Singapore - a foretaste of the authoritarian
semi-police, state-sponsored capitalist state
of the 21st Century?
Thorstein Veblen called for a state run by
engineers. It exists in the shape of Singapore -
a nation run by economists and engineers with
First Class Honors degrees!
------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
From: balcan@juno.com
To: sangkancil@malaysia.net
Raj_Leyl@amrcorp.com, JBALCHAN@CSFBG.CSFB.COM,
azizt@mbox2.singnet.com.sg, RVAKIL@sg.oracle.com,
narula@singnet.com.sg, SRAJAN@sg.oracle.com, nnb1@doc.ic.ac.uk
Date: Mon, 3 Nov 1997 10:39:08 -0600
Subject: [sangkancil] SG: Underground Newspaper
Reply-to: balcan@juno.com
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This is to invite SK readers to a 'new' information source on the net on
Singapore. It was started by a group of Singapore dissidents (based
outside Sing) to inform citizens of news from different sources on
policies that go unquestioned in Singapore.
I believe its worth a visit.
http://www.singapore-window.org
You may find the following answers some of your questions once you have
visited the site:
Published in Oct 1997 issue: Asiaonline. A website in Singapore.
http://www.asia-online.com.sg/aol/features/special/index.html
Cyber Rebels
Overseas Singaporeans Launch
Underground Website
Interview a group of self-proclaimed
Singaporean dissidents who must remain
anonymous and review their 'underground'
website? Why not? You can participate in this
'covert' activity, too.
by Chris Lydgate
One of the remarkable things about Singaporeans is that, fond as they
are of mumbling and grumbling about the latest government policy--be it
the "be
creative" drive, the "get married" push or the "flush-the-toilets"
rule--in the
end they generally shrug their shoulders, roll up their sleeves, and
press on with their
lives.
Nowhere is this trend more evident than on the Internet. Certainly, the
regulations set up last year by the Singapore Broadcasting Authority have
attracted
their share of criticism--even ridicule--from web-surfers both inside and
beyond
Singapore. Yet Singapore web sites have generally tried to abide by these
regulations,
even when many administrators feel they represent an odious interference.
But now a small band of overseas Singaporeans have joined together to
create the Lion City's first real "underground" website -- Singapore
Window. The
site fearlessly presents a fascinating catalogue of information that
would be difficult
or impossible to obtain in Singapore itself.
The fledgling site went online in June this year. Since then, SW has
received (as of this writing) about 600 visitors. But this is despite
considerable
obstacles--no advertising, no links from well-established sites and no
publicity.
Also, it's worth pointing out that SW has nothing about hip restaurants,
cool bands, hot
sex, fast computers, Moses Lim, or anything else to attract the zany
wireheads who
populate the web.
The people behind the site remain completely anonymous. However, Asia
Online did manage to arrange an exclusive online interview with SW editor
Justus Semper (That's Latin for "Justice Forever") who explained the
anonymity factor
this way:
"If you refer to us revealing our individual identities, then although
you are new in Singapore you must be aware of the climate of fear that
exists there. We
are free and cannot be touched because we are outside our beloved
country. But
all of us have family and friends in Singapore who fear harassment,
intimidation
and/or victimisation. While we love Singapore and are doing this for
Singapore,
we love our families and care for our friends who are in Singapore. We do
what
we must do for Singapore but at the same time we cannot endanger our
loved ones."
"I and the others involved in Singapore Window are Singaporeans and
former Singaporeans living outside Singapore. We are in America, Asia,
Australia and Europe. We are patriots who love Singapore. We communicate
with each
other on the web. You could say we are Singaporeans who live on the Net."
"We all grew up in Singapore and were educated there. Our ages range
from late 30s to early 70s. Most of us went to Christian mission schools
and
university in Singapore. Among the group are lawyers, lecturers,
journalists. Our
ethnic composition would be reflective of the ethnic make up of modern
Singapore. But we see ourselves as Singaporean rather than Chinese,
Malay, Indian or
whatever." Perhaps because SW is a seasoned group, the site contains
little of the
rabid ranting to be found on more-established forums such as
soc.culture.singapore. Unlike some political websites, which are long on
opinion and short on
fact, SW goes to particular lengths to attribute and source its
information, so
that surfers have some way of assessing its value.
"We felt that people overseas, including Singaporeans themselves, know
very little about the true situation in Singapore. Almost everyone
accepts the
government's disinformation, for there are no windows for contrary views
and
opinions. Even the foreign media, as you well know, increasingly practise
self-censorship
on their reportage. To redress this situation, we decided to start a
group called
Singapore Window. [See Mission Statement]
The site itself includes a broad spectrum of articles, reports, features
and links about Singapore's domestic and international politics. Many of
the
site's pages--especially reports from the foreign press--are already
accessible
on the web in one form or another, but seldom in a way that's easy to
find. For the
researcher, SW is a goldmine.
For example, check out the section on the recent defamation trial of J B
Jeyaretnam-- surely one of the hottest political topics to hit Singapore
this year. Thei nclusion of foreign reports and background material on
the Jeyaretnam
case makes for fascinating reading (and I'm not just saying that because
one
of my own pieces is in there).
Beyond the Jeyaretnam trial, SW offers special pages on topics that too
often seem to get lost in the hury-burly of headlines. There are special
pages on
the Tang appeal; the AG's controversial ruling on alleged PAP election
violations; the issue of Indonesian maids; and relations with Burma,
Philippines, and Cambodia.
You can also check out New York Times columnist William Safire's most
recent
attack on the PAP or a special report on protesters heckling PM Goh Chok
Tong in
Chicago.
Perhaps the most poignant page in the whole site is the first-person
narrative of Tang Fong Har, a Singapore lawyer who was detained without
trial for 85
days under the ISA in 1987 for her role in the so-called "Marxist
Conspiracy." First published in 1989, her description of her experiences
in detention is
remarkably detailed--and moving--not least because it demonstrates an
episode like
this would strike utter terror into your heart if it happened to you.
For critics of the current regime, Singapore-Windows represents a step
forward. By making an (not entirely successful) effort to provide
documentation and
reportage in the place of vague soapbox fulmination, it helps to elevate
the debate
into the factua lrealm and away from the cab-driver level of baseless
rumour, even if
some of the facts are themselves debatable.
SW could hardly be called a "balanced" site. But its very existence
constitutes a refreshing counter-balance to the relentless stream of
unthinking
coverage provided by Singapore newspapers, radio and TV. The question now
is what will
happen when web-surfers, both local and foreign, take a look at the
strange
island SW has provided us a window on.
Extracts from the interview with
Justus Semper
editor of Singapore Window
by Chris Lydgate
Asia Online: Is the server in Singapore?
Justus Semper: Ha ha. Would that be wise the way the media is controlled
in Singapore? I cannot but think of PM Goh's cross examination by Carman
QC
on the Singapore press. I agree with the points Carman made/suggested re:
the
subtle way of coercing the press into self censorship. From our address
you
will know that we are certainly outside Singapore.
AO: How do you decide what to include?
JS: Our editor, Justus Semper, surfs websites of newspapers in Asia,
Europe, Australia, the US and Canada for articles about Singapore.
Visitors and
friends who come across articles they think should be posted on SW send
them to
Justus.
Justus has editing skills and he is guided by our Mission Statement.
AO: Why you unwilling to voice your views openly?
JS: We are voicing our views openly. Our site is open to all. It is not
a secret site.
People can find our site via search engines, through friends etc. We ask
people to make the site known.
AO: Name your first three official acts if you were elected Prime
Ministertomorrow.
JS: 1. Ensure that the constitution, with all it enshires as it was in
1959, is followed.
2. Ensure freedom of expression.
3. Repeal the ISA.
AO: What do you think of the creativity drive?
JS: A PAP joke. You cannot legislate creative. For creativity to
flourish, there must be a climate in society that encourages it. You
cannot order people to
be creative. I would agree with articles that have appeared recently in
Asiaweek and
some HK papers (by people like Barry Porter). We carry these articles in
SW.
AO: Is Singapore moving in the right direction, whatever that is?
JS: !!!!
AO: Is Singapore a good place to live?
JS: For Singaporeans and those who have a soft spot for Singapore
because of family ties and friends, Singapore will remain a good place to
live,
inspite of its warts, its draconion laws and its big brother system. Also
for those who
"eschew politics and pursue wealth," Singapore has its attractions,
although
increasingly Singapore Inc is seen as an unfair and aggressive competitor
in the
arena of business and commerce.
AO: What's the most frustrating thing about Singapore?
JS: The controls imposed on the people by a government who thinks it
knows best about everything for everyone.
AO: What's Singapore's greatest achievement?
JS: This stumps me--the standard reply is that Singapore is an economic
tiger, has the second highest standard of living in Asia, one of the
highest
standards of living in the world, etc. but they ring hollow somehow.
I venture to say that compared to many parts of the world, Singapore has
many achievements that other countries and people would be envious of.
Yet,
meet Singaporeans overseas and they tell you how fed up they are with
things
back home. Look at the fact that one in five consider leaving Singapore.
Anil Balchandani
mailto:balcan@juno.com
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