What Do Singapore Courts Think of the Misuse of Drugs Act? In the midst of the Yong Vui Kong case, the Misuse of Drugs Act (“MDA”) has again become a focus of controversy. Many are uneasy about the mandatory death penalty being prescribed for drug trafficking. This unease is compounded by the MDA’s use of presumptions to reverse the onus of proof onto the accused as [...] The Mandatory Death Penalty and Democracy (This post is a slightly-edited version of a comment I made on TOC, which has issued a call for a moratorium on the Singapore government’s use of the mandatory death penalty (“MDP”)). The TOC editorial linked above argues that a moratorium would “allow an open and robust discourse… so that a true national consensus on judicial [...] The Mandatory Death Penalty and Democracy (This post is a slightly-edited version of a comment I made on TOC, which has issued a call for a moratorium on the Singapore govenrment’s use of the mandatory death penalty (“MDP”)). The TOC editorial linked above argues that a moratorium would “allow an open and robust discourse… so that a true national consensus on judicial [...] The Death Penalty and the “14.99g” Charge While I was searching Lawnet for death penalty cases last December (preliminary statistics here), I also happened upon certain cases involving (to put it mildly) an interesting use of the Public Prosecutor’s discretion as regards the Misuse of Drugs Act. Before this, I’d only known through hearsay that the prosecution occasionally presses a non-capital charge against [...] The McDonald’s Doraemon Pig Toy Controversy A word on this McDonald’s Doraemon toy controversy, which coincidentally comes at a time when the Christians’ use of the word ‘Allah’ is still a raging issue in Malaysia: ST Singapore Jan 9, 2010 McDonald’s pulls pig toy Its move in omitting pig character from zodiac animal set irks Chinese By Leow Si Wan & Chuang Bing Han FAST-FOOD giant McDonald’s [...] 16-Year-Olds, Debit Cards and Clueless Parents Another example of the silly overprotectiveness of Singaporean parents: Debit cards for 16-year-olds? I WAS surprised earlier this month to find that POSB had ’sold’ a debit card to my 16-year-old son. My wife and I would have given him a debit or credit card ourselves, but only when the time was right. I did not know [...] Capital Punishment in Singapore: Preliminary Statistics Over the December holidays, I was compiling data on capital punishment employed locally between 1998-2009 (a semi-arbitrary time period). That project is far from complete, because I’ll need to finish extracting important facts from each case, including the race/nationality of the accused, a summary of the offence etc. That’s projected to take at least another [...] Capital Punishment in Singapore: Preliminary Statistics Over the December holidays, I was compiling data on capital punishment employed locally between 1998-2009 (a semi-arbitrary time period). That project is far from complete, because I’ll need to finish extracting important facts from each case, including the race/nationality of the accused, a summary of the offence etc. That’s projected to take at least another [...] 3 Perspectives on the Proposed Pre-Election ‘Cooling-Off’ Period Much has been said in the blogosphere about the proposed 1-day pre-election ‘cooling-off’ period (e.g., link 1 / link 2). But I’ll give my own perspective anyway — or three perspectives, rather. (1) Cooling Off — Without Having Broken a Sweat One striking thing about a ‘cooling-off’ period is its pointlessness in Singapore’s context. Why the need [...] Racism in “Daddy At Home” (Part II) — The Offending Segment |  Part I |  Part II | The Straits Times Forum today published a letter defending(!) Mediacorp in its tasteless use of a racist stereotype on its Channel 8 serial, “Daddy at Home”. But more on that later. As I made clear, my previous post had been based entirely on Ms. Chow’s description in her [...] Freedom of Movement under the Singapore Constitution Been pondering a little about the right to freedom of movement enshrined in Article 13(2) of the Singapore Constitution – especially in light of the passage in 2009 of the Public Order Act, and more recently, the Casino Control (Amendment) Act. Both these laws hamper, to varying degrees, the spatial mobility of Singaporeans within Singapore’s [...] Thinking Aloud: The Rule of Law in Singapore Asst. Prof. Eugene Tan of the School of Law at SMU writes the occasional, insightful piece in the local newspapers. Last Saturday, his TODAY article entitled “Debating rule of law in Singapore” (14 Nov) reflected on last month’s New York State Bar Association meeting in Singapore. Here are some extracts: … … … Is Singapore an ersatz [...] Racism in MediaCorp Channel 8 Serial, “Daddy At Home” |  Part I |  Part II | It seems that racist jokes are not limited to casual coffee-shop talk and semi-inebriated pub-jabberings. They are now broadcast on prime-time national TV, as evidenced by an ST Forum letter by one Ms. Chow Pei Sze: “How did ethnic stereotype go unflagged?” The Straits Times Forum 14 November 2009 I was [...] Response to ST Forum Letter, “Decriminalise consensual underage sex”. This is a slightly revised and footnoted version of a letter I sent to the Straits Times Forum last Saturday. It’s a reply to this letter, published last Friday. (Incidentally, a letter today by Mr. Alvin Chen, which was selected for publication over mine, mirrors several points I made.) I refer to the letter, “Decriminalise consensual underage [...] Hate Speech in Singapore “Racial and Religious Hate Speech in Singapore: Reclaiming the Victim’s Perspective” (draft of forthcoming article in the Singapore Law Review, 2009) Blog Closed. Mas Selamat Escape: The Disciplinary Fallout Edited: 27 May 2008 at 1200hrs News has broken regarding the disciplinary action taken in light of the Mas Selamat escape. Appended at the bottom of this post is a ‘quick-reference’ table summarizing (from DPM Wong Kan Seng’s speech in Parliament on Monday) the disciplinary actions taken against the various officers and guards. Certain cells [...] Racist Speech — Whose Fault is It, Anyway? A dude going by the rather charming moniker, Sexy Fragrance Prince, has been charged under s. 298 of the Penal Code. Since I’m presently researching on the topic of hate speech legislation, I thought I should weigh in a little on this debate. A few good blog posts on this issue: Ian on the Red Dot, “Bloggers [...] The Pedra Branca Denouement: Between a Rock and a Hard Place? To make up for a long absence, I will post in quick succession on a number of issues: Pedra Branca, racist bloggers, the Yaw Shin Leong mini-scandal, and (just in) the disciplinary fallout from Mas Selamat’s escape. Let me start with a short comment on Pedra Branca. The Straits Times May 26, 2008 SM: Accepting outcome shows maturing [...] JI Detainee’s Escape: Another Argument Against the ISA? So the controversy surrounding the Budget 2008 Debate (which I haven’t the time to follow) has been drowned out by this news of the Manhunt. A rifle-totting, able-bodied, combat-trained CPL Dave Teo is apparently small-fry in comparison with the unarmed, partly-crippled former chief of the Jemaah Islamiah. The Straits Times was notably quick to publish a [...] A Non-Citizen’s Constitutional (Non-)Right to Freedom of Speech in Singapore Let’s talk about the rights to freedom of speech, expression and assembly in Singapore, with regard to non-citizens. The inspiration behind this is a series of recent incidents involving foreigners attempting to weigh in on local civic discourse, or to express themselves artistically… and curtly rebuffed by the authorities. These include: Douglas Sanders A Professor Emeritus from [...] The Sounding of a TOCsin: Blogosphere in a Bog I’ve been MIA for sometime, clearly… was planning originally to make a comeback with an essay of sorts on the constitutional rights (if any) of non-citizens in Singapore. Am still working on that. But this rather bemusing fracas has impelled me to write, a little sooner than planned: soc.culture.singapore: Beware TOC (The Online Cons) Newsintercom: [...] Press freedom and social stability — of cake, and half-baked assumptions I’ve actually got a few issues that I want to blog about, but let me focus on just one: the BBC World Service Poll on press freedom. Some pertinent links here: BBC World News, “World ‘divided’ on press freedom” (10 December 2007) BBC, BBC World Service Poll: World Divided on Press Freedom, (10 December 2007) (“BBC [...] Why blogging is not the antidote to illiberalism. And so, I’ve again reneged on a promise to blog more frequently. I’ve been working / interning, so much of my day is consumed by the mundane. Some of my time at home is also devoted to editing and proof-reading any number of soon-to-be-published academic articles. Plus, I’ve also been catching up on my reading [...] Quiescence. Teach us to care, and not to care. Teach us to sit still. Exam season. I’m not built for exams — or is it vice versa? The ludicrous thing, if you think about it, is that pretty much an entire semester’s work will be gauged on the basis of how well each of us answers 5 questions: 1 [...] A post that’s NOT “full of vile and obscene invective” The Thio Li-Ann vs. Alfian Sa’at spat has left a sour aftertaste to the s. 377A controversy. Suffice to say, my estimation of a person falls dramatically when: You’re a highly-educated Singaporean who professes to be a ‘liberal’, and yet have “never heard of” Alfian Sa’at. You construe one silly, juvenile e-mail with choice epithets like “you [...] Argh… It’s Everywhere! Being reliant on public buses to get around, I’m thankful that I live in an area that’s serviced predominantly by SMRT buses. Why, what’s wrong with SBS Transit buses, you ask? Just this one incredibly annoying thing known as TVMobile. You know how, when you’re riding on a bus or train, you sometimes encounter this one inconsiderate [...] Final Reflections on s 377A - For Now… Lest I begin sounding like a broken record, this will be my last commentary on s. 377A for some time. It’s not what I envision to be my cause célèbre, unlike a contemporary of mine =) Section 377A: The Final Bastion? From the viewpoint of many conservatives, s. 377A is their Alamo — the final bastion for the forces of goodness, decency and propriety, the place where they must valiantly make their last stand. Lose s. 377A, and (if the conservatives are to be believed) the gates of hell will be irreversibly opened, unleashing wickedness and depravity upon our society: sexual licentiousness, bestiality, incest, pedophilia, necrophilia, and other unspeakable abominations. Very gutsy, very sanctimonious… the only problem is that they have chosen the wrong place to make their stand. (more…) Thio Li-Ann’s Speech in Parliament — A Rebuttal Note: Edited on 26 Oct 07 at 1:16am. Prologue I realize that I’ve abstained from blogging for over a month now. ‘Abstained’, because that was in part a conscious decision. I lack any political blood whatsoever, and of late have been rather disenchanted at the state of the blogosphere, which is populated by what I deem to be sectional interests. Furthermore, any proper discourse tends to occur within a like-minded community of bloggers. Where one ideology meets another, there is only invective. Self-professed liberals have difficulty grasping this basic tenet of democracy: that whatever your argument, there is bound to be disagreement. “I refuse to engage you… you must be stupid not to see my reasoning” — that line, which I have seen ad infinitum, ad nauseum, reeks of a cop-out, a more urbane, unctuous way of saying, “Lalalalala… I can’t hear you… nanny-nanny-poo-poo!” If indeed we yearn for a true deliberative democracy, an effervescent civil society of free and equal citizens… then learn to accept that deliberation is a process, and that it is most effective when approached with maturity, thoughtfulness and prudence on all sides (notwithstanding that a real democracy entails giving all citizens a strong prima facie right to offend and insult one another, as I’ve argued before). The Heart of the Matter So let me go on to what I had intended to talk about: Thio Li-Ann’s speech in Parliament. Some prolegomenal remarks on the blogosphere’s response, though. In a word: disappointing. I’ve yet seen a convincing rebuttal of her arguments… (edit: I’ve since read a handful of pretty good rebuttals, which I’m too lazy to link, however) most bloggers prefer to indulge in lampoonery, although they oblige by way of ‘logical analysis’ by pulling out a number of well-worn arrows from their quiver of “logical fallacies”, the old chestnuts like “strawman”, “false dichotomy”, “hasty generalization”, and so on. I’m afraid, however, that these labels don’t mean a thing if not backed by substantive arguments which rebut her arguments. (more…) *Bump* Astute visitors might have noticed that I have an “around the web…” section in the list of links on my sidebar. I update this once in a while. Generally, I tend to add links to several law professor blogs which touch on legal theory and public law, which I grab off my RSS feeds. My blog sort of serves as my personal ‘bookmarks’ section so that I know what I should catch up on when I have the time… I suppose I could add stuff from round the local blogosphere, but that aggregation service is already admirably provided by several sites, plus, I prefer to add stuff that’s less perishable than news-related content. Anyway, as you can tell, this is a filler post. I’m brain-dead from reading Company Law cases, so stuff like the s. 377 draft bill, the SDP protest march, and Part 4 of the ongoing “Pro-Gay Position” series, will all have to wait. I also hope to post some new thoughts relating to the Year 2 law modules. I must say, though, that today’s Dilbert strip is the funniest I’ve seen in quite a while — and if you’re familiar with Dilbertesque humour, that really says something. LOL. I want to learn marketing language, too!