‘The
International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) strongly urges the Government of
Singapore to stop this harassment and ensure that bloggers are proetected
against such unjustified interference with or reprisals for the exercise of
their right to freedom of expression.
By
resorting to this kind of harassment and intimidation of bloggers, Singapore is showing complete disregard for
human rights and the rule of law,” said Sam Zarifi, ICJ’s Regional Director for
Asia and thePacific.
“The
Government of Singapore must stop intimidating citizens who express their
political opinions openly. The actions taken by the Singaporean police against
the four bloggers do not only constitute an attack on freedom of opinion and
expression in the country, but also clearly violates their right to privacy.”
He added.’
The above
is quoted from an article in the TRE titled ‘ICJ: End harassment of bloggers in
Singapore’ quoting source from ICJ’s website.
I am not
going to discuss about the subject matter, about what Roy Ngerng, Teo Soh Lung
or The Independent Singapore wrote during the Cooling Day of the by election. I
will also not touch on the police actions and how they conduct their
investigations. I am trying to understand the motivation for the govt or Hsien
Loong to allow this to go on the way it did.
Hsien Loong
must have a team of political advisers working for him just like his father
LKY. These are very experienced and professional people, could be ministers or
some people he really trusted for their good judgement and sense of reality and
proportion. They are the people that would assist him, give their views and
opinions or anything, particularly in this case, political critics.
LKY lived
in a very different time, with very different kind of political opponents,
different value system, with a less educated population, without the social
media, in a world when drastic measures were swallowed without much question by
the people and international organizations. The world has since moved on, everything
has changed, values, morals, a more educated and enlightened population, more
NGOs and a 24/7 social media presence. The social and political tapestry is
very different and using old methodology and tactics to deal with current
situation may seem out of sync.
LKY
listened to his advisors and their views and made his own decision. He decided
what should be the final outcome, what should be done, and would throw out bad
advices that would not solve the problems but caused him more and greater problems
if he went ahead with them. He took many tough decisions and gambled with the
outcomes. The situation in his time was tough and rough.
The
situation today cannot be that rough and tough. Maybe I did not have the full
picture, the full inside story. Under today’s circumstances, the PAP is reining
supreme, untouchable, and can afford to have a little criticisms, a bigger
tolerance for dissent, and the broadcast during Cooling Day did not do any real
damage, water under the bridge, really.
The follow
up actions by the police and now the attention from around the world, ICJ, are
definitely something that Hsien Loong and his govt need not have to face. It is baffling to invoke such attention. The Cooling
Day broadcasts were tolerable and bearable irritations and could be dealt with
with a slap on the wrist. Nothing more and no storm in the tea cup.
What made
Hsien Loong to allow this mess to go on the way it went? Ok, I am being
presumptious here, that he knew and approved the whole process. I could be wrong
and I stand corrected. Hsien Loong could be totally uninvolved and the whole
incident was left to someone else to handle as that someone deemed best.
All I can
say is that it is something unnecessary and there is no need to kick up a dust
storm when there is no need to. Why invite the unnecessary attention that is
anything but good for Singapore and the govt? This is the 21st
Century, not the days of LKY and the Communist Insurgency. The political
climate and players have changed, the people have changed, the risks have
changed, the challenges have changed.
Would Roy
Ngerng or Teo Soh Lung present such a big threat or challenge that it is
necessary to send a bull into a theatre? The PAP shall rule till SG100. Relac.