17 July 2004 by Sinapan Samydorai
16 July 2004, more then 150 Indian migrant workers again protested peacefully to claim 4 to 6 months salaries owned by their employer. This is the second protest by workers from Wan Soon Construction to claim their salaries amounting to some $4000 to $6000.
28 June 2004 200 Indian Workers protest at Indian Embassy On 28 June 2004, the Indian migrant workers had also gathered to demand that the Indian Embassy assist them to claim the salary own to them.
Failed Negotiation
On 1st July 2004, the workers refused to accept the MOM negotiated $600 settlement that is only a fraction of what they are owed before they leave, plus a promise by the company to remit the rest later. According to the Ministry Of Manpower (MOM) terms of a deal negotiated with Wan Soon Constructionon on 25 May 2004 - the company was schedule to pay $600 to each workers. [Wan Soon's insurance company will pay $400, and the contractor's directors will pay $200 for each worker.] The negotiations failed because the MOM wanted to deal with each worker as an individual and try to break-up the group of Indian workers. Moreover, the workers are aware that the 118 who accepted the deal were given $400 and send home. The workers are requesting full payment of their salary.
The Labour Law
The foreign migrant workers from construction industry, unlike foreign domestic workers, are protected by the Employment Act. Yet Wan Soon construction company had managed not to pay the 400 workers for more then 4 months. How did this happen? Questions are being raised why the Ministry of Manpower had failed to notice this abuse for almost 4 months.
According to the labour law: "All salary, other than payment for overtime work, must be paid within 7 days after the end of the salary period. Salary for overtime work must be paid within 14 days after the end of the salary period." [Employment Act: Payment of Salary ]
Ministry of Manpower
What is worrying is that why MOM failed to intervene earlier to prevent such abuse from happening. The labour law says all workers must be paid at least once a month. Why did the supervisory mechanism fail? As employers are, frequently, sending back foreign workers with just few hundrend dollars when they owned each worker a few thousand dollars. Is this fair and just?
The Government collects from employers the foreign workers' levy as surety to make sure that the workers are paid which implies the authorities are responsible to ensure that workers are paid timely and regularly each month. Some employers, in fact, deduct the levy from the workers' salaries.
In June 2004, the MOM managed to send back home 118 workers with only $400. The 118 workers were part of the 400 workers who were owned 4 - 6 months salary by Wan Soon Construction. It leaves one to think that the MOM is in a rush to send the workers home instead of seeking a fair and just deal for the workers.
NTUC Migrant Workers Forum
In Singapore, there are more then 500,000 foreign workers with work permits. NTUC memberships is 425,000 of which about 17.5 per cent or 74,000 are foreign workers. But in the Shipbuilding sector, close to 70 per cent of the membership are foreign workers. In BATU, Building Construction and Timber Industries Employees' Union, membership is 22,000, of which 20 per cent are migrant workers from Bangladesh, China, India, and Myanmar. BATU settles the disputes on a group basis thus if the workers are still working they need not worry about the employer penalizing them for blowing the whistle on the company. In 2003, the NTUC set-up the Migrant Workers Forum of which Mr.Yeo Guat Kwang, also MP of Aljunied GRC, is the Chairperson.
In the case of Wan Soon Construction workers, the NTUC Migrant Workers forum solved the immediate needs of the workers for food and accomodation. The Forum coordinated with NTUC Fairprice to contribute food for the Indian workers. The Forum in liaison with the MOM has also mediated with the employer to ensure the migrant workers will continue to stay at their dormitory until their claim is settled. But the Forums role is not clear when it comes to the mediation process of the MOM in trying to solve the dispute of non payment of salary of migrant workers. Surely, the attempt by MOM to send home the workers with $400 - $600 is not fair. How will the Forum ensure the migrant workers receive a fair and just settlement?
Indian Migrant Workers
The remaining more then 200 workers are claiming their salaries and had also requested to work with other employers in the same industry. The Workers who registered their claims with the MOM will be issued with with special passes to remain in Singapore while their claims are being settled.
Since the first protest, on 28 June 2004, the remaining Indian migrant workers were at least given 3 meals a day thanks to the support from NTUC Migrant Workers Forum and the negotiating skill of MOM. Concern individuals, a temple and civil society groups, are also offering food or small amounts of cash so that the workers could buy food. Otherwise, this migrant workers will be starving in these rich and wealthy nation.
Wan Soon Construction
Wan Soon Construction chairman Mr.Alan Koh said to the press that he is taking the Housing Board to arbitration to claim losses. The HDB decided to pull the plug on Wan Soon Constructions multi-million-dollar projects in April. The company is downgraded to accept only contracts worth $30 mllion. Wan Soon construction is also facing more then 70 suits claiming about $6 mllion.
Mr.Koh claimed in news reports that 'All these workers' problems would not have surfaced if not for the wrongful termination by HDB' That is the reason his workers have not been paid for about 4 to 6 months. He had also said the unpaid wages will be settled later this week. As a good employer he wisely voiced that 'Workers' salary should always be the most important priority of all our debts.' If that is the case one wonders why the salary was not paid for 4 to 6 months. Why then negotiate with MOM to send his workers home with just $400? It is fair and just to return to the workers all their salaries.
The ThinkCentre
20 Jul 2004
Lee Hsien Loong's recent Taiwan visit was both unnecessary and ill timed
Singapore Review
Quite simply put, Lee Hsien Loong's recent Taiwan visit was both unnecessary and ill timed.
Political Analysts have agreed that sending a senior minister on a visit to Taiwan would equate to a slap in the face for China.Conventional wisdom dictates that in the conduct of cross border relations involving a super power like China, it is necessary to proceed with diplomacy and delicacy due to the sensitive nature of the matter. Instead, the matter was conducted with the trade mark arrogance typical of Singapore's Ruling Elite.
What made matters worse was the fact that Lee had the audacity to inform China of the visit. This was akin to waiving a red flag in front of a raging bull. What was the rationale behind such a move when the answer to the question was only all too evident?It also did not help that Lee's trip coincided with the Singapore Governments official confirmation that Lee would be Singapore's next Prime Minister.Even if a Taiwan visit was some how warranted, political analysts agree that it should have been carried out less conspicously and it would have been more appropriate for Lee to send a more junior Singapore government representative instead of making the trip personally. It would then have been far easier for China to turn the other cheek and remain "willfully blind" to the visit.Red Faced Singapore government officials and government owned media are still trying to cover up what can only be described as a diplomatic bungle of epic portions. In the days following Lee's Taiwan visit, the pro-government Singapore papers have published volumious reports defending Lee's visit.
China has remained unconvinced and has manifested its displeasure by cancelling various visits by Chinese officials to Singapore. It is evident that Diplomacy 101 was one of the essential elective courses that Lee skipped in his illustrious tertiary education. It is also certain that this unfortunate incident will remain unforgotten in Beijing's memory and will create ripples in China's cross border relations with Singapore.
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http://www.etaiwannews.com/Taiwan/2004/07/19/1090202371.htm
PRC to call off study plans in Singapore, report reveals
2004-07-19 /
Associated Press /
China, incensed at a recent visit by Singapore's incoming prime minister Lee Hsien Loong (§õÅãÀs) to Taiwan, appears to have delivered another slap on the wrist to the city-state as more than 120 mainland officials called off plans to study there, a report said yesterday. Plans for 126 Chinese officials to study managerial economics and public administration at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University have been put on hold, The Straits Times newspaper said. Lee, currently deputy prime minister, will take the country's top job, replacing incumbent Goh Chok Tong (§d§@´É) on August 12, the Singapore government said late Saturday. "We are waiting to see what happens next. But we will suspend the courses for now," Professor Eddie Kuo, the university's interim dean at the school of humanities and social sciences was quoted as saying. The reported rebuke is the fourth since Beijing denounced Lee's trip, saying the two countries' relationship "will, of course, be affected."
First, China's central bank chief, Zhou Xiaochuan, canceled a trip to Singapore to attend a central bankers' gathering here. Then, the lower-level mainland banking delegation that did come, snubbed a dinner hosted by Lee, who is also the head of Singapore's central bank and the finance minister. Later, authorities in Shanghai reportedly stopped a Singapore company from holding a trade fair in China's commercial capital.
Taiwan and China split amid civil war in 1949. Beijing still claims the self-governing island as Chinese territory, and has repeatedly threatened to take it by force. It routinely objects to visits there by other government's officials. Singapore initially described Lee's trip as "private and unofficial," and that he would be meeting "friends." But as official Chinese anger became clear, Singapore later defended the trip with a four-page statement, saying Lee, as prime minister, needed to understand "a potential flash point" in Asia. Largely ethnic-Chinese Singapore has assiduously courted Beijing as its commercial, diplomatic and military clout have grown in recent years.
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http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20040713-061131-2681r.htm
Beijing blasts Singapore over Taiwan visit
Washington Times
13 July 2004Beijing,
China, Jul. 13 (UPI) --
China warned Singapore Tuesday that the weekend visit of its deputy prime minister to Taiwan would adversely affect Sino-Singapore relations and exchanges.Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said Lee Hsien Loong's trip to Taiwan on July 10 "severely violates the commitments of the Singaporean government on adhering to the one-China policy, undermines the stability of the foundation of China-Singapore ties, and will inevitably have severe consequences for China-Singapore relations and bilateral cooperation."
Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China, cancelled a trip to Singapore because of the burgeoning diplomatic dispute. Zhang reaffirmed, "The Taiwan question is China's internal affair and we have never required or needed any countries or people to pass on messages across the Straits."Zhang refuted the notion that Lee's visit was a private one, saying, "Mr. Lee Hsien Loong has held senior positions in the Singaporean government for many years, so his capacity cannot be changed by a simple remark."When asked if China would recall its ambassador to Singapore Zhang said, "We are making further study and will take relevant measures according to the development of this issue."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200407/14/eng20040714_149462.html
Singapore could ruin bilateral ties:
China
China-Singapore relations will unavoidably suffer gravely from Singapore's incoming leader Lee Hsien Loong's just-concluded visit to Taiwan island, said a Foreign Ministry spokesperson.
Answering an inquiry at a news conference yesterday, Zhang Qiyue said Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister Lee's visit to Taiwan has severely violated Singapore's commitment to the one-China policy and damaged the political base between China and Singapore, she said. "Such a move will produce serious effects towards bilateral relations and co-operation, and the Singapore side should be responsible for all the damage," Zhang said.
As a result, Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the China central bank, has cancelled a trip to Singapore, where he had been scheduled to give a lecture, reports said. "The Taiwan question relates to the core interests of China," Zhang said. "China holds a persistent, formative and clear-cut position on this issue."
In response to a follow-up question over whether China plans to recall its ambassador from Singapore, the spokesperson said the Chinese side is considering relevant measures according to developments in the situation.
Reports said Lee flew to Taipei on Saturday and left yesterday for what officials described as a private visit, during which he met with island officials, including Taiwan leader Chen Shui-bian.
In response, Singapore reiterated on Monday that it adheres to the one-China policy, and does not support Taiwan's "independence," according to local press reports. Singapore officials have stressed that Lee's visit is "a private and unofficial visit" and does not in any way change the above-mentioned policy, nor does it represent any challenge to China's sovereignty or territorial integrity, reports said.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200407/13/eng20040713_149366.html
China central banker cuts Singapore trip
China's central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan has canceled a speech in Singapore scheduled for tomorrow (Wednesday), due to concerns of Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's visit to Taiwan.
On Sunday, the Chinese foreign ministry voiced dissatisfaction over the visit and said Singapore must take full responsibility for his trip. Singapore reiterated the city-state's backing for the `one-China Policy' and said it doesn't support Taiwan independence. It added that Lee Hsien Loong was making a private and unofficial visit to Taiwan to meet friends in his first trip to the island since 1992.
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Source: CRIhttp://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-07/11/content_1591063.htm
BEIJING, July 11 (Xinhuanet) --
China expressed strong dissatisfaction with and protest against the visit by Lee Hsien Loong, deputy prime minister of Singapore, to Taiwan, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue here Sunday.
The Singaporean side should take full responsibilities for results from the event, Zhang said.
Lee, neglecting China's repeated solemn representations, insisted on heading for Taiwan for a so-called unofficial visit on July 10.
Zhang said the Taiwan issue is directly related to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and the Chinese government firmly opposes official relations in any form between countries that have established diplomatic ties with China and the Taiwan authorities.
China expressed strong dissatisfaction with and protest against the visit by Lee Hsien Loong,deputy prime minister of Singapore,to Taiwan,said Chinese Foreign Minist ry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue here Sunday.
The Singaporean side should take full responsibilities for results from the event,Zhang said.Lee,neglecting China's repeated solemn representations,insisted on heading for Taiwan for a so-called unofficial visit on July 10.Zhang said the Taiwan issue is directly related to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and the Chinese government firmly opposes official relations in any form between countries that have established diplomatic ties with China and the Taiwan authorities.
The Singaporean leader hurts China's core interests,the political base between the two countries and the feeling of 1.3billion Chinese people,by heading for Taiwan under any excuse,said the spokeswoman.
19 Jul 2004
The Straits Jacket
Your future rulers have just been decided. The possibilty of a change in future governements being run by another political party in Singapore has just been ruled 'void'.
Lets not even pretend that the electorate decide who will rule them.
JULY 19, 2004
S'pore way of political succession here to stay
Ministers and MPs say Aug 12 handover will show system of peaceful leadership renewal has been proven to work
SINGAPORE will on Aug 12 demonstrate that it is possible for its government to plan for and carry out leadership renewal in a peaceful and orderly fashion not once but twice.
Ministers and Members of Parliament said this is the significance of the Istana ceremony at which Mr Lee Hsien Loong will be sworn in as the country's third prime minister.
The transition to a third generation of leaders in the same low-key, well-planned manner as happened 14 years ago, when Mr Goh Chok Tong became Prime Minister, will entrench the system put in place by Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew and the first-generation leaders.
It will show that the Singapore way of political succession is here to stay.
Among the MPs who highlighted this point was West Coast GRC MP S. Iswaran.
'We do it once, it's an isolated event. When we do it twice, and over a span of more than 35 years, we establish a certain commitment to a system which is good for the country,' he said.
Agreeing, Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Seng Han Thong said: 'The system has been proven to work and Singaporeans now view it as a tradition.'
Mr Chan Soo Sen, Minister of State (Education, Community Development and Sports), compared this state of affairs to the 'turmoil' that often accompanies generational change in other countries.
'Singapore's stability is its strength,' he said.
Several MPs also welcomed the way Mr Goh has fine-tuned the system established by SM Lee, by allowing MPs to either endorse the person that Cabinet ministers choose to lead the country or to put forward their own candidate.
MPs did so at a meeting in May, unanimously supporting Deputy Prime Minister Lee as their choice.
As for what they see as the key challenges facing Mr Lee and his team, most said yesterday that the No 1 issue would be to keep the economy growing even as competition for jobs and investments intensifies.
At the lower end, Singapore would face competition from huge countries like China and India, Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng said.
But even in higher-value-added sectors, it would have to compete against developed countries.
'So we have to be on our feet all the time and be nimble to adjust to all these challenges,' he said.
Mr Wong and Acting Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen also highlighted structural unemployment as a key concern.
Even though the economy is recovering, 'unemployment will continue to be a challenge' because some workers find it difficult to acquire new skills, Dr Ng said.
'We have to help this group join the economy,' he added.
Some labour MPs said a key task will be to assure lower-income Singaporeans that they will also have a share in the country's future growth. They are hoping that Mr Lee will make workers a key focus of his maiden speech.
Ministers and MPs alike interviewed said Mr Lee and his Cabinet would also need to find new ways to connect with a younger generation of Singaporeans, who have many more options than their parents ever did as to where they want to work and live.
Mr Wong observed that those born after Singapore gained independence in 1965 will form 'a very significant part of the electorate'.
'We have to continue to adapt and engage the young people so that they remain supportive of the Government,' he said.
Dr Ng described the challenge as one of getting this new generation of Singaporeans 'to gel and give them confidence'.
Ms Indranee Thurai Rajah of Tanjong Pagar GRC said the milestones were much clearer 40 years ago, when SM Lee and the old-guard ministers set out to transform Singapore from a Third World economy to a First World economy.
'The new PM's room for manoeuvring is far less because of the mature, developed economy and a population that is more sophisticated and better educated,' she said.
When asked about the future roles of Mr Goh and SM Lee, the MPs said they supported DPM Lee's decision to keep the two leaders in Cabinet.
Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed, Mayor of Northeast Community Development Council and Aljunied GRC MP, said their experience in international and regional affairs 'will provide the continuity and steady hand to strengthen the Cabinet'.
Mr Seng noted that in Mr Goh's 14 years as prime minister, he has extended Singapore's networking well beyond Asean to Europe, South Asia and even the Middle East.
'Now that we are competing globally, we really need someone like Mr Goh to help continue this kind of global networking,' he said.
Copyright @ 2004 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.
Lets not even pretend that the electorate decide who will rule them.
JULY 19, 2004
S'pore way of political succession here to stay
Ministers and MPs say Aug 12 handover will show system of peaceful leadership renewal has been proven to work
SINGAPORE will on Aug 12 demonstrate that it is possible for its government to plan for and carry out leadership renewal in a peaceful and orderly fashion not once but twice.
Ministers and Members of Parliament said this is the significance of the Istana ceremony at which Mr Lee Hsien Loong will be sworn in as the country's third prime minister.
The transition to a third generation of leaders in the same low-key, well-planned manner as happened 14 years ago, when Mr Goh Chok Tong became Prime Minister, will entrench the system put in place by Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew and the first-generation leaders.
It will show that the Singapore way of political succession is here to stay.
Among the MPs who highlighted this point was West Coast GRC MP S. Iswaran.
'We do it once, it's an isolated event. When we do it twice, and over a span of more than 35 years, we establish a certain commitment to a system which is good for the country,' he said.
Agreeing, Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Seng Han Thong said: 'The system has been proven to work and Singaporeans now view it as a tradition.'
Mr Chan Soo Sen, Minister of State (Education, Community Development and Sports), compared this state of affairs to the 'turmoil' that often accompanies generational change in other countries.
'Singapore's stability is its strength,' he said.
Several MPs also welcomed the way Mr Goh has fine-tuned the system established by SM Lee, by allowing MPs to either endorse the person that Cabinet ministers choose to lead the country or to put forward their own candidate.
MPs did so at a meeting in May, unanimously supporting Deputy Prime Minister Lee as their choice.
As for what they see as the key challenges facing Mr Lee and his team, most said yesterday that the No 1 issue would be to keep the economy growing even as competition for jobs and investments intensifies.
At the lower end, Singapore would face competition from huge countries like China and India, Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng said.
But even in higher-value-added sectors, it would have to compete against developed countries.
'So we have to be on our feet all the time and be nimble to adjust to all these challenges,' he said.
Mr Wong and Acting Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen also highlighted structural unemployment as a key concern.
Even though the economy is recovering, 'unemployment will continue to be a challenge' because some workers find it difficult to acquire new skills, Dr Ng said.
'We have to help this group join the economy,' he added.
Some labour MPs said a key task will be to assure lower-income Singaporeans that they will also have a share in the country's future growth. They are hoping that Mr Lee will make workers a key focus of his maiden speech.
Ministers and MPs alike interviewed said Mr Lee and his Cabinet would also need to find new ways to connect with a younger generation of Singaporeans, who have many more options than their parents ever did as to where they want to work and live.
Mr Wong observed that those born after Singapore gained independence in 1965 will form 'a very significant part of the electorate'.
'We have to continue to adapt and engage the young people so that they remain supportive of the Government,' he said.
Dr Ng described the challenge as one of getting this new generation of Singaporeans 'to gel and give them confidence'.
Ms Indranee Thurai Rajah of Tanjong Pagar GRC said the milestones were much clearer 40 years ago, when SM Lee and the old-guard ministers set out to transform Singapore from a Third World economy to a First World economy.
'The new PM's room for manoeuvring is far less because of the mature, developed economy and a population that is more sophisticated and better educated,' she said.
When asked about the future roles of Mr Goh and SM Lee, the MPs said they supported DPM Lee's decision to keep the two leaders in Cabinet.
Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed, Mayor of Northeast Community Development Council and Aljunied GRC MP, said their experience in international and regional affairs 'will provide the continuity and steady hand to strengthen the Cabinet'.
Mr Seng noted that in Mr Goh's 14 years as prime minister, he has extended Singapore's networking well beyond Asean to Europe, South Asia and even the Middle East.
'Now that we are competing globally, we really need someone like Mr Goh to help continue this kind of global networking,' he said.
Copyright @ 2004 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.
9 Jul 2004
More couples want out
Star, Malaysia
June 27, 2004
Insight: Down South
By SEAH CHIANG NEE
IN her early 40s, the Singaporean lady was well-bred and educated abroad. “After 20 years of giving my best as wife, mother and companion, he abandoned us to continue his adulterous flings in a nearby country,” she wrote in an Internet forum.
The inevitable outcome was divorce, a growing social epidemic in this modern, affluent city of 4.4 million.
Another case involved a wife giving up on her husband who had lost his job because of advanced cancer. The poorly educated woman couldn’t support or look after him.
A reader observed that during the past three months, he had heard five women filing for divorce. “All of them have had between 10 and 20 years of marriage and two or three children aged three to 10 years.”
The divorce rate in First World Singapore has reached a historical high; so has the number of Singaporeans emigrating abroad.
At the same time, marriage and birth rates are plunging as seriously as most developed countries. The number of HIV/AIDS cases, too, have hit a peak.
They are part of what Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew meant when he said his son would have to deal with a different set of problems and persuade a different generation of citizens.
Lee Hsien Loong will take over as prime minister soon.
Last year, 6561 couples divorced, a new record that has doubled the rate of 10 years ago. The number of marriages was 21,962 – down 5% from 2002.
This gives a divorce-marriage ratio of 3:10, still behind but catching up to America’s 5:10. Marriage problems involve family and personal choices, which are almost impossible for the government to intervene with laws.
The same applies to migrating Singaporeans.
The number of migrants to Australia, New Zealand and Canada rose by a third to 4016 last year from 3092 (2002). For the US, 2003 figures are not available but they totaled 991 in 2002, up 49% in two years.
In his days, Lee Senior did not have to cope with such issues. He had to deal with threats from the communists, racial extremists and organised crime against which he had to – as he described it – “put on the knuckle-duster”.
Today, his son can’t rely on tough measures to tackle some of Singapore’s social dilemmas, like cutting down on divorce or migration rates. Neither can he use legislation to force people to go into business or be creative.
Why are so many marriages breaking down?
From a broad perspective, it is due to Singapore’s progress and affluence. It’s not possible to become a First World country without inheriting some of its social diseases.
A low marriage and birth rate, more divorces and a better-educated workforce leaving for greener pastures abroad are all part of it and knuckle-dusters can’t help.
In addition, some Singaporean in-bred traits contribute to break-ups, like being self-centred, ambitious and materialistic.
One online message offers this explanation: “People feel the need to devote more time to career than family; thus they marry but do not plan to have children.
“In a marriage, children bond the couple together as they see the children as the seeds of their love.
“Without children, couples don't feel very linked emotionally. To them, marriage is just a piece of paper that can be violated at will. Thus, people will have a tendency to flirt around, resulting in break-ups.”
Others attribute it to more opportunities for a promiscuous lifestyle because of the influx of foreign ladies, but women’s rights supporters say this is a chauvinistic excuse.
Women initiate 60% of the break-ups, mostly because of their wayward or financially irresponsible spouses.
It even affects some Westerners. One expatriate wrote: “The temptations that are here simply do not exist in many places in Europe and the US. Many expats who lived a routine existence there come to Asia and go nuts.”
The sexual distraction is just one cause but a growing one. The larger reason lies in the character of the new generation of Singaporeans themselves.
Spoiled by servants or parents, many are just hopeless at looking after themselves or doing housework.
The men think it’s women’s work, while many ladies can’t cook and refuse to clean or wash up, relying on servants. Each expects too much of the other.
Among maid-less couples, friction often rises over responsibilities of housework and is made worse when a baby arrives.
Many men are over-dependent on the wife to care for the home and child, regarding it as her duty – even when she has a full-time job.
This results in a lot of finger pointing. Singaporean women who marry Westerners say their spouses are fairer and more responsible with housework.
On the flip side, some men prefer to marry women from neighbouring countries, particularly Malaysia, China or Vietnam, saying they are less demanding, more feminine and less materialistic.
The clashing personalities of two strong-minded beings highly educated sometimes arrogant and self-centred, make marriage a more stressful proposition.
A tabloid paper last week featured a couple whose marriage lasted only three months. They were junior college classmates who had dated for 10 years.
More women above 50 are also filing for divorce. They are often less educated and more dependent on their husbands for support.
After many years of what they feel is unfair or abusive treatment, they are now calling it quits – with the support of their grown-up children.
Ask most men, and they’ll say it is due to the emergence of the New Singapore Woman and her rising demand of the men folk. And that includes sex.
In the previous generation, sex was viewed as something that men enjoyed and women tolerated. No more. A newspaper reported that women here had a popular concept that Singaporean men were “insensitive, childish, chauvinistic and molly-coddled”.
The men’s magazine FHM quoted a global sexual survey in which Singaporean men were given a paltry 5.1 points out of 10 by their female partners in terms of sexual performance. This was two points below the international average.
Singapore men, on the other hand, rated women 7.2 points out of 10, which is right on the global average. It’s possible that the Singaporean males may be taking women for granted.
Seah Chiang Nee is a veteran journalist and editor of the information website littlespeck.com (e-mail: cnseah2000@ littlespeck.com )
Potential dangers of accepting future posts in Singapore
"Peter Sever of Imperial College London said the UK Royal College of Physicians "should consider advising its members of the potential dangers of accepting future posts in Singapore" because of a "lack of fairness" that "can impact upon an individual's professional reputation".
http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1087373586066
Medical group tells doctors not to work in Singapore
By John Burton in Singapore
Published: July 8 2004 17:14 | Last Updated: July 8 2004 17:49
A medical watchdog group has suggested that foreign doctors should
not work in Singapore following an ethics dispute between a UK
medical researcher and the scientist daughter of Lee Kuan Yew, the
city-state's senior politician.
The recommendation by the UK-based Medical Protection Society (MPS), which provides advice to doctors facing legal problems arising from clinical practice in more than 40 countries, could set back efforts by Singapore to attract medical researchers in its goal to become a leading global biomedical centre.
The case concerned Simon Shorvon, who served as director of
Singapore's National Neuroscience Institute (NNI) until he was
dismissed in April 2003 for allegedly testing 127 patients without
their consent. The testing was carried out as part of a research
project on Parkinson's disease and other neurological conditions.
The allegations were brought to the attention of Singapore's health authorities by Lee Wei Ling, Mr Lee's daughter, who resigned from the project and was appointed to succeed Dr Shorvon as NNI director at the start of this year.
In a sharply worded statement, MPS criticised a report by the
National Healthcare Group, NNI's parent, that led to the dismissal of Dr Shorvon, who works as a professor at the UK's Institute of
Neurology.
Two experts appointed by the MPS said they "fully supported" Dr
Shorvon's actions.
"I can see no evidence that Dr Shorvon has behaved inappropriately or unethically," said Niall Quinn of University College London and an authority on Parkinson's disease research.
He described the inquiry report as "appallingly slanted" and its
contents were "utterly disproportionate to the reality of the events reported".
Peter Sever of Imperial College London said the UK Royal College of Physicians "should consider advising its members of the potential dangers of accepting future posts in Singapore" because of a "lack of fairness" that "can impact upon an individual's professional reputation".
"I find the accusation nothing short of absurd. It is hard to avoid the conclusion that Dr Shorvon fell victim to internal power
struggles and personal vendettas," said David Goldstein, a geneticist at the University College London, who worked on Dr Shorvon's research team in Singapore.
In an interview with the Singapore Straits Times in January, Dr Lee rejected allegations by "detractors" that she had acted against Dr Shorvon to take over his post.
"They must be completely uninformed about the seriousness of
Shorvon's misdeeds and about my character and goals in life.
"I would have preferred someone else who is competent, dedicated and willing to do the job" as NNI director, she said.
She also accused Dr Shorvon of causing rifts in NNI "using the very effective British colonial method of 'divide and rule'."
The health ministry's Singapore Medical Council held a 10-day hearing on Dr Shorvon in February 2004 and noted he refused to take part in the proceedings on the advice of MPS, which also did not submit its review of the case.
Dr Shorvon said he did not appear since he was not on the Singapore Medical Register and that the SMC had no jurisdiction to hear the case as a result.
The council said that all of the 30 charges of professional
misconduct against Dr Shorvon had been "proven beyond a reasonable
doubt" during the disciplinary hearings. Dr Shorvon has asked the
General Medical Council in the UK to review the allegations.
Revulsion Over Death Penalty Growing
Report Says Revulsion Over Death Penalty Growing by
Don Hill for RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY (RFE/RL).
Prague, 23 June 2004 (RFE/RL) -- A Rome-based international anti-death penalty group says revulsion against state-mandated killings is spreading worldwide.
In its annual report issued today, the group -- called Hands Off Cain -- says that a worldwide campaign in recent years against the death penalty is working. It says capital punishment, for the most part, is now a tool primarily of dictators.
The group's executive director, Elizabetta Zamparutti,tells our correspondent in a telephone interview fromRome that death penalty abolition is a function of liberal democracy.
"The problem of the executions is mainly a problem for dictatorial and illiberal countries, because in these kinds of countries we have seen that at least 98 percent of the world total of executions are carried out," Zamparutti says.
She continues, "This means that the campaign for the abolition of the death penalty is, first of all, a campaign for improving democracy all over the world."
The report, which covers last year, says that the greatest number of state-sanctioned executions was in China with 5,000 killings -- 89 percent of the world total. Nations responsible for most of the remainingexecutions were Iran, with at least 145, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Singapore, Sudan, and the United States.
Even in the United States, where 65 executions were carried out last year, Zamparutti notes there were decreases in the number of death sentences handed down, in the number of people on death row, and in actual executions.
Hands Off Cain was founded at the European Parliament in Brussels in 1993 and began that year a campaign to abolish capital punishment worldwide. Its immediate goal is to persuade the UN General Assembly to declare a moratorium on executions.
Since its first effort in 1994 to win a European Union moratorium declaration, the group claims as victories European Union-wide capital punishment abolition and repeated anti-death penalty resolutions by the UN Commission on Human Rights.
The group takes its name from the biblical story ofGenesis, in which God put a mark on Cain so that anyone finding him would know not to kill him. Cain, as the story goes, had murdered his brother.
The report says 133 nations around the world have made official decisions not to use the death penalty.
Zamparutti says the picture actually is brighter than that.
"And countries that retain the death penalty are 63, and not all of these put people to death regularly. In fact, in 2003, only 29 retentionist countries carried out executions," Zamparutti says.
Hands On Cain says the value of a UN General Assembly-declared moratorium is that it would give states that still retain the death penalty an opportunity to educate their citizens about the idea of a new human right -- as the group puts it, the right "not to be killed" under the law.
(More information is available at:
http://www.handsoffcain.org)
Don Hill has been a Prague-based RFE/RL editor and
correspondent since the radios moved their operations
to Prague in 1995.
8 Jul 2004
Opposition leader wages lonely campaign
Agence France Presse
June 30, 2004
WASHINGTON
JAILED thrice at home for speaking in public without a licence, Singapore opposition leader Chee Soon Juan pounces on any opportunity in the United States to criticise the human rights record and lack of western-style freedom in his highly-developed home country.
On a five-month fellowship stint with the US National Endowment for Democracy, a non-profit private group, Chee needled a red-faced Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong on a local political issue at a public forum while the leader was on a visit to Washington last month.
Much to the embarrassment of the host, the Council on Foreign Relations, an irritated Goh flatly refused to answer Chee's charge at the forum that his government was marginalizing minority Muslim Malays in Singapore.
At another public forum on the role of America in Asia, Chee asked Singapore's ambassador-at-large Tommy Koh how the United States could help promote press freedom in Singapore.
Since he came to Washington in March, the 49-year-old Singapore Democratic Party chief walks the corridors of the US Congress pressing for democratic reforms in the tiny but wealthy Southeast Asian island nation, where the ruling People's Action Party makes no bones about its conviction that full-blown western-style liberal democracy is not suited for Singaporeans.
Chee said he was fighting an uphill battle at home and abroad trying to convince people of the need for democratic reforms in the city state.
"I find it tremendously difficult to get Singapore on the radar screens of governments or NGOs because of some myths that had developed about Singapore to be regarded as a model of success by developing nations," said the US-trained neuropsychologist.
"Hong Kong, China, the Middle East and Indonesia are all beginning to cite Singapore as some kind of a model but my message to them is: be careful," he said at a public forum entitled "Singapore: Asia's Standard-Bearer for Authoritarianism?" organized by the New American Foundation, which encourages research on various issues.
Chee cited a letter Goh wrote to him rejecting his request for government funds to run a centre promoting democracy.
Referring to a survey by Berlin-based financial watchdog Transparency International, Goh, according to Chee, said in the letter that Singapore was already widely recognised as an open society which practised transparency and democratic accountability.
"This is a myth," Chee said, complaining that public money, including the state-run pension fund, was invested by the government with little transparency and "the use of the death penalty is shrouded in secrecy."
Amnesty International says Singapore is believed to have carried out the highest number of executions per capita in the world since 1994.
Chee also questioned Goh's assertion on democratic accountability in Singapore, saying the country arbitrarily arrested and threw people in jail indefinitely without trial under the draconian Internal Security Act.
"When you talk about democratic accountability, you must at least have freedom of speech. No protests, no public speeches are allowed without a permit," he said.
Chee has been jailed three times briefly after he tested the government by speaking in public without applying for a permit.
He said in terms of media freedom, a 2000 survey by the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders group showed Singapore 144th among a list of 166 countries, ranking even lower than Zimbabwe.
On the judiciary, he said the respected International Commission for Jurists had stated that the Singapore leadership had used defamation proceedings to silence opponents and seriously undermined the rule of law.
In 2002, Chee was found guilty of defaming Premier Goh and Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew over questions he raised during the 2001 general elections concerning what he claimed was Singapore government's 10-billion-dollar loan to Indonesia in 1997.
Goh and Lee said the loan was never disbursed and claimed damages, saying Chee's allegations implied they were dishonest.
Chee could be disqualified from running in the next election in 2006 if he loses his appeal.
The High Court last year rejected his appeal for a court trial in the defamation case and he was ordered to pay unspecified damages.
Chee said the United States, a key ally of Singapore, should use its influence to prod the city state to be more open.
7 Jul 2004
Opposition: Singapore democracy 'a myth'
July 01, 2004
http://www.washtimes.com/upi-breaking/20040630-120235-5420r.htm
Opposition: Singapore democracy 'a myth'
By Hannah K. Strange
United Press International
Washington, DC, Jun. 30 (UPI) -- Singapore has long been touted as a shining model of efficiency and progress for developing countries.
Yet democracy is a myth even though this tiny city-nation may be the financial success story of Southeast Asia, according to opposition leader Chee Soon Juan.
Juan, secretary-general of the Singapore Democratic Party, who was
speaking Tuesday at a forum hosted by the New America Foundation, a Washington-based think tank, is currently being sued by senior
minister Lee Kuan Yew for defamation.
During the 2001 general election, Juan asked, in public and without a permit, of the whereabouts of $10 billion of the taxpayers' money, allegedly lent to Indonesia's Suharto regime in 1997. The senior minister and Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong immediately filed a lawsuit, accusing him of implying dishonesty in governmental dealings.
Unable to find a willing lawyer, Juan was forced to represent
himself. However, he was not required to go to trial. The plaintiffs applied for a summary judgment and were awarded the case, with damages of $500,000, without ever going to court. The payment will bankrupt him, he said. Those with bankruptcies cannot run for public office.
Such lawsuits are "the stuff of legend" in Singapore, according to
Juan. In 1997 defamation suits were filed against veteran opposition leader Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam, who in 1981 had broken 16 years of one-party rule by getting elected to Parliament as a representative of the Worker's Party.
Jeyaretnam, said Lee Kuan Yew in 1986, had to be politically "destroyed" for his opposition to the system. He was
finally declared bankrupt in 2001 after a series of court actions
spanning 15 years. As such, he was expelled from Parliament, barred from practicing as a lawyer, running in elections or taking any active part in campaigns.
Singaporeans live with the understanding, said Juan, that "anything that resembles any kind of growing resistance will be very quickly taken care of." The country has flexible libel laws and a judiciary that, according to a recent U.S. State Department report, has a questionable relationship with the ruling People's Action Party.
These laws set the conditions for what Amnesty International called in a statement three years ago "politically motivated libel actions further restricting peaceful political activity and eroding the right to free speech."
Acting as a further deterrent to dissent, said Amnesty, is the
knowledge that no opposition leader or activist has ever successfully defended themselves against the PAP.
Journalists, as well as politicians, are subject to enforced silence. In Singapore, according to a country report by the Committee to Protect Journalists, "State control of the media is so complete that few dare challenge the system and there is no longer much need for the ruling party to arrest or harass journalists." Both broadcast and print media are dominated by companies either owned by or with close ties to the state.
Even foreign correspondents, said the Committee, "have learned to be cautious when reporting on Singapore." The International Herald
Tribune, Bloomberg News, the Economist, Time and the Asian Wall
Street Journal are just a few who have faced defamation actions
brought by the PAP.
This year in reports, Amnesty has also expressed concern with
detentions, torture and ill treatment in Singapore, a country with
the highest rate of execution in the world, three times higher than the next nation on the list, Saudi Arabia.
Detention without charge is prevalent under the Internal Security
Act, and has been utilized against many opposition leaders, said
Juan, including Chia Thye Poh, an opposition MP with the Socialist
Front who was imprisoned for 32 years without charge. Poh was finally released in 1998.
Singapore -- a country which Electionworld calls a "pseudo-
democracy" -- does have parliamentary and presidential elections
every four years. However, many international organizations,
including the U.S. State Department, have expressed concern regarding their conduct. The PAP, says the State Department, "has used the government's extensive powers to place formidable obstacles in the path of political opponents," and maintains political dominance "in part by manipulating the electoral framework."
In a country report on human rights it cites the 2001 practice of
drastically altering the borders of constituencies just 17 days
before the election. In 1997 and 2001, the PAP threatened the
electorate -- 86 percent of whom live in government housing -- that those who voted for the opposition would not receive funds for the upgrading of their estates. For the last presidential election in 1999, only one candidate was finally declared eligible. There is no independent election commission.
The opposition, said Juan, "just want a voice." He calls for "genuine free and fair elections" and a free media -- "a system where you can get a genuine assessment of what people want." Wednesday he was to meet at the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington, where he is a visiting fellow, with Lorne Kraner, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor. He plans to ask for greater public awareness, support of NGOs and pressure from the U.S. government, whose ties with Singapore have warmed in recent years due to the government's support for the "war on terror."
"There are a lot of issues, particularly with freedom of speech and political dissent," a State Department official said. Meeting with opposition leaders, he said, informed the State Department "which issues we should be pressing." Action, he said, was "mostly bilateral" and substantial programs or public efforts are absent. "We have a good relationship with Singapore," he said, "but at the same time we do still actively engage. ... We are outlining what we think the issues are."
A spokesperson from the Embassy of the Republic of Singapore in
Washington declined to comment for this story.
http://www.washtimes.com/upi-breaking/20040630-120235-5420r.htm
Opposition: Singapore democracy 'a myth'
By Hannah K. Strange
United Press International
Washington, DC, Jun. 30 (UPI) -- Singapore has long been touted as a shining model of efficiency and progress for developing countries.
Yet democracy is a myth even though this tiny city-nation may be the financial success story of Southeast Asia, according to opposition leader Chee Soon Juan.
Juan, secretary-general of the Singapore Democratic Party, who was
speaking Tuesday at a forum hosted by the New America Foundation, a Washington-based think tank, is currently being sued by senior
minister Lee Kuan Yew for defamation.
During the 2001 general election, Juan asked, in public and without a permit, of the whereabouts of $10 billion of the taxpayers' money, allegedly lent to Indonesia's Suharto regime in 1997. The senior minister and Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong immediately filed a lawsuit, accusing him of implying dishonesty in governmental dealings.
Unable to find a willing lawyer, Juan was forced to represent
himself. However, he was not required to go to trial. The plaintiffs applied for a summary judgment and were awarded the case, with damages of $500,000, without ever going to court. The payment will bankrupt him, he said. Those with bankruptcies cannot run for public office.
Such lawsuits are "the stuff of legend" in Singapore, according to
Juan. In 1997 defamation suits were filed against veteran opposition leader Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam, who in 1981 had broken 16 years of one-party rule by getting elected to Parliament as a representative of the Worker's Party.
Jeyaretnam, said Lee Kuan Yew in 1986, had to be politically "destroyed" for his opposition to the system. He was
finally declared bankrupt in 2001 after a series of court actions
spanning 15 years. As such, he was expelled from Parliament, barred from practicing as a lawyer, running in elections or taking any active part in campaigns.
Singaporeans live with the understanding, said Juan, that "anything that resembles any kind of growing resistance will be very quickly taken care of." The country has flexible libel laws and a judiciary that, according to a recent U.S. State Department report, has a questionable relationship with the ruling People's Action Party.
These laws set the conditions for what Amnesty International called in a statement three years ago "politically motivated libel actions further restricting peaceful political activity and eroding the right to free speech."
Acting as a further deterrent to dissent, said Amnesty, is the
knowledge that no opposition leader or activist has ever successfully defended themselves against the PAP.
Journalists, as well as politicians, are subject to enforced silence. In Singapore, according to a country report by the Committee to Protect Journalists, "State control of the media is so complete that few dare challenge the system and there is no longer much need for the ruling party to arrest or harass journalists." Both broadcast and print media are dominated by companies either owned by or with close ties to the state.
Even foreign correspondents, said the Committee, "have learned to be cautious when reporting on Singapore." The International Herald
Tribune, Bloomberg News, the Economist, Time and the Asian Wall
Street Journal are just a few who have faced defamation actions
brought by the PAP.
This year in reports, Amnesty has also expressed concern with
detentions, torture and ill treatment in Singapore, a country with
the highest rate of execution in the world, three times higher than the next nation on the list, Saudi Arabia.
Detention without charge is prevalent under the Internal Security
Act, and has been utilized against many opposition leaders, said
Juan, including Chia Thye Poh, an opposition MP with the Socialist
Front who was imprisoned for 32 years without charge. Poh was finally released in 1998.
Singapore -- a country which Electionworld calls a "pseudo-
democracy" -- does have parliamentary and presidential elections
every four years. However, many international organizations,
including the U.S. State Department, have expressed concern regarding their conduct. The PAP, says the State Department, "has used the government's extensive powers to place formidable obstacles in the path of political opponents," and maintains political dominance "in part by manipulating the electoral framework."
In a country report on human rights it cites the 2001 practice of
drastically altering the borders of constituencies just 17 days
before the election. In 1997 and 2001, the PAP threatened the
electorate -- 86 percent of whom live in government housing -- that those who voted for the opposition would not receive funds for the upgrading of their estates. For the last presidential election in 1999, only one candidate was finally declared eligible. There is no independent election commission.
The opposition, said Juan, "just want a voice." He calls for "genuine free and fair elections" and a free media -- "a system where you can get a genuine assessment of what people want." Wednesday he was to meet at the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington, where he is a visiting fellow, with Lorne Kraner, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor. He plans to ask for greater public awareness, support of NGOs and pressure from the U.S. government, whose ties with Singapore have warmed in recent years due to the government's support for the "war on terror."
"There are a lot of issues, particularly with freedom of speech and political dissent," a State Department official said. Meeting with opposition leaders, he said, informed the State Department "which issues we should be pressing." Action, he said, was "mostly bilateral" and substantial programs or public efforts are absent. "We have a good relationship with Singapore," he said, "but at the same time we do still actively engage. ... We are outlining what we think the issues are."
A spokesperson from the Embassy of the Republic of Singapore in
Washington declined to comment for this story.
5 Jul 2004
Singapore Said Facing Rise in Unemployment
Associated Press
Singapore Said Facing Rise in Unemployment
07.04.2004, 02:06 AM
Wealthy, high-tech Singapore faces a serious and growing problem of structural unemployment as older and less-educated workers struggle to find work, says a senior union leader, who is also a government minister.
"The new jobs that are coming onto the market, coming with new investments entering Singapore, are not suitable for workers, the older workers .... who are less technically savvy," said Matthias Yao, Deputy Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress, or NTUC.
Structural unemployment refers to those who can't find work because they don't have the skills. It affects most modern economies to some extent.
"There is going to be a lot of structural unemployment, and it is going to grow," Yao, who is also a senior minister of state in the Prime Minister's Office, told The Associated Press in an interview late last week.
Singapore has been more successful than many of its Southeast Asian neighbors at promoting growth - but Yao's warning reflects official concern over the possible emergence of a group of less-educated "have-nots."
Singapore's union movement has close ties to the long-ruling People's Action Party government. Unionists are sometimes ruling-party members of Parliament. The NTUC head usually holds a Cabinet post.
The country's jobless rate for March, the latest figure available, was 4.5 percent - a high level in a society accustomed to extremely low unemployment.
The long-term jobless rate - those without work for at least 25 weeks - was 1.5 percent. The indicator, a useful proxy for structural unemployment, has climbed fivefold from 0.3 percent a decade ago.
Yao, who spent several years as a political adviser to Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, said older workers need to be retrained - possibly in service jobs to meet the needs of highly trained, high-tech workers.
Singapore's government has been aggressively trying to develop high-tech industries such as biotechnology in an attempt to promote growth.
The island of 4 million people, which has long enjoyed one of the world's highest standards of living, faces competition in its manufacturing sector from other Asian countries such as China, where development is booming but wages remain relatively low.
Yao said unions - and the government - were also pressing companies to make their pay systems more flexible so monthly wages and annual bonuses can be swiftly adjusted to reflect changes in the economic climate.
"We have gone through several recessions, and we have found that if wages are not flexible enough, companies will take the easier way out to manage their manpower costs, which is to retrench people," he said.
Singapore Said Facing Rise in Unemployment
07.04.2004, 02:06 AM
Wealthy, high-tech Singapore faces a serious and growing problem of structural unemployment as older and less-educated workers struggle to find work, says a senior union leader, who is also a government minister.
"The new jobs that are coming onto the market, coming with new investments entering Singapore, are not suitable for workers, the older workers .... who are less technically savvy," said Matthias Yao, Deputy Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress, or NTUC.
Structural unemployment refers to those who can't find work because they don't have the skills. It affects most modern economies to some extent.
"There is going to be a lot of structural unemployment, and it is going to grow," Yao, who is also a senior minister of state in the Prime Minister's Office, told The Associated Press in an interview late last week.
Singapore has been more successful than many of its Southeast Asian neighbors at promoting growth - but Yao's warning reflects official concern over the possible emergence of a group of less-educated "have-nots."
Singapore's union movement has close ties to the long-ruling People's Action Party government. Unionists are sometimes ruling-party members of Parliament. The NTUC head usually holds a Cabinet post.
The country's jobless rate for March, the latest figure available, was 4.5 percent - a high level in a society accustomed to extremely low unemployment.
The long-term jobless rate - those without work for at least 25 weeks - was 1.5 percent. The indicator, a useful proxy for structural unemployment, has climbed fivefold from 0.3 percent a decade ago.
Yao, who spent several years as a political adviser to Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, said older workers need to be retrained - possibly in service jobs to meet the needs of highly trained, high-tech workers.
Singapore's government has been aggressively trying to develop high-tech industries such as biotechnology in an attempt to promote growth.
The island of 4 million people, which has long enjoyed one of the world's highest standards of living, faces competition in its manufacturing sector from other Asian countries such as China, where development is booming but wages remain relatively low.
Yao said unions - and the government - were also pressing companies to make their pay systems more flexible so monthly wages and annual bonuses can be swiftly adjusted to reflect changes in the economic climate.
"We have gone through several recessions, and we have found that if wages are not flexible enough, companies will take the easier way out to manage their manpower costs, which is to retrench people," he said.
Singapore slings a little caution to the wind
Andrew Harding
BBC correspondent, Singapore
The people of Singapore are used to doing exactly what they are told.
But the reins of the nanny state are relaxing... ever so slightly.
The man on stage was singing a song about hamsters. It was, shall we say, a bawdy song. The animal welfare officers would not have approved. Nor, you might have thought, would the government of Singapore. After all, this is the great nanny state, the place where Playboy is banned, jay-walking is almost unthinkable... and where nanny is not known for her risqué sense of humour.
And yet, the songs continued.
There was one about a sheep and another about Jesus - neither exactly tasteful. The audience in the beautiful, government-funded theatre, roared with laughter. I looked around me in the dark - a well-dressed couple were still giggling about the sheep. Could it be that Singapore is starting to loosen up?
Western influence
Tiger Lily - the group singing the songs - was British, not local. But that is not the point. In the past, the state has sought to shield Singapore from all potentially corrupting influences like chewing gum, and Cosmopolitan magazine, and Sex in the City.
But today, the authorities are beginning to invite them in.
Five minutes walk from where I am sitting now, the walls of the Singapore Art Museum are plastered with pictures of glistening flesh, apparently sprayed with every imaginable bodily fluid.
The exhibition, by the high-camp French duo, Pierre and Gilles, was even opened by a government minister.
Then there is the chewing gum ban - the one fact everyone seems to know about this small, immaculate country. It is still in force and you can go to jail for importing it illegally.
But if you are determined to chew, you can now register and get medicinal gum at a pharmacy.
It is not exactly revolutionary, but in a cautious way the authorities are experimenting with change - cultural change, not political.
Like clockwork
It is a strange feeling for me, coming to such a meticulously governed country after 13 years in the former Soviet Union and Africa.
A small notice from the proprietors of the restaurant warned customers that they will be fined if they are greedy
I have just moved here from Kenya, where rules and regulations are usually treated like casual suggestions, or obstacles to be avoided.
In Singapore everything just works. My rubbish gets collected from the house every morning and the plumber calls to apologise if he is running 15 minutes late. A pothole would probably make the evening news.
And then there are the rules...
The other night I sat in a restaurant on Orchard Road, picking plates of sushi off the miniature carousels winding round the room.
On the wall in front of me, there was a small notice from the proprietors warning customers that they would be fined if they were greedy and took more plates than they could actually eat.
Singaporeans are used to being told what to do... and obeying. It is part of the deal.
Sing-along-a-protest
In the course of a few brisk decades, the ruling party has built them a clean, air-conditioned consumer paradise out of a tiny patch of jungle.
In return, the population is expected to forgo a few personal freedoms like gum, and true multi-party democracy.
Most people are happy with the deal, and why not? It has brought them one of the highest standards of living in the world.
But a few are starting to grumble... politely.
Thank you to the censor... the scenes you're chopping
Royston Tan has been doing his grumbling in a big white rabbit suit to the sound of Abba songs. He is an award-winning film-maker; a 28-year-old, whose recent gangster movie - 15 - sought to show that there is a seamier side to life here. The authorities were not amused. The censorship board insisted on substantial cuts to the film and its sound track.
I met up with Royston a few days ago. He was wearing a big smile and a T-shirt with the words "disco sucks". He chuckled as he explained how he had hit back against the censors.
His chosen weapon - a musical.
He and some of Singapore's best-known artists joined together to produce Cut, a blast of manic satire about a film-buff bumping into the chief censor in a supermarket, and raving enthusiastically about her work.
The chorus joins in Abba-style, with songs like "Thank you to the censor.. the scenes you're chopping."
Royston makes his cameo appearance in the rabbit suit, singing along to a George Michael tune.
So, I asked, did the Singapore authorities appreciate Cut?
Royston smiles again and shakes his head. "But things are changing fast here," he says. "Not long ago, no-one would have dared to have made a film like this."
What is more, the censors approved it... uncut.
From Our Own Correspondent was broadcast on Saturday, 3 July, 2004 at 1130 BST on BBC Radio 4. Please check the programme schedules for World Service transmission times.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/3861209.stm
Published: 2004/07/03 12:32:51 GMT
© BBC MMIV
BBC correspondent, Singapore
The people of Singapore are used to doing exactly what they are told.
But the reins of the nanny state are relaxing... ever so slightly.
The man on stage was singing a song about hamsters. It was, shall we say, a bawdy song. The animal welfare officers would not have approved. Nor, you might have thought, would the government of Singapore. After all, this is the great nanny state, the place where Playboy is banned, jay-walking is almost unthinkable... and where nanny is not known for her risqué sense of humour.
And yet, the songs continued.
There was one about a sheep and another about Jesus - neither exactly tasteful. The audience in the beautiful, government-funded theatre, roared with laughter. I looked around me in the dark - a well-dressed couple were still giggling about the sheep. Could it be that Singapore is starting to loosen up?
Western influence
Tiger Lily - the group singing the songs - was British, not local. But that is not the point. In the past, the state has sought to shield Singapore from all potentially corrupting influences like chewing gum, and Cosmopolitan magazine, and Sex in the City.
But today, the authorities are beginning to invite them in.
Five minutes walk from where I am sitting now, the walls of the Singapore Art Museum are plastered with pictures of glistening flesh, apparently sprayed with every imaginable bodily fluid.
The exhibition, by the high-camp French duo, Pierre and Gilles, was even opened by a government minister.
Then there is the chewing gum ban - the one fact everyone seems to know about this small, immaculate country. It is still in force and you can go to jail for importing it illegally.
But if you are determined to chew, you can now register and get medicinal gum at a pharmacy.
It is not exactly revolutionary, but in a cautious way the authorities are experimenting with change - cultural change, not political.
Like clockwork
It is a strange feeling for me, coming to such a meticulously governed country after 13 years in the former Soviet Union and Africa.
A small notice from the proprietors of the restaurant warned customers that they will be fined if they are greedy
I have just moved here from Kenya, where rules and regulations are usually treated like casual suggestions, or obstacles to be avoided.
In Singapore everything just works. My rubbish gets collected from the house every morning and the plumber calls to apologise if he is running 15 minutes late. A pothole would probably make the evening news.
And then there are the rules...
The other night I sat in a restaurant on Orchard Road, picking plates of sushi off the miniature carousels winding round the room.
On the wall in front of me, there was a small notice from the proprietors warning customers that they would be fined if they were greedy and took more plates than they could actually eat.
Singaporeans are used to being told what to do... and obeying. It is part of the deal.
Sing-along-a-protest
In the course of a few brisk decades, the ruling party has built them a clean, air-conditioned consumer paradise out of a tiny patch of jungle.
In return, the population is expected to forgo a few personal freedoms like gum, and true multi-party democracy.
Most people are happy with the deal, and why not? It has brought them one of the highest standards of living in the world.
But a few are starting to grumble... politely.
Thank you to the censor... the scenes you're chopping
Royston Tan has been doing his grumbling in a big white rabbit suit to the sound of Abba songs. He is an award-winning film-maker; a 28-year-old, whose recent gangster movie - 15 - sought to show that there is a seamier side to life here. The authorities were not amused. The censorship board insisted on substantial cuts to the film and its sound track.
I met up with Royston a few days ago. He was wearing a big smile and a T-shirt with the words "disco sucks". He chuckled as he explained how he had hit back against the censors.
His chosen weapon - a musical.
He and some of Singapore's best-known artists joined together to produce Cut, a blast of manic satire about a film-buff bumping into the chief censor in a supermarket, and raving enthusiastically about her work.
The chorus joins in Abba-style, with songs like "Thank you to the censor.. the scenes you're chopping."
Royston makes his cameo appearance in the rabbit suit, singing along to a George Michael tune.
So, I asked, did the Singapore authorities appreciate Cut?
Royston smiles again and shakes his head. "But things are changing fast here," he says. "Not long ago, no-one would have dared to have made a film like this."
What is more, the censors approved it... uncut.
From Our Own Correspondent was broadcast on Saturday, 3 July, 2004 at 1130 BST on BBC Radio 4. Please check the programme schedules for World Service transmission times.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/3861209.stm
Published: 2004/07/03 12:32:51 GMT
© BBC MMIV
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