Tag: Singapore

Ban On Entry To Singapore For Foreigners With HIV Eased

For more than two decades, foreigners infected with HIV have not been allowed to set foot in Singapore. However, the ban on those entering on short-term visit passes was lifted on April 1, The Straits Times has found out.

The ban remains for long-term visitors, such as those looking to work in Singapore or those who want to accompany a child studying here, the Ministry of Health (MOH) has confirmed.

“The policy on the repatriation and permanent blacklisting of HIV-positive foreigners was recommended in the late 1980s when the disease was new, fatal and no effective treatment was available,” a spokesman said.

But the ban was lifted “given the current context with more than 5,000 Singapore residents living with HIV and the availability of effective treatment for the disease”.

The human immunodeficiency virus causes Aids, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

The Straits Times understands that foreigners here – excluding permanent residents or spouses of Singaporeans – found to be HIV- positive will be deported and put on a permanent blacklist.

The MOH spokesman added: “Lifting the short-term travel restrictions… poses very low additional risk of HIV transmission to the local population.

“However, the public health risk posed by long-stayers is not insignificant, hence the restriction on long-term visits has been retained.”

The rule is similar to immigration laws found in countries such as Australia and New Zealand, he added.

HIV attacks the body’s immune system and is transmitted mainly through sexual intercourse, although it can spread in other ways, such as by sharing contaminated needles.

A spokesman for advocacy group Action for Aids said it welcomed the change, but restrictions should also be lifted for long-term visitors.

“People living with HIV or Aids are not criminals and should not be banned from entering the country,” he said. “(They) can and should be able to have fulfilling and rewarding lives, with loving relationships and be integrated as part of the community. Unfortunately, discrimination is still prevalent.”

Professor Roy Chan, who is on the governing council of the International Aids Society and is also the president of Action for Aids, added: “People living with HIV infection who are on antiretroviral therapy and are successfully virally suppressed are not infectious to other people.”

Antiretroviral therapy can reduce the virus to undetectable levels in the blood, enabling the immune system to recover and function almost normally.

A 56-year-old who is HIV-positive and declined to give his name said: “Some of my friends who are HIV-positive are worried about how to pack their medication and if they will be barred when they travel. We hope to be allowed into other countries, so we would want to accord the same treatment for people who enter our country.”

Source: www.straitstimes.com

August 31, 2015
4x100M Swim Relay Becomes First Singapore Team To Reach World Swimming Final

Francis Fong, Samuel Khoo, Dylan Koo and Darren Lim made history last night when they became the first Singapore relay quartet to reach a world swimming final.

They clocked a new national Under-17 record of 3min 47.36sec to finish ninth in the 4x100m individual medley heats of the Fina World Junior Swimming Championships yesterday morning and were put on the reserve list.

They were told of their place in the final yesterday afternoon, when Poland failed to report on time.

Dylan, 16, said: “When we heard the news at the Aquatic Centre, we immediately readied ourselves and we were quite pumped up because we knew that we had a second shot at the Under-17 record.”

They were close, but missed out on another new mark with their 3:47.40 swim to finish eighth in the final.

Also, three other national Under-17 relay records were rewritten during the six-day meet – the women’s 4x100m medley, the men’s 4x200m free and the men’s 4x100m free.

National assistant coach Gary Tan said relays were the focus of the swimmers’ training when the 22-member squad were named in July.

He said: “Through relays, we started to see the kids coming together to bond as a team. The times also started to drop, both individually and as a team.

“This is the first time that we have a swim team in a final at a major (world) meet, whether at junior or senior level, and I hope it translates into the senior level.”

The former national swimmer also acknowledged that the relay focus is to build up Singapore’s relay capabilities to qualify for future Olympics, especially Tokyo 2020.

Competing among giants – many swimmers at the Fina World Juniors are taller than the Singaporeans – has given the local athletes more confidence.

Francis, 15, said: “For many of us it was our first international meet… many of us came into this meet fearful because a lot of the foreign swimmers were taller and stronger than us.

“But, through this meet, we’ve learned that in order to do our best, we have to overcome our fears and that, in itself, was a challenge to become better swimmers.”

Singapore Swimming Association president Lee Kok Choy was happy with how the competition had turned out, as well as the performances of the local swimmers.

He said: “It is still early stages of their development, but I think they are on track.”

Source: www.tnp.sg

August 31, 2015
33 Year Old Man Found Dead, Female Family Member Arrested

A 33-year-old man was found dead in a flat at Senja Road in Bukit Panjang early Monday (Aug 31) morning.

A 26-year-old woman suspect has been arrested in connection with the case. Police have classified the case as murder.

Police said they received a call for assistance at Blk 636B at around 1.00am on Monday.

Paramedics pronounced the victim dead at 1.19am in the 15th floor unit. Both the victim and the woman suspect are believed to be family members.

Police have also cordoned off an area at the foot of Blk 629 – an adjacent block across the road of Blk 636B – searching for objects.

Channel NewsAsia understands the victim had sustained slash and stab wounds on his body. Investigations are ongoing.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

August 31, 2015
Former AHPETC Managing Agent, FMSS, Issues Legal Letter To AHPETC, Claims It Is Owed $3.5 Million

The former managing agent of Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) has sent a letter of demand saying the town council owes it more than $3.5 million.

The New Paper has learnt that the managing agent (MA), FM Solutions & Services (FMSS), sent the letter, dated July 20, through its lawyers, Netto and Magin.

This comes at a time when the Ministry of National Development is asking AHPETC whether it overpaid FMSS and, if so, how it plans to claim back public monies that allowed FMSS to make huge profits.

FMSS, which was incorporated soon after the Workers’ Party (WP) won Aljunied GRC in the 2011 General Election, was managing agent for AHPETC from July 15, 2011, to July 14 this year.

It claimed the amount was for money owed for services between April and July 14, when its contract with AHPETC expired.

Source: www.tnp.sg

August 31, 2015
E-Cigarettes To Remain Illegal In Singapore

The United Kingdom’s public health authority recently issued a report that said e-cigarettes are not only 95 per cent less harmful than regular cigarettes, but also have the potential to help smokers quit.

But despite this stand by Public Health England (PHE), Singapore’s Ministry of Health (MOH) is sticking by its view that e-cigarettes are dangerous and will remain illegal.

In response to queries by The New Paper, an MOH spokesman said that the ban on e-cigarettes in Singapore, which will take effect from Dec 15, “takes a high precautionary level of protection for the public’s health”.

According to MOH, the vapour from e-cigarettes still contains cancer-causing agents, which pose a real risk to both users and bystanders.

“Additionally, we remain concerned that e-cigarettes could attract and harm a large number of new users (who may not necessarily be current smokers), get them addicted to nicotine, and hence potentially serve as a gateway to developing a smoking habit, particularly among our young,” the spokesman added.The PHE finding suggests there is no evidence that e-cigarettes are acting as a gateway to smoking for children and non-smokers. In fact, the study suggests that the opposite is happening – e-cigarettes may be contributing to falling smoking rates among adults and young people.

The PHE study was released on Aug 19 and led by academics from King’s College London and Queen Mary University of London.

Its findings have not only been challenged by MOH, but also departs from those of other health bodies.

In 2014, the World Health Organisation released a report that backed stricter regulations for e-cigarettes and supported a ban on their use indoors and sale to minors.

Another recent study by researchers from the University of Southern California suggests that teens who tried electronic cigarettes might be more than twice as likely to move on to smoking conventional cigarettes.

Moreover, a report published on Aug 29 in medical journal The Lancet has cast some doubt about PHE’s assertion that e-cigarettes are 95 per cent less harmful.

This claim, according to The Lancet, originated from a 2014 study in which at least three of its 11 authors had roles in the e-cigarette industry, with one of them having served as a consultant to e-cigarette distributor Arbi Group Srl.

FLIMSY

This raises questions about PHE’s conclusions. The Lancet says PHE has “fallen short of its mission” to “protect and improve the nation’s health and well-being” by relying on an “extraordinarily flimsy foundation”.

Oncologist Dr Wong Seng Weng says that e-cigarettes are still largely misunderstood.

He said: “The discussion is that there is less harm, but some research says that fumes might be carcinogenic. There is not enough data to be safe.”

As for the assertion that e-cigarettes can help smokers quit, Dr Leong Choon Kit, a family physician from Mission Medical Clinic, said: “It does not solve the underlying problem of addiction. It’s like taking the easy way out without getting to the root.”

Managing director at MW Medical Centre, Dr Madeleine Chew, agreed with this.

“Nicotine creates craving and dependence, which are not desirable traits in human beings,” she said.

However, at least one medical expert said that the situation is not so simple, as there is a chance that e-cigarettes could help people curb their tobacco addiction.

Psychiatrist Associate Professor Munidasa Winslow said: “Unfortunately both approaches are true. It can be a gateway to actual smoking, but it does help some with cigarette or tobacco addiction to stop or reduce their use. Unfortunately the jury is still out on whether there is any real benefit from using e-cigarettes.”

It is an offence to import, distribute or sell e-cigarettes here.

Since 2011, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has prosecuted 10 people for selling such products.

The penalty is a fine of up to $5,000 for a first offence and a fine of up to $10,000 for a second or subsequent offence on each count.

Anyone with information on the illegal import, distribution or sales of e-cigarettes can call the HSA’s Tobacco Regulation Branch on 6684-2036 or 6684-2037.

Source: www.tnp.sg

August 30, 2015