civil cases of defamation after the 1988 general elections, made to pay millions of dollars, bankrupted and hounded out of the country to Australia where he now lives. Mr. Francis Seow similarly dealt with, arrested detained and tortured by the dreaded Internal Security Department beaten, battered and assaulted with serious injuries, then released, for him only to escape to the United States to avoid further beatings, all because he contested the elections against Lee as he was entitled to do. The Marxist Conspirators, so labelled by Lee, 12 civic minded citizens who dared to speak against Lee between 1987 and 1988. Again, they were arrested severely tortured with sleep deprivation and other criminalities, detained for many days, beaten, their confessions obtained under torture, publicly made to confess as being communists and released. I can go on but I will stop. Lee is guilty of breaking the law. The law that makes it illegal to interfere in the independence of the judiciary.
Lee breaks the law by illegally interfering in the independence of the civil service. The civil service is required to carry out their work in accordance with the rule of law in fairness to all under the constitution. But they cannot do it, because Lee requires the civil service to be used as an instrument to oppress and destroy his political opponents. The Official Assignees office ensures Lee's opponents unable to pay Lee's unjust court awards are bankrupted and dealt with very harshly while others are dealt with leniently. Opposition politicians who become bankrupt find it impossible to discharge their bankruptcies and will remain so for life. Since bankrupts cannot contest elections, Lee uses bankrupting his opponents as a means to prevent them from challenging him ever. JB Jeyaretnam who has been bankrupted by Lee has never got out of it. He will die a bankrupt. He is 82 years old.
Dr. Chee has been sued, ordered to pay half a million dollars and being unable to pay has been made a bankrupt. And what did he do? All he did was to ask Lee Kuan Yew as to why he paid Dr. Suharto, the former Indonesian dictator, 17 million dollars and under what authority did he do it. I think he also told Mr. Goh Chok Tong, the former prime minister that he could run but may not be able to hide. Statements completely innocuous and normal in any other country. But under the instructions of Lee Kuan Yew, the Singapore judges beholden to him obediently turned it around and made it defamatory and criminal, ordering Dr. Chee to pay a mammoth crippling half a million dollars to Lee Kuan Yew and friends and unable to pay, he has been bankrupted by Lee's civil servants.
Lee has made the police force directly answerable to him. At his orders, they arrest anyone and everyone, harass them, keep surveillance on them, tail them, and make it very difficult for anyone who challenges Lee.
You can therefore see that Singapore's public institutions have lost credibility and their self respect and have been discredited, brought into ridicule and contempt. Recently, in the High Court of Canada, a Canadian company Evernorth have filed suit to prevent the enforcement of a Singapore court judgment against them in Canada, because they claim, and quite rightly so, that the Singapore courts are corrupt and the corruption vitiated the validity of the award. See Oakwell vs Evernorth. These public institutions such as the courts, have lost their fairness and are no longer bound by the rule of law, beholden only to Lee and his personal family members and friends. These are illegal acts of interference by Lee Kuan Yew and his family and friends. Lee Kuan Yew runs Singapore by personal decree. Singapore is no longer run by the rule of law by independent public institutions.
We also know that that under Saddam Hussein, Iraq was run, not by rule of law, but by his personal decrees. He removed and destroyed his opponents by requiring his judges to punish and put to death his political opponents. Lee Kuan Yew does the same. The only difference is one of degree. He tortures his opponests while under detention by sleep deprivation and other brutalities, but stops short of killing them. Only a question of degree. But the political climate is similar in both countries. People dare not criticise, lest they are arrested tortured, charged sued and bankrupted. Example, JB Jeyaretnam and Dr. Chee Soon Juan.
In this climate where Lee Kuan Yew feels he is at liberty anytime to break the law any time he wants, it is about time you took those liberties. And the reality is that if you do not take those liberties and intentionally break these unjust laws, then you can be certain as the sun rises tomorrow, that you will never be free, you will never enjoy a democracy, you will be forever ruled by this dictator and his family, you will never be able to express yourself freely, you will forever only read propaganda, you will never be able to congregate and discuss views as free men. In short you will die as slaves, which you are now anyway.
So I say this to you now. There is no shame in breaking unjust laws. There is nothing illegal in peaceful protest. It is your right as free men. So go ahead and apply for a permit to hold a peaceful protest. When you receive the notice from the government refusing you that permit, which you invariably will receive, write to them that you intend to break that law and break it and hold that protest anyway. They will arrest you but in the eyes of the world, they will look very small.
In the end, you will undoubtedly win and they will lose. Only in this way, by deliberately breaking unjust laws, and telling them in no uncertain terms that you intend to do it, that you will be able to bring about change to your country Singapore.
Lou Thia Khiang and Chiam See Tong will not be able to bring about any change by asking questions, merely for the sake of asking.
Gopalan Nair
39737 Paseo Padre Parkway, Suite A1
Fremont, CA 94538, USA
Tel: 510 657 6107
Fax: 510 657 6914
EMail: goplanair@us-immigrationlaw.com
Thais Back Government Stance on Singapore
As polls go it is rather basic, with simply one question being dessiminated. Sampling measure used, demographics, weighting...
Methodological concerns - what are they?
January 23, 2007
Methodological concerns - what are they?
January 23, 2007
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in Thailand’s capital support the retaliatory measures taken by their new government against Singapore, according to a poll by ABAC. 64 per cent of respondents in Bangkok agree with the administration’s reaction.
In April 2006, a general election was held after prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra of the Thai Love Thais Party - Phak Thai Rak Thai (TRT) decided to dissolve the House of Representatives. The prime minister faced a series of public demonstrations after the Shinawatra and Dhamapong families sold their combined 49.6 per cent shares in the SHIN telecommunications empire to Singapore’s Temasek Holdings, in a transaction estimated at $1.88 billion U.S.
The deal—conveniently designed to be tax-free—infuriated many Thais, who accused Thaksin of being greedy and selling out Thai independence to the neighbouring country.
In September 2006, the Thai Armed Forces enacted a military coup as Thaksin was in New York for the United Nations (UN) general assembly. The group declared martial law, suspended the constitution, affirmed their loyalty to the King, and released a statement, which read: "We ask for the cooperation of the public and ask your pardon for the inconvenience." Surayud Chulanont was later appointed as the new head of government.
Earlier this month, strained relations turned sour again when Singapore allowed Thaksin to meet with several government officials there and grant interviews to Western media outlets in which he criticized Thailand’s current military junta. The Thai government reacted by blocking access to certain cable channels and websites, and complained publicly to Singapore.
Polling Data
Do you agree or disagree with the government’s reaction against Singapore?
Agree
64%
Disagree
18%
Source: Assumption University of Thailand (ABAC)
Methodology: Interviews with 1,572 Thai adults in Bangkok, conducted on Jan. 16 and Jan. 17, 2007. Margin of error is 3 per cent.
22 Jan 2007
London Calling
Our Correspondent - Asia Sentinel
22 January 2007
In a stern reversal on a controversial legal case, Singapore’s ruling family finds that its writ does not extend past its borders
With a British court’s vindication of a prominent English neurologist and expert on epilepsy, Singapore’s ruling Lee family has discovered that other countries don’t share the island republic’s – or the Lee family’s – idea of what is legal and proper.
In a written decision adjudicated in December and handed down on January 12, the British High Court effectively ended Singapore’s pursuit of Simon Shorvon, the former principal investigator of a medical research project in Singapore, after a protracted international dispute in which the Singapore Medical Council alleged Shorvon was guilty of professional misconduct. Shorvon is now a professor at the University College, London.
The charges were brought against Shorvon by Lee Wei Ling, a physician, who happens also to be the daughter of patriarch Lee Kuan Yew and the sister of Lee Hsien Loong, the current prime minister. Over the past two to three decades, the Lee family and other Singaporean officials have filed a plethora of writs and lawsuits on various charges of libel and other misconduct against almost anyone who has had the nerve to stand up against them – but almost always in Singapore courts, where they have a 100 percent winning record, particularly against journalists and opposition politicians.
to continue reading...
Student protesters call for Singapore apology, threaten boycott
Student protesters call for Singapore apology, threaten boycott
BANGKOK, Jan 22 (TNA) - Student activists have urged the Singaporean government to apologise for what they called a breach of diplomatic etiquette which the island republic had allegedly committed by allowing Thailand's deposed premier Thaksin Shinawatra to meet with its deputy prime minister on January 14.
About 100 students, led by the so-called Students Network for Democracy, the National Students Federation, the People's Assembly from 19 Northeastern provinces and the Anti-Corruption Network, demonstrated at the Singapore embassy on Bangkok's Sathorn Road, protesting and denouncing the alleged Singaporean mishandling of diplomatic relations between Thailand and Singapore.
The activists charged that the occasion last week in which Mr. Thaksin was interviewed by CNN International and the Wall Street Journal in Singapore had in fact jeopardised the ''delicate'' relations between the two countries.
They said that the Thai people would immediately stop buying Singaporean products and boycott the use of Singaporean services, should the island republic fail to apologise as demanded, according to the student activists.
Thailand withdrew an invitation to Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo, suspended an exchange programme of civil servants last week as a response to the city-state's hospitality towards ousted Thai leader.
Singapore defended the visit as a private meeting between old friends but Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman said Thailand considered it very insensitive to Thailand's position.(TNA)-E008
AMARA TOCHI
The High Court in Singapore had imposed Death Sentence on Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi. 19, a Nigerian and Okele Nelson Malachy, 33, who is stateless (from South Africa).
On the 16th March 2006, the Court of Appeal dismissed their appeals. As a last resort, they can file appeal for clemency to the President. It is clear from previous clemency petitions that the President hardly grants any clemency.
In Singapore, "the law presumes that a person caught in possession of prohibited drugs knows that he is in possession of illicit drugs, with the burden of rebutting the presumption on the person charged."
Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi thought that he was carrying African herbs that tasted like chocolate. On 28 November 2004, he was arrested at the Changi Airport transit lounge with heroin. He had with him 100 capsules of heroin weighing about 727.02 grams.
Tochi was arrested for allegedly carrying heroin while Malachy was nabbed in a subsequent police operation after Tochi identified him as one of his companions. The court in Singapore handed the death sentence after a 13-day trial. It is disturbing to note that the learned trial judge himself having raised reasonable doubts proceeded to convict them.Against Tochi the trial judge Mr.Kan Ting Chiu made the following finding at paragraph 42 of his judgment [2005] SGHC 233:
"There was no direct evidence that he knew the capsules contained diamorphine. There was nothing to suggest that Smith had told him they contained diamorhine, or that he had found that out of his own."
Against Malachy, the trial judge made the following finding at paragraph 61 of his judgment:
"Although there was no direct evidence that the accused knew that the capsules contained drugs, and there is no presumption of such knowledge raised against him…"
Newsweek - Singapore Swing
First spotted on LuckySingaporean's Diary of a Singaporean Mind.
The island's economy is booming. So why are so many citizens worse off than they were 10 years ago?
The island's economy is booming. So why are so many citizens worse off than they were 10 years ago?
By Sonia Kolesnikov-Jessop
Newsweek International
Jan. 29, 2007 issue - Tiny Singapore, with its population of 4.3 million, is often lauded for the way it has embraced globalization to maximum advantage. In the last decade, the city-state has opened its doors wide to foreign investment and talent, slashed corporate taxes, offered incentives to nurture strategic industries (such as biotech, pharmaceuticals and financial services) and cut free-trade deals with a host of other countries. The payoff has seemed clear: over the past three years, Singapore's economy has averaged 7.6 percent growth—a staggering pace for an industrialized state—and created new jobs at a rate any European government would envy.
There's only one problem: average citizens have yet to reap the benefits. New statistics reveal that middle-class households have tasted none of Singapore's spectacular growth, and that the island's poorest 30 percent are worse off than they were five years ago. "Although we have seen very strong growth, we're experiencing this new phenomenon of median real-wage stagnation and low-income decline," says Yeoh Lam Keong, vice president of the Economic Society of Singapore.
This predicament is hardly unique. Wages and salaries are stagnating across the industrial world. What's surprising is that even a country famous for its smart and transparent leadership has been unable to prevent the gains of globalization from flowing mostly to rich individuals and multinational corporations. In its bid to adapt Singapore's economy to international competition, the government has tried hard to reduce business costs. This has meant slashing labor prices, which has helped push wages down. According to official figures, over the past five years Singapore's wealthiest 10 percent have seen their income rise by 2.3 percent annually (and that doesn't include nonwage earnings such as capital gains or dividends). At the same time, the poorest 10 percent have suffered a staggering 4.3 percent drop in their salaries each year. The government has also allowed employers to cut their contributions to Singapore's Central Provident Fund, which pays for pensions, public housing, medical expenses and education
There's only one problem: average citizens have yet to reap the benefits. New statistics reveal that middle-class households have tasted none of Singapore's spectacular growth, and that the island's poorest 30 percent are worse off than they were five years ago. "Although we have seen very strong growth, we're experiencing this new phenomenon of median real-wage stagnation and low-income decline," says Yeoh Lam Keong, vice president of the Economic Society of Singapore.
Together, these factors have led to lower-than-expected private consumption, which has risen by just 3 percent in the past two years. "Private consumer spending has been the weak link in this current expansion," says Chua Hak Bin, an economist at Citigroup Global Markets in Singapore. This has, in turn, stung Singapore's large retail sector. "It is evident that [they] are not the big winners from high growth," says Manu Bhaskaran, a director of the U.S.-based Centennial Group.
Foreign competition is also hurting. Contractor Tan Boon Soo is one of many Singaporeans feeling the pinch. He installs windows for a living but laments "cutthroat competition" from contract laborers, who have flooded the island from places such as Indonesia and Bangladesh. Unskilled workers like street sweepers and security guards are also finding themselves undercut by immigrants willing to work for less. This is forcing native Singaporeans to change occupations or work harder for less money. "They talk about growth, but I don't see it," says Tan. "Maybe the bankers are doing well, but construction has not been. I'm worse off now than I was in 1997."
All this could spell big trouble. "If these trends continue unchecked," warns Yeoh, "we could begin to get the formation of an underclass [and] the makings of social instability." Such an underclass was never part of Singapore's grand plan. Now its leaders must figure out how to prevent one from emerging without relying on the kind of welfare programs they often deride. Last year the government launched an experimental workfare program that gave low-wage earners bonus pay of up to $780. Now Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's government is con- sidering making the program permanent in an effort to thin the ranks of the working poor.
"We will try out different forms, but the principle will be the same—help yourself [and] we will help you," the prime minister told lawmakers last November. "It's essential for us to tilt the balance in favor of lower-income Singaporeans because globalization is going to strain our social compact."
Lee has already announced that he'll make Singapore's rich-poor divide a major focus of his annual budget speech next month.
If knowing is half the battle, it could be an important first step.
Singapore's Freedom in the World (2006)
Freedom House
21 Jan 07
Polity: No polity available
Political Rights: 5
Civil Liberties: 4
Status: Partly Free
Population: 4,300,000
GNI/Capita: $21,230
Life Expectancy: 79
Religious Groups: Buddhist (42.5 percent), Muslim (14.9 percent), Taoist (8.5 percent), Hindu (4 percent),Catholic (4.8 percent), other Christian (9.8 percent), other (15.5 percent)
Ethnic Groups: Chinese (77 percent), Malay (14 percent), Indian (8 percent), other (1 percent)
Capital: Singapore
Overview
In 2005, Sellapan Ramanathan (SR Nathan) was reelected president of Singapore after authorities judged that all three of his potential opponents were unsuitable for the office. In January, Singapore and Malaysia agreed to settle a recent dispute over Singapore's land reclamation project in the Johor Straits.
Singapore, located along major shipping routes in Southeast Asia, became a British colony in 1867. Occupied by the Japanese during World War II, the city-state became self-governing in 1959, entered the Malaysian Federation in 1963, and became fully independent in 1965. Under Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) transformed a squalid port city into a regional financial center and an exporter of high-tech goods. At the same time, Lee restricted individual freedoms and stunted political development.
In 1990, Lee handed power over to Goh Chok Tong, who largely continued Lee's conservative policies and kept the PAP dominant in parliament. In the nine general elections that have been held since independence, the PAP has never won fewer than 95 percent of parliamentary seats, and in recent years an increasing number of PAP candidates have run unopposed.
During the campaign for the last parliamentary elections, held in November 2001, the PAP received 75 percent of the vote and captured 82 of parliament's 84 seats. Opposition parties contested only 29 seats. Veteran opposition politician J. B. Jeyaretnam of the Workers' Party was barred from contesting the elections. Judicial authorities also declared him bankrupt for being a day late in paying an installment on a damages award to PAP politicians who had successfully sued him for defamation. In 2004, opposition politician Chee Soon Juan found himself in a similar predicament when he failed to fend off a defamation lawsuit brought against him by two leaders of the PAP.
Lee Hsien Loong became Singapore's prime minister on August 12, 2004, as part of a planned turnover of power. His inauguration ended the 14-year tenure of Goh Chok Tong, but he has done little to change the country's political climate. Although he made concerted efforts to appear more approachable, he is still regarded as being more conservative and potentially more authoritarian than his predecessor.
In September 2005, President Sellapan Ramanathan (SR Nathan) was sworn in for a second term as Singapore's largely ceremonial head of state. SR Nathan was reelected unopposed after authorities judged all three of his potential challengers to be unfit for office.
The economy in 2005 continued a two year growth spurt, reflecting expansion of global electronics market, biomedical products, and transportation technology. GDP growth rates reached 5.7 percent in 2005, with strong projections for 2006.
Singapore's most important foreign relations remain those with the United States and with neighboring Malaysia. Ties with Malaysia, traditionally strained, have improved since the accession of new figures to political leadership in both countries (in Malaysia, Abdullah bin Ahmad Badawi replaced Mahathir Mohamed as prime minister in October 2003). In January, Singapore and Malaysia settled an 18-month row over a Singaporean land reclamation project in the shared Johor Straits; while Singapore is allowed to continue the project, it must cooperate with Malaysia to ensure navigation rights and environmental protection.
Political Rights and Civil Liberties
Citizens of Singapore cannot change their government democratically. Singapore's 1959 constitution created a parliamentary system of government and allowed for the right of citizens to change their government peacefully. Periodic elections are held on the basis of universal suffrage, and voting is compulsory. In practice, however, the ruling PAP dominates the government and the political process and uses a variety of indirect methods to handicap opposition parties.
The largely ceremonial president-currently SR Nathan-is the head of state and elected by popular vote for six-year terms; a constitutionally mandated committee is empowered to vet presidential candidates. The prime minister, the head of government, is not chosen through elections; like the cabinet, the prime minister is appointed by the president. Singapore has had only three prime ministers since it gained independence in 1965. Lee Kuan Yew governed for 31 years, after which he appointed Goh Chok Tong as his successor. Goh named Lee's eldest son, Lee Hsien Loong, deputy prime minister in 2003; the younger Lee assumed the post of prime minister in August 2004.
The legislature has just one house, with 94 members. Members of parliament are elected (84 in the current parliament), appointed by opposition political parties (up to 3 members, though there is currently only 1), or appointed by the president (9 in the current parliament).
Though general elections are free from irregularities and vote rigging, the PAP's manipulation of the political system means that they cannot be termed fair. Opposition parties are constrained by the ban on political films and televised programs; expressions of political opinion are curtailed by the threat of libel or slander suits; there are strict regulations and limitations on associations, including political associations; and the PAP's influence on the media and in the courts remains strong. The net result is that there is no effective opposition.
The government is known for its transparency and its relative lack of corruption. Singapore was ranked 5 out of 159 countries surveyed in Transparency International's 2005 Corruption Perceptions Index.
Singapore's press is somewhat freer than in past years, but it remains a tightly constrained media market. Two companies own all of the newspapers in the city-state: one is government-controlled, and the other has close relations to the government. Although editorials and news coverage generally reflect governmental policies, newspapers are increasingly publishing letters, columns, and editorials critical of the government.
Journalists face pressure from the ruling party not to oppose the government's goals, and thus often avoid reporting on sensitive topics, including alleged government corruption or nepotism or the supposed compliance of the judiciary. All television channels and all radio stations, except for the BBC World Service, are operated by government-linked companies. The Newspaper and Printing Presses Act allows authorities to restrict the circulation of any foreign periodical whose news coverage has been deemed to interfere in domestic politics. Foreign newspapers and magazines are available, although authorities can restrict their circulation if they carry articles that the government finds offensive. In 2005, foreign news organizations, including The Economist, the International Herald Tribune, the Far Eastern Economic Review, and The Wall Street Journal Asia, paid large fines or had their circulation restricted in lawsuits filed by ruling party stalwarts. In 2005, Reporters Without Borders rated Singapore 140 out of 167 countries worldwide, which represents a slight improvement over 2004's 147 rating. This rating continues to make Singapore the lowest rated industrialized country on the index. Nevertheless, the U.S. State Department's 2005 human rights report noted that limited space for political debate in the press seems to have expanded slightly over the past year.
The government screens and sometimes censors films, television programs, videos, music, books, and magazines, mainly for excessive amounts of sex, violence, and drug references. The PAP has loosened some restrictions on the arts, and the prime minister has vowed to make some moves in the direction of liberalization, partly as a result of input from a citizen advisory panel. In 2005, a series of half-hour "reality shows" about sex began to air on television, and an all-nude theater review visited Singapore for a performance run. In September, despite a lawsuit and an injunction, authorities allowed an opposition documentary to be aired on television. The internet is regulated via state control of access points and site surveillance. Still, the Committee to Protect Journalists reports that some news bloggers set up sites from undisclosed locations, making the internet an increasingly viable forum for alternative political perspectives.
Singaporeans of most faiths can worship freely. However, the government has banned the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Unification Church. Restrictions on the Jehovah's Witnesses stem from the fact that the group's roughly 2,000 members refuse to perform compulsory military service. The Societies Act stipulates that all religious groups register with the government.
Faculty members of public universities and political research institutions are not entirely free from government influence, since all such institutions have direct government links. The PAP prohibits public discussion of sensitive racial and religious issues and closely regulates political speech. Foreign speakers and academics fall under particular scrutiny; for example, one visitor was allowed to attend a public forum on the death penalty, but prevented from speaking.
The government restricts freedom of association through the strict 1966 Societies Act, which includes a provision that permits only groups registered as political parties or associations to engage in organized political activities. The Societies Act covers most organizations of more than 10 people, and these groups are required to register with the government. Singaporeans must get police permits to hold public talks or to make political speeches, and public assemblies of more than five people must have police approval. Still, in 2005, the prime minister issued a degree stating that people no longer need a permit for private, indoor gatherings as long as the topic of discussion is not race or religion. Nevertheless, this past year, a private party for homosexuals was prevented on the grounds that holding such a gathering would be contrary to the public interest. The October "White Elephant" saga-where police investigated, but declined to prosecute, those responsible for posting cardboard "white elephant" signs to signal popular frustration at the mothballed Buangkok Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station-underscored the limits on freedom of association and expression.
Unions are permitted under the Trade Unions Act, and restrictions on their formation are relatively narrow (government employees may not join unions, for example). Almost all unions are affiliated with the National Trade Unions Congress, which freely acknowledges that its interests are closely aligned with those of the PAP. Collective bargaining is commonplace, and strikes are legal-except for workers in the water, gas, and electricity sectors-but rare. According to the BBC, there are some 140,000 women, primarily from the Philippines, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka, employed as domestic servants in Singapore; exploitation and physical abuse of these workers is a problem.
The judiciary's independence has been called into question by the government's overwhelming success in court proceedings, particularly defamation suits against political opponents. It is not clear, however, whether the government pressures judges or simply appoints judges who share its conservative philosophy. Many judges have ties to the PAP and its leaders. In any case, the judiciary is efficient, and in criminal cases, defendants enjoy a presumption of innocence and the right to confront witnesses and other rights of due process.
The government generally respects citizens' right to privacy. However, the issue is not specifically addressed in the constitution, and the government does maintain the right to search a person or property without a warrant if it deems the search necessary to preserve evidence. The government is also believed to monitor telephone and internet communications, though this is not confirmed.
The government can detain suspects without trial under both the Internal Security Act (ISA) and the Criminal Law Act (CLA). The ISA was once applied mainly against suspected Communist security threats, but the government has recently used the law to detain suspected Islamist terrorists. It allows authorities to detain suspects without charge or trial for an unlimited number of two-year periods. A 1989 constitutional amendment prohibits judicial review of the substantive grounds for detention under the ISA and of the constitutionality of the law itself.
The government uses the CLA to detain mainly organized crime and drug-traf-ficking suspects; the act includes provisions for a one-year, extendable, preventive detention period. Meanwhile, the Misuse of Drugs Act allows authorities to commit suspected drug users, without trial, to rehabilitation centers for up to three years. In November, the impending execution of an Australian citizen convicted of trafficking heroin received substantial global media attention and prompted some Australians to call for their government to intervene.
Security forces are not known to commit serious abuses. Police occasionally mistreat detainees, and the government has in recent years jailed officers convicted of such abuses. The penal code mandates caning, in addition to imprisonment, for about 30 offenses; it is discretionary for certain other crimes involving the use of force. Caning is reportedly common. The U.S. State Department's 2005 human rights report stated that Singaporean prisons are Spartan, but generally within international standards.
The government actively promotes racial harmony and equity in Singapore's multiethnic society, and there is no legal discrimination. All citizens enjoy freedom of movement, although the government occasionally infringes on citizens' rights to choose housing by enforcing its policy of assuring ethnic balance in public housing, in which most Singaporeans live. Men can be conscripted for two years of compulsory military service on turning 18. Despite government efforts to boost their educational achievement, ethnic Malays have not on average reached the schooling and income levels of ethnic Chinese or ethnic Indians and reportedly face unofficial discrimination in private sector employment.
Women enjoy the same legal rights as men in most areas, and many are well educated and hold professional jobs. Relatively few women, however, hold top positions in government and the private sector.
Sayoni Queer Women Survey 2006 Report
Sayoni proudly presents Sayoni Queer Women Survey 2006 Report, compiling the results of this year’s survey.
Abstract
Objectives:
1. To ameliorate the dire lack of information on queer women in Singapore. Currently, there is no proper understanding of how the women’s queer community functions, other than biased and disjoint personal views.
2. To gain some perspective on the actual needs of queer women, and what we can do about them
3. To provide free and accessible information to researchers, and act as a starting point for further research into the field
The survey is broken down into four main aspects. Questions in each category are streamlined and standardised for easy answering, by presenting most of the questions as rating questions where possible.
1. Introduction
General background.
2. Family, Friends and Work
Questions on how out the respondent is to various circles of people in their lives, how this group has reacted to the information, and the respondent’s intention to come out to that particular group.
3. Personal
Questions on the personal level relating to sexual orientation. Probes how the respondents come to realise their sexuality, different aspects of personal identity, and how their sexuality has affected them. Also includes information on relationships of respondents.
4. Financial
Questions to ascertain the financial status of queer women as a community - on salary, type of industry respondents choose to work in, housing and car ownership.
This survey was not carried out with a null hypothesis in mind, and much of the information contained in this report is processed descriptive statistics. Where possible, averages and trends have been pre-computed, presented along with a broad analysis of the data.
The statistics available are broken down across Age, Ethnicity and Religion, as it is believed that these three different aspects affect the average queer woman in her views and social situation with respect to her sexuality. Where either age, ethnicity or religion is perceived to have no bearing on the response, the data has been left out.
This report is available for free download for the public. However, a lot of effort and time has been put into conducting this survey and collating the results into this report. If you feel we have done a good job, please donate through the Paypal link below the Paypal button. All donations will only be used for the running of this organisation
20 Jan 2007
Amnesty issues appeal to stop Singapore execution of Nigerian drug trafficker
IHT
SINGAPORE: Human rights group Amnesty International has urged its members to push Singapore's government to grant clemency to a 21-year-old Nigerian scheduled to be executed next week for drug trafficking.
Amnesty International issued an "urgent action appeal" on Friday to its members around the world to ask the Singapore government to spare the life of Amara Tochi Iwuchukwu and for a moratorium on all executions in Singapore.
Iwuchukwu is to be executed Jan. 26 at Singapore's Changi Prison after the Southeast Asian country's president rejected his clemency appeal, according to a statement from Nigeria's non-governmental Civil Liberties Organization, or CLO.
Iwuchukwu was arrested at Singapore's airport in November 2004 after arriving from Dubai with 100 capsules containing 727 grams (26 ounces) of heroin, estimated by authorities to be worth 1.5 million Singapore dollars (US$970,000; €795,930).
Singapore has some of the world's harshest drug laws, including a mandatory death penalty for anyone found guilty of trafficking more than 15 grams (0.5 ounces) of heroin.
At the time of his arrest, Iwuchukwu told narcotics officers the pills were African herbs that he was supposed to give to a sick friend. He also told officers that he came to try out for soccer teams playing in the country's Singapore League.
Amnesty International's appeal suggested that the judge who convicted Iwuchukwu "appears to have accepted that he might not have realized the substance he was carrying was heroin."
The verdict said that a "Mr. Smith" gave Tochi the pills to transport, according to Amnesty International.
Amnesty quoted the verdict as saying: "There was no direct evidence that he knew the capsules contained diamorphine (heroin). There was nothing to suggest that (Mr.) Smith (who gave Tochi the pills to transport) had told him they contained diamorphine, or that (Tochi) had found that out of his own."
Court officials were not available for comment on Saturday.
The group asked its members to immediately send letters, e-mails and faxes to Singapore's prime minister, deputy prime minister and attorney general in an effort to stop the execution.
CLO, the Nigerian human rights group, has urged Nigeria's government to intervene.
The Nigerian High Commission in Singapore helped Iwuchukwu file the appeal for presidential clemency, and is in regular contact with his family in Nigeria, a consular officer said Friday on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.
Also convicted and on death row in the same case is Okele Nelson Malachy, 35, a stateless African who Amnesty said is reportedly from South Africa.
Singapore's strict drug laws made international headlines — and caused an outcry in Australia — in December 2005 when the city-state executed a 25-year-old Australian heroin trafficker despite numerous appeals from the Canberra government.
Amnesty International says Singapore is believed to have the world's highest per capita execution rate. The country's leaders say the tough laws and penalties are an effective deterrent against crimes that ruin lives.
Reconnecting with the Internet generation
Or not as the case may be.
Rather up beat article about how the blogosphere and the PAP are embracing each other, slowly.
The Singapore government is trying to replace the current bottom-up citizen generated discourse with a top-down consultation exercise. As more and more blogger posts continue to be shaped by the daily stories of the Straits Times, while aggregator blogs continue to ignore the very same issues that the Straits Times ignores, while the blogosphere tries to gain entry into the distorted world of the mainstream media and vis-a-versa.
The Peoples Action Party can rest easy.
INSIGHT DOWN SOUTH
By SEAH CHIANG NEE
Rather up beat article about how the blogosphere and the PAP are embracing each other, slowly.
The Singapore government is trying to replace the current bottom-up citizen generated discourse with a top-down consultation exercise. As more and more blogger posts continue to be shaped by the daily stories of the Straits Times, while aggregator blogs continue to ignore the very same issues that the Straits Times ignores, while the blogosphere tries to gain entry into the distorted world of the mainstream media and vis-a-versa.
The Peoples Action Party can rest easy.
INSIGHT DOWN SOUTH
By SEAH CHIANG NEE
The government is now taking tiny steps to win back a young, not-too-friendly Internet generation which it lost when it ignored them in the last general election.
LIKE one dipping his toes before stepping into a heated tub, the government has taken several tiny steps to engage a young, not-too-friendly Internet generation.
This appears to be a departure from its previous “ignore them” strategy that was shown during the last general election to be outdated and politically dangerous.
Months before the May election, it launched its own singaporegovt.blog to counter an opposition offensive that subsequently won a surprising 33% of the votes.
Secondly, a group of 12 new People’s Action Party (PAP) backbenchers, all born after Singapore’s independence in 1965, started their own online diary (http://www. p65.sg/) to bond with their peers.
It is a small, belated foray to wrestle back the blogosphere ground lost through long neglect.
Early this month, it moved a step further. A Cabinet minister met several young Singaporean bloggers for the first time in a TV discussion on blogging, something considered improbable a year ago.
The chat that Foreign Minister George Yeo had with some young critics was not confrontational by Internet standards but it represented a milestone of sorts.
“I must say that I felt younger after the session, provoking and being provoked. Without that altercation, there is no communication,” Yeo later blogged.
The PAP has always viewed the free-talking, critical Internet with suspicion and dislike. What was termed “the first Internet election” gave the party hierarchy a glimpse of the future.
The birth of the digital generation in Singapore has largely been the result of government policies, the first being the creation of a “smart” cable city and, second, pushing the use of computers in all schools.
On their part, Singaporeans, with the exception of the elderly, have enthusiastically embraced it. Today, 66% of the homes have access to the Internet.
A recent survey here has shown a blogosphere expanding faster than most people had thought.
Half of all Singaporean teens aged 15 to 19, and 46% of the 20- to 24-year-olds are on the Internet, blogging or podcasting.
This adds up to 120,000 young Singaporeans reading and writing on websites that, according to one PAP member of Parliament, are “80% anti-government”.
Among the 20 to 24 age group, some 46% do so, while only 18% of those aged 39 to 49 are bloggers, according to the official Media Development Authority of Singapore.
In fact, net usage is highest – 90% – among children between 10 and 15 years old, a consequence of the schools equipped with a computer for every two students.
All these figures are set to rise in the coming years as Internet literacy grows and costs come down.
To put things in perspective, not all surfers and bloggers talk politics, let alone oppose the government.
A majority in fact uses it for non-political activities, including school projects, social networking, games or exchanging music videos.
But the interest in current affairs is definitely growing. Its political reach has dramatically reduced the government’s almost-total control of the channels of information.
That Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has been loosening up on society is attributed in part to this phenomenon.
In last year’s National Day Rally speech, Lee spoke of the Internet benefits and problems, including spreading “half-truths and untruths” as well as “good views, also bad views, extremist views which will divide our society”.
Many global corporations and politicians were using blogs to communicate, he said, “so we have to update, to try these out and move with the times ? We can’t do (everything) the old way.”
He said Singapore’s laws would have to change, including those that ban political podcasts and videos during elections.
It has also led to calls by government backbenchers to loosen up on the mainstream media, saying that regulations are driving readers towards an uncontrolled digital media.
In line with global trends, more young Singaporeans have been abandoning the 162-year-old Straits Times and turning to the Internet.
(Since 1998, its daily circulation has fallen from 391,612 to 381,934 despite a population rise of a million people to 4.5 million and its near market monopoly.)
Readers who believe that Singapore’s mainstream media is an official mouthpiece have given up reading it and are opting instead to congregate in the blogosphere to get their news and opinions.
They have formed a virtual sub-community of disenchanted youths who talk among themselves, taking only a perfunctory interest in what the government says through the mainstream media.
This is also propelling younger PAP leaders to try and reconnect with them.
By ignoring and regarding them as threats, rather than engaging them, the government has lost this community by default.
So far, web opinions, however rational and well-written by professionals or businessmen, have no recognition. This includes those whose names and identities are known. In government eyes, they simply don’t exist.
Two years ago, I suggested that Lee Kuan Yew – who is active and with a sharp mind – start his own personal blog (with technical help, of course) to fulfil his wish to pass on values and advice to the young.
They may not agree to everything he has to say, but his vast experience will generally benefit all.
Will it happen? At 83 and still busy winging round the world on state matters, the chances are rather slim. But one never really knows!
18 Jan 2007
Pending Hanging of Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi in Singapore
Press Message on the Pending Hanging of Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi in Singapore
It is with great sadness that we compose this press message regarding the death sentence on Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi, to be hanged at dawn on 26th January after a lengthy, lonely and soul-destroying imprisonment.
Tochi was arrested for allegedly carrying heroin into Changi airport in November 2004. He was 19 years old when he was arrested.
The court in Singapore delivered the death sentence after a 13-day trial.
Tochi has been waiting in maximum security section of Changi prison from 2004 until today. His family in Nigeria believed until July last year that he was playing football for a Singapore football team.
Tochi was indeed a champion footballer who played in Nigerian state league championships. He claims he was tricked into trafficking drugs to Singapore on the promise of being able to play for a club here.
It is particularly disturbing to note that trial judge himself raised reasonable doubts in Tochi's case, mentioning that it was entirely possible that Tochi did not know he was bringing in drugs to Singapore--before proceeding to convict him and pass the mandatory death penalty. *
At a time when the Singapore prison system has a renewed emphasis upon rehabilitation, and when the Yellow Ribbon campaign asks us to give even seasoned criminals a second chance, can we not find it in our hearts to extend this to a person who--if he indeed is guilty--made a desperate mistake at the age of 19?
The death sentence for drug trafficking in Singapore continues to be "mandatory", which means that judges are not able to take into significance and mitigating circumstances (such as the age and general naivity of the accused) when passing their verdict.
And at a time when even the hangings of persons responsible for mass killings and genocide, such as Saddam Hussein and his cronies are being regarded with disgust by the world at large; are seen as reproducing the criminal cruelty of the original perpetrators, is it not time that we in Singapore reconsider our stance on the repeated, mandatory hanging of small-fry drug mules?
Signed,
Singapore Anti Death Penalty Campaign
* Tochi was arrested in Changi Airport in November 2004. He claims he was carrying herbal medicine for a third party, at the behest of his "friend", Mr Smith. According to Tochi, Mr Smith befriended him months earlier and advised him to approach football clubs in Singapore.
Against Tochi, the trial judge, Mr Kan Ting Chiu, made the following finding at paragraph 42 of his judgment [2005] SGHC 233: "There was no direct evidence that he knew the capsules contained diamorphine. There was nothing to suggest that Smith had told him they contained diamorphine, or that he had found that out of his own."
The Singapore Anti Death Penalty Campaign (SADPC) comprises a concerned group of Singaporeans from diverse backgrounds who have come together over the issue of the Death Penalty. Through a series of debates and events we hope to foster a public debate on the practice of capital punishment in Singapore and throughout the world.
Singaporeans suffer under the foreign talent policy
Media Release: Singaporeans suffer under the foreign talent policy
16 Jan 07
16 Jan 07
The recent report showing that 70 percent of jobs created in 2006 went to foreigners is not a revelation.
In 2003, a group of professors from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) reported that three out of four jobs created in the past five years went to foreigners.
Then, the Ministry of Manpower immediately issued a statement to denounce the NTU's findings and produced its own figures: That nine out of ten newly created jobs went to the locals.
The professors quickly withdrew their report, citing computational errors.
The SDP had, at that time, asked the Government to hold an inquiry to ascertain the truthfulness of the economists' report and not merely bully them into silence.
Four years have passed and it is clear that the professors were right. Worse, Singaporeans have had to continue to suffer in silence under the PAP Government's ill-conceived policy even though it is reported that a majority of people want a more judicious application of the foreign talent (Sunday Times, 14 Jan 07).
The Singapore Democrats repeat our stand: The foreign talent policy must be re-examined so that only foreigners with the requisite skills are allowed to work in Singapore.
We proposed the Singaporeans First Policy back in 2001 where we wanted foreigners to get the jobs only when we cannot find Singaporeans with the necessary skills to do them.
The PAP Government is desperately trying to make-up for the stunted population growth that resulted from its cruel and myopic Stop-at-Two family planning policy by flooding the society with foreign nationals.
The resultant economic and social consequences from such an unthinking move will yet manifest themselves in horrendous ways, if they have not already.
In addition, the Government refuses to acknowledge that the slow birthrate in Singapore is primarily due to the high cost of living and stressful lifestyle in our society which deters couples from wanting more children.
It also ignores the fact that the exodus of Singaporeans, most of whom possess talent and skills our country needs, to other countries is a result of the suffocating system created by the PAP.
It is clear that the Government not only has no intention of owning up to these problems it created, but now seeks to plaster over them by encouraging the indiscriminate influx of foreign workers.
Its main objective, of course, is to suppress the wages of working Singaporeans so that we can claim to be a “competitive” economy.
This race to the bottom is doomed to failure. It merely exploits the vulnerable to make the vulnerable even more vulnerable. It also ensures that while the rich get richer, the poor are consigned to an even bleaker future.
It escapes no one that the ministers continue to peg their salaries to the richest of the rich in Singapore, and ignore the plight of ordinary Singaporeans. The Government is able to do this only because the people have had their voices taken away.
The only remedy to this, and other problems that citizens face, is for the people to regain their political rights to free speech and peaceful assembly. Only when citizens are able to physically congregate en masse and speak freely will the Government sit-up and pay attention.
Chee Soon Juan
Secretary-General
Singapore Democratic Party
Taksin interview by CNN in Singapore
The 23th Prime Minister ,Taksin Shinawatra is interviewed by Dan Rivers ,CNN Singapore on 15 January 2007.
A version with Thai subtitles is available here.
And this is what the people of Thailand saw when it was on CNN - Censored.
Thaksin is unfair and unkind to Singapore : former S'pore envoyThe Nation.
A former Singapore ambassador criticised deposed Thai prime minister of being entirely unfair and unkind to Singapore.
"Thaksin put Singapore in a tight spot. We tried to make his visit as low-key as possible. In some ways, Thaksin was unkind to us. It would have been better if he had done the CNN interview somewhere else," said Kishore Mahbubanim, a former Singapore ambassador to UN.
Kishore is now dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and gave interview to Singapore-based newspaper, Today, on Wednesday.
The Thai government on Tuesday suspend indefinitely all high-level meetings with Singapore, including a ministerial dialogue next month, to protest the island's insensitivity to Thailand's political situation.
The decision was made after deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was allowed to visit Singapore and met Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister S Jayakumar.
Kishore said, "In my experience, when that happens you get these strong positions being taken. It's a way for the government to protect itself. So, Singapore becomes a victim in these political wrangles."
He said that Thailand was currently going through a rough patch.
Mr Mahbubani said Singapore had, in the past, gone through rocky patches with the Philippines and Malaysia and it should remain patient until the storm with Thailand blew over.
"When Thailand overcomes its difficult problems, their national interests will come into play. There are very sound reasons for Thailand and Singapore to cooperate," he said.
17 Jan 2007
Singapore Stresses Iran's Right to Use N. Energy
Someone should let the US of A know about this...
TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Singapore's parliament speaker here on Tuesday emphasized the right of all the world countries, including the Islamic Republic of Iran, to use nuclear energy for peaceful intentions.
The official made the remarks in a meeting with the chairman and members of Iran-Singapore parliamentary friendship group, a report released by the Information and Media department of the Islamic Consultative Assembly said.
During the meeting, the Iranian chairman of the two countries' parliamentary friendship group, Seyed Hossein Hashemi, viewed expansion of cooperation by the two countries' private sectors as a giant stride in deepening mutual relations.
He also called on the two countries' traders and businessmen to take the very desirable opportunities existing for investment in various economic sectors, adding that the measure would consolidate the two nations' ties.
Elsewhere, the lawmaker noted the regional position and standing of Iran and Singapore, and reminded, "Iran can serve as a proper gate for Singapore's private sector to gain access to the extensive markets of Central Asia, while Singapore is viewed as a desirable gate for the Iranian businessmen to have a share of the East Asian market.
Referring to the position of tourism in global economy, he mentioned that both states enjoy high tourism potentials which can serve as a good backup for the deepening of the two countries' cordial ties once activated.
Hashemi further noted the significance of legislative ties, and termed development of parliamentary relations, specially formation of parliamentary friendship groups as an important factor consolidating mutual cooperation between the two countries.
He also voiced the Iranian parliament's full support for the development of cooperation with Singapore in all areas.
For his part, Singaporean parliament speaker stressed expansion of the two countries' ties in the various areas of industries, man power, tourism and trade.
He also voiced his country's strong support for the inalienable right of all the world nations, including the Islamic Republic of Iran, to make a peaceful use of nuclear technology.
"Iran is a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and as an NPT member, it has complied with all its undertakings," Singapore's chief legislative official said.
He further stated his country's enthusiasm for the expansion of all-out ties with Iran, and said that Iran's strategic position in the region has provided good potentials for Singapore to access the Middle-East region.
Singapore Has No Regards For Diplomatic Procedures, Says Ex-Envoy
BANGKOK, Jan 17 (Bernama) -- Singapore has failed to understand a well- known diplomatic procedure where a person considered as "enemy" of another government should not be given official treatment, a former Thai diplomat to Singapore said today.
"Singapore should realise that in international law and diplomacy, such person should not be allowed to carry out activities that can harm a friendly government from its soil," said Asda Jayanama in an interview here.
Given the nature of Singapore's political system, Asda said he doubted that deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's recent visit and his meeting with Deputy Prime Minister S. Jayakumar was purely social and private as claimed by the Singapore Foreign Affairs Ministry.
"I suspect it had something to do with Temasek Holdings' purchase of Shin Corporation. There is a lot of problems in the deal," he added.
The company was sold by Thaksin's family for 73 billion baht in a controversial deal in 2005.
"Although there is no general guidelines on Thaksin's global travel, the Thai government would treat each travel on a case-by-case basis. This is odd as it's widely known that the Thai government was unhappy with his movements and travelling to some countries lately," he added.
The Thai Foreign Ministry announced Tuesday that it was withdrawing an invitation for Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo to visit Bangkok at the end of the month, as well as suspending the Thailand-Singapore Civil Service Exchange Programme.
Asda said Singapore should learn from other Asean members regarding Thailand's sensitivity over Thaksin who was ousted in a coup on Sept 19, citing the reluctance of the Philippines and Malaysian leaders to fulfil Thaksin's request to meet them after the coup last year.
Besides that, it was also reported that a senior leader of the republic had proposed a provision in the Asean Charter that any government coming out of a coup should not be recognised, said Asda.
But Asda, who served from 1986 to 1990 in the republic as well as to the United Nations from 1996 to 2001, said the Thai Foreign Ministry had also fumbled badly in handling the whole issue as they had prior knowledge of Thaksin's visit to Singapore after being informed by its ambassador to Thailand, Peter Chan.
"The ministry lacks finesse and has not been totally transparent. Upon being informed by the ambassador, the ministry should have asked for his detailed programme, including where he was going, whom he was meeting...his CNN appearance. They should then quickly advice the prime minister but it appeared this did not happen."
In fact, Asda said, the ministry was ignorant of this until Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont expressed his concern.
"It appears that top officials at the ministry still have their hearts and mind with Thaksin and his people. The ministry is not in tune with the government or the Council for National Security (formed by the military after the coup)."
Asda, however, said he still believed the action taken by the ministry was a right move and hoped it could explain other deals in Singapore initiated by Thaksin during his reign.
He said there was a massive development project planned at a premier site belonging to the Thai embassy in Singapore and urged the ministry to inform the public about the project.
With major local newspapers playing up the issue, Asda said there was a possibility of anti-Singapore feeling increasing in the country, with facilities given to the Singapore military to conduct training in Udon Thani and Kanchanaburi probably being the next issue to be raised.
Singapore is one of the major investors in the kingdom and last year, bilateral trade between the two countries totalled nearly US$13 billion (466 billion baht).
-- BERNAMA
Related Article
Temasek to be held accountable for purchase of Shin
16 Jan 2007
Singapore teen first to be sentenced for wireless piggybacking
January 16, 2007 - 10:50PM
A Singapore teen has became the first in the city-state to be sentenced for piggybacking on someone else's wireless Internet connection.
Garyl Tan Jia Luo, 17, could have been sentenced to jail but District Judge Bala Reddy said the youth would instead serve 18 months' probation -- including a stint in a boys' home -- unless he was called up for compulsory military national service.
"This is the first case of this nature," Tan's lawyer, Sam Koh, told reporters after the sentence was passed. to continue...
The Geopolitics of Asian Cyberspace
From FEER
December 2006
by Ronald Deibert
Extract
[...]
to read the article in full...
Related Information:
Internet Filtering in Singapore in 2004-2005: A Country Study
December 2006
by Ronald Deibert
Extract
[...]
Perhaps nowhere is the geopolitical dynamic playing itself out more forcefully than in the vast region of Asia. Home to one of the world’s cyber-superpowers, China, and dozens of newly emerging markets eager to capitalize on the benefits of new information and communication technology (ICT) while limiting negative side-effects for centralized political authority. Sophisticated ICT companies, many from the West, are following the lead of Asian governments, offering a wide range of appropriate products and services.
This exercise of political power in cyberspace by states in Asia, however, is not going uncontested. A swarming resistance movement of tech-savvy citizens is forming to protect the Web as an unfettered forum of freedom of speech and access to information. With the development of new software tools designed to circumvent censorship, they are taking the battle to the Internet’s inner core.
Perhaps the best window on the dark underbelly of the Internet comes from the research of a project I direct: the OpenNet Initiative (ONI)—a collaboration among the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto, the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School, the Cambridge Security Programme, the Oxford Internet Institute, and partner NGOs worldwide. The aim of the ONI is to document empirically patterns of Internet censorship and surveillance worldwide using sophisticated means of technically interrogating the Internet directly. The ONI’s tests are carried out both remotely from North America and the United Kingdom, and in the field by dozens of local researchers. Our reports over the last several years have documented a disturbing increase in the scale, scope and sophistication of Internet censorship practices worldwide, including in Asia.
to read the article in full...
Related Information:
Internet Filtering in Singapore in 2004-2005: A Country Study
Almost Anonymous Blogging - Again
The shift towards depicting blogging as a 'dangerous' activity continues.
First Published 03-Jul-2006
With the recent increase in the main stream media's [and some blogs and online lawyers] chatter regarding bloggers and should we or shouldn't we be blogging anonymously, [now its all about regulation and self-regulation] the government does seem to be readying the population for a clamp down.
I thought it would be a good time to repost some helpful hints, tips etc on how to blog, email, anonymously. Read the powerpoint slides from the beginning to make sure you have as sound an understanding of the issues and requirements as possible.
Each blogger decides as an individual whether or not they wish to be known [or self-regulate]. With the continuing climate of attacks on bloggers some may feel that the risk is not worth the effort. Others who are a little more net savvy can quite easily circumvent any restriction that maybe started.
If you are feeling the fear - follow the instructions carefully on the powerpoint above.
First Published 03-Jul-2006
With the recent increase in the main stream media's [and some blogs and online lawyers] chatter regarding bloggers and should we or shouldn't we be blogging anonymously, [now its all about regulation and self-regulation] the government does seem to be readying the population for a clamp down.
I thought it would be a good time to repost some helpful hints, tips etc on how to blog, email, anonymously. Read the powerpoint slides from the beginning to make sure you have as sound an understanding of the issues and requirements as possible.
Each blogger decides as an individual whether or not they wish to be known [or self-regulate]. With the continuing climate of attacks on bloggers some may feel that the risk is not worth the effort. Others who are a little more net savvy can quite easily circumvent any restriction that maybe started.
If you are feeling the fear - follow the instructions carefully on the powerpoint above.
Empower Singaporeans Seminar here again – register now!
Singapore Democratic Party
15 Jan 07
15 Jan 07
Following an eventful 2006 that saw democracy advocates take the initiative to conduct several activities to advance the cause of democracy in Singapore, another workshop in the Empower Singaporeans Seminar Series will be held on 28 January 2007, Sunday.
This day-long seminar will build on the momentum started in previous years. It is tailored for the Singaporean who yearns justice and democracy, but doesn't know how to go about working constructively towards it.
The seminar, starting at 9 am and ending at 6 pm, will feature lectures, interactive discussions, debates, and role-playing on topics such as human rights, the development of democracy in Asia, and a history of repression in Singapore.
Participants will also learn about the principles and practice of Nonviolence, and how it can be applied to Singapore.
The activists at the 16 September rally at Hong Lim Park and 10 December Freedom Walk will be on hand to share their experiences. This is your chance to talk to them and learn how they overcame their fears.
Learn how you can break through your crippling sense of powerlessness, fear and isolation. Discover the courage trapped in your hearts and unlock the shackles that imprison your minds.
Don't just sit by and criticize, channel your energy and ideas into constructive action. Join us at the seminar.
The seminar is open to all Singaporeans. To attend, all you need to do is to send us an email (speakup@singaporedemocrat.org). Details of the seminar including the venue and programme will be sent to you if your registration is successful.
Please register early as places are limited.
Australian faces drug charges in Singapore
ABC News Online
A 38-year-old South Australian man has been arrested on drug charges in Singapore.
Michael Karras was arrested last week and charged with possessing 495 grams of cannabis.
He faces at least five years' imprisonment and a minimum five strokes of the cane if convicted.
A death penalty is mandatory for anyone caught trafficking more than 500 grams.
The Department of Foreign Affairs says Karras is being assisted by consular officials.
The ABC understands the man has been living in Singapore for eight years.
The arrest of Karras comes more than a year after the highly publicised hanging of Australian Van Nguyen.
He was executed in December 2005 for trying to smuggle 400 grams of heroin via Singapore to Australia three years before.
THAI-SINGAPORE TIES ON THE BRINK
The Nation
Thailand cancels invitation to Singapore's foreign minister
Thai government rescinded Tuesday the visit of Singapore's foreign minister later this month after ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's meeting with Singapore Deputy Prime Minister.
The government also announced it was suspending a civil exchange program with Singapore and canceled a meeting about the program that was to be held later this month.
"We expressed dissatisfaction with the explanation made by Singaporean authorities. Therefore we decide to cancel visit of Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo to Bangkok later this month ," Foreign Ministry spokesman Kitti Wasinondh said.
Thai Foreign Ministry summoned Singapore ambassador on Monday to express deep concerns on Thaksin's visit to Singapore.
An informed source said Singapore issued a private invitation for Thaksin to stay in the island nation for three days. Thaksin met Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister S Jayakumar during the visit over the weekend.
15 Jan 2007
Nigerian NGO takes government to court on impending Singapore hanging
From SDP.
14 Jan 07
14 Jan 07
The Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), a leading human rights group in Nigeria, has taken legal action action against the country's Attorney-General to compel the Nigerian government to intervene in the impending hanging of Mr Amara Tochi in Singapore.
Mr Mr Amara Tochi was convicted for trafficking heroin at Changi Airport in 2005. The matter has, however, attracted much controversy because the trial judge, Mr Kan Ting Chiu, admitted in his judgement that "there was no direct evidence that [Tochi] knew the capsules contained diamorphine."
The Nigerian man had met another African national (a "Mr Smith") at Changi Airport and was given a packet of the drug to carry into Singapore.
Even then, Judge Kan found that "there was nothing to suggest that Smith had told him him they contained diamorphine, or that [Tochi] had found that out of his own." (For background, please see M Ravi in Nigeria to campaign against execution).
Despite this, Mr Amara Tochi was found guilty and sentenced to hang. The appeal process is over and the only chance left is for clemency from the President. Mr Tochi could be hanged within the next few weeks.
Nigeria's CLO has applied for, inter alia, an order of mandamus to compel its government to file a complaint at the International Court of Justice against the Government of Singapore to restrain the execution of Mr Tochi.
In 2006, United Nations' Special Rapporteur on extra judicial and summary execution, Mr Philip Alston, condemned the mandatory death sentence for drug trafficking in Singapore as illegal under international law.
Under the Misuse of Drugs Act, those convicted of carrying drugs beyond certain limits must be hanged. Judges have no discretion and cannot take in mitigating arguments.
The CLO's representative, Mr Princewill Akpakpan, was recently in Singapore to see Mr Tochi. He was, however, denied access to the condemned prisoner.
Mr Akpakpan and Mr M Ravi, Singapore's human rights lawyer, have been campaigning to prevent Mr Tochi's execution.
"How can you execute a man who is not guilty of the crime?" pleaded Mr Ravi. "The trial judge even recognized that Tochi didn't know what he was carrying."
Mr Ravi has traveled across Europe and visited Nigeria to garner support to stop Mr Tochi's impending execution. He has been invited to speak at the 3rd World Congress Against the Death Penalty which will be held in Paris in February 2007. The conference is held under the patronage of Mr Jacques Chirac, President of France and Ms Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, and Mr Bertrand Delanoe Mayor of Paris.
13 Jan 2007
Livingstone Singapores His Heart Out
First spotted on Tomorrow.sg.
UK games mogul offers sage words to foreign developers.
by Rob Burman, IGN UK
UK games mogul offers sage words to foreign developers.
by Rob Burman, IGN UK
UK, January 11, 2007 - Ian Livingstone, Eidos' supreme commander of worldwide product acquisitions, has criticised developers in Singapore. If you listen closely you can actually hear the shouts of indignation from across the country.
Speaking to Singapore's TODAYonline during the XMediaLab Conference and Asian Game Developers Summit 2006, Livingstone appealed to game creators to come up with fresher ideas to help them stand out in the competitive international videogame market.
Livingstone opined that Singapore lacked "the ability to think outside the box to create new intellectual property, new game-play and new characters". Then, just to add insult to injury, he bemoaned: "The tendency here [Singapore] is to make copies of previous games, rather than to think about what the world hasn't seen before or what new games haven't been done before. [There must be a] unique selling point that differentiates them [game developers] from everyone else."
On a brighter note Livingstone did offer some friendlier guidance, harking back to his early days in the games industry: "We didn't do it for the money. We did it because we believed in what we are doing. If you are driven by passion, even if you don't find success, you will find happiness."
Democracy Challenged: The Rise of Semi-Authoritarianism
Democracy Challenged: The Rise of Semi-Authoritarianism
By Marina Ottaway
Published 2003
Carnegie Endowment
Politics / Current Events
256 pages
ISBN 0870031953
Challenging Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia (Politics in Asia Series)
Asia (Politics in Asia Series) (Hardcover)
by Ariel Heryanto
Publisher: RoutledgeCurzon; 1 edition (June 24, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0415309417
ISBN-13: 978-0415309417
Or download the book review by Wang Gungwu at a greatly reduced price and pretend you have read it here...
Challenging Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia: Comparing Indonesia and Malaysia.(Book Review): An article from: Contemporary Southeast Asia
During the 1990s, international democracy promotion efforts led to the establishment of numerous regimes that cannot be easily classified as either authoritarian or democratic. They display characteristics of each, in short they are semi-authoritarian regimes. These regimes pose a considerable challenge to U.S. policymakers because the superficial stability of many semi-authoritarian regimes usually masks severe problems that need to be solved lest they lead to a future crisis. Additionally, these regimes call into question some of the ideas about democratic transitions that underpin the democracy promotion strategies of the United States and other Western countries. Despite their growing importance, semi-authoritarian regimes have not received systematic attention. Marina Ottaway examines five countries (Egypt, Azerbaijan, Venezuela, Croatia, and Senegal) which highlight the distinctive features of semi-authoritarianism and the special challenge each poses to policymakers. She explains why the dominant approach to democracy promotion isn't effective in these countries and concludes by suggesting alternative policies.
By Marina Ottaway
Published 2003
Carnegie Endowment
Politics / Current Events
256 pages
ISBN 0870031953
Challenging Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia (Politics in Asia Series)
Asia (Politics in Asia Series) (Hardcover)by Ariel Heryanto
Challenging Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia_ is one of the first substantial comparative studies of contemporary Indonesia and Malaysia, homes to the world's largest Muslim population. Following the collapse of New Order rule in Indonesia in 1998, this book provides an in-depth examination of anti-authoritarian forces in contemporary Indonesia and Malaysia, assessing their problems and prospects.
The authors discuss the roles played by women, public intellectuals, arts workers, industrial workers as well as environmental and Islamic activists. They explore how different forms of authoritarianism in the two countries affect the prospects of democratization, and examine the impact and legacy of the diverse social and political protests in Indonesia and Malaysia in the late 1990s.
This book responds to the impasse of the 'transition from authoritarian to democracy' paradigm by studying social agents and practices that lie beyond formal political institutions and measures of economic performance. It adopts a broader sense of politics, power, and authoritarianism while challenging familiar understandings of gender, Islam, ethnicity, and social classes. It will interest students and researchers of Asian Studies, Political Science, Sociology and Cultural Studies.
Publisher: RoutledgeCurzon; 1 edition (June 24, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0415309417
ISBN-13: 978-0415309417
Or download the book review by Wang Gungwu at a greatly reduced price and pretend you have read it here...
Challenging Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia: Comparing Indonesia and Malaysia.(Book Review): An article from: Contemporary Southeast Asia
12 Jan 2007
National Conference for Media Freedom
This morning we will kick off the first day of the National Conference for Media Reform in Memphis. You've heard about the fantastic speakers, the great musical lineup, expert panels, and exciting workshops on media activism, criticism and reform.
Even if you can't join us in Memphis, you can get in on the action. Visit the National Conference for Media Reform Web site for live updates throughout the weekend. There are any number of ways you can participate online:
Watch video streams of the main events, musical performances, keynote speakers, including Bill Moyers, Geena Davis, Danny Glover, Al Green's Gospel Choir, FCC Commissioners Michael Copps and Johnathan Adelstein, Amy Goodman from Democracy Now!, Congressman Ed Markey and others;
Listen to downloadable audio of the hundreds of panels and workshops;
Join the conversation! Live blogging and open commenting with the 3,000 media reform activists in attendance;
View pictures on the Flickr stream of photographs from the conference;
Watch YouTube footage taken by conference participants;
Reform the media -- Take action on a number of issues that will be discussed at the conference.
It's never been easier to be a part of the action. Visit the conference action site to post your comments to the FCC about media ownership, call your Senators and Representatives about Net Neutrality, help create an accessible online media resource for non-profits and much more.
Don't forget to check back every day for updates. Even if you can't come to Memphis, it will feel like you are there!
Onward,
Josh Silver
Executive Director
Free Press
www.freepress.net/conference
Clamp Down on Animation Downloads ?
I came upon this concern after following up on a commentator in an earlier post who responded to my question regarding which group is to be targeted next in The Great Singapore Clean-Up?
Now whether or not the post below is 'fact' I will leave up to your discretion as you are not children and are able to discern fact from fiction. So with a pinch of salt and the thought that we are not able to read the governments mind or policies, read on...
Posted by kwok on Sunday, December 31st, 2006
Whether or not this is 'fact' is of course in the hands of the government officials. I do have to say that even if this is not fact and the government has no intentions of clamping down, there is a palpable sense of fear being generated by the previous actions of those in power, so either way the Singapore government does seem to generate a lot Registry Cleaning and Disk Defragmenting.
Now whether or not the post below is 'fact' I will leave up to your discretion as you are not children and are able to discern fact from fiction. So with a pinch of salt and the thought that we are not able to read the governments mind or policies, read on...
Posted by kwok on Sunday, December 31st, 2006
A couple of days ago, I spent the afternoon with a good friend visiting Odex, because I heard they were having a ‘focus group discussion’, and nothing turns me on more than a focus group discussion. By the way, if you do not know what Odex is, Odex Pte Ltd is a company that fights animation piracy and gets genuine titles from Japan, as well as fend off frenzied attacks from robotic hunter-seeker dogs built by massively-downloading military scientists.
Odex had expected about 4-5 bodies to turn up, but the actual number came up to about 10-15, which shows that my country is very passionate about keeping their entertainment free. It also turns out that Odex was looking to engage the representatives of the various clubs for their perspective, to find out exactly what they want from Odex. Two local universities and several polytechnics were represented, but there was no one from the junior colleges (must have been too busy studying or having sex in the classrooms). It seems that many faceless members of the online community have a negative perception of Odex, because downloading is free.
The Odex people, I am pleased to say, are very agreeable for people of my homeland, and I was pleased about that. I do not see any need to post about the specifics of the little discussion (that ran up to about 3 hours), or talk about why Odex is good or bad, but here is a brief breakdown of what was talked about:
Odex will cut their prices again. Middlemen’s cut and production-distribution costs ensure that prices must stay at a minimum, however.Odex will produce higher quality products which will look nicer than before.
Odex wants to start a membership service, targeted at students but may/will extend to anyone. It will provide some sort of exclusivity in some way that I cannot confirm, but, yeah.
Now this is interesting: The government wants to clamp down on animation downloads effective… this year. Happy New Year. The figures passed down stated that my beloved motherland has 230,000 animation downloaders. We are the top in the world by population percentage, at, uh, 5%? Canada only has 20,000 more households, and yet they have a lot more maple trees than us.
Odex underlined that this sounded like a serious effort on the part of the authorities, who are sick of catching little mama-shops selling pirated batteries. Japanese animation presents a fine opportunity to round up more bodies because there are few legalities to work with (Odex holds most of the licenses for titles in my motherland). They have spoken with the authorities, and I quote, the police have ‘techniques to handle certain things’.
On the other hand, I quote again, ‘it’s not going to look good if the students are caught’. It will not be nice if the local No. 1 tabloid has a 15-page exclusive on 16-year-olds jumping off 20-storey buildings in an attempt to shake off hardened plainclothes raiders. So Odex, in a nice way, is giving us a heads up and telling us to stay down.
Odex wants ‘community involvement’. Odex says that it’s made up of fans just like you and me, and naturally our interests are the same. But at the end of the day, they have to take in the ‘arm-twisting’ from the authorities (i like my Media Developed, Ah?), especially when it involves censorship and television broadcasts.
In the past, any show that is rejected by the censorship board will be thrown back for editing before being put up again, until it finally clears. Now, the new rule states that there is to be no cutting whatsoever. This means if something does not meet the board’s fickle requirements, it is permanently banned. It also seems that the censorship board is made up of 40/50-year-olds who want to keep decency and hygiene a big part of our lifestyles, which explains why Girls Bravo Season 2 is banned in my hometown.
Still, Odex does not want my country to end up as a ‘barren’ wasteland for animation. They want it to be a nice place for everyone. But it is difficult to even do something new and useful when they are struggling to keep the line in check. I was regaled by tales of rogue competitors who use underhand means to get their sale volumes. Odex says they are willing to listen to the local community for advice and suggestions, so that at the end of the day, they can create products that our community can be proud of.
So these are the facts; at least, the facts from my perspective. So what is my own opinion of this new development? to continue reading the article ...
Whether or not this is 'fact' is of course in the hands of the government officials. I do have to say that even if this is not fact and the government has no intentions of clamping down, there is a palpable sense of fear being generated by the previous actions of those in power, so either way the Singapore government does seem to generate a lot Registry Cleaning and Disk Defragmenting.
Calibrated Coercion in Singapore
From here...Cherian George and Yee Yeong Chong (Mykel)
Hello & Welcome
>>>View the case files>>>
Hello & Welcome
This site aims to provide a comprehensive database of Singapore government interventions in internet communication. The government introduced internet content regulations in 1996, assuring internet users that these would be implemented with a “light touch”. Ten years on, it is useful to take stock of what the government’s position has meant in practice.
The immediate, practical benefit of this database is that it helps to shed light on Singapore’s regulatory terrain. Many internet users either ignore real political risks or exaggerate them. We believe both pitfalls are equally unhealthy for the development of an active and mature online community.
The more academic roots of this database are in an on-going research project that examines the nature of PAP dominance. Contrary to the widely held view that the PAP is just like other dictatorships, our theory of “calibrated coercion” argues that the PAP’s longevity can be explained in part by a deliberate restraint in its use of repression. While the PAP does not pretend to be liberal, it has grown increasingly adept at using just the right amount of coercion to neutralise dissent without inviting a massive backlash that would hasten its demise (as has happened to many other authoritarian states).
The database in this site will be used to assess to what extent calibrated coercion has been a feature of the PAP’s management of internet discourse.
The database is a work in progress. We are making it public as a way to tap the inside knowledge of the online community. We welcome readers’ input, either to add to existing case files, or to share with us any personal experiences that may not have been reported in the mass media.
>>>View the case files>>>
Middle class wage stagnation could lead to social instability
By Pearl Forss, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 11 January 2007 1856 hrs
SINGAPORE: Middle class wages have been stagnant in the past 5 years, according to economists, and this could lead to social instability.
These concerns were shared by economists at the annual Institute of Policy Studies Singapore Perspectives conference, who also added that the government is taking steps to address the problem.
Economists believe a US economic slowdown in business and consumer spending may cause problems for Singapore, but as Singapore is tops in the ASEAN resilience index, it should be able to weather external shocks, thanks to a diversified economy and strong Asian demand.
They predict that growth going forward will be above 3 to 5 percent.
The long-term growth limits for a mature economy was previously in the 3 to 5 percent range.
However, economists are asking who this growth is for. The income of the bottom 30 percent of the population has fallen. What is more worrying is the fact that the majority of Singaporeans in the middle class has only seen about a one percent increase in their nominal income in the last 5 years.
This is not not just a Singapore problem say economists who point out that stagnant wages is a global problem.
The chief reason for this is globalisation, especially with India and China introducing a large pool of skilled and unskilled labour to compete with the labour forces of industrialised countries.
Singapore is susceptible to this because of its open economy.
Manpower Ministry data shows that 124,000 jobs were created last year and 45 percent of these jobs went to foreigners.
"With the rate of immigration, even among unskilled and semi skilled labour at a rate twice of what we experienced in the 90s, at a rate fastest in the developed world, the question is - does this dampen our real wages as we grow? Does the strategy itself dampen real wages and depress real wages at the low and middle end of the spectrums? They are sacred cows but we should step back and think about them," said Yeoh Lam Keong, Vice President, Economic Society of Singapore.
Another reason cited for middle class wage stagnation is the move by the government to cut CPF employer contribution rates for older workers by 4 percentage points over the last 2 years.
"So if you were a worker in the 50-55 age group, you could have seen your wages fall as much as 10 percent over the last 3 or 4 years. Now with the economy improving, the government could bring that back, the increase is 1 or 2 percent. I'm in support of CPF tinkering but probably it happens far too often, but I think there's probably some justification to look back and think that the restructuring was a bit too aggressive on the CPF side and it has contributed somewhat to a very sandwiched middle class," said Chua Hak Bin, Director, Asia Pacific Econ & Market Analysis, Citigroup Global Markets Singapore.
The government is looking at increasing CPF by 1 to 2 percentage points in 2007.
Economists say workfare should become a more permanent pillar of the economy so as to cushion growing inequality.
- CNA /dt
11 Jan 2007
Beyond Suspicion? - The Singapore Judiciary
Beyond Suspicion? The Singapore Judiciary
Once again, Francis Seow has revealed, with his usual rigour and attention to detail, a vital part of Singapore's repressive machinery, this time by placing his spotlight on its judiciary. Beyond Suspicion? The Singapore Judiciary is essential to understanding the true nature of human rights abuses in that country. Particularly thorough are the chapters dealing with the use of civil defamation suits through the courts by ruling party leaders against political critics. Seow's meticulous treatment of these suits clearly illustrates that in politically sensitive cases, the Singapore judiciary has not moved to check the Executive's misuse of the law. Human rights campaigners now and historians of the future will regard it as required reading."
- Margaret John, Coordinator for Singpaore and Malaysia, Amnesty International Canada
"Francis Seow has not just exposed the judiciary; he has also laid bare the serious limitations of the political system. This is a quite brilliant piece of sustained analysis of how the judiciary is harnessed to political persecution. It is a style and methodology that is more legalistic…., but it is only through this approach that the full magnitude of the judiciary's emasculation and the PAP's manic desire to crush the slightest semblance of serious scrutiny become fully clear."
-Garry Rodan, Director, Asia Research Centre, Murdoch University, Western Australia
"This is an extremely valuable record of many significant cases and events that lay bare the dynamics of the Singapore judiciary and its intersection with political personalities and imperatives. It is an impressive work…of scholarly and public policy interest, providing chapter and verse on the politico-legal nexus in Singapore."
- Christopher Tremewan, Pro Vice-Chancellor (International), University of Auckland, New Zealand
10 Jan 2007
Singapore man faces 180 years in prison
The hoax bomb warning is simply the action of an asshole, but if he is convicted to 180 years in prison for illegally accessing a wireless network 60 times then I would imagine there are a lot of wireless hackers in Singapore filling their trousers. First haul a few through the courts and make an example of them and then find another bunch of net 'criminals' to make an example of - I wonder which group is to be targeted next?
Frank Washkuch Jan 9 2007 17:57
Frank Washkuch Jan 9 2007 17:57
A Singaporean hacker has been charged with posting a fake July 2005 bomb threat on a technology website and 60 counts of illegally accessing a wireless network.
Lin Zhenghuang, 21, was charged last week with facetiously warning of a bomb at a local bus stop - just after the London subways and bus bombings. Other site users reported Lin's post to authorities, according to an Associated Press report.
Lin, who uses the online pseudonym "krisurf," also faces 60 charges of illegally accessing nine wireless networks between July 2005 and February 2006, according to the AP. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison and US$6,500 in fines.
Lin has been charged with violating Singapore's Computer Misuse Act [pdf].
Garyl Tan Jia Luo, 17, was also charged with accessing the web via another person's internet connection in November of last year. A neighbor told authorities that Tan had accessed his web connection in May 2006.
Inter-faith Dialogue or Celebrating The God Delusion
By Asha Popatlal, Channel NewsAsia Posted: 02 January 2007 2127 hrs
Selected Extracts from Inter-faith dialogue important way to root out prejudices: PM Lee
SINGAPORE: Inter-faith dialogue is an important way to root out prejudices in a multi-religious society, especially so now, when extremist groups are taking every opportunity to build hatred between different communities.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong made these points at an inter-faith gathering.
[...]
"To root out the stereotypes and prejudices that form the fault-lines in a multi-religious society, it is crucial to have a process of dialogue and engagement. Such dialogue is not aimed at achieving agreement, but at building a relationship," said Mr Lee.
[...]
"In a troubled world, we have made ourselves an oasis where we can live in peace and harmony together. What we have achieved, very few others have done. We must treasure this and do our best to keep it this way. Every religious group will be protected and assured of fair treatment, but no group should press its claims too hard to the exclusion of the others. This is the accommodation that we have come to accept in Singapore," said Mr Lee.
Mr Lee was speaking before a gathering of some 2,000 people of different faiths from Singapore and around the world. - CNA /dt
Richard Dawkins - The God Delusion
Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins explains why God is a delusion, religion is a virus, and America has slipped back into the Dark Ages.
By Gordy Slack
The atheist
Richard Dawkins is the world's most famous out-of-the-closet living atheist. He is also the world's most controversial evolutionary biologist. Publication of his 1976 book, "The Selfish Gene," thrust Dawkins into the limelight as the handsome, irascible, human face of scientific reductionism. The book provoked everything from outrage to glee by arguing that natural selection worked its creative powers only through genes, not species or individuals. Humans are merely "gene survival machines," he asserted in the book.
Dawkins stuck to his theme but expanded his territory in such subsequent books as "The Blind Watchmaker," "Unweaving the Rainbow" and "Climbing Mount Improbable." His recent work, "The Ancestor's Tale," traces human lineage back through time, stopping to ponder important forks in the evolutionary road.
Given his outspoken defense of Darwin, and natural selection as the force of life, Dawkins has assumed a new role: the religious right's Public Enemy No. 1. Yet Dawkins doesn't shy from controversy, nor does he suffer fools gladly. He recently met a minister who was on the opposite side of a British political debate. When the minister put out his hand, Dawkins kept his hands at his side and said, "You, sir, are an ignorant bigot."
The God Delusion - The Documentary
Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5,
Richard Dawkins - The Interview on The BBC
Paxman interviews Dawkins about his new book about the delusions of religion on Newsnight.
Or is Lee celebrating the suspension of critical thoughts, scepticism and the acceptance of the Root of all Evil?
Thailand revises business rules
By Kate McGeown
BBC News, Bangkok
Published: 2007/01/09 14:14:01 GMT
© BBC MMVII
BBC News, Bangkok
The Thai government has announced plans to tighten rules regulating foreign businesses - a move analysts say could damage an already shaky economy.
Changes to the Foreign Business Act would see foreign firms being prevented from controlling more than 49% of the voting rights of a Thai business.
But the changes will take two years to implement and key sectors, such as retail and banking, will be exempt.
Foreign investors are already nervous after last month's stock market crash.
'Grave concern'
The downturn was sparked by the government's sudden decision to limit the amount of money that could be withdrawn by investors - a plan it then partially rescinded in an effort to bring market levels back up again.
September's coup and the New Year's Eve bombings have also raised questions about Thailand's stability for investment.
The Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce in Thailand (JFCCT) said it was "gravely concerned" about the proposed changes to foreign ownership controls.
"Such a radical change of this law will lead to a further erosion of business confidence," said its president Peter van Haren.
Thai stocks fell nearly 3% after the proposals were published.
Different regulations currently apply to different industries but while many businesses already have a 49% ceiling on foreign ownership, in practice foreigners often have overriding control, because the local subsidiary owners are merely nominees with little or no voting rights.
By tightening up laws to consider voting rights as one of the key criteria for foreign ownership, many firms may be forced to alter shareholding structures and sell shares to Thai investors to stay within the law.
Exemptions
Officials said about 15 publicly listed companies would be affected by the proposals, which have still to be approved by Parliament.
But according to the draft proposals, industries such as retail, tourism, banking and insurance - in which foreign firms have substantial interests - would not be affected as they are governed by other laws.
This would exclude firms such as Tesco and Carrefour from any impact.
One analyst said that his initial impression was that the changes would not be as punitive for foreign investors as first thought.
"First indications are that the revision is somewhat less stringent than initially expected," said HSBC's Frederic Neumann.
"The amendment brings the Thai direct investment regime broadly into line with international practice."
Foreign control over Thai businesses has been highlighted by the continuing investigations into the financial dealings of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a coup in September.
Investigators are focusing on the Thaksin family's sale of its controlling stake in the telecommunications giant Shin Corp last year.
The shares were bought by the Singapore-owned investment firm Temasek - effectively selling the company abroad, albeit partly through Thai subsidiaries.
The sale fuelled allegations that Mr Thaksin had abused his power and betrayed national interests.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/business/6243663.stm
Published: 2007/01/09 14:14:01 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Appeal to the Govt of Singapore on Dr. CSJ's travel ban
Non-governmental International Steering Committee
The Community of Democracies10 Jan 07
We, the members of the Nongovernmental International Steering Committee (ISC) of the Community of Democracies are pleased to learn of the release from prison of Dr. Chee Soon Juan by the Government of Singapore.
Dr. Chee, a nonviolent but outspoken critic of his country's government and Secretary-General of the Singapore Democratic Party, is one of twenty members of the International Steering Committee, a network of democracy activists which expresses the views of civil society organizations and individuals involved in supporting the freedom of people in all parts of the world.
We call on the Government of Singapore to permit him to travel to attend the January 22-23 meeting of the ISC to be held in Taipei, Taiwan and the January 23-24 Round-table on Democracy in Asia.
We appeal to the Government of Singapore to fully respect and restore Dr. Chee's civil rights including his right to travel abroad without restriction.
Signed,
Paul Graham,
Chairman, International Steering Committee (ISC)
Executive Director, Institute for Democracy in South Africa (IDASA)
Genaro Arriagada,
Diario 7, Chile
Yuri Dzhiblaze,
Centre for the Development of Democracy and Human Rights, Russia
Morton Halperin,
Open Society Institute, United States
Oumar Makalou, President,
Nongovernmental Secretariat of the Community of Democracy, Mali
Mohsen Marzouk,
Freedom House, Tunisia
Matteo Meccaci,
Transnational Radical Party, Italy
Gus Miclat,
Initiatives for International Dialogue, Philippines
Ilona Mihaies, Euroregional Centre for Democracy, Romania
Yousry Moustafa,
Arab Human Rights Fund, Egypt
Richard C. Rowson,
Council for a Community of Democracies (CCD), United States
Andrea Sanhueza,
Corporacion Participa, Chile
Vo Van Ai,
Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, Vietnam/France
Dieudonne Zognong,
Fondation Humanus, Cameroon
For Further Information Contact:
Robert R. LaGamma,
Executive Director
Council for a Commuity of Democracies
1801 F St. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20006
Phone (202) 789-9771 Fax (202) 789-9764
www.ccd21.org
9 Jan 2007
Singapore's cyber dissident speaks out
An interview by Martyn See of Singapore Rebel Fame.
to continue...
"You can express any view that you want, you can form a political party, you can contest the elections, you can have rallies, make speeches, no trouble whatsoever."
- PM Lee Hsien Loong, CNN TalkAsia, Dec 2006
Robert HO is Singapore's leading cyber dissident.
In late 2001, marking the first-ever case of its kind, HO was arrested in his home for allegedly posting "inflammatory" articles online during the General Elections. In 2002, following an as-yet-unspecified article(s) posted on soc.culture.singapore, police entered his home to serve him a summons to attend an investigation. Again, his computer was seized. Three weeks later, according to HO, he was forcibly taken to the police station by officers who entered his home without a warrant or a charge. In 2005, upon returning from a shopping mall where he had been distributing flyers alleging election fraud, he was again apprehended. His computer, purchased after the police failed to return the one seized in 2002, was confiscated. In all, he has been arrested another three times since 2001, and thrice the authorities had remanded him at a mental institution. Oddly enough, he has yet to be prosecuted for these alleged offences, although the criminal defamation case from 2002 may still be pending.
While critics, including international publications, have yielded to defamation threats issued by Singapore's leaders, Robert HO has instead emerged from his arrests and detention an even more recalcitrant heretic of the establishment. In Singapore's political cyberspace where fear of surveillance and libel suits have compelled dissenting netizens and bloggers to post articles under pseudonyms, HO sticks his neck out by brazenly disclosing his real identity online. He is now a regular contributor to the Singapore Review news group and is also a blogger.
Martyn See interviews Robert HO via email and phone in December 2006.
Have you always been a critic of the PAP Government?
Ha, ha. Nobody is born a PAP critic so I must have become one along the way. It would be true to say that LEE Kuan Yew creates his own enemies, through arrogance and unbridled power. I have written that LEE Kuan Yew is the 'most powerful man in the world or even in history' because he has so much total control over his entire population. You know as much, having been hauled up by his police, for essentially nothing. Doesn't that make you even more determined? Or changed you from pro-PAP to anti-PAP? Every time LEE Kuan Yew wrongs one person, he creates 100 critics or even oppositionists. If Dr CHEE Soon Juan had not been unfairly sacked from his university job, he would be there today, still teaching; and not a dedicated oppositionist. Power and abuse of power always create its own resistance which may one day succeed in toppling that power. Newton's Third Law: "For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction."
When did I turn anti-PAP? Let me see. I lost my last job in advertising as a copywriter on 10 Jul 92. I was still pro-PAP then and still thought LEE Kuan Yew a 'great man' and all that, thanks to the Straits Times' unending propaganda. Shortly after that, I discovered that LEE Kuan Yew had been keeping me under audio-visual surveillance since I was a teen or even earlier and was releasing all this information to his entire crony system from Straits Times journalists and editors to even foreign journalists and politicos in order to embarrass me and as a publicity stunt [a kind of reality show before there were reality shows] purely to make himself famous, to self-aggrandise and to put on a command performance for the edification of his international audience, especially the Americans. Then I got angry, rightly so, and started to hit back. The whole story is more convoluted than this but this is the essence in summary.
to continue...
8 Jan 2007
Power, corruption and lies
Although I am posting the article here for my own purpose there does seem to be a few similarities between the Chinese and Singaporean model, and huge differences as well. One thing did grab my attention and that was Hutton's references to Leninism which has been a topic on this site in the past and linked to Lee Kuan Yew.
to read in full...
To the west, China is a waking economic giant, poised to dominate the world. But, argues Will Hutton in this extract from his new book, we have consistently exaggerated and misunderstood the threat - and the consequences could be grave
Will Hutton
Monday January 8, 2007
Guardian
The emergence of China as a $2 trillion economy from such inauspicious beginnings only 25 years ago is such a giddy accomplishment that the temptation to see its success as proof positive of your own prejudices is overwhelming. And the west's broad prejudice is that China is growing so rapidly because it has abandoned communism and embraced capitalism. China's own claim - that it is building a very particular economic model around what it describes as a socialist market economy - is dismissed as hogwash, the necessary rhetoric the Communist party must use to disguise what is actually happening. China proves conclusively that liberalisation, privatisation, market freedoms and the embrace of globalisation are the only route to prosperity. China is on its way to capitalism but will not admit it.
But the closer you get to what is happening on the ground in China, its so-called capitalism looks nothing like any form of capitalism the west has known and the transition from communism remains fundamentally problematic. The alpha and omega of China's political economy is that the Communist party remains firmly in the driving seat not just of government, but of the economy - a control that goes into the very marrow of how ownership rights are conceived and business strategies devised. The western conception of the free exercise of property rights and business autonomy that goes with it, essential to any notion of capitalism, does not exist in China.
The truth is that China is not the socialist market economy the party describes, nor moving towards capitalism as the western consensus believes. Rather it is frozen in a structure that I describe as Leninist corporatism - and which is unstable, monumentally inefficient, dependent upon the expropriation of peasant savings on a grand scale, colossally unequal and ultimately unsustainable. It is Leninist in that the party still follows Lenin's dictum of being the vanguard, monopoly political driver and controller of the economy and society. And it is corporatist because the framework for all economic activity in China is one of central management and coordination from which no economic actor, however humble, can opt out.
In this environment genuine wholesale privatisation is impossible and liberalisation has well-defined limits, as President Hu Jintao himself brutally reminds us. The party, he says, "takes a dominant role and coordinates all sectors. Party members and party organisations in government departments should be brought into full play so as to realise the party's leadership over state affairs". It may be true that party organisations in the provinces (some with populations bigger than Britain's) and in the chief cities are jealous of their autonomous local political control, but all retain the discretionary power to do what they choose and override any challenge or complaint from any non-state actor - or, indeed, from state actors if they cross the will of the party.
to read in full...
Myanmar leader in Singapore hospital
Can't imagine him being "hounded by pro-democracy protesters" in Happy Happy Singapore.
Sun 7 Jan 2007 8:43:32 GMT
By Sebastian Tong
Sun 7 Jan 2007 8:43:32 GMT
By Sebastian Tong
SINGAPORE, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Myanmar junta leader Than Shwe has been receiving treatment at one of Singapore's top public hospitals, according to an embassy employee who declined to give details of the leader's medical condition.
"He's at Singapore General Hospital," the employee, who declined to be identified, told Reuters on Friday.
One member of staff at Singapore General Hospital told Reuters on Sunday that Senior General Than Shwe, 73, had already been discharged and only his family remained at the hospital.
However, two Reuters journalists saw several security staff outside one ward on Sunday morning.
Speculation over Than Shwe's health intensified this week following news that he had flown to Singapore on Dec. 31 for medical treatment and reports that he had failed to attend Independence Day celebrations on Thursday for the first time since he seized power in 1992.
The Democratic Voice of Burma -- an Oslo-based media group monitoring the military-ruled country -- cited hospital sources saying that Than Shwe was being treated at the hospital for intestinal cancer.
One corridor at the hospital was closed off when a Reuters reporter and photographer visited on Sunday and Myanmar officials barred them from entering. Hospital security men detained the photographer and made him delete his photographs. A Singapore General Hospital spokeswoman declined comment.
The state of Than Shwe's health has been a source of intense speculation in the ultra-secretive country, which has been under military rule in various forms since 1962.
In 2005, rumours that he was gravely ill and had been ousted from power triggered frenzied gold buying in Yangon. The regime later accused foreign media of issuing slanderous reports.
Than Shwe made a number of inspection trips last month in the country formerly known as Burma, but he is known to shun foreign travel.
His last official trip abroad was a state visit to India in 2004 where he was hounded by pro-democracy protesters demanding the release of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
5 Jan 2007
Singapore's Prison Call Center
Catriona Wallace, director of the Australian website Callcentres.net visited a Singapore women's prison last year, a prison that does some call center outsourcing with the help of a company called Connect Centre.
As frequent readers of this blog know, prison call centers are a subject of particular fascination for us, so we read Wallace's account on her website's blog eagerly:"We were security checked and escorted by armed wardens to a call centre with greater than 50 seats which was totally behind bars and running on a smart technology platform supplied by a local Singaporean IT company, Innovax. The centre is an outsourced centre, established as part of a program to assist in the rehabilitation of inmates. We interviewed several agents working there and were totally impressed with their professionalism and dedication to the call centre job they had and to the industry. The call centre work is treated by inmates as a privilege and there is a very rigorous interview process for inmates to become agents."
What's interesting to me about this center is that unlike the typical American prison center, the focus is on inmate rehabilitation, not on cheap labor. When we've tried to interview UNICOR about their U.S. federal prison call center outsourcing program, we've been given the cold shoulder. As near as we can tell, it's because the companies that have contracts with UNICOR don't want their names associated with the taboo of prison labor.
To be sure, cheap labor is a big benefit, but what if UNICOR and some of its clients actually touted their prison workers? The former inmates I've spoken to have said that the work they did during their sentences was time well-spent -- it gave them purpose, pride, and (a rather small amount of) money. It also gave them valuable work experience that helped them reconnect with the world once they were released.
"It was great to see the contact centre industry being able to make a social contribution and all credit to the managers from Connect Centre who were also exceptional in their vision and dedication to this centre and its people," wrote Wallace in her blog.
A smart, public service-driven marketing campaign could turn a company's secret shame into a PR dream while helping turn convicts into tax-paying citizens again.
Posted by Harry Sheff on Thursday, January 4, 2007 at 12:15 PM
Related Article
Female prisoners work in call center behind bars in Singapore
The Death Penalty: the irony will slap you hard
Spotted someone throwing down the gauntlet at Sintercom.
The big news this week was of Saddam's final execution and of course the subsequent videos popping out to gratituously broadcast the event to our Instant Society. Normally such West-driven propaganda I ignore like the rest of the West-driven drivel, but this particular one really rackled my chain.
I present to you Charles Tan's essay on the Singapore Death Penalty, juxtaposed against the wonderfully humanitarian approach the US takes on the very same subject:
http://www.yawningbread.org/guest_2006/guw-126.htm
In it, Charles Tan eloquently regales against the barbarism of executions by hanging (or firing squad or other medieval methods like stoning) and how the United States is to be held up as the paragon of fairness and Justice.
I wonder if Saddam's execution slaps Charles Tan hard in the face like a salty wet fish on heat, since Saddam's heavily taunted and globally condemned execution by hanging, was formulated, motivated and finally applauded, by none other than the very nation he puts on a pedestal. Even hard-nosed and unwavering ally, the United Kingdom, eventually falters at the finish line, with lack of support and outright condemnation of the execution.
One could argue that the methods and courts presiding were Iraqi but that would be a weak challenge at best. At worst you'd be branded a simpleton.
4 Jan 2007
Than Shwe still in hospital
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Than Shwe still in hospital
Mizzima News ( www.mizzima.com)
Than Shwe still in hospital
Mizzima News ( www.mizzima.com)
January 4, 2007 - Burmese military junta supremo Senior General Than Shwe is still in a hospital in Singapore and is unable to return to Burma although his medical check-up was expected to take a day.
Than Shwe (73), was admitted to a special unit of the Singapore General Hospital late on Sunday.
However, an official source said his health condition "is quite normal".
He may not be able to attend the state Independence Day dinner function slated for tonight.
The ailing military leader's secret medical check-up has fuelled rumors of deferment of the quarterly military commanders meeting and early transfer of power to younger military leaders.
Than Shwe has been suffering chest pain possibly following a coronary vessel blockage a few months ago.
Members of the Burmese Embassy staff in Singapore were warned not to respond to media queries on the junta head's trip to Singapore. Interestingly, quite a few staff members were promoted today.
Trial of Singapore opposition leader postponed to Monday
Sun2Surf
SINGAPORE (Jan 4, 2007): The trial of Singapore's most vocal opposition leader for trying to leave the country without permission was postponed today for the second day in a row.
Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) chief Chee Soon Juan told Judge Aedit Abdullah that his new lawyer is tied up in cases this week.
Abdullah rescheduled the trial until Monday. It had been rescheduled yesterday until today after Chee said he and Dodwell had only been able to communicate via e-mail and were unable to go through the specifics of the trial.
Chee, 44, is charged with attempting to leave the city-state last April without the official approval he needs as a bankrupt. He was stopped at Changi Airport trying to board a flight bound for Istanbul, Turkey, where he planned to attend the World Movement for Democracy meeting.
He was declared a bankrupt last year for failing to pay S$500,000 (US$331,000) in damages to Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and Singapore's founding father Lee Kuan Yew for defaming them during the 2001 general election.
Chee, who emerged from jail two weeks ago, faces a fine of S$5,000 (US$3,311), jail for up to one year, or both if convicted in the current case.
Chee Siok Chin, his sister, said he was "feeling well" after being treated in the prison ward of Changi General Hospital during his recent confinement.
He had opted to go to jail instead of paying a S$5,000 (US$3,265) fine after he was convicted in November for speaking in public without a permit last April in the run-up to the general election.
After bouts of vomiting in prison and stomach pains, the SDP said he was moved to the hospital. Altogether, he was confined for more than three weeks.
It was the fifth time in seven years that Chee went to jail instead of paying a fine.
Both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have criticised the city-state for strictly limiting speech to muzzle its critics. - dpa
3 Jan 2007
We are all collaborators now
Yawning Bread starts January 2007 on a high note in terms of insight and journalistic integrity. The entire article can be accessed here and below are a few extracts that I feel contain many truths.
[...]Another example would be the onus placed on webmasters to police the chatrooms, forums and comment trails of their websites. While the government does have a small crew that trawls through the internet for what they deem as offensive content, mostly they depend on complaints from the public. If any posting has breached any of our numerous laws that proscribe racial and religious hate speech, sexual language and images, defamation (very low threshold here when it comes to political leaders' egos) or "election advertising", then unless the webmaster has taken prompt action to remove such postings, he will be just as guilty as the original offender. If the offender is anonymous and untraceable, then the webmaster alone will have to face the music.
Of course, this is not unique to Singapore. Many other countries rely on similar mechanisms of getting the proprietors to police their own turf, and holding them accountable under the law. Nor is it unreasonable.
However, what we should be watchful about is the abuse of this mechanism that arises from Singapore's democratic deficit. While the ban on smoking is well-justified in the public health interest, what if other laws serve partisan or illiberal purposes? Private citizens would then be compelled by law to act as agents for these aims.
Compelled to serve the government's interest
I mentioned "election advertising" above. This is the law that forbids anyone from using the internet to promote any candidate or political party during an election campaign [3]. Singaporeans know full well that while the law may in theory be party-neutral, in practice, it favours the incumbent People's Action Party. Since all our mainstream media are government-controlled, barring the digital media from being a channel for opposing views handicaps the opposition. Thus, when webmasters are expected to implement the law, the government is, in an indirect way, making party helpers of us all.
[...]This illustrates a well-known axiom: that totalitarianism destroys our sense of humanity. People end up, whether for reward or self-preservation, as tools and agents of the state, doing things they might not, in good conscience, want to do, or equally often, refraining from doing what they rightfully feel they ought to do.
[...]If we couldn't stop the blatantly partisan creation of Group Representation Constituencies by law, if we couldn't stop the Newspaper and Printing Presses Act and the Broadcasting Act that put all print and broadcast media under the thumb of the government -- and foreign media too [6] -- what's to stop another law another day to make censors, informers and enforcers of us all?
1 Jan 2007
Head of Myanmar's junta hospitalized in Singapore
Jan 1, 2007, 6:58 GMT
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Yangon - Senior General Than Shwe, the head of Myanmar's ruling junta, departed Yangon for Singapore to receive treatment for an intestinal tumour, well-placed sources and media reports said Monday.
Than Shwe, 73 - who has led Myanmar's junta, the self-styled State Peace and Democracy Council, for the past 18 years - left Myanmar Sunday on a special flight arranged by businessman Tayza, according to the Myanmar-based Mizzima News agency.
A high-ranking government source said Than Shwe, ailing for the past year, was suffering from a tumour in his intestines.
His sickness could accelerate a power shift in Myanmar's military hierarchy with many speculating that Than Shwe might be replaced by General Shwe Mann, deemed his chosen successor.
General Maung Aye, the second highest ranking general in Myanmar, is said to lack political support in his bid to lead the junta.
Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962 when former strongman General Ne Win overthrew the elected government of Prime Minister U Nu and launched the country along its disastrous 'Burmese Way to Socialism.'
Ne Win resigned all political post in 1988 amid nationwide anti-military protests and passed power to a younger crop of military men who have lorded over the country for the past two decades.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
