Tag: Singaporeans

MUIS: Social Media Not Appropriate Platform To Receive Religious Guidance And Instruction

In a media statement, the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) stressed that social media is “not the appropriate platform” to receive religious guidance and instruction, “not least in understanding complex political and armed conflicts in the Muslim world”.

MUIS noted that in Khairul’s case, as well as that of Syaikhah Izzah Zahrah Al Ansari – who was detained last week for radicalism – what is “common and disturbing” is that both were self-radicalised through social media.

“Exposure to the propaganda of extremist and radical groups online who exploit these conflicts to radicalise Muslims will misguide them to believe that participation in such conflicts is a religious duty,” said MUIS. In both cases, family and friends found out about their views and intentions but did not report them to authorities, it added.

“The best way to help our loved ones away from this path is to offer help early by referring them to experts in this area, as soon as we detect there may be something wrong,” said MUIS.

MUIS added that it is also working to develop the capabilities of local asatizah, or Islamic religious teachers, to be able to engage Singaporean Muslims on social media, noting that some younger asatizah have “started to make some good headway” in this area.

“We hope to populate social media with socio-religious content which is appropriate to Singapore, and negate the dangerous content which had managed to mislead Khairul and Izzah,” it said.

MUIS also urged the community to play its part, and report family members and friends who exhibit such tendencies as soon as they are detected, so “appropriate help and intervention can be given”.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

June 20, 2017
Another ISA Detention: 24 Year Old AETOS Officer Planned To Undertake Armed Violence In Syria

An auxiliary police officer who was deployed to Woodlands Checkpoint has been detained for planning to travel to Syria to take part in armed violence, while his colleague has been put under a restriction order for supporting him.

Muhammad Khairul Mohamed, 24, an auxiliary police officer at the traffic enforcement division at Woodlands Checkpoint, was arrested in May and detained under the Internal Security Act, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said on Tuesday (Jun 20).

He was deployed by AETOS, the second-largest of three licensed auxiliary police organisations in Singapore, to the checkpoint as an outrider. His duties did not require him to be armed, MHA said.

Khairul became radicalised as early as 2012 – prior to joining AETOS in May 2015 – when he went online to gather more information about the conflict in Syria after reading about it on mainstream media.

“He developed the view that the conflict in Syria was a sectarian struggle between Sunni Islam and Shia Islam, and being a Sunni Muslim, he wanted to fight against the Shi’ites in Syria by joining the Free Syrian Army,” the ministry said.

The Free Syrian Army (FSA) is a group founded by defectors of the Syrian Armed Forces, whose aim is to use armed violence to overthrow the Syrian government led by President Bashar Al-Assad, who is backed by the minority Shia Alawite sect.

Khairul perceived the Syrian conflict to be a holy war in which he was prepared to die in battle as a martyr and receive “divine rewards”, MHA said.

In 2014, he tried to reach out to a foreign militant on Facebook, as well as two other individuals whom he believed to be FSA supporters, to find out how he could make his way to Syria.

At the time of his arrest, Khairul was still interested in joining FSA or any other militant groups operating in Syria and engage in armed violence there, the ministry said.

“His readiness and proclivity to resort to violence in pursuit of a religious cause makes him a security threat to Singapore,” it said.

The ministry also reiterated that friends or relatives of a person who may be radicalised or intends to undertake acts of violence should report him to the authorities.

In the case of Khairul, several relatives and friends knew of his intentions but none of them came forward, MHA said.

Source: www.channenewsasia.com

June 20, 2017
Dr Tan Cheng Bock: Parliament Is Not The Right Place Platform Lee Family Issue

Parliament is not the right place to settle family disputes.

It is an institution to make laws and debate national issues.

Family disputes should be settled in courts.In parliament MPs have no details of the case and only hear PM telling his side of the case.

Wrong platform.

Source: Dr Tan Cheng Bock

June 20, 2017
Mouldy Rainbow Cake Bought In Sembawang Spoiled My Father’s Day Celebration

Reader Contributed:

“My father day mouldy cake😡

Lucky my 3yrs old son not in a hungry mode… but unfortunately I had a bite 😡 The cake is still with me in the fridge… can’t imagine I have to place a mouldy cake in my fridge now

I’m born in the pastry kitchen yet such mishap happened on me😡😡

In order to turn mouldy in the cake counter, imagine how long they kept it”

Source: SBS – Sure Boh Singapore

June 20, 2017
Alfian Sa’at: Singaporeans Shouldn’t Be Ashamed Of Public Lee Family Spat

Those who say to Lee Hsien Yang and Lee Wei Ling: “Please don’t make your spat public, the world is laughing at us, I feel embarrassed when I have to explain to my overseas friends what is going on”, are you for realz?

I think you’re either being disingenuous or hypocritical if the Oxley saga makes you feel embarrassed and awkward, but not these other questions, which I regularly get from my foreign friends:

– How come your prime minister is the son of a former prime minister?
– Meritocracy, really?
– How come your prime minister’s wife is the director of the national wealth fund?
– Meritocracy?
– What does meritocracy mean in your country?
– Why do you ban chewing gum?
– Why do you cane people who spray graffiti?
– How come you’re supposed to be a ‘developed country’ but your press freedom ranking is so low?
– Why do you hang people people who sell drugs but not people who take them?
– How come your country isn’t ready for a non-Chinese Prime Minister?
– Why do you criminalise what consensual adults do in the privacy of their bedrooms?
– Why are there so many incidents of domestic worker abuse and suicides from your country?
– Why do people from your country visit ours and do things they wouldn’t do in yours, like littering, speeding, and shouting ‘so cheap!’ at everything?

Really, what is this selective shame? I can tell you that I don’t feel embarrassed at all explaining what’s happening with 38 Oxley Road. So here are a few things you can tell your foreign inquisitors: It’s a dispute over a will. There are serious questions to be asked about whether there has been an abuse of power. Like every other political system all over the world that emphasises checks and balances, we need to enforce safeguards that ensure our politicians do not act with impunity, and do not use state organs to further their personal interests.

You know how Trump is being investigated for potential obstruction of justice, or all those conflict of interest lawsuits regarding his business holdings and the emoluments clause, not to mention the ostensibly nepotistic practice of putting Ivanka and Jared in politically influential positions? Same thing in our country: if there’s any wrongdoing, the media has an obligation to expose it, and the law must take its course.

And lastly, I don’t feel embarrassed because I have never thought that our Prime Minister, or the PAP for that matter, ever represented the best of what my country has produced. (Can I interest you, instead, in some of our brilliant sportspeople, our filmmakers, our artists, our tenacious and courageous activists?) There are many other Singaporean things I am fiercely and passionately proud of and well…Lee Hsien Loong and his party are not on that list.

Source: Alfian Sa’at

June 20, 2017