Midian

Where the Nightbreed revel unbridled.

Sunday, December 09, 2007

Singapore: A Modern "Democratic" Authoritarian Country .

Singapore: A Modern "Democratic" Authoritarian Country .

When one thinks of Singapore, he or she might get reminded of towering skyscrapers in the central business district area, a bustling shopping belt, many delicate and tempting food and a clean and safe island country in South East Asia. While it might be true that Singapore is doing relatively brilliant in terms of economic growth and her position of a developed country is certain, what one is masked from is how deceiving this whole situation appears. Singapore is formally known as a democratic nation, however, it is also an unsaid truth Singapore is modern authoritarian state.

As a Singaporean, I shall divulge on some more facts that lead to the above-mentioned description of the country. I just hope I won't get arrested by doing this!

Firstly, capital punishment, by hanging, is still frequently used in Singapore, usually for offenses like murder, possession of drugs (anything above 5 miligrams). An extremely barbaric form of penalty, many other countries will reply in utmost discontent. Still, Singapore remains unfaltered in her stance towards this issue. Once, a couple of years back, Singapore sentenced an Australian to death for carrying the illegal amount of drugs. This ignited an international uproar, especially in Australia. Singapore received massive condemnations. Putfile.com even blocked access from Singapore for this. Yet, Singapore remained firm on its ideals and did not even offered a decent explanation. Speaking of punishment, Singapore has another notorious penchant - caning. Brutal in the eyes of many, even inhumane. Prison canings often scar the offenders for life. Worse still, I am informed that if the offenders were to faint from extreme pain, they will be drowsed in cold water to wake them, let them rest for a day or two, and continue the flogging until it is completed. Michael Fay of USA, then 16, was sentenced to 24 strokes of the cane for various acts of vandalism, back in the 1980s. Much opposition from USA was aroused, Singapore, again, remaining firm, refused to budge an inch.

Secondly, something more subtle this paragraph, Singapore claims to be a Democratic country. Behind its shady veils, the heartlanders know a different version of the story. Although elections were held as per any country would, every 4 years, for each town constituencies. Locals do know, obviously, that Singapore is practically One-Party-Ruled. This famous party is belovedly known as People's Action Party (PAP), spearheaded by Prime Minister Lee Hisen Loong (son of the First Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew). Oppostion parties - Worker's Party and Singapore Democratic Party to name a few, lack manpower and support. After each election, PAP will expand their terrorities futhur and futhur. Leaving minimal space for the other parties to showcase their interest in the citizens. As of 2006, around 90% of Singapore is governed by PAP, leaving practically no say for other opinions. This has a more negative impact when we consider the process of policy-making in the Parliament. With the majority of power given to PAP, diversity and open expression are severely limited, thus, the usual rigid nature of Singapore laws, albeit the recent discussion of abolition of the Homosexuality Bill 377A. On this note, let me amplify this political blandness by giving an example that Singapore Democratic Party's leader - Mr. Chee Soon Juan was jailed 5 weeks for speaking in public without a valid permit in November 2006. There has been numerous instances which eluded my memory. One needs to apply for a permit to give public speeches, and a draft of your speech has to be submitted, making sure no one would say anything jeopardising to the nation or society.Another one is that there has been cases of bloggers getting jailed or sued for posting racially-unfriendly content in 2005 and 2006, although many believed their entries were relatively mild. Singapore podcast like mr.brown, which expresses the true Singaporean thought, received scrutinisation from the government initially, the content was diluted after which, in fear of repercussions of the laws. In the light of the post 9/11 attacks, Singapore has put in place The Internal Security Act which allows infinite detentions of any suspected terrorists without trial. Thus, Singaporeans have a conditioned mindset that their opinions are insignificant and the government will be beneficial for them ultimately. Liberal is a term that most Singaporeans are not familiar with, evidently.

By now, I have an feeling that most readers will feel repulsed by what I have just shared. There are enough facts to show that Singapore is not what it appears as, I believe, to bring out my point. Regardless of the sustained security Singaporeans has been enjoying since its independence in 1960, it is still not very justifiable when our say is restricted and that harsh corrective methods are there, to cause fear in others. Someone needs to arouse this latently-repressed country from its slumber.

- Nemesis, December 2007

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