Civil Society

BANGKOK 23 May 2017) – The United Nations Human Rights Office for South-East Asia expresses serious concern regarding the recent disappearances of community workers Amri Che Mat and Raymond Keng Joo Koh, and urges Malaysian authorities to urgently investigate the abductions of the two men associated with religious minority groups. Mr. Che Mat, founder of the NGO Perlis Hope which …

GENEVA (22 May 2017) – A group of United Nations human rights experts today urged the Government of Indonesia to review and repeal its criminalization of blasphemy. Their call comes after the recent blasphemy conviction and imprisonment of Indonesian politician and former governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (‘Ahok’). On 9 May, North Jakarta District Court decided that Jakarta Governor …

In a recent statement issued to the press, Maruah, a local non-government would like to express its concern with the amendment to the Public Order Act. In its statement, MARUAH emphasises the practicality of the new rules, stating that Hong Lim Park is a public place and that it believes that organisers do not have the authority to exclude anyone from …

The National Survey of Senior Citizens showed that senior citizens did not consider retirement an option, contrary to the myth that the elderly work to keep fit or stay active. The survey found out in 2011, more than 50 percent of elderly people continued to work to meet their living expenses. 20 percent mentioned concerns about future financial security, less …

Think Centre, a Singapore non-government organisation for political development, democracy, rule of law, human rights and civil society, issues a statement to condemn the impending execution of Muhammad Ridzuan Bin Md Ali. It states that it is greatly disturbed by the imminent execution of Muhammad Ridzuan scheduled for this Friday morning, 19 May 2017 and regrets that the Cabinet of Singapore has …

Amnesty International today called on the Singapore authorities to halt the execution of a Singaporean man scheduled for Friday 19 May 2017 and to immediately re-establish a moratorium on all executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty. Muhammad Ridzuan Bin Md Ali, a 32 year old-Singaporean national, was sentenced to death on 10 April 2013 after he was …

Paris, 18 May 2017: FIDH – International Federation for Human Rights calls for Singaporean authorities to immediately halt the planned execution of Muhammad Ridzuan and establish an official moratorium on all executions, FIDH said in a press statement today. Ridzuan, 32, a Singaporean, is scheduled to be executed by hanging on Friday morning, 19 May 2017. On 15 May 2017, authorities …

14 May 2017 ​- To mark Mother’s Day (14 May) and International Day of Families (15 May), AWARE will launch on 15 May a petition bringing together single parents, their children and supporters in calling for changes to housing policies. The Singapore’s leading women’s rights and gender equality advocacy group is launching its petition accompanied by a powerful video (“Single …

The organisers of the annual Pink Dot event has just announced that only Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents will be allowed to partake in this year’s Pink Dot celebration at the Speakers’ Corner, Hong Lim Park. The organisers wrote, “It is with profound regret for us, the organisers of Pink Dot 2017, to announce that as per recent changes to the …

by Community Action Network (CAN) Donald Low’s apology to Singapore’s Law Minister K Shanmugam is another setback for freedom of expression and will reinforce self-censorship. In a facebook post last month, the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public policy academic criticized the Minister’s remarks, reported in Today, that penalties for crime need to reflect public opinion. The Minister had said …