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Making right choices in Singapore: From Adelman to Asian values
Feb. 11 | Pritam Singh David Adelman’s remarks last week to a Senate Foreign Affairs Committee hearing over his appointment as ambassador to Singapore ruffled more than a few feathers in the Lion City. ‘Insensitive’ words and all the ‘wrong’ insinuations...
Youth leaders from S’pore & Malaysia condemn attacks on Malaysian churches
Jan. 14 | Wong Chun Han Young Singaporean and Malaysian politicians have united in speaking out against recent attacks on churches in Malaysia. Youth wing leaders from the Singapore Democratic Party and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (People’s Justice Party) issued...
Deep sympathy and solidarity with the people of Haiti
Jan. 14 | Picture from Associated Press here. Ravi Philemon The Haiti earthquake is probably one of the worst humanitarian emergencies in the Americas. Over 100,000 people are feared dead. What may be even worse is that over 3 million are in need of immediate...
Google: a new approach to China
Jan. 14 | Google Like many other well-known organizations, we face cyber attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis. In mid-December, we detected a highly sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted...
TOC Editorial: The edge of tolerance
Jan. 13 | Malaysia pulls back from the brink, again – but it should not rely on riding its luck It always seems to take the worst to bring out the best in people. Days after a rash of attacks on churches in Malaysia last weekend, the country’s politicians...
Copenhagen: failure or success
Jan. 11 | ECO Singapore Assoc Prof Pauline Tay-Straughan had the following questions brought up to the Minister of Environment and Water Resources Dr Yacoob Ibrahim and the Parliament over the weekend. Response is to be expected at the Parliament session on the...
Malaysia’s regime crisis, race politics and the kalimah Allah issue
Jan. 11 | Razaleigh Hamzah is a former Finance Minsiter of Malaysia and also the founder of Petronas. Razaleigh Hamzah The centre of gravity of global economic activity has been moving eastwards towards Asia for quite some time now. The present global financial...
Should China execute a mentally ill drug smuggler?
Jan. 2 | Alvin Phoon China, one of the world’s oldest civilisations, boasting rich history, almost 10 million square kilometres of land and a 1.4 billion strong population, is destined to be a major power. Her impact on the world we know today cannot be...
Government must act against climate change
Dec. 19 | ECO Singapore Climate Change is a global phenomenon and all states small and big will face the brunt of it if no action is taken. Singapore, though a small island state, has a role to play. Beyond our own survival, Singapore has the moral duty...
Meet our ECO Heroine – Amira Karim
Dec. 19 | Update: Copenhagen Climate Change Conference (COP15) concludes with a non-binding Accord. Cheong En Min Amira Karim (the smiling lady in the centre) The Online Citizen (TOC) speaks to 24-year-old Amira Karim. She is a member of the ECO Singapore delegation...
The ability of countries to reduce their emissions will vary, says PM Lee
Dec. 18 | This is Singapore’s national statement to the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference, delivered by PM Lee to the international community. Lee Hsien Loong Mr President First, I wish to thank you and the Government and People of the Kingdom of Denmark...
How old will you be in 2050?
Dec. 9 | Eleina Eleina is a member of ECO Singapore, hoping to bring forward the gravity of the climate change issue in Copenhagen this December. The group is part of the International Youth Climate Movement (IYCM) at the 15th Conference of Parties (COP15) of...
ECO’s Adaptation Policy Focus
Dec. 9 | Amira Amira is a member of ECO Singapore, hoping to bring forward the gravity of the climate change issue in Copenhagen this December. The group is part of the International Youth Climate Movement (IYCM) at the 15th Conference of Parties (COP15) of...
Asian Youth and Climate Change
Dec. 9 | Amira Amira is a member of ECO Singapore, hoping to bring forward the gravity of the climate change issue in Copenhagen this December. The group is part of the International Youth Climate Movement (ICYM) at the 15th Conference of Parties (COP15) of...
Human Rights in ASEAN: An Economic Perspective
Oct. 30 | Cheong En Min >> TOC International The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was inaugurated in 1967, during an era of regional conflict and political irascibility, when relations between the pre-nascent member-states were strained. Aside...
Civil Society, QUANGOs and ASEAN
Oct. 25 | Donaldson Tan >> TOC International Government intervention at the ASEAN People’s Forum (18-20 Oct 2009) was two-fold. ASEAN governments should have more faith in civil society. (Top: Burmese Opposition, Civil Society and Pro-Junta QUANGOs...
Richard Magnus as AICHR representative
Oct. 22 | By Fang Shihan What is the AICHR? More information here. FORMER Senior District Judge, Richard Magnus is the new Singapore representative to the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission for Human Rights, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He is...
Nineteen mainstream dams are stacked back to back
Sep. 30 | Sunny Tan >> TOC International Mr Konethong Phounikhom, a senior civil servant of the Laotian Government told Vientiane Times (July 16 2009) that the planned hydropower projects along the Mekong River would not have negative impact. He is the Chief...
I survived the Red Storm in Sydney
Sep. 28 | Gilbert Goh / Sydney, Australia I experienced the mother of all storms in Sydney last week when I woke up to a cold and dusty morning completely darkened by a reddish dull cloud of dust. It looked like Sydney was on fire! (right: Sydney Opera House...
Asia Snapshot: 18 – 24 September 2009
Sep. 26 | A weekly snapshot of the latest development in Asia, brought to you by the TOC International Team. Southeast Asia 01) 81-yr-old Thai King Hospitalised Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Sunday that doctors at Siriraj Hospital said the king’s...
The unsustainable Singapore model: a rejoinder
Sep. 25 | CY A reader responds to Ian Choo’s article “The unsustainable Singapore model’. The “Singapore Model” is a remarkable one in many aspects, that it is now a textbook case of development. There are concerns however, regarding...
The Saffron Revolution, ceasefire agreements and political prisoners
Sep. 25 | John Moe Today is the 2nd Anniversary of the Saffron Revolution. John Moe, a Burmese pro-democracy activist who was expelled from Singapore, reflects on the Saffron Revolution. “Free from torture of a person by another person, with our metta (benevolence)...
The unsustainable Singapore model
Sep. 23 | Ian Choo There has been much talk about the “Singapore Model”. The West has long equated economic development with the free market ideology and liberal democracy. To the West, the “Singapore model” is characterised by the unorthodox...
Checkup for U.S. Banks
Sep. 20 | The following article is from Knowledge@Wharton At first glance, U.S. banks look like they’re getting healthier. Many of the biggest have repaid government bailout money, some are reporting solid profits and the government is winding down...
Asia Snapshot: 11-17 September 2009
Sep. 18 | A weekly snapshot of the latest development in Asia, brought to you by the TOC International Team. Southeast Asia 01) Singapore Law Society revives issue of its role in Legal Reform Law Society of Singapore president Michael Hwang said it...
ASEAN Human Rights – Going Forward or Stalled?
Sep. 15 | Donaldson Tan / Deputy Editor With less than 6 weeks to go till the deadline of the launch of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission for Human Rights (AICHR), the Singapore Government has been surprisingly quiet on matters related to the appointment of...
British PM calls for world-wide ban on arms sale to Burma
Aug. 13 | The following article is written by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. TOC thanks Mr Brown for allowing us to publish it here. (Picture from Magnum Photos.) (Read also: Shame on you, ASEAN by the Jakarta Post). Aung San Suu Kyi at her home where she’s...
Is Burma going to be Southeast Asia’s Iran or North Korea?
Aug. 11 | One of the estimated 800 tunnels currently being built in Burma. (Read more about it here.) Gerald Giam Asean’s policy of non-interference in member states’ internal affairs has been taken to the extreme to mean closing a blind eye to just about...
The child beggars of India
Aug. 11 | Fang Shi Han / India It is said that beggars are the happiest of people. They live on a day-to-day basis without worries, hopes, pride or dreams. Beggars feel no shame. They are willing to do whatever it takes to get the next bottle of alcohol, the...
What academic freedom?
Aug. 6 | Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International A curious term appeared on the Straits Times last Thursday – Academic Freedom. Academic Freedom is the belief that the freedom of inquiry by students and faculty members is essential to the mission of the academy....
George Yeo is mistaken about Burma’s history
Aug. 4 | John Moe I refer to the article published by The Online Citizen (TOC) on Sunday, 2 August 2009, reported by Ravi Philemon under the title, “George Yeo’s Meet the People Session at McDonald’s”. According to the TOC report, Mr Yeo made some ...
ASEAN – toothless but with a “sharp tongue”?
Jul. 1 | ASEAN ministers are expected to endorse the setting up of an ASEAN Human Rights Commission in July when they meet for the 42nd ASEAN Ministerial Meeting. Civil society groups in the region, however, have expressed concerns that the commission would be...
World Refugee Day – Wan’s Story
Jun. 20 | Rocky Lim / Sydney Today is World Refugee Day – the 58th Anniversary of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. In his 2009 World Refugee Day message, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres reminded us that refugees...
Reform the Internal Security Act
Jun. 2 | By Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International / London The ISA still serves an important function in ensuring Singapore’s security, despite the potential for abuse by the government. The author suggests four reforms that will help guarantee that...
Growing the economy – Indian style
May. 26 | Fang Shi Han / Bangalore, India Despite many bureaucratic inefficiencies and a lacking infrastructure, India is fast emerging as an economic powerhouse that poses a serious challenge to rising China and the West. Much has been said about a ‘rising...
Swine flu could hit one in three
May. 13 | Picture courtesy of BBC Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International / London LONDON – A study by Imperial College London revealed that one in three persons who come in contact with Swine Flu could be infected. According to lead researcher Professor...
Governance in post-crisis world
May. 9 | Fang Shi Han / Switzerland (Watch video below) “The invisible hand of markets requires the visible hand of the regulator”, says Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam. ST GALLEN – On Thursday, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam addressed...
A Christian woman’s take on the Aware saga
May. 8 | Scholar at Large / United States Pictures by Damien Chng & Kenneth Tham The AWARE fracas has finally come to a close with the return of the Old Guards on 2 May 2009. Many would agree it was heartening to witness so many concerned Singaporeans actively...
TOCI Special Report: Singapore Day 2009 in London
Apr. 26 | The hawkers posing with Makan Sutra host at Singapore Day in London. Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International / London LONDON – 12,000 Overseas Singaporeans came together to relive the Singapore experience on Saturday at the 3rd Singapore Day held...
Earth Day Special: Equity and the Green Movement
Apr. 23 | Stephanie Chok / Perth, Australia As millions around the world celebrate Earth Day, Stephanie Chok asks if the green movement could do with an Earth-shaking boost of revolutionary red. Should an ‘eco-mall’ be celebrated if it’s constructed...
Microfinance: is it the answer?
Apr. 21 | Low Hansiong / New York, United States In the vein of my last article on public service, I would like to expand on one method of actually bringing about poverty reduction. Microcredit has been around for the past 10 to 15 years. it was first formally...
An alternative to penalising labour
Apr. 14 | Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International / London The website of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) is a good indicator of the state of our economy. It not only publishes quarterly economic statistics, but also lists the economic milestones our...
TOCI Special Report: To G20 – Put people first, not corporations
Apr. 2 | Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International / London London – The world is standing on its toes as world leaders congregate in London for the G20 Summit. As many as 35,000 disgruntled people turned up all over London to make their voices heard. Their slogans...
Financial crisis has become full-blown economic crisis, says George Yeo
Mar. 31 | Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International / London Cambridge – Last Friday, Minister of Foreign Affairs George Yeo visited Cambridge University in conjunction with its 800th Anniversary. During the visit, he discussed the state of the world and the...
Beyond dialects and languages
Mar. 27 | Kelvin Teo / TOCI Writer So the dust has now settled over Minister Mentor Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s provocative call to chinese Singaporeans to focus on learning mandarin instead of their dialects. From a personal perspective, I didn’t find Mr...
The Singapore case for Carbon Tax
Mar. 17 | Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International / London Last week, TOCI Writer Goh Zhi Qian discussed sustainability in Singapore’s context and argued for the introduction of environmental indicators to measure Singapore’s progress beyond the realm of...
Singapore can do better
Mar. 3 | Lee Weijia Coming from a former British colony, going on exchange to King’s College in London is a dream and a pilgrimage of sorts for me. After all, modern Singapore has its roots in the endeavours of an English man, Sir Stamford Raffles. Traces of...
“Free Education for All” – students protest in London
Feb. 27 | TOC International guest writer, Elaine Toh, who is doing her MPhil/PhD in London, witnessed the protest and gives her personal take on it. (Article updated) Elaine Toh The muffled rumblings of a gathering, the scene of students holding banners and standing...
What is public service?
Feb. 24 | Low Hansiong In November 2008, the Economic Development Board (EDB) announced in the Straits Times its intention to market Singapore as regional hub for Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) and Non-Profit Organisations (NPO). This brings me to an...
