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Unfair NTUC Put Halloween Decoration But Not Deepavali

A reader shared this post.

“I am clearly disappointed at the sight of a Halloween decoration taking precedence over the Deepavali displays at your Sportshub branch.

May I humbly know when did a commercial celebration that’s not even been recognised as a public holiday in Singapore has become a festivity that overshadows our Ethnic & Cultural importance in Singapore? Is this how you advocate racial respect & harmony of Singapore to visitors & residents in our country?

I’m extremely disheartened that a country that’s hailed for it’s diverse races, in the recent years has become a more greedy commercial hub with focus on main ethnic groups and forgetting the minorities.

Do you know what’s the meaning of Deepavali & Halloween? Deepavali’s not a new year as widely misinterpreted. It’s a Festival of Lights (bringing in joy, happiness & peace to our family) whereas Halloween is dedicated to remembering the dead. Even the meaning of Halloween has been lost over the years & it’s being celebrated as a day to invoke fun, fear & tricks.

Fairprice is a well known local groceries merchant with multiple branches throughout Singapore. Being part of the National Trade Union Congress I’m ashamed to say you have failed to show unity in our National Celebration. I’ve always been proud of my country & always will be. Therefore I hope you will also learn to take pride in giving equal importance to all ethnic celebrations. I hope our Citizen’s pledge is not only remembered by it words but by it’s meaning.

‎Puvaneswari Alagan”

Source: www.allsingaporestuff.com

October 22, 2016
Pink Dot Disappointed By New Ruling, Google Pledges Continued Support

In light of new rules that could curb foreign funding and involvement in events held at the Speakers’ Corner in Hong Lim Park, organisers of Pink Dot said they hope more Singaporeans and local companies will step forward to support them in 2017.

Pink Dot, an annual non-profit event, organised in support of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community, also said in a statement on Friday (Oct 21) that while it respects and understands the Ministry of Home Affairs’ position, it is “disappointed” by the latest clarifications from the ministry.

“Pink Dot has always been a local movement dedicated to bringing LGBT Singaporeans closer to their friends and families and closer to Singapore society as a whole – a universal aspiration that we do not consider to be controversial or political,” said spokesman Paerin Choa.

“We remain committed to organising and holding Pink Dot as we have done for the past eight years and we want to work closely with the Ministry of Home Affairs and other Government agencies to ensure that we remain within legal boundaries and keep the event safe for all participants, as we begin planning for next year’s Pink Dot event,” said Mr Choa.

“As our society continues to evolve, we hope that this will be the start of an ongoing dialogue and we look forward to continue engaging with the various Government agencies to better foster understanding between the Government and the LGBT community in the long term.”

The 2016 edition of Pink Dot had 18 corporate sponsors, including Facebook, Google, Barclays, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, BP, Bloomberg, and Twitter.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) stated that foreign entities will have to apply for a permit to organise or assist in the organising of events held at the Speakers’ Corner in Hong Lim Park. This covers sponsoring, publicly promoting, or organising members or employees to participate in the event.

Meanwhile, Singapore entities, such as local companies and non-governmental organisations, can organise or assist in the organising of an event, without the need for a permit. This is meant to “reinforce the key principle” that the Speakers’ Corner was set up primarily for Singaporeans, MHA stated.

MHA also clarified that Singapore entities refer to those which are incorporated or registered in Singapore and controlled by a majority of Singapore citizens. This means many of Pink Dot’s foreign sponsors, which are registered and incorporated in Singapore, would not qualify as a Singapore entity, and would need to apply for a permit.

GOOGLE BACKS PINK DOT

At least one sponsor has committed to taking the extra step of applying for a permit in order to continue supporting Pink Dot.

When contacted by Channel NewsAsia, a Google spokesman said: “We’ve been proud supporters of Pink Dot since 2011 and we will continue to show our commitment to diversity and inclusion. So we will apply for a permit to support Pink Dot in 2017 if required by this new regulation. We hope that these new rules will not limit public discussion on important issues.”

Another past sponsor, JP Morgan said via a spokesman that the company is “committed to promoting equality in our workplace and encourage a supportive and inclusive culture”. Channel NewsAsia has reached out to six other past sponsors of Pink, including BP, which said it had no comment.

Other entities which have organised events at Hong Lim Park include the YMCA, but its head of corporate affairs Samuel Ng told Channel NewsAsia that he believes the YMCA “won’t be affected” by the new rules, as its past Proms @ the Park events were held at the main lawn ‎of Hong Lim Park, not at the Speaker’s Corner.

“The administration and all is quite different,” said Mr Ng, referring to whether an entity applies to hold an event at the Speaker’s Corner or at the park. “(Our events) would be under the community shelter that manages the park.”

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

October 22, 2016
MHA: Foreign Companies Need Permit To Sponsor, Promote Or Participate In Speakers’ Corner Events

Foreign companies will need a permit to sponsor, publicly promote or get its employees to participate in events at the Speakers’ Corner, stated the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday afternoon (Oct 21).

For the first time, the ministry made clear what a Singapore entity was: those incorporated or registered in Singapore and controlled by a majority of Singapore citizens.

The entity’s directors must be mostly Singaporean, and the majority of its ownership must be held by Singaporeans or one or more Singapore companies.

Meanwhile, the ministry is loosening rules for local entities organising events at the Speakers’ Corner. From next month, Singapore companies or non-government organisations no longer need permits to hold events at the Speakers’ Corner. Now, only Singapore citizens are exempted.

In its news release on the amendments to the rules, the ministry reiterated that the Speakers’ Corner was set up in 2000 for Singaporeans to express their views on issues that concern them.

“The Government’s position has always been that foreign entities should not interfere in our domestic issues, especially those of a political or controversial nature,” said the MHA. “The amendments reinforce the key principle that the Speakers’ Corner was set up primarily for Singaporeans.”

MHA is also extending the rules to those who participate at Speakers’ Corner events through remote means. So foreign entities will also need a permit if they speak through teleconferecing or pre-recorded messages at the Speakers’ Corner.

These changes come on the back of reviews to Speakers’ Corner rules which the MHA started in June. The ministry had wanted to “make it clear that foreign entities should not fund, support or influence” events held at Speakers’ Corner, such as June 4’s Pink Dot – the annual lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rally.

This year’s Pink Dot – the eighth such – attracted 18 sponsors including multinational companies such as Google, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, Visa and General Electric.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

October 22, 2016
HDB Facade In Circuit Road Falls Off

She heard the loud crash, peered out her window and saw, to her horror, that a piece of her neighbouring block’s building facade had fallen and crashed to the ground below.

“I was shocked to see a missing slab of wall on the block opposite. Luckily, it happened quite early in the morning and no one was hit.

“How can a slab of wall fall off just like that?” the resident, who wanted to be known as Madam Ng, 65, told The New Paper yesterday.

The incident happened at about 6am on Wednesday at Block 51, Circuit Road.

In response to TNP’s queries, a Marine Parade Town Council (MPTC) spokesman said a calcium silicate cladding board had dislodged from the building facade.

The MPTC spokesman said: “Together with the BCA (Building and Construction Authority), HDB and our appointed professional engineer, we are investigating the cause of the incident.”

MPTC has since carried out joint inspections with the BCA and HDB to inspect the entire facade of the affected block, as well as other neighbouring blocks with similar designs.

CORDONED OFF

As a precautionary measure, BCA has directed MPTC to cordon off the affected area under Block 51, Circuit Road, its spokesman said.

Adding that the block’s structural integrity is unaffected, the BCA spokesman said: “The professional engineer will also be required to inspect other blocks within the precinct with similar features.”

The Circuit Road incident comes less than a month after a concrete sunshade outside a fourth-storey Tampines flat fell off and landed on another sunshade on the third floor.

No one was hurt and the cause is being investigated. The affected four-storey building has been found to be structurally safe by HDB engineers.

But Circuit Road resident Gary Lim, 34, a sales manager, pointed out that the dislodged calcium silicate board could have hit someone. “This estate has many elderly residents. They may not be able to walk away fast enough to avoid any falling objects. It’s dangerous,” he said.

Engineer Chong Kee Sentold TNP that the board facade, which is not part of the building structure, could have fallen off due to its age.

“Like all materials, it could have aged with time,” said the former president of the Institution of Engineers.

The board facade is made from calcium silicate, which is fireproof and moisture-proof.

This means that even when exposed to moisture, there is no permanent loss in strength of the material as long as the moisture dries out.

Another possible reason for the dislodged calcium silicate board could be the corrosion of the fasteners that hold the board to the metal frames, Mr Chong added.

Source: The New Paper

October 21, 2016
Coroner Records Open Verdict On Case Of Infant Found Dead In Tampines MRT Station Toilet

The unidentified male infant who was found dead in a sanitary bin in a toilet at Tampines MRT Station four months ago was linked to three Indonesian women who had visited Singapore earlier, with one of them likely to be his mother.

However, the infant’s cause of death could not be ascertained by the Coroner’s Court, said State Coroner Marvin Bay on Thursday (Oct 20) as he recorded an open verdict in the case.

The male infant of unknown race and age was pronounced dead at 1.49pm on June 3, after he was discovered in the toilet.

A cleaner there had found the infant’s body inside a red plastic bag, which was marked with the word “Tampines”, the court heard.

She had last cleaned the toilet at 11am that same day but did not notice anything suspicious, noted investigation officer Sanjeewani Panday when she took the stand on Thursday.

Based on CCTV footage and witness accounts, the police found that three Indonesian women, who were believed to have entered Singapore to help out at a Hari Raya bazaar held in the open field near Tampines MRT station, were involved in abandoning the infant.

At 8.12am, two women identified as Ms A, 31, and Ms I, 26, had entered the toilet. Ms A was seen carrying a pink bag that appeared to contain a heavy load. But the bag seemed lighter and swayed slightly when they left the toilet some 20 minutes later.

A third woman wearing a black headscarf, identified as Ms M, 35, was seen walking from the bazaar to the toilet at about 10am and left at about 11.10am.

Further enquiries at the bazaar led the police to a stall helper who knew Ms I. Facebook exchanges between them later revealed that Ms M had admitted to Ms I that she “threw away a baby” in the women’s toilet at the train station.

The three women had entered Singapore on May 25. Ms M, who appeared pregnant in the arrival CCTV footage, left the country on June 5, while the other two left two days later.

Delivering his findings, Mr Bay said there was no basis to suspect foul play, despite the “rather callous and sadly unceremonious manner” the infant was found.

His body, which still had the umbilical cord and placenta intact, did not show signs of any deliberate traumatic injury that could have led to the infant’s death.

Post-mortem findings had estimated that the gestational age of the deceased was about 38 to 42 weeks, where the full-term infant was capable of being born alive.

Yet, the pathologist could not rule out a stillbirth and could not ascertain the cause of death.

“(This) would necessarily constrain me to deliver an open verdict for this case,” said Mr Bay.

Given the chronological sequence of the trips made to the toilet, Mr Bay noted that it was likely that Ms M’s visit there was to address and alleviate the after-effects of childbirth, and not to actually give birth to the child in the toilet.

While the evidence strongly pointed to Ms M being most likely the mother, her absence from Singapore’s jurisdiction had made it impossible to confirm her maternity as the DNA samples collected required a reference sample from her, he said.

It is understood that the three Indonesian women remain as persons of interest.

Source: TODAY Online

October 21, 2016