Tag: Islam

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
Ustaz Abd Al-Halim: Is ARS Just A Mechanism For Asatizahs To Be Controlled By The State?

AsSalaam’alaikum!

I recently attended a seminar on making the Asatizah Recognition Scheme mandatory. It is clear that asatizahs are worried that if they resist the ARS scheme i.e. teach even if they are without ARS, they could be arrested and put to jail. One person actually asked that question during the Q & A. Of course, there is as yet no passing of any laws. There is no police force to watch over the asatizahs for now. But the indications that the speakers gave is that there will be law enforcement. One speaker spoke of levying fines upon asatizahs who do not comply. It is one thing to come up with a questionable policy but entirely another to implement it. I wonder if such enforcement is to be done by the government which is, by the way, secular. If so, will we have a secular non-Muslim government sending police officers out to arrest asatizahs who do not have ARS but are nonetheless qualified to teach given that they have been teaching for years and years and that they have been appointed to teach by ulama before ARS came along?

I spoke to a senior person who is knowledgeable in Islam afterwards. He is not convinced that making ARS mandatory is about stemming “ajaran sesat” (deviant teachings). Instead he, like many others know that this is becoming a draconian mechanism to control the asatizahs. He further quipped that if they are concerned with ajaran sesat, there are many ideas that the religious authorities themselves seem to propagate that can be classified as “ajaran sesat” such as the idea that all religions are the same and that it is ok to praise Lee Kuan Yew who is a non-Muslim (Kafir) in the mosque during Jumaat sermon even though the Jumaat sermon is part and parcel of our ibadah and that the Masjid should not be politicised.

It is glaring that the President of Pergas had to assure the audience that those behind making ARS mandatory are not agents of the government – pointing to the panelists and making the audience repeat after him several times that they are not agents of the government but instead they are Warathatul Anbiyaa’ (Inheritors of the legacy of the Prophets).

I was there and those who were there and reading this can verify or debunk what I say here.

May Allah swt save this ummah from internal and external enemies. Amiin!

Source: Ustaz Abd Al-Halim

October 21, 2016
CAN Singapore: Amos Yee Beaten Up In Changi Prison, Free Him Now

<Credits: Community Action Network – CAN Singapore>

#freeamosyee, interestingly, we have been informed that Amos has been transferred from Changi’s Men’s Prison to Tanah Merah Prison… Amos has said that Tanah Merah Prison has mostly Malay youths.

We have also been informed that he has been threatened, slapped on the back and kicked while he was climbing up the stairs. A complaint has been lodged with the Prison Authorities, who had efficiently replied to say they will look into the matter.

Amos’ mother has put in an urgent request for Amos to be moved to Home Detention.

Source: www.allsingaporestuff.com

October 20, 2016
Global Survey: Most Will Trade Freedom For Security

Most people think that violent terrorism is a major challenge facing their societies and they support tough measures to counter the problem at the expense of some civil liberties, according to a global survey on public perceptions towards violent terrorism commissioned by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), based in Washington.

According to the findings released earlier this week — derived from 8,000 respondents in eight countries — one in two people feel that their governments have not taken adequate steps to address violent extremism.

The survey was conducted in August this year and involved participants from China, Egypt, France, India, Indonesia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Around 25 per cent of the respondents from Turkey and France felt that violent terrorism is the most important issue facing their countries. Overall, around two-thirds of those polled see violent extremism as a major problem in their country.

“In everywhere except China, at least 75 per cent of those surveyed expect a terrorist attack in the next year,” said CSIS in a report of the survey findings.

“On a more alarming note, a majority in every country believes that it is likely that violent extremist groups will acquire and use weapons of mass destruction in their lifetime.”

The majority of respondents in Turkey, France and the US feel their own governments have not taken adequate steps to contain and prevent violent extremism.

In late June, a gun and bomb attack on Istanbul’s Ataturk airport killed more than 40 people and injured more than 230. Yesterday, a Turkish official said police in the capital had fatally shot a suspected Islamic State (IS) group militant who was planning a suicide bombing.

France has also been hit hard by violent terrorism, with 230 deaths and about 700 injuries as a result of attacks said to be carried out by IS.

Both France and Turkey are both sources of a relatively high number of foreign militants fighting in Iraq and Syria, with an estimated 700 French citizens and 500 Turks fighting under the IS flag.

Just last month, an Afghan-born American sowed terror across Manhattan and New Jersey, wounding 29 people before he was arrested — the latest in a spate of lone-wolf attacks to rock the US.

Despite widespread anxiety about the terrorist threat, 73 per cent of respondents in the CSIS survey believe that violent extremism can be eradicated.

When asked about potential measures to counter violent extremism, 90 per cent were in favour of requiring all citizens and visitors to have identification cards.

A similar percentage also supported asking Internet companies to do an even better job of shutting down all content from violent extremist groups, while 71 per cent favoured allowing government agencies to monitor all phone records, email and social media for contacts with terrorists.

Close to 90 per cent of the sample was also supportive of asking Muslim leaders to declare definitively that Islam does not in any way condone violent extremism or the creation of a caliphate. More than 80 per cent of those surveyed also said that immigrants who have not passed rigorous screenings and background checks for connections to extremism should be barred from entering their countries.

On Monday, Iraqi forces, supported by a US-led international coalition, launched a major offensive on the city of Mosul, the IS’ last major stronghold in Iraq.

The US expects IS to use crude chemical weapons as it tries to repel the offensive, although experts say the group’s technical ability to develop such weapons is highly limited.

Source: www.todayonline.com

October 20, 2016