Tag: Singapore

Singapore Police Force: Coroner’s Findings Addressed Questions Raised Before Inquiry

POLICE STATEMENT ON CORONER’S INQUIRY INTO BENJAMIN LIM’S DEATH

The Coroner has set out his findings, on the tragic suicide of Benjamin Lim. The findings put to rest many of the questions raised prior to the Coroner’s Inquiry.

The Police note that the Coroner said that there was no indication that anything was wrong with Benjamin, during the Police interviews. The Coroner also accepted the evidence that there was nothing wrong with the Police interviews, arrest and investigations in the matter. Benjamin was interviewed twice: by one officer at his school who was in plain clothes, in the presence of school officials, and by another officer at Ang Mo Kio Police station. The Coroner said that Benjamin had been treated sensitively by the Police.

The Coroner has suggested that it would be good to consider whether school counsellors should accompany the students before and after the Police interview, without interfering with the Police investigations. This will be considered. The Police had announced on 1 February 2016 that it was conducting a review, to consider whether young offenders should be accompanied by an appropriate adult. Details will be released, once the review is completed.

We wish to again convey our deepest condolences to the family of Benjamin.

Source: Singapore Police Force

August 19, 2016
CNA-IPS Survey: Racism Still A Problem

In this second of three reports that explores the findings of a Channel NewsAsia-Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) survey on race relations, Channel NewsAsia examines how racism remains a problem for some Singaporeans of minority races.

SINGAPORE: Racism remains a problem for some Singaporeans, with one in three among minority races having felt racially discriminated against, according to a nationwide survey specially commissioned by Channel NewsAsia in partnership with the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS).

The survey, which polled 2,000 Singapore citizens and permanent residents aged 21 and above, is among the few large-scale surveys on race relations in Singapore.

Conducted between June and July this year, the survey was done through a random sampling of dwelling types. Malay and Indian respondents were oversampled to ensure sufficient minority representation. Selected households completed a survey questionnaire then returned it to a surveyor at a stipulated time, to reduce the possibility of interviewer bias.

The results were then statistically weighted to ensure that the final sample resembled the national population in terms of racial composition, dwelling type and gender.

<Read Part 1 of the survey findings here: Success is independent of race for most Singaporeans>

Instances where respondents felt they were treated differently than other people were more commonly felt among racial minorities, the survey found. More than half of minority respondents agreed with statements such as “people have acted as if they are better than you”.

Two-thirds of Malay and Indian respondents who had experienced such differential treatment claimed that race was the basis of such treatment. Among Malays who had perceived such differential treatment, nearly half said they were treated differently because of their religion, or because of their income or education. Among Indians, 62 per cent said they were treated differently because of their skin colour.

While many minority respondents attributed these negative experiences to race, comparatively few – about 30 per cent – felt that they had been racially discriminated against.

“This could be because the notion of ‘racial discrimination’ connotes a much more negative experience which surpasses the types of differential treatment they perceived,” said IPS senior research fellow Dr Mathew Mathews, who headed the survey.

More respondents had heard of someone else being discriminated against, with nearly half of minority respondents saying someone had shared their experiences of racial discrimination or prejudice with them.

About 60 per cent of all respondents had heard racist comments, with under half of the respondents noting that such comments were made by workplace colleagues and friends, the survey found.

Faced with such comments, the majority preferred to avoid confrontation, with 65 per cent of respondents saying that they ignored the person’s comments. About 17 per cent said they agreed with the person making the racist comments, while 29 per cent said they argued with the person about the truth of their statement.

MOST PREFER OWN RACE FOR MANY ROLES

The survey results also showed a high level of in-group preference – the majority of respondents preferred those of the same race as spouses, to help them run their business or to share personal problems with.

More Singaporeans were amenable to social interaction across racial boundaries, the survey found. For example, close to 70 per cent of Chinese respondents were open to inviting Indians and Malays to their house for a meal. Most were also amenable to Indians and Malays playing with their children or grandchildren.

More minority respondents were accepting of the Chinese compared to the Chinese accepting minority respondents for various roles and relationships. The least preference among many respondents was for new citizens, according to the poll.

“Overall, the survey findings highlight that Singaporeans espouse the values of multiracialism and try to live out these multiracial ideals,” said Dr Mathews, adding that most Singaporeans are “self-aware and acknowledge that there is some racism in the community”.

He added: “The survey findings however remind us that we need to continue to nurture positive race relations.”

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

August 19, 2016
SCDF Firefighter Injured During CK Building Operations Discharged From Hospital, Recovering

A firefighter from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) lost consciousness while fighting a conflagaration at the CK Building on Wednesday (Aug 17).

He has since been discharged from hospital and is recuperating at home.

Sergeant Muhammad Hidir, a section commander and full-time national serviceman (NSF), was among the first firefighting teams to rush to Tampines Street 92 where a blaze had engulfed the industrial building.

Sgt Hidir and his team entered the building cautiously wearing breathing apparatus, said SCDF.

They went up to the fourth floor, where the fire was raging, to fight it.

But there were “highly combustible” products there, and the entire floor was “alight with flames rapidly raging out of control”, SCDF said in a Facebook post on Thursday.

“The fire had also engulfed the floor above and was spreading to the sixth floor. There were also multiple explosions from ‘flying’ aerosol cans,” said SCDF.

Mr Hidir and his team retreated as the situation became life threatening.

While retreating from the inferno, he was overcome by heat exhaustion and soon lost consciousness.

Mr Hidir was attended to by fellow firefighters and paramedics and rushed to Changi General Hospital.

He has been discharged from hospital and is on medical leave, said SCDF.

“Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. I’m doing just fine right now. Really never expected the overwhelming show of concern online…and a big thank you to my buddies for always looking out for one another in the heat of action,” said Mr Hidir.

The fire at CK Building burned for hours, but no member of public was injured.

The blaze began at about 1.30pm on Wednesday, and was extinguished at 6am on Thursday – more than 15 hours later.

Highly flammable paper products and household aerosol cans fed the fire.

The building has been damaged structurally, and will be closed for reconstruction work, said the Building and Construction Authority on Thursday.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

August 19, 2016
Amos Yee Invokes Court Process To Decide On Trial Position

After several false starts, the first day of blogger Amos Yee’s trial yesterday was adjourned for the 17-year-old to use a court process that helps accused persons consider whether to claim trial or plead guilty.

He had earlier objected to a joint hearing for the two sets of offences he has been charged with.

When he was overruled, Amos told the court he would like the prosecution’s seven witnesses to testify orally, rather than through written statements.

Then, as his hearing was about to kick off, he told a judge he was “thinking of taking a certain course of action”.

Amos, who was not represented at his hearing yesterday, asked to go for Criminal Case Resolution (CCR), a court process where an accused person may ask for an indication of his possible sentences in a closed-door meeting with prosecutors that is presided over by a senior district judge.

CCR was started in 2011 to minimise wastage of court resources. It provides a neutral platform for parties to explore the possibilities of early resolution of criminal cases, instead of waiting until a trial starts.

When District Judge Lim Tse Haw asked why he had not brought up his request during his pre-trial conference, Amos said he only learnt about CCR through “sheer luck” while he was doing research.

He was given the go-ahead to attend a CCR session this morning, following which he would decide if he would want to continue to claim trial.

Amos faces six charges of wounding the religious feelings of Muslims and Christians and two counts of flouting an order to show up at a police station for investigations. Both sets of charges relate to content he posted online between November last year and May this year.

Amos argued that the nature of the two sets of charges are different and he would not have a fair trial if they are heard together.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Hon Yi countered that the alleged offences happened close together and were linked.

Amos was convicted of similar offences last year and was sentenced to four weeks’ jail. But he was released on the same day as the sentence was backdated to include his time in remand.

If convicted of deliberately wounding the religious feelings of others, Amos could be jailed up to three years and fined. For failing to turn up at the police station in spite of an order, he could be jailed up to a month and fined up to S$1,500.

Source: TODAY Online

August 18, 2016
Most Singaporeans Want Someone Of Same Race As Prime Minister, President: CNA-IPS Survey

If given a choice, most Singaporeans prefer someone of the same race as the nation’s Prime Minister or President.

This was one of the findings in a nationwide survey of 2,000 citizens and permanent residents on their views on relations between the country’s four major races. The survey was commissioned by Channel NewsAsia in partnership with the Institute of Policy Studies, and was one of the largest of its kind.

The survey, conducted between June and July this year, was done through a random sampling of dwelling types. Malay and Indian respondents were oversampled to ensure sufficient minority representation. Selected households completed a survey questionnaire then returned it to a surveyor at a stipulated time, to reduce the possibility of interviewer bias.

The results were then statistically weighted to ensure that the final sample resembled the national population in terms of racial composition, dwelling type and gender.

According to the survey, the vast majority of Chinese respondents – 98 per cent – would accept a Singaporean Chinese as Prime Minister, while 96 per cent preferred a Singaporean Chinese as President.

Malay respondents also overwhelmingly wanted a Singaporean Malay to be Prime Minister or President. A total of 93 per cent of Malays surveyed said they preferred a Singaporean Malay to be Prime Minister, while 94 per cent would accept a Malay as President.

Among Indian respondents, 89 per cent would accept a Singaporean Indian as Prime Minister and 92 per cent said the same for the role of the President.

The majority of respondents of all races were agreeable to a Singaporean Chinese in both positions, with more than 80 per cent of Malays, Indians and Others saying they would accept a Singaporean Chinese as Prime Minister and as President.

A smaller number of respondents said they would accept a minority race in the positions – around 60 per cent of Chinese, 75 per cent of Malays and around 68 per cent of Others said yes to a Singaporean Indian Prime Minister or President. When it came to a Singaporean Malay Prime Minister or President, just over half of Chinese, around 70 per cent of Indians and about 80 per cent of Others said yes.

The older a respondent, the less likely he or she would accept someone of a different race to hold the nation’s highest positions, the survey found.

Among Chinese respondents who were below 30 years old, more than 60 per cent would accept a Singaporean Malay as Prime Minister or President, while more than 70 per cent would accept a Singaporean Indian.

Among those over 60 years old, about 40 to 42 per cent would accept a Singaporean Malay, while between 45 and 50 per cent would accept a Singaporean Indian in the two positions.

Source: ChannelNewsAsia

August 18, 2016