Co-ordinated, carrot-and-stick approach needed for Burma
October 31, 2007
BREAKING NEWS: Monks return to the streets of Burma. (BBC)
No one party will be able to bring about lasting change for the better in Burma on its own.
By Gerald Giam
The shooting appears to have stopped, but the sufferings of the 47 million people of Burma are far from over. Effectively, little has changed from the time the popular uprising against the military government first began in August.
The strongman, Senior General Than Shwe, still wields absolute power in the country; opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi still remains under house arrest; thousands of protest leaders remain under arrest; and ordinary civilians are still cowed down in their homes.
However some glimmers of hope are appearing.
Zen and the art of maintaining silence
October 29, 2007
By Kamal Mamat
My father, who passed away last month at the start of Ramadan, was a member of the Singapore branch of UMNO back in the early 60s.
Later, when Singapore achieved independence, it dissolved and re-emerged as PKMS, an opposition party which is still around today.
Much disheartened by the socio-political events surrounding him after 1965, he slowly dissociated himself from the party.
My father was what we call a man of Zen.
NMP’s views at odds with AIDS relief research paper
October 27, 2007
By Jinesh Lalwani and Choo Zheng Xi
Safe sex awareness pamphlets censored as pornography. Information booths closed down for distributing “illegal” content. Awareness outreach funding stifled by choking off of charity fundraisers by homosexual groups.
The government has given its repeated assurances that s377A of the Penal Code criminalizing ‘gross indecency’ between two men will not be enforced. However, evidence from healthcare workers on the ground seems to highlight a far more insidious effect of 377A.
A paper by Aids relief expert Associate Professor Roy Chan, President of Action for Aids Singapore, highlights how 377A hobbles HIV prevention efforts by the local sexual healthcare community.
Government using hyperbole to justify public protests ban
October 26, 2007
By Gerald Giam
The Singapore Government has once again employed the use of hyperbole to justify its near-total ban on public demonstrations, whether peaceful or not.
In his letter to the Straits Times and TODAY, the deputy director at the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) cautioned that “(t)he worst race riots in Singapore history began as peaceful processions”.
Let’s examine that statement a little more closely by looking at the history of riots in Singapore.
A brief encounter with a Chinese woman
October 25, 2007
By Eddie Choo
This evening I had quite a conversation with an elderly day nurse. She’s from China and she was asking me for directions. I don’t know her name, never asked for it, for convenience lets just call her Xiaomin.
I first noticed her at the bus stop just outside a posh condo near the Singapore River. She seemed a little bit anxious, fidgety, looking at the bus number.
The bus I was waiting for had just left, so I knew it was going to be a long wait for the next one (IRIS said 17 minutes). She approached me, and in her heavily accented English, asked me whether the bus stopped at any MRT stations. I said yes, pointed to the bus guide and showed her Aljunied station. She then sat down, still anxious.
Deconstructing the Majority
October 24, 2007
By Benjamin Cheah
The ‘silent majority’ has finally spoken. Its representative is ‘The Majority’, a group that intends to prevent the repeal of Section 377A.
The Majority argues that the retention of Section 377A is necessary, to preserve moral values.
It is a reaction to the ongoing efforts to abolish Section 377A; therefore, the burden of proof is on the Majority to show why Section 377A must be retained, and its arguments must prove superior to the ones cited by the abolishment movement.
Yet, when held up to the light of critical analysis, the Majority’s case falls apart. It is a meshwork of logical fallacies, underpinned by a single nonexistent argument: repealing S377A is somehow in the interests of the majority.
Further questions about Myanmar and t-shirts
October 24, 2007
By Leong Sze Hian
I refer to the articles “Singapore’s arms sales to Myanmar not substantial : No deals in recent years ; weapons sold not suited to counter civilian unrest ; economic links limited, says George Yeo” (ST, Oct 23) and “MPs fire questions on Myanmar issue” (Today, Oct 23).
The first article reported on the answers given by Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo thus:
“While Singapore’s established policy has not been to divulge details of defence sales, he said that over the years, defence sales to Myanmar had not been substantial.
Section 377A is inconsistent : PAP MP Hri Kumar
October 23, 2007
Transcript of the Parliamentary speech by PAP MP Hri Kumar on the debate over Section 377A.
I rise to support the Bill. A major overhaul of the Penal Code was timely and the Ministry of Home Affairs has obviously put in much effort and thought to the amendments. I particularly commend the new laws to protect minors from sexual predators whether here or abroad and I support the amendments fully.
Let me touch briefly on the issue of Section 377A. As Professor Ho Peng Kee pointed out, this is one debate which will not see people switching sides easily. Both proponents and opponents of the law have deeply entrenched views on the subject and that is unlikely to change for some time.
I have personally asked many people, both young and old what they think of this issue. And the almost common consensus is that they do not want this law to be repealed. And that is consistent with the feedback the Government has received.
377A serves public morality : NMP Thio Li-Ann
October 23, 2007
Below is the full transcript of NMP Professor Thio Li-Ann’s speech in Parliament.
Two camps championing two distinct criminal law philosophies are polarised over whether to retain or repeal s377A which criminalizes public or private acts of gross indecency between two men, such as sodomy.
The ‘liberal’ camp wants 377A repealed. They offer an ‘argument from consent’ –government should not police the private sexual behaviour of consenting adults. They opine this violates their liberty or ‘privacy’. They ask, ‘Why criminalize something which does not “harm” anyone; if homosexuals are “born that way”, isn’t it unkind to ‘discriminate’ against their sexual practices?
These flawed arguments are marinated with distracting fallacies which obscure what is at stake – repealing 377A is the first step of a radical, political agenda which will subvert social morality, the common good and undermine our liberties.
Repeal 377a press conference: public health and families at stake too
October 23, 2007
By Teng Kie Zin Scott & Rachel Lim
The repeal of the law against gay sex is not only about gays, as AIDS prevention programs and families of homosexual men are affected too, said the organizers of the group petitioning to repeal Section 377A of the Penal Code on Monday.
The existing law, which criminalises men who have sex with men (MSM) hampers effective AIDS prevention and education efforts among this target group which is often being regarded as a high-risk group, said organiser Dr Stuart Koe at a press conference held by the group on Monday.
Section 377A of the Penal Code outlaws sex between males in Singapore, whether in private or public. If convicted, an offender can be jailed up to two years.
