~by: Ravi Philemon~
“With a smile, he told of how he had to personally help a resident in his Teck Ghee constituency tackle a problem about a stray dog.
She loved the dog, but could not adopt it.
‘The dog had been caught, and she wanted me to stop the authorities from culling the dog,’ he recounted. ‘Fortunately, this story has a happy ending, as someone later adopted the dog.’”
Straits Times article on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s 2011 National Day Rally Speech
“Cat-lovers in Singapore have been fighting passionately for their feline friends, and I think that Chong Pang constituency can afford to adopt a more humane policy for the treatment of cats.”
Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam – on his blog on not culling cats in his constituency
“Young NTUC is going “wild” by reaching out to help vulnerable wildlife animals”.
Young NTUC – on co-organising ‘the concert to save the world’s saddest dolphins’, with acres.
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Since the last General Election (GE), it seems that all of a sudden, everyone in the establishment have come out all guns-blazing in support of animal welfare and rights.
The Prime Minister went out of this way to enquire about a stray dog (and perhaps through that enquiry saved it from being killed). The Law and Foreign Affairs Minister saved not one, but all the cats in his constituency from being culled. A faction of the labour movement (which is headed by a Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office) co-organised a concert with an animal rights NGO to save the dolphins.
Wow! Amazing!
But wait a minute. Who placed size restrictions of dogs allowed in Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats? Who forbids cats from being kept in HDB apartments? Who approved the import of dolphins by Resorts World Sentosa?
At least since 2007, dog lovers have called on the government to lift the size restrictions of dogs allowed in HDB flats (see HERE). At least since 2005, the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has recommended to the government that cats be allowed in HDB flats (see HERE). At least since 2003, ACRES has championed the plight of captive dolphins to the government (see HERE). But have they listened?
It seems that those that are in the establishment are so spooked by the last GE and the image of the PAP (and linked establishments) as being aloof and arrogant, that they are now seeking ways to soften this image. And what better way to soften your image then by showing that you are sympathetic to creatures that have mouths that do not speak the human language?
Those that have been elected to govern the country, should now come out of the ‘GE-mode’ and stop trying to be popular for the sake of being so; and concentrate on making appropriate policies to run the country.
Yes, we need responsible policies for the animal welfare and rights, but such policies will not come about through rhetoric or gestures alone. They have to be formulated and implemented by the government that is elected.
“The human spirit is not dead. It lives on in secret…. It has come to believe that compassion, in which all ethics must take root, can only attain its full breadth and depth if it embraces all living creatures and does not limit itself to mankind.”
Albert Schweitzer, Nobel Peace Prize Winner
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picture credit: Pawpledge
What rights! There are no human and animal rights here. Only the devil has rights and that’s the PAP.
It is heartening to read that animal welfare and rights are gradually gaining recognition. As the country becomes more developed, Singaporeans too have become more compassionate and caring towards every sentient being.
Now that Young NTUC is throwing in its support for the Dolphins, the day must surely come when they will be released into the wild to roam freely again.
HDB rules and the dolphins in RWS are two separate issues. Please also understand that many people don’t like dogs or cats as well. HDB is ultimately for human residence.
It always saddens me when I walk past pet stores or pet food shelves in supermarkets. It saddens me because many of us care more for animals than fellow human beings, most of the time. It also saddens me when I know that safety, nutritious food, proper shelter, frequent bathes, new clothes, cosmetics beautification and good lives are being provided and being enjoyed by cats and dogs in general, none of them are being provided with guarantee to some of the most destitute people both within Singapore and abroad.
So, before we become too involved in the new campaign to provide “animal welfare and rights”, think about human welfare and rights, and consider, just for a moment, which is more important.
sadly, most dogs are disallowed in most houses just because they are bigger in size. dogs like GR, Labs, mongrels all not allowed just coz of size !!!
hope this rule can change.
Jonathan: How different are these two issues? It all boils down to human beings interfering with the lives of animals. By relaxing the HDB rules, dogs and cats to be killed for the convenience of man now have a greater chance to be adopted. With responsible ownership, there should not be any problem. Cats and dogs are not the ones to be blamed – there are only bad owners, not bad cats/dogs.
As much as it saddens you to see pet food on supermarket shelves, it saddens me to see shark fins and foie gras being enjoyed by human beings…
I believe few human beings care more for animals than fellow human beings. There still lies a belief that more attention should be given to fellow human beings. Animal lovers are often criticised for not devoting our attention to helping people – but many of us donate to human charity just like you. How much more have you done that has made you any kinder than us?
Lastly, many human beings can fight for their rights, but can animals do that? No, they’re subjected to a life of misery if they are captured by human beings, and they have no way of fighting back. And if you’re courageous to fight for the rights of starving children, raped girls, etc., I salute your effort, but I hope animal savers will not be discouraged whenever comments like yours appear.
Dun know about you people, it did cross mind all of sudden PAP become lovey dovey towards animals, it gives me the creep.
Show me otherwise, by first releasing Resorts World from contract obligation and order all the dolphins released back into the wild seas, where they belong.
Haha that’s the pappy medicine…cure the symptom but don’t cure the root cause. What’s new on the pappy quick fixes. E.g. We need economic boost, so import FTs; we have low birth rate, so have govt rebates for more children AND import FTs; we need more tourist dollar, so build two casinos; we want a smarter next generation, so go for graduate mother scheme, we want to be seen to accomodate alternate voices, so have NCMP & NMP scheme; we want to preserve political (or pappy) representation for the ethnic minority (for pappies), so we have the GRC system…… etc etc etc cheers and welcome to the real (and dirty) world of (pappy) politics. :D
This is really “UNIQUELY” (Sounds like “you need Lee” though) Singapore :))
My reaction to the article and the so-called issues raised is, in Hokkien: Chia pah ka eng (stomach full, too free). Who cares?
The country has bigger things to worry bout, please.
Wonderful to see TOC itself remaining in GE mode, full of unvarnished cynicism, where a small step in the right direction has to be discounted, just because the bigger step hasn’t yet been taken. Well done – at least you remain consistent in your predictability.
You’re most welcome, Jackass.
Guess LHL and Shammugam got nothing better to say. There are loads of citizens struggling just to make ends meet, I’m wondering if their million dollars pay is to served the citizens or stray animals. Downright disgusting.
Compassion is dead. Killing, culling, trapping using inhumane methods are legal when authorized. Jail the serial cat killers but pay the dog cullers to kill innocent and helpless strays – something has gone awfully wrong.
Sterilization and education should pave way to curb the stray population. Discrimination against our Singapore Specials, setting limits to weight and size of dogs, limiting each household to one cat/dog won’t help much in keeping stray population in control. I hope the government will step in to make positive changes. I urge our government to hear us out and make a positive change to how strays could be kept in control. There are several animal lovers out here more than willing to make a difference in shaping our environment…let’s create a unique society – one can’t do much – let’s make the change starting today.
Its not the 1st time and wont be the last time they do this sort of wayang.
They should just clean up their act and not just to things for the sake of it.
Wayang, wayang as usual. Failed to deliver Swiss standards to citizens, so might as well change tack and promise Swiss standards to pets. At least then can with straight face say Singapore has achieved “some amount of Swiss standards since last elections”.
Let’s remember that care for pets/animals is a personal preference, e.g. some persons are truly afraid of say cats/dogs/frog etc.., but care for citizens is a DUTY. Do we have “strays” in our citizens – those ‘left behind’ even though GDP/GNP/GF***P/GMS (gross minister salary) may had grown? Are there citizens that had contributed but yet discarded when they are no more of ‘use’(aka NSF/reservists not getting the NRSA)? Yeah hor, animals don’t need to eat in hawker centers, food courts nor restaurants, either.
Anyway, bravo to all animal lovers out there…. Beware the true intent of the wayang actors/actresses in your midst.
I like to say that the DOGs have been given too much bias.
Go to the root cause of all the problems about strays. It is the govt. HDB policies which are aggravating them. Time to amend the HDB outdated policies. But MIW only talk and no action taken. Yeah – right on, they say one thing and do the opposite. By allowing RWS bring in captured dolphins from the wild speaks volume.
It is curious why politicians want to say such mundane stuff in their speeches. It may be equivalent to that apologizing that is done during GE.
A large dog has a loud bark, and living in close quarters, it is very irritating if you have a neighbor keeping large dogs. As for cats, some cats have a tendency to spray urine resulting in a smell at some corners.Some people are allergic to cats, and cats may carry some microscopic pathogens. cats love to shit in my flower pots until I found a way to stop them. Some people just love to keep cats, and sometimes they keep so many until the officers came knocking on the door. Can’t they just keep 2 or 3 ?
Cats are known to take down birds. and a documentary has shown that cats kill some native seabirds on oceanic islands and make these birds rare.
The pet dogs we keep are designer dogs, picked for their peculiar monstrosity. Some dogs have some genetic problems. I’d rather keep the yellow dog, but gov say cannot keep in flats.When we moved into flats, we gave up some privileges that we didn’t thought of in the past. Someday, even sunlight is a privilege, as we are like forced to live in an underground science fiction world.
Just happens to remember a past occasion, a minister released thousands of red color fish ( probably tilapia or carps ) into Singapore river. I saw it on a news clip. I had a laugh. Throwing money into the sea. Today, I don’t think there are many red tilapias in Singapore river.
Politicians are just using their charm. no doubt some will have a better impression of them after they said that.
Why are Dogs treated so well than pheasants?
Look, most of the issues posted above can be applied to humans as well. Not all animals in this world enjoy so much privileges. Go to cesarsway.com to read the plight of dogs. Good and bad always go hand in hand. When there are problems in society, we should always look at all sides of the issue. As long as humans stop having this thinking of ”me first” and selfishness but exercise more compassion to all ”LIVING” creatures on earth (animal & human), there won’t be so much problems and debates. GOVERNMENT, in fact, is able to intervene but sadly, they weigh much on the pros and cons for the benefit of SG. To most humans, animals are useless becuz they don’t have a human brain and have no earning power. Hence, people normally do not wish to sacrifice so much of resources on them. Talk about the opportunity cost. Think about it. Benefits are always on peoples minds. To most, nothing is free in this world.
Cannot take proper care of the elderly or sick at home,pushing them here and there,sending their elderly to senior homes,neglected them,can adopt dogs and cats,and you people are talking about animal rights.Looks like human are worse than animals..
I gila leow.
it’s good that our leaders support animal rights.
but, i think we should make sure we support HUMAN RIGHTS N CITIZEN RIGHTS FIRST,am i ‘RIGHT’?
Yeoman. U are absolutely right.
“The human spirit is not dead. It lives on in secret…. It has come to believe that compassion, in which all ethics must take root, can only attain its full breadth and depth if it embraces all living creatures and does not limit itself to mankind.” as said by the Nobel prize winner, and stated in this article.
Based on some comments here, who is only about “Me, Me, Me”, obviously, they are lacking in the human spirit. And they thought that they are better than in morals than China nationals, when they do not even have compassion for animals? Sheesh.
I agree with yeoman. Not so much private citizens supporting human rights first but more that Govt should focus on human issues first due to limited resources.
The PM’s example was how he and Govt had to take time off to do these things. Not preferred. This gives rise to conflicting priorities.
No harm letting private associations like SPCA take the lead in animal rights. This is a govt of humans not animals (though some might claim otherwise).
the natural habitats of animals are the trees, the water, the forest and the sky where life is happy and free and they breed naturally as born free. domesticated ones in the farms. to keep animals as pets ina cage or cagey flats is to restrict their mobility; tantamount to cruelty. big dogs should be able to roam about in big compounds of landed properties.
Well said, Jan.
Helping the strays actually does not need much effort from the government. They just have to change some rules they made. In fact, AVA can save a lot of money because they don’t have to employ heartless (I generalise, of course) dog catchers.
Animal lovers are calling for SPCA / a private animal welfare group to be in-charge but no, AVA is not allowing it. We would love for it to happen, y’know, because culling and protecting do not go hand in hand at all.
As for big dogs needing space, it all boils down to owners. Good owners would know to bring their dogs down for long walks and train their dogs not to be nuisances, and contrary to what people think, size is not the only factor. A jack russel terrier needs more exercise than say, a cocker spaniel. (Correct me if I’m wrong, dog experts, but just citing an example here.)
Young NTUC is a movement that has gone astray. They have been elected to represent workers not wild animals, not dolphins. Maybe they should also bring the animals to play golf at the Orchid Country Club. Then the animals can have a chance to be “on par with top management”. Ong Teng Cheong was refering to workers but since the workers have more pressing needs to attend to, let the animals enjoy this privilege.
HDB is for human residence. Animal lovers should keep their animals to themselves and not force the entire neighbourhood to bear with them. Our new minister in charge of HDB and AVA is Khaw Boon Wan. He is a Buddhist vegetarian. Does it mean the HDB will be run according to Buddhism?
Thanks Phy.
BTW, Welfare for animals, and welfare for people are quite correlated. If the government does not even bother to tweak a few rules for animal welfare, will they even bother to care about the welfare of people in which they are required to do so much more?
Take a look around the world, generally speaking, countries with strong welfare for animals, has very strong welfare for people (USA, Developed Europe nations, etc). While in countries where care for animals is non existent, the government has no regards for the people also (China).
“Animal lovers should keep their animals to themselves and not force the entire neighbourhood to bear with them” – try saying that in those developed nations. Obviously, your mindset remains at the level of developing countries.
when sars arrived, pets become the targeted sarspicious characters/carriers too.
Jan claims that the western world cares more for the people than those in the developing world, esp China. This statement stinks with its western arrogance and presumption. His statement “your mindset remains at the level of developing countries,” is typical of activists. Activists generally believe that they belong to a superior order of human beings. Their self-righteousness is a symptom of their egoism. This gives rise to the question of how much of the activity is driven by a genuine love for animals and how much by their egoism.
Animal activists frequently argue that if the govt does not care for animals, they will not care for people. This is a fallacious argument. The normal order is the other way. People first, then animals. It is normal to love yourself and your family members first before loving outsiders and further to those far away like the Haitians and then to animals. Love for animals then is no test for love of people. On the contrary, animal activists tend to care for animals at the expense of human beings. The more they care for animals, the more indifferent they are to human sufferings.
When a so call human being cannot even care for a helpless animal…wat human right u are toking abt?You dont even have a compassion heart for a helpless living thing.All u care is abt yr own benefit. Human are the most cruel and selfish living thing in this universal…u took away the forest, u took away the life of the animals jus to make yourself feel satisfied and happy.from this website, seeing so many heartless singaporean, all they care about is themself…shame on u, shame on u for being such a selfish lot.
Some contradicting arguments in the article. Cannot keep dolphins but should allow large dogs in HDB? The dogs have rights too. HDB is too small and hot for them. Also, the breeding centers don’t treat them nicely and should not be encouraged.
The SPCA can be lobbied to make suggestions how legislation should be changed.
Will the Govt be happy to let this go? Little credit, more cost, lots of potential for criticism = why not?
However, the animal welfare sector has to commit to certain KPIs. Right now, there isn’t.
I think currently issues include:
(a) bird/cat/dog-poo nuisance
(b) noise issues
(c) disease issues
I would think KPIs include:
(a) Limiting spread of diseases thru animals eg thru vaccinations
(b) Animal population density
(c) Animal waste management, etc
To vegetarian: Kindly read up on this matter. Find out more about stray rescue and the state of stray management in Singapore. Besides, if dogs/cats live undisturbed in the wild like what ACRES wants for the dolphins, we would be happy. But please realise that people do not leave the dogs/cats alone, and that’s why we have to protect them.
To meateater: There are just 2 types of people. The non-’animal lovers’, who believe that humans should come first because we are humans and should help our fellow beings, and the ‘animal lovers’, who do not view the human species as any superior and believe that other species should be protected and cared for. I do not agree with all that Jan has said, but you happen to generalise a lot of things. You say that activists tend to believe that they belong to a superior order of human beings, but then aren’t most humans believing that they belong to the superior order of the entire ecosystem? We’re not calling for the government to care for the animals, we’re not calling for them to focus less on human rights. We just want certain rules to be changed, because these rules are absolutely barbaric. You say that “love for animals then is no test for love of people”, which I’m sure many will prove wrong. I love the people around me, but I have to admit that I don’t love all human beings because some view themselves as so damned important. Easily, my love for my dog surpasses the love I have for an outsider. And as I mentioned briefly before, what makes one think that animal lovers aren’t concerned about human rights? I believe many animal lovers would donate as much money as you do to charities, would put in the same amount volunteering work as you do – assuming you do. And when I help animals, I believe I do not do it at the expense of human beings.
When BG(NS) Tan Chuan Jin ws appointed as MOS(National development & manpower)
I am quite surprised that he want to stop culling the cat esp this is not a solution to the problem. The stray cat esp the female stray cats need to sterilized.
Go see how cats and dogs in China are crammed into cages until they cannot move and tortured to death so that the meat will taste “sweeter” then tell me that animals are treated better than humans. Go see how dogs in China are skinned alive for their fur. Go watch how stray animals are beaten, poisoned or shot to death in developing countries, because they are “unsightly” or have been labelled “pests”. Go see how pathetically little the life of a nonhuman is worth everywhere around the world, then tell me that your lot is worse than that of an animal.
According to Confucius, filial piety is the cardinal virtue that holds society together. He also believes that this virtue stands on the solid rock of mother’s love. The greatness of mother’s love has been extolled for centuries in China. If mother’s love fails, so will filial piety. Today mothers freely kill their own unborn babies with the tacit approval of the govt and the help of doctors (who have pledged to preserve human lives). Even married women do that to preserve their own lifestyles. Therefore if the children today are rebellious and uncontrollable, the women as a collective body (and of course the men) must be blamed. In Confucius’ time, eating dog meat was alright but killing your own flesh and blood was a horror. And I think they were more civilised then than we are today. Recently the police have tried to extend their compassion to the birds. Showing compassion to the birds and the rats is not wrong in itself. But in a society that routinely kills its own flesh and blood, that is not just hypocrisy, it is a moral perversion.
Young NTUC has joined ACRES in fighting for the dolphins. Has this activity exceeded the constitution of NTUC? The NTUC leaders have been elected to represent the workers not the wild animals. Should Young NTUC channel the unions’ resources for a cause they have not been empowered to serve? Esp something as controversial as attempting to close the dolphin park which is a legal and govt-backed project? NTUC should stick to its original agenda of promoting workers’ rights and welfare. When AWARE went out of its proper domain to promote the gay agenda, the Christians felt threatened and took over AWARE to promote their own agenda. This fight resulted in much acrimony and social tension. As Confucius says, if everyone of us knows our proper place in society, there will be harmony.
Cats, rats and birds are all sentient beings in Buddhism. However, meateaters do not like such values to be forced on us. I see nothing selfish or cruel in rearing cows to be slaughtered for food. Pigeon soup is a chinese delicacy that I love. I also have no qualms about committing genocide against mosquitoes for the good of mankind. Cat lovers want to keep stray cats in the HDB estates. The rest of us are more concerned about cleanlines in the estates. We hate to see the place being polluted by cats and cat lovers. Every morning when I walk out of my house, I will see the litters left behind the night before. Leftover food for cats that feed the rats. Containers of water that breed mosquitoes. The NEA is trying to promote its anti-littering campaign. How can it work when cat lovers are given a blank cheque to pollute the environment? Not even one cat lover has been charged for littering. Those who have been fined for littering should protest against this injustice. Khaw Boon Wan is a Buddhist vegetarian. I can understand his personal opposition to the culling of cats but the govt should remain secular and not be used to promote religious ideals. It is not an exciting prospect to see western militants ganging up with local Buddhists to impose their values on the rest of us.
No one is forcing you to be vegetarian, or to convert to Buddhism. Belief in animal sentience does not neccessarily have to have a religious aspect. Increasingly scientists are accepting that nonhuman animals are more intelligent than previously thought. Everyday new research comes out showing that animals can think, plan ahead and use tools. All this has factual basis.
Also, how does freeing dolphins or allowing cats in HDB estates infringe upon your personal liberty? If food is cleared away quickly and water is changed daily there will be no “pests”. You are only seeing what you want to see. What about the exhaust from vehicles, the runoff from construction sites or the litter from passersby? Are these not worse forms of pollution?
And kindly do not quote Confucius. He also believed that women were inferior to men.