Saturday, May 31, 2014

Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore says, we know what is best for you.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore, the government knows what is best for you. Never mind what you think.

The singularly unique style of Singapore government is based on the underlying assumption by Lee Kuan Yew that the people are incapable of deciding what is good for them and their country.

It is he and by extension his son, who he appointed Prime Minister, who are so capable, intelligent they alone know what is best and have all the answers. Singaporeans simply, according to Lee's reasoning, do not have the intelligence or the capacity to think for themselves.

Therefore, the thinking goes, if the people are allowed to decide their government, the country will simply collapse. If the island is to survive, it can only be through Lee Kuan Yew and his handpicked lieutenants.

To further this idea, all the established concepts of parliamentary democracy have to be dismantled and a system adopted to further his unique system based on this philosophy.

Rule of Law which requires the judiciary to administer justice equally and fairly must be dismantled. In its place judges are required to decide cases to further Lee Kuan Yew's idea of justice.

Anyone who advocates opposition to the government has to be eliminated and destroyed through defamation actions and removed from politics altogether. Examples are the late JB Jeyaretnam and Chee Soon Juan, the leader of opposition Singapore Democratic Party who were destroyed for the sake of Lee's Singapore.

I too had to be destroyed. In 2008 while in Singapore I was sent to jail for 3 months for criticizing
judge Belinda Ang Saw Ean who abused used her position to jail and bankrupt Chee Soon Juan; to please Lee Kuan Yew and his son.

Through the state controlled media, my photo was publicly displayed as a criminal almost daily as one who had insulted a government judge. The purpose of the punishment is two fold. It is not only to destroy me, but also to warn anyone else to the dangers of daring to criticize their judges; to send a chill down everyone's spine to stay clear of any criticism of their principle agents commissioned to further Lee's vision of the law.

The Constitution of Singapore guarantees freedom of the press. However a free press does not correspond with Lee Kuan Yew's plans for the country. Therefore only journalists who are willing to report according to Lee's wishes are permitted to work. Free newspapers are unacceptable and news has to be what they want you to hear. Therefore he nationalizes the entire media. Today there is no free press in the island. The only news reported are government approved news.

The idea of the people choosing the leaders of their choice at elections is also unacceptable. Lee believes that a better system is for him to decide who are good leaders who will, after selection, be thrust upon the population to rule over you. Too dangerous to leave this to the people's choice.

This is done by abolishing free and fair elections. After a series of defamation actions and other forms of reprisals against independent election candidates, no real credible person is allowed or dares to emerge and stand against his party at elections.

If they are any allowed to stand against him, it is those who are third rate without any real possibility of being elected. A former bicycle thief or errand boy would be welcome to stand. After all he is  unlikely to be elected anyway.

Lee's PAP will field individuals who have passed his test. They invariably win and next instant are made Ministers and high ranking officials who will not only rule over you but give you advice on how to live your life as well.

The state controlled newspapers will extol them as great leaders and their orders will be dutifully reported. They are paid millions in salary, which is the main attraction to many Singaporeans to seek a career in politics under Lee's PAP, in the hope that they too, if lucky, will be selected for high office and rewarded with an opulent and luxurious lifestyle forever.

Lee Kuan Yew does not believe in workers right to demand a fair living wage as it will result in higher wages which will drive foreign businesses away who are there for the cheap labor. At all costs the foreign employers must be satisfied, or else, according to Lee's thinking, we the economy will collapse.

But we will miss the point if we fail to remember that it is he that made the island totally dependent on foreign capital in the first place.

As a result employers are allowed to pay their workers any pittance they want, regardless of how much they make in profits. The workers are told they can either accept it or leave. Although there is an organization called National Trade Union Congress, it is nothing more than a rubber stamp for employers under whom the workers are left at their mercy.

Strikes are illegal and strikers are arrested, jailed and publicly shamed in the state controlled press.

Peaceful demonstrations, protests or assembly are all unacceptable to Lee Kuan Yew. He believes  this will cause disruption of peaceful society, cause chaos and instability and would drive away foreign businessmen. Singapore should have the silence of the cemetery. Therefore all such civil disobedience activity has to be stopped altogether. There has to be total peace and stability at all times.

In Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore people are not allowed to make a speech, protest or assemble in public, unless you have a police permit. But in reality this licensing system is totally useless. No permit has ever been issued to anyone in the island's entire history for any activity critical of the government. Any such activity therefore is prohibited under law.

In Lee Kuan Yew's thinking, it is best for Singapore if everyone supported him with absolute obedience. This was the same in Nazi Germany. The slogan in Nazi Germany was, Ein Reich, Ein Volk, Ein Fuehrer which means "One country, One people, One Leader".

Hitler destroyed anyone who dared to purvey ideas different from his just as it is in Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore today. People are encouraged to join the numerous government grassroots organizations such as the People's Association to show their support and to be identified for reward.

People's Association members are rewarded by better jobs, better housing and better career opportunity. Anyone who hopes to aspire to greatness in the island would be wise to join and support these grass roots associations.

School teachers are discouraged from encouraging independent thinking in their students. A smart student is one who is healthy, works hard and supports and respects Lee Kuan Yew and his handpicked leaders.

Students are openly encouraged to show support for Lee and his government. Words extolling and praising their leaders in government if noticed may result in selection for high office with a lucrative and secure career under the PAP government.

As a result, Singapore parents wanting to secure their children's future force them to praise Lee Kuan Yew and his PAP government in public, join youth PAP associations and wear white clothes which are the uniform of his ruling political party.

Just like in Nazi Germany, Lee Kuan Yew's Internal Security Department, the successor to the former Special Branch has agents throughout the island who report directly to the Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew's son, just as they did to his father in the past. Just as other totalitarian dictatorships elsewhere, it is essential to know exactly what everyone thinks and to identify those who are against the government for punishment and reprisals.

These agents report almost daily to the Prime Minister and the intelligence received is used to punish and reward accordingly. Singapore it can be said is one of the most surveilled societies in the world. It is not an exaggeration to say that in Singapore Big Brother is watching you round the clock.

I am throughout here referring to Lee Kuan Yew although he is retired, no longer in government and in poor health. This is true. Why I do this is because, although he is no longer in government, the country is still firmly and completely run under according to his philosophy. It is his ideas that form the basis of government, not the Constitution which is supposed to be the controlling instrument. His son is simply running the country according to his father's wishes.

The question is, will such a system work in the 21 century? I think not. Lee Kuan Yew got it wrong in 2 fundamental areas. One, when he formulated such as philosophy, he was not able to foresee the coming of the Internet. Today the people, despite the rewards of being obedient dogs running around to please the PAP, are realizing that they can achieve success even without Lee Kuan Yew's government support.

For one, they could just leave for settlement in the West to free, fair and open democracies. For others it is simply distasteful and disgusting to have to live a life in bondage to survive and are willing to disobey regardless.

The other area in which Lee appears to have got it wrong is his failure to realize that education works directly against totalitarian regimes. The more education people have, the more they think, the more trouble to dictators. They begin to demand their rights. I think Lee failed to realize the words of a great Chinese sage who said "best way to rule is to keep the peoples stomach full and their heads empty" .

To take an example of myself, I am a thorn on the side of Lee Kuan Yew and his PAP. Although it is impossible to know how much damage I have caused the regime, that there is no doubt that I have. And the reason is because I have an education. Had I been an illiterate peasant, I would perhaps be probably content to live happily in Lee's government housing and work on a 9 to 5 job each day in Lee's Singapore, without complaint. It is the education that has made me what I am just as what the education is doing to increasing numbers of Singaporeans who stand up against him and his one man one party police state.

I am sure it the people had no education at all, they would be happy and content to live among their skyscrapers, excellent roads bridges and working telephones and excellent drinkable water, while singing praises to their Great Leader Lee Kuan Yew and their Beloved Leader his son.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Thursday, May 29, 2014

Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, son of Lee Kuan Yew is suspected of embezzling millions of dollars from citizens state-run retirement funds (CPF)

Ladies and Gentlemen,

A Singaporean Roy Ngerng, 33 year old health care worker has discovered that Lee Hsien Loong, the Prime Minister of Singapore who is Lee Kuan Yew's son has embezzled millions of dollars from the island city state's state run retirement funds (CPF). He made this charge last week in his blog Heart Truth.

The trigger happy and quick to the gun Singapore Prime Minister, and his father Lee Kuan Yew who had given him the Prime Ministers' position have the notorious habit of using defamation laws to silence critics throughout Singapore's history, whenever someone criticizes him, to rule the island as a one man one party police state.

Ngern's discovery of the embezzlement came from close analysis of the CPF records which clearly do not match. According to Negerng, the interest rate received for the funds far exceed what is paid to the citizens. As the Prime Minister heads the wealthy state run retirement fund, Ngerng has correctly discovered that the embezzlement was carried out by the Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and posted the details on his blog.

In a May 29, 2014 article in the state controlled Straits Times report "PM Lee commences suit against blogger Roy Ngerng" the Prime Minister has commenced the defamation of character lawsuit in the Singapore High Court. http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/courts-crime/story/pm-lee-commences-suit-against-blogger-roy-ngerng-20140529

By all accounts, there should be no doubt that the Prime Minister is guilty of embezzlement of the citizen's retirement funds. Although Ngerng does not say how much money has been stolen, by all accounts it must run into the hundreds of millions, as the fund is huge, probably in billions.

The Prime Minister's guilt can be nailed by circumstances. He has a propensity for corruption as he, just like his father publicly pays himself and each of his ministers $3.7 million a year, which amounts to more than 5 times the salary of President Obama, the president of the United States, whereas Singapore island is a tiny piece of real estate no more than 700 square miles. In addition, it is believed that he as well as his Ministers, not to mention his father, secretly siphon off millions without any accountability, corruption at scale which would make Mobutu, the dictator of the Congo who stole the diamonds a saint.

In fact the Lee family has a penchant for corruption. About 10 years ago, his father Lee Kuan Yew was discovered corruptly receiving kickbacks in the purchase of some properties in Singapore called Jade Mansions for his entire family. When he was caught red handed, his answer was once again to sue the complainant Tang Liang Hong, a wealthy Singapore lawyer which naturally resulted in his bankruptcy and forced him into exile to Australia to escape further retribution.

The Singapore Prime Minister's guilt in the theft can also be gleaned by his conduct after Roy Ngerng reported it in Heart Truths. Every other Prime Minister of any civilized country would have simply ignored such a charge made by an ordinary disgruntled citizen. The fact that a Prime Minister of a country takes the trouble to sue an ordinary inconsequential private citizen for a thing like this raises grave suspicion. I think we can smell a rat. Only a thief who knows his crime would be discovered would go to this extent to try to conceal it. 

You also notice another distinct pattern here. Every time someone accuses him of impropriety he sues you and gets away with it with the help of his judges who are at his beck and call. That way nobody within Singapore ever gets to accuse him of anything while he continues to be as corrupted as he wants.

But you notice he never sues anyone who is outside his island because he knows it is not so easy to get his way. Judges outside are not beholden to him as they are in his island.

It is not impossible for him to sue someone like me in the United States. If he feels that my accusing him of corruption has tarnished his reputation, he can always sue me here. In his refusal to sue anyone outside Singapore of calling him corrupt he gives serious  credibility to the charge that he is indeed and has indeed embezzled Singaporeans retirement funds because someone who feels unjustly accused can always sue to clear his name, especially since he has sued the Singaporean Roy Ngerng in his Singapore court.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Singapore Prime Minister, argues in Parliament, he alone knows what is best, never mind what anybody thinks

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In Singapore's one man one party state government of Lee Kuan Yew's son, the Prime Minister appears to be arguing that he and his ruling party the PAP alone knows what is in the best interests of the citizens, never mind what anybody thinks.

That arrogant argument is the gist of what he appears to be making in their charade of a parliament on May 28, 2014. See state controlled Straits Times report titled

"Singapore: Constructive politics will help Singapore scale new heights but "wrong politics will doom us", says PM" http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/parliament-constructive-politics-will-help-spore-scale-n

But what is "constructive politics" is never really defined. If we are to go by what is being done in the island for the past 50 years, it simply means "what we (the Prime Minister and his handpicked minions) say is constructive politics" or simply "don't criticize us and if you do, it will be deemed wrong politics". Or rather "only what we say is constructive, anything else is destructive"

There was a lot said in the debate, both by the Prime Minister and the so-called opposition politician Low Thia Khiang but sadly in the end, none of us, I have to sadly say has been any the wiser.

These Singapore parliamentary debates if you could call it that is nothing but a charade, total theatrics, unadulterated entertainment.

It is simply a tom foolery exercise to give the impression that they are in fact really debating Singapore affairs but in fact an exercise merely to affirm whatever the Prime Minister and his hand picked lieutenants have already decided for their citizens. To even suggest that they are parliamentary debates is to do grievous injury to the term itself.

Lets forget about these nonsensical debates and ask what is Singapore today. It is a small island where one man, in this case the Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew's son, whose father put him there,   who like his father, handpicks opportunistic scholarship students deputized as his Ministers who decide what is good and what is not for their people.

As for the people, as far as they, these rulers, are concerned, they are a bunch of morons who are incapable of deciding what is good for them because only they, the Prime Minister and his deputies, know anything and everything. They alone are the repository of all wisdom, the meaning of constructive politics, and the saviors and guardians of the realm. 

And in order to run their one party one man dictatorship, they have effectively sidelined the Constitution, denied free speech and expression, hijacked the entire media, denied the right to protest or complain and run the country entirely on  defamation of character regime, where anyone who questions is promptly sued and bankrupted by their Kangaroo Courts.

After having done all that, it would appear that there should be no need for any debates, let alone a parliament; an institution wholly intended to hoodwink the local Singaporeans and the rest of the world into thinking that it is in fact a democracy!

The entire speech by the Prime Minister was simply Double Dutch. It was an attempt to say a lot but with a specific intent to say nothing. At the end of it all, none came out any the wiser, totally understandable because if you are talking nonsense, it usually doesn't make much sense no matter how much you speak.

His definition of constructive politics is as follows.

He says "Constructive politics should develop effective policies and improve the lives of the people". True. But he conveniently leaves out who decides what improves the lives of the people and what is effective policies. Singapore's history clearly shows that, according to his father and now him, only he knows what are "effective policies" and things which supposedly "improve the lives of the people" not any other ordinary citizen.

And then he says there should be no "sound bite" politics and that "proposals should be examined". But how do the citizens do this when there is no free press and where a critic is sued whenever he suggests the contrary is no where defined.

Then he has big words. He says "Scrutiny should be conducted responsibly through open direct raising of pertinent questions and establishing the truth to prevent dishonest or self serving people from getting positions of authority".

I can't help saying that it apears as if he is referring to himself and his handpicked minions when he says this.

I would have thought that a Prime Minister who pays himself and his handpicked Ministers no less that $3.7 million a year or 5 times the salary of President Obama is highly dishonest and outright corrupt.

And they are totally incompetent too, for allowing no less that 40% of the population of tiny Singapore island to be made up of foreigners, where locals can't find jobs anymore because they go to foreigners, where the fertility rate is the lowest in the world and the emigration rate is the highest almost totally depleting the local citizenry who prefer to flee to the West than continue living in his island paradise.

And they are highly incompetent in creating a lemon of a CPF retirement scheme, where their citizens in spite of living in over prized government housing, have no money left to retire and have to resort to cleaning tables in outdoor food stalls even though they are 80 years old! Otherwise they would starve.

And then he goes on to give lip service to what are other virtues of good government except he has no intention to let anyone else decide how the country is run, except for him and his handpicked minions who run around with the title of Ministers with over-sized pockets.

Despite Low Thia Khiang, the Prime Minister's approved opposition politician's feeble attempts to stand up to the Big Boy, Lee Kuan Yew's son, he never made any attempt to discharge the mandate the people gave him in electing him in the first place.

Instead of skirting around the individual issues of matters such as immigration policy, he deliberately fails to ask the Prime Minister the real questions, such as, are you prepared to give us freedom, are you prepared to uphold the Constitution, are you prepared to restore the democratic rights of the people and dismantle the dictatorship?

Low should be asking for freedom of speech and the removal of the requirement of a permit to speak, freedom of assembly and the removal of the requirement of a permit to assemble. In fact Low should be asking for democracy instead of allowing the Prime Minister's insistence of a dictatorship.

Either Low deliberately pretends not to know, or he is totally ignorant of the fact that arguing about these issues such as immigration without first having the Constitutional rights of free citizens, would mean forever having to listen to this nonsensical Punch and Judy show parliament.

And the bad news for Lee's son the Prime Minister is at the end, despite all that they do in the name of Singaporeans, no dictatorship ever got is right in the end. Mussolini built the roads and bridges in Italy because he too thought he knew everything. But he didn't get it right in the end. They hanged him upside down in a square in Milan after the people had enough of him.

Democracy has it's shortcomings like anything else. But in the end, it is still the enduring political system like nothing else; because right or wrong, it is the will of the people, not the will of bullies like Lee Kuan Yew's son the Prime Minister of Singapore.

People would rather have, I dare say, less of glass towers and skyscrapers skirting the sea front of downtown Singapore and bullies like the Prime Minister and his handpicked errand boys and a little more freedom and a say in the way their island is run.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email:nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Monday, May 26, 2014

Singapore bully, the Prime Minister muzzles Roy Ngerng and silences free speech in the island

Update May 26 2014

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Singapore Prime Minister is once again acting the bully and thug by threatening blogger Roy Ngerng with defamation lawsuit and aggravated damages. Please see Straits Times article titled "Roy Ngerng agrees to remove blog posts, asks to extend damages dateline". May 26, 2014 http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/roy-ngerng-agrees-remove-blog-posts-asks-extend-damages

You would have thought that Roy Ngerng had committed murder by all the publicity in the state controlled press with the Prime Minister sending lawyers letters and threatening lawsuits. It is nothing of the sort. All Roy Ngerng did was to write a blog post in his blog the Heart Truths pointing out the fact that according to the figures, it appears that Lee Kuan Yew's son, the Prime Minister appears to have cooked the books about public funds.

Reading the article by Ngerng, it does appear that he has legitimate grounds for saying so as the numbers simply do not match.

But regardless of whether Ngerng was right or wrong, the Prime Minister action is clearly unlawful and an abuse of the law. Defamation law of today does not entitle a Prime Minister of a country to sue a private citizen merely because he accused him of misuse of funds. This is the law of all modern nations of today. Such actions are done only by tyrants and dictators of banana republics and third world sub Saharan Africa. The actions of the Singapore Prime Minister disgrace Singapore and is a stain on it's reputation.

This is why.

The law of defamation does allow a citizen to sue another for unjustly defaming his character. Therefore citizen A can sue citizen B if accused of dishonesty.

But different sets of rules apply to a public figure. The Prime Minister is a public figure. In the case of public figures, it is not enough that one has defamed another. In order for a public figure to succeed against a private citizen, in addition to proving the falsity of the charge, it has to be shown that the defendant had malice aforethought, in other words a personal desire to harm, the plaintiff. The higher bar placed on public figures as opposed to ordinary citizens is because the right to free speech is paramount and the courts should not muzzle public debate on matters of public interest and controversy. In addition, the Plaintiff has to show actual damage as a result of the Defendant's statement; not enough to merely allege perceived damage.

As a result, a public figure is faced with a very high threshold to overcome when suing a private citizen. And rightly so.

This rule was set in stone in the landmark case of New York Times vs Sullivan, a Supreme court case.

Here there is no evidence whatsoever that Roy Ngerng was motivated by any ill will against Lee Kuan Yew's son when he wrote the blog. He was merely a concerned citizen wanting to publicize his observation that the numbers simply do not match; that is all. Secondly the Prime Minister has shown no evidence that his image has actually been damaged as a result of Ngern's blog.

Although this rule is American law, all civilized nations including the UK have moved towards this standard, and it would be impossible for David Cameron, British Prime Minister to sue bus driver, Joe Blokes of Manchester because he said Cameron had his paws in the kitty.

This is the law throughout the world in all civilized nations, in UK, Australia, Europe, New Zealand or any other civilized country.

Singaporeans have no freedom of the press, no rule of law and no freedom of speech. Lee Kuan Yew's son the Prime Minister appears determined to keep everyone silenced and not even raise a squeak. This is a disgrace. And what is worse, he is deliberately keeping their citizens totally ignorant of their rights. In fact I don't think any Singaporean even knows that his rights are being violated by these Kangaroo court laws.

I hope you know why Lee Kuan Yew's son is so determined to silence his people. Singapore is a very unstable island. The economy is based almost wholly on foreign investment. Singapore Airlines survive by flying foreign businessmen who do business in the island. In order to ensure they continue their investment, it is necessary to make Singapore stable, strike free, protest free and complaint free, because the slightest sign of unrest and demonstrations would result in their pulling out and investing in Jakarta or anywhere else instead. His actions to silence dissent is not done in the interests of Singaporeans but wholly to please foreigners who have capital in the island.

Lee Kuan Yew's son fails to understand that he should please not only foreign capital in the island but also its own citizens. After all they are Singaporeans in Singapore.

I can tell you this sort of bullying cannot go on much longer. If they silence Ngerng as they surely will, there will be other Ngerngs and Lee would have to use ever increasing harsher methods against his own  people. And a time will come, I reckon very soon, when he simply cannot keep them silent anymore. And that is when Lee Kuan Yew's son and his PAP will fall the way Humpty Dumpty did.

And by the way, the only reason why the Prime Minister of Singapore is not suing me for writing this is because I am in Fremont, California USA. If I was now in Singapore, he would confiscate my American passport and sue me too. I am sure he or his secret service, the Internal Security Department is reading every single word I write. Because this blog is being read in Singapore they are furious at me. But there is nothing they can do.

Hang tight. It won't be long.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

For Singaporeans who suffer persecution for their political beliefs. Offer to advice on asylum law of the United States

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As seen by the recent events in Singapore with increasing repression by the government against  young men and women who are justly and lawfully demanding their civil rights, if you feel you don't want to take this anymore, and want to leave for settlement elsewhere, I am willing to advice on the law of asylum of the United States.

This week alone, 5 young men were arrested for writing anti government slogans on walls. Also a young man has been threatened with libel and slander action for having written an anti government blog on the Internet. By all indications, it appears the government is ratcheting up it's repression against those who are only speaking up for their rights. We can expect the numbers arrested to increase. It appears the government has become increasingly insecure and their only means to silence and cow the population is to use harsher and harsher repressive measures.

I want the reader to know that for those who feel hopeless in that island, there is a way out by leaving.

I am willing to meet those who want advice on US asylum law in Johor Bahru Malaysia across the Causeway from Singapore to advice on US asylum law. The cheaper way to do this is to get a group of people to share the expenses of my travel to Johor Bahru Malaysia to meet you in person. That way it would be cheaper for you since my fees could be shared among you. You could also ask all the questions you need to ask.

If you would like to take this opportunity to meet me, tell your friends about it and let me know and I will meet you there.

I have 18 years of experience in Asylum law and US Immigration law in general. I am well qualified to give you excellent advice.

I am unable to enter Singapore as I was deported from the island in 2008 after I was arrested and jailed for writing a blog post critical of their judges, something I am very proud of. You can read about it in my earlier blog posts here. But I have no problem in meeting you in Johor Bahru which is just across the causeway from the island.

My telephone number is 510 491 8525 and my email is nair.gopalan@yahoo.com. Call or write to me if you want to see me.

I am very happy that more Singaporeans are having the courage to stand up to the dictatorship. Well done. I am proud of you.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
Fremont, California, USA

Sunday, May 25, 2014

Why Lee Kuan Yew's son, the Singapore Prime Minister is a fool to give an ultimatum to critic blogger Roy Ngerng.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The state controlled Singapore newspapers, are abuzz with the news that he has given a dateline of 5 pm Singapore time Monday for Roy Ngerng, some heretofore unknown blogger to hand him a proposal of damages to pay for defamation of character lawsuit or else he will file a lawsuit against him, which means, if history is anything to go by, several hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages and bankruptcy.

The brief facts are that Roy Ngerng, a 33 year old Singaporean health care worker had written in his blog that it is suspicious where the citizens CPF moneys have gone (Singaporeans state managed retirement funds) as the interest rates supposed to accrue and actually given do not tally.

As expected in the trigger happy, defamation regime, Lee Kuan Yew's son, the Prime Minister, as was his father, they have immediately threatened to sue the poor blogger in the their Kangaroo courts, which always with clockwork precision decide in favor of the Lees and their government never mind the evidence. In Singapore when the Lees sue it is like the trial of the rabbit who stole the tart in Alice in Wonderland. The sentence comes first and then the evidence!

In the present tense political atmosphere of Singapore, Lee's son is a fool to threaten Roy Ngerng. It appears he has given till 5 pm on Monday for Ngerng to come up with an offer, otherwise he is going to sue.

Unfortunately for Lee's son, Singapore is not the same as it was before. This week alone 5 teenagers had climbed to a government housing block in Toa Payoh a suberb of Singapore and written the words "Fuck you PAP", "Wake up SG" and "Singapore government cannot give us democracy". They were arrested under wide publicity in the state controlled press with threats that they would be dealt with severely with long prison sentences and would be beaten (caned). To make matters worse, just after Roy Ngerng's receipt of Lee's son's threats of defamation lawsuit, 6 bus stations in Clark Quay were sprayed with slogans in support of him.

In any other country, anti government graffiti would be simply ignored. But not in Singapore. In fact in the island, since the last 50 years, there have hardly been even a single instance of anti government slogans on walls. This is because the government is mortally afraid of anti government agitation as any small instance of this is likely to spread across the island and literally topple the government.

The Singapore government's fear of any anti government protest is understandable. The Lee Kuan Yew government is simply a fraud. It is not based on law. In spite of there being a real Constitution, it is completely ignored. Instead you have self proclaimed leader, the father Lee Kuan Yew and his son who have usurped power which they control with some had picked ministers to do their bidding. The elections are a fraud and it is literally a one party one man dictatorship.

And the only way you can continue to govern such an illegitimate, illegal system is through force and fear. Which is why the government of Singapore instills extreme fear in their subjects to ensure obedience. But lately with the advent of the Internet and universal education, Singaporeans, it appears, are not prepared to be silenced despite the harsh punishment.

In Roy Ngerang's case Lee's son has made the mistake of giving him an ultimatum to comply with his demands. What if he doesn't ? Will he sue? The entire island's overwhelming sympathy is with Roy Ngerng. After all he is only an ordinary citizen who spoke his mind. What is so criminal about that? And we see Lee's son as the bully and thug that he is; going after a helpless private citizen merely because he spoke his mind.

But the idiot that Lee Kuan Yew's son is, he will probably have to go ahead and sue. After all he has threatened it, and in the Chinese way of thinking, he cannot lose face, or else no one would respect him. All the more so, should he sue, because only yesterday other protesters have shown public support for Ngerng's actions by defacing bus stops with slogans in his support.

Lee Kuan Yew's son's folly is tragically reminiscent of the Syrian uprising. In March 2011, some 17 schoolchildren had writing anti Assad slogans on their school walls in Derra a former railway town on the south of Syria bordering Jordan.  Assad could have simply ignored it and that would have been the end of it. But no, he didn't ignore it. He had the school children arrested, tortured and some killed, after which his Secret Police (the Singapore equivalent of the ISD) sent abusive obscene messages to their parents. This Deraa incident was the beginning of the Syrian revolution of today.

Assad was stupid and on reflection so is Lee Kuan Yew's son, equally stupid. In his challenging Roy Ngerng, I fear he is starting a revolution in Singapore island. He has disturbed the hornet's nest. If he does what he has threatened, which he has, it would enflame and bitterly antagonize the entire Singapore population. And this would mean more political anti government agitation, not less.

And perhaps another Syrian revolution.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email:nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Saturday, May 24, 2014

Lee Kun Yew's son must be consulting his comatose father on how to handle the mounting dissent

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am just thinking out aloud. What with, with 5 teenagers on HDB walls writing anti government slogans, with Roy Ngerng accusing the Prime Minister of embezzlement and only yesterday, even more people writing anti government slogans on bus stops across the island, it seems people are increasingly disenchanted with the Lees and their PAP.

Anti government agitation is on the rise. Since Lee's son, the Prime Minister's only ability is simply to do what his father did, has he gone to his father's bedside, where the poor man is probably lying comatose just about to kick the bucket, asking for advice as to what to do next? Probably.

I suppose the answer is to use even harsher measures to keep Singaporeans in line. After all in the way the island is in the moment, a pathetic situation indeed, a one man one party dictatorship, I suppose his father would have no other advice to give.

It is fun to watch what Lee's son would do now and how Singaporeans will react. I would urge everyone there to stand up against this nonsense of a dictatorship and tell Lee's son exactly what he is.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Singapore Dissident Gopalan Nair urges Singaporeans to write anti-PAP slogans and blog posts.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Immediately after the case of the teens who wrote "Fuck you PAP" "Wake up SG" 'Singapore government cannot give freedom" this week followed by the case of Roy Ngerng who accused Singapore Prime Minister of misusing public money, Singapore's Sunday Times of May 25, 2014 reports "Vandalism of 6 bus stops in Clarke key under probe". http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/vandalism-six-bus-stops-clarke-quay-under-probe-20140525
One of the bus stops in the Clarke Quay area that were vandalized. The police confirmed that a report was lodged early last Friday. It is understood that LTA contractors were dispatched by mid-afternoon to clean up the affected areas. -- PHOTO: TNP

The anti-government slogan writers in this case wrote on at least 6 separate bus stops slogans in solidarity with the blogger Roy Nagerng who is being sued at present by the Prime Minister for his routine defamation lawsuit trick to silence his people.

The Prime Minister is now in a hole. He has threatened to sue unless Ngerng submitted to all his demands.

Now with this new case of even further anti government slogans he is going to look very small if he decided to be lenient to Roy Ngerng. People would mistake it for weakness. On the other hand if Lee's son, the Singaporean dictator, came down hard, it is going to enflame even more Singaporeans with this blatant raw repression.

Lee is now gone, he is finished. Even more people are going to write anti government slogans on walls. Even more are going to openly criticize in blogs.

I now ask Singaporeans who love their country to do the same. Write anti government graffiti. Write anti government blogs. Wear anti government T-shirts. Carry out anti government protests. Engage in anti government demonstrations.

Lee Kuan Yew's son is now lost. He has run out of ideas faced with increasing dissent. He only knows how to do what his father did, which is to trample on his people and use even more violence and force. It will not work if too many people are against him. I say to Singaporeans, stand up now. Now is the time.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Singapore uses increasingly repressive measures to silence growing dissent

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Poor Singapore Lee Kuan Yew's son, the Prime Minister. He is now feeling the heat.

Today, ever increasing numbers of Singaporeans, both young and old are agitating for greater freedom. The reasons are obvious.

Singapore today has an ancient Chinese feudal system of government, where people are supposed to go around simply obeying Lee Kuan Yew government dictates, through proxy his son, the Prime Minister.

While the Singaporean society is far advanced with universal Internet access, highly educated and  well traveled people, a large section of whom have not only visited the West but have studied and lived there.

It is simply ludicrous to ask such a sophisticated society as this to live like ignorant peasants, simply obeying Lee Kuan Yew's son; but that is exactly what he, Singapore's de facto dictator wants them to do.

And he has made it very clear that although such a proposition is ridiculous, which I am sure he himself knows, which by the way the Singaporean people have so far complied with strangely enough, he intends to punish harshly anyone who dares to criticize him.

On May 6, 2014 5 teenagers had climbed over a rooftop wall of the HDB (government housing) flat in Toa Payoh and wrote the following graffiti: "Fuck the PAP" "Wake up SG" "Singapore government can't give us freedom". Please see the article "Vandalism incident signals mounting public dissatisfaction in Singapore " Asian Correspondent http://asiancorrespondent.com/122472/vandalism-incident-signals-mounting-public-dissatisfaction-in-singapore/

The state controlled newspapers in the island have widely carried this story and have repeatedly labeled them criminals and vandals and have threatened to jail and cane them on their buttocks, a brutal barbaric punishment usually reserved for violent criminals.

The other recent case is against a Singapore blogger Roy Ngerng who said in his blog Hearth Truths on May 15, 2014 that Lee Kuan Yew's son, the Prime Minister has not been very straight in his handling of public funds. See the article "Singapore PM demands apology from blogger" which appears in the Singapore paper Sin Chew Jit Poh on May 19, 2014. See http://www.mysinchew.com/node/98367?tid=37

It has transpired that the blogger has since apologized but the Prime Minister is not satisfied. The multi millionaire Prime Minister wants the blogger to pay his legal costs as well as paying damages, which has normally in cases such as this, in Singapore's Alice in Wonderland history,  amounted to several hundreds of thousands of American dollars. The intent of course is not to receive the money. It is to bankrupt and destroy him, and in the process send a signal to every other Singaporean not to mess with the Almighty Lee Kuan Yew's son.

Like Hitler, Saddam Hussein, Mubarak and Gaddafi, Lee Kuan Yew's son expects to rule Singapore, as his father had done before him through instilling fear in the minds of his people.

This 33 year old blogger's picture has been widely published in all the state controlled newspapers with threats from the Prime Minister's lawyer that he intends to proceed with legal action if he does not comply with all of the Prime Minister's demands. And we known from the past disgraceful history of Singapore as to what happens to anyone who stands up to the Lee family. They stand no chance at all. They will be vilified, defamed, charged, convicted, sentenced, caned and bankrupted, not necessarily all of them or in that order either.

You can see that poor Lee Kuan Yew's son is now in a hole. And the hole is getting deeper.

And he simply doesn't know how to get of it. Singapore as created by his father under whose permission he rules is in effect an Imperial Chinese dynasty. The emperor today is Lee Kuan Yew's son who rules with the help of his chosen lieutenants, his million dollar ministers who run around for him. The people unlike in a democracy, have no say in the system. Their job is to simply obey and shut up.

General elections mean nothing. Lee's chosen Ministers will rule. The Constitution has been sidelined. The rule of law is non existent. Everything and everybody must be made subservient to the master emperor Lee Kuan Yew's son.

The problem is, it is becoming increasing difficult to shut up and obey, provided you have a head on your shoulders, when there is so much misuse of power, abuse of government and unpopular policies. There are many but I can list a few. There is no free press. No right to free speech expression of assembly. No rule of law. Unrestricted immigration results in there being more foreigners than locals. Jobs go to foreigners while Singaporeans are unemployed. National service obligation for Singaporeans while foreigners are exempt. Ministers are paid millions while 30% of locals live below the poverty line. Local Malays are discriminated and prevented from becoming pilots because they may bomb Lee Kuan Yew's house. And so on and so forth.

Singaporeans are clearly feeling outraged but have nowhere to express their dissent. If they do criticize they are arrested. Despite all these misguided government policies and laws, incredulously, Lee Kuan Yew, his son and the PAP demands the people accept it without complaint!

The graffiti artists who wrote "Fuck you PAP" are part of a growing number of people in Singapore who say they are prepared to stand up to the Lee family despite the harsh punishments and great danger they face because that is the only honorable thing to do.

History has repeatedly shown that dictators such as Lee Kuan Yew's son faced with growing dissent among his people have no choice but to use harsh repressive measures to cow the people to submit. And we have seen where this inevitably ends up; their overthrow. Hosni Mubarak faced with mass protests in Egypt began shooting at his people; he was overthrown. Qaddafi of Syria faced with mass dissent also shot the demonstrators; he was overthrown. Assad did the same; he is hanging on to dear life and faces trial at the International Criminal Court.

In Singapore, it's dictator, Lee Kuan Yew's son is doing the same. He has threatened to jail and cane the teens who wrote "Fuck you PAP". He wants to sue and bankrupt 33 year old Roy Ngerng for accusing him of embezzlement.

Either way Lee Kuan Yew's son is doomed. If he punishes the slogan writers and the blogger harshly, he only antagonizes even more Singaporeans who will undoubtedly  retaliate with even more slogans and blog posts. After all writing a political slogan against a dictator is an act of patriotism and heroism. Any punishment should be nominal to pay to clean off the graffiti. This is not a crime of moral turpitude. The teens had nothing to gain from it except to protect their country.

As for the blogger, he argues that his reasonable observation of the facts does indicate the Prime Minister to be not entirely honest. Here again the man is a patriot and hero for daring to speak up, into the lions mouth, as Singapore is. He should be congratulated. Not sued.

On the other hand, if Lee Kuan Yew's son ignored it and did nothing, which in fact I think he would if he can; the consequence will very probably be that even more would be emboldened in the safety of it; resulting in his overthrow.

Therefore if he crushes dissent the undoubtedly growing dissent will generate even more dissatisfaction and dissent. On the other hand, if he allows it, the pent up dissent would flare up and surface island wide. This is a case of heads I lose and tails I lose.

I expect Lee Kuan Yew's son to take the increasingly repressive course. Harsher and harsher methods can be expected of Lee Kuan Yew's son. Instead of silencing the people through fear, even more young men would stand up. The PAP government doesn't have a chance. It is history being repeated once again.

I urge as many young men and women to stand up against this tyranny like the teen graffiti artists who so proudly wrote "Fuck you PAP" and the brave blogger who pointed out to Lee Kuan Yew's son that he is an embezzler. You may be punished but you will not be alone. By your actions even more young men and women would stand up to the tyranny and history would record your brave and heroic stand.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney Aat Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore. An exercise in hypocrisy.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Singapore today is an island city state molded from Lee Kuan Yew's idea of what the place should be. With the partition of Malaysia with Singapore becoming independent in 1965, Lee was faced with an tiny island with no resources and forced to go alone. It was a difficult proposition. So he wanted an island with a resilient people, a people who obeyed his rules believing that only Lee and his government was right, a people who would care only for their livelihood and not abstract ideas of democracy and human rights, an island with a state controlled press which will tell the people what Lee wanted them to know and no more, a country with no real trade unions, where people would accept the necessity to receive whatever salary their masters would pay them without complaint, and be content to live in a society where the only important thing was hard work and discipline.

And any attempt by anyone to resist his government results in harsh punishment, loss of career, loss of livelihood and penury. Having repeatedly used harsh repressive methods against anyone who is foolish enough to attempt such resistance, across the island there is the understanding that it is suicidal to challenge Lee Kuan Yew if you have wanted a normal life.

Although the island had a constitution with the usual rights expected of any civilized country, Lee wanted his people to disregard it. In his view, Constitutions were not necessary because he alone knew what is best for his people and there was no need for any such thing as a Constitution.

Any attempt to criticize him or his party results in the offender being labeled not just his enemy but an enemy of the state, and consequently vilified, defamed insulted and neutralized.

In large measure Lee has succeeded in the character molding. Today the vast majority of Singaporeans are content with their lot. They have jobs, Lee has provided housing in which the vast majority of the islanders live, they are obedient and hardworking and the only thing they do is work and go home. One does not see any major clamor for human rights, or any open dissatisfaction against his regime.

Is this model sustainable in the 21 century? I think not. You are already seeing cracks in the Lee Kuan Yew model.

When Lee created his unique Singapore molded in his own image, it may have been possible for his people to go along with him. After all in 1965 after partition, Singapore had nothing. Unless strong measures were used to keep people disciplined, hardworking and obedient, a barren tiny island would very possibly collapse and disappear entirely.

But today is not 1965. Firstly he could not have anticipated the Internet where instant mass communication and information made Singaporeans today far more knowledgeable about the world. Much harder to convince someone today that they should simply obey, roll over and eat humble pie whenever Lee demands.

The second mistake he made was not following the wisdom of an old Chinese sage who said, the best way to keep your people in line was to keep their stomachs full and their minds empty. I am sure no doubt Lee would want his people's minds to be empty but with increasing education and exposure to the Internet this proposition becomes more and more difficult. Increasingly affluent Singaporeans are travelling to the West and asking why the Hell should I just obey when no one else has to.

And the rules that Lee uses to suppress and repress his people are increasingly seen as illogical and irrational. For instance today, any attempt to criticize the government or his Ministers would very probably result in a defamation action in court. But any rational person would question such a rule. Nowhere else is there such a nonsensical practice where each time you criticize, you end up in court.

Another nonsensical  rule is the need for every paper or media to be controlled by the government. Any rational thinking person would ask why should I be told only government propaganda when in Australia newspapers are free and can report what they want?

In Singapore people are not allowed to make public speeches without a permit, peacefully protest without a permit or demonstrate without a permit when everywhere else in the world they are allowed to do this without being punished.

Lee began compulsory national service in the late 1960s claiming that the island should be defended against the hostile Malaysians and Indonesians. That Singapore should be an Israel of Asia. Even though at that time relations were not very smooth with them, I must add through Lee's own making, by harping on his claim that the Chinese were superior to the Malays, today after 50 years there is no real danger of hostilities breaking out and the idea of the need for national service becomes redundant.

In fact Lee's reason to introduce national service went far beyond national security. It was to develop a disciplined workforce, especially one that would obey orders which would suit him very well; his orders that is.

Today the whole program of national service is completely broken. Every single Singaporean given the chance would either avoid it or desert. The state controlled newspapers does not mention this but the barracks are literally empty. Childbirth has been reduced to almost zero and any student able to go abroad is simply not returning.

As Lee's idea of Singapore is simply not resonating with  his people, he, through his son whom he placed in power, has no choice but to use increasingly harsh measures to force his people to obey these repressive and at times comical rules. Only yesterday was a blogger in Singapore sued for defamation, a very frequent spectacle in the island, for claiming that Lee Kuan Yew's son, the prime Minister has corruptly embezzled public funds. Even though his victim will probably apologize and submit, people would have grave doubts whether Lee's son is indeed corrupt, because in Singapore's entire history no one who was sued has ever come out whole. Your being found guilty is as certain as the sun rises tomorrow.

Again last week 5 youths were labeled vandals and their arrest given wide publicity after they wrote "Bastard PAP" and other insults against Lee's governing party on a government housing block wall. In fact there have been  a series of cases where young men were arrested for writing anti PAP slogans on walls and the trend is growing. These young men are asking why they should be arrested and treated so harshly for writing political slogans on walls when in other countries their actions are treated as political speech and protected under the Constitution.

Lee Kuan Yew and his son have simply no alternative but go on using increasingly harsh repressive measures against their own people to stay in power, measures that don't make sense and are in some cases even comical. Take for instance the law that allows protests only at Hong Lim park, an area near Chinatown in Singapore. You can imagine how ludicrous this law is, when for instance, if you wanted to protest against working conditions at Sembawang Shipyard, in the northern part of the island, you would have to do it at Hong Lim Park which is at the southern end of the island!

Not wanting to mention the obvious, let me say this. If any ruler wants a country that is expected to last, it has to have laws and rules that make sense and the people respect. If you have nonsensical rules like those in Singapore which says you cannot speak in public unless you have a government permit, you simply cannot carry your people with you. In such a situation, you end up having to use increasingly harsh repressive measures against your own people to force them to submit. And such a system cannot last. It will unravel.

I do not know if Lee Kuan Yew is alive or dead. No one has seen or heard of him now for nearly a year. When he dies, his son, someone who has very little credibility, will have no choice but to come down hard on his people to keep them in line. In a tiny island, this would mean an even larger brain drain to the West. It would also mean a massive outflow of foreign investment because for Nike it does not matter if they are in Singapore or Jakarta. They don't want to take a risk on their investments and profit.

Lee Kuan Yew and his son today are like horses going down a hill with their carts behind them. No matter what they have to continue their same style of government of keeping their subjects in line with the severity of punishment. There is coming a time when the average Singaporean is saying he does not have to take this nonsense anymore and that will be the collapse of the Lee Kuan Yew created Singapore.

As Tunku the former Prime Minster of Malaysia once put it, Lee Kuan Yew is too clever by half. He appears smart but lacks wisdom. He is too calculative but appears not to know simple human nature. He fails to understand that Singaporeans are not Lee Kuan Yew and the vast majority are, thankfully, normal human beings. He fails to understand that they are living in a country, not in the army barracks.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.goopalan@yahoo.com




Sunday, May 18, 2014

Lee Kuan Yew's PAP government is based on a fraud. It must collapse.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Lee Kuan Yew's PAP government which has ruled Singapore since 1959 is simply based on a fraud. It has no legitimacy under law whatsoever. And with increasing clamor for more freedom from the increasingly educated and world savvy Singaporean society, it must crumble and collapse. This is why.

Officially Singapore has a Constitution based on democratic principles, replete with human rights and the rule of law. But Lee Kuan Yew had decided long ago, that he had no intention of complying with any Constitution. He is going to rule his way, never mind what anybody thinks.

The Constitution requires free and fair elections, rule of law, an independent judiciary, a free press and basic human rights including the right to free speech, expression and assembly and equal rights for all. It was based on the premise that a government should reflect the will of the people and should have leaders elected based on the will of the people.

You can see that every one of these principles are violated. There are no free and fair elections. The citizenry is intimidated and threatened to vote for the PAP or suffer reprisals. The fear factor has been so successful that even without much threats, many Singaporeans simply take the safe option by voting for them. Despite these threats and intimidation, many Singaporeans emboldened by education and awareness, have voted for the opposition. The PAP being aware of this have decided to do the next best thing, if they cannot stop them. So they make a pact with the Workers Party and in fact encourage those disenchanted to vote for the Workers Party.

During election rallies the Workers Party is allowed to say almost anything they want, without any threat of defamation action, realizing that a vote for them is almost a vote for the PAP.

But a vote for the Workers Party is in effect a vote for the PAP since they have agreed not to be a real threat but merely give lip service to opposition demands. The PAP's hope is that if Singaporeans are going to vote for the opposition anyway, it is best that they vote for the Workers Party who are  actually on their side.

Loh Thia Khaing's Workers Party has been in Parliament for decades now. Yet during that entire time, they have not really furthered the cause of democracy one bit. Their job, it appears is simply to run their Town Council, a job which the PAP can not only do, but do it even better.

As for the judiciary, far from being independent are in fact an arm of the PAP whose job it is to punish anyone who threatens PAP's power and dish out million dollar defamation court awards, not so much to compensate the victim but intended to bankrupt and destroy them politically. As  result no one in his right mind ever dares to challenge the PAP at elections or otherwise.

The press is effectively muzzled. Every single newspaper and news media is licensed, owned controlled and run by the PAP whose job it is to further their interests, not to report real news. What you read and hear in the media is exactly what the government wants you to hear.

The universally recognized rights of free speech expression and assembly have all be nullified. Although the Constitution does refer to these rights, at the same breath it requires police permits to engage in any of it, which by the way, the police have never issued a single permit since 1959!

You will recall Dr. Chee Soon Juan of the Singapore Democratic Party being repeatedly arrested and jailed for speaking in public for not obtaining a permit, but his protestations that he did apply but was always refused fell on deaf ears, tragically comic I must say, of these judges who serve the PAP. As a result the Singapore public although entitled to speak peacefully in public, protest peacefully or to assemble peacefully, are effectively prohibited from doing any of this despite the Constitution.

Lee's PAP have decided long ago that it is they who will rule Singapore, they know best and any attempt to unseat them must be crushed.

So what then is the Singapore style of government? It is broadly based on the ancient Imperial Chinese feudal system, where the emperor chose bright young men and women, educated them and gave them absolute authority to rule over their subjects. In Singapore young men and women scholars are given scholarships to study locally and abroad, and then fielded at elections where it is certain they alone will win, through threats and intimidation, made Ministers and thereafter and decide what is best for the ordinary Singaporean. As for the ordinary Singaporean his job is simply to do his job, do as he is told and quietly live his life.

So far it has appeared to work as any trip to Singapore would show. There is excellent infra structure, good roads, clean running water and everything seems to work. And except for corruption at the highest levels where Ministers are paid five times the salary of President Obama, there is no corruption among the general public, which is not the case with any other Asian or third world country.

But despite the outward appearances of efficiency and modernity, there is something inherently wrong with a system where the population is simply required to obey and not complain. Young Singaporeans increasing educated and Internet savvy and well travelled are unhappy with their lot where they have to simply obey for survival. They travel to Australia and beyond and see how young men and women live and they want that too. In the West citizens are allowed to question authority without fearing arrest and imprisonment or a defamation lawsuit. And they ask themselves, why should they not have the same rights?

As a result, despite the increasing repression and the government having to punish acts of civil disobedience with increasing severity, civil disobedience continues on the rise.

Only a few days ago, five young men were arrested for writing anti PAP slogans on a government housing block in Toa Payoh, including the words "Bastard PAP". Please see the Straits Times article "Five alleged vandals face new charges, offered bail of $12K each" http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/courts-crime/story/five-alleged-vandals-face-new-charges-offered-12k-bail-each-201405

The PAP government is trying hard to discredit these 17 year old, young men by calling them "vandals" and "criminals" but anyone can see they are none of those. What they did is not a crime of moral turpitude. They derived no personal gain by their actions, which was motivated purely to tell Singaporeans that the government was unjust and should be held to account.

Hardly criminals, they were civic minded young men who unlike the others who have no courage to stand up to their principles, decided to go ahead and do what is right knowing fully that they would be arrested and punished. They are not criminals, they are heroes; martyrs for a cause. Which is why the government's desperate attempts to label them criminals and vandals simply makes the government look very silly.

In fact anti government civil disobedience is on the rise in the island. I remember not too long ago, another young man was arrested for writing the words "DEMOCRACY" across the cenotaph memorial for the war dead along the waterfront in the city center. His arrest too was given wide publicity. He was also labeled a criminal, a thug and various other epithets. I am not sure what happened to him.

Also about the same time, another young man was arrested for spraying slogans on a concrete structure in front of Parliament. He too was arrested and suffered the same insults.

In all these cases the government loudly informs the public that the accused is liable to be caned, a brutal form of punishment by beating him on has backside with full force with a rattan cane. Furthermore the offense carries a disproportionate sentence which can be many years in prison.

The government realizes that anti government graffiti is a sure recipe for their overthrow. You can imagine what will happen to the PAP and their government if people can vent their increasing frustration by writing slogans on walls condemning the one party dictatorial government which denies them their fundamental human rights.

The PAP realizes that their style of government is simply untenable, it is based on a fraud; and any leeway given to express it would mean their instant demise.

As a result even though logically what these young men have done is really a minor infraction, they have to come down with full force and extreme measures to deter others from doing it. If you thought about it a minute, all they did was deface the wall of a government housing block, nothing more. On the principle of the punishment fitting the crime, these young men should be given no more than a small fine; not many years in prison and beatings.

With each day passing, with Singaporeans becoming more aware of their rights, with greater education and more worldly exposure, the PAP style government becomes more and more unacceptable. People are beginning to ask what is wrong in my speaking in public? Why should I need a permit to speak, something which is logically completely normal?

Why should I be brutally beaten and thrown in jail for years merely for writing the words "Bastard PAP". Why should all the newspapers be controlled by the government? Why should not journalists be able to write what they want and I, not be able to read what I want? Why should I not be allowed to say that Lee Kuan Yew's son is a bastard if I want?

As I have said, the basic premise upon which the PAP government rests is unsound. It is illogical. It is designed to ensure that no one is allowed to criticize them so that they would not lose face.

In order to continue in power the way they are, the PAP will have to adopt harsher and harsher methods to stem the growing discontent. This is because the very basis upon which they govern, which is, you listen to me or else, simply can no longer work. They have to allow greater public participation in government by the people. If they do, they will collapse because their basic premise upon which they govern is simply untenable.

On the other hand, if they adopt harsh methods to subdue the population into obedience, this will result in greater dissatisfaction and even more anti government activists writing slogans on walls.

This is why I say this government simply will not last. It is only a matter of time. It does not rest on any sound or rational foundation. It is a house of cards which can only hope to last a little longer only through the increasingly harsh punishments to force them to submit. History has shown this sort of government cannot last. Mussolini managed to bring great advancement to Italy. And see where he ended. Hitler too made pre-war Germany the most successful in Europe. And see what happened there?

Singapore PAP may go one for a bit more. But it cannot last. It is based on a fraud, and does not have a solid foundation of laws. Singapore government is a Lee Kuan Yew creation of a one man, one party rule. Such a system is unacceptable in the 21 century Singapore.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com

Friday, May 16, 2014

On second thoughts. Singapore Dissident rides again.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Since my last farewell goodbye blog post, I have had a re-think. I had initially thought some derogatory articles in the Internet directed at me, no doubt the work of the Singapore Government 5th column was hurting my reputation. Contrary to my earlier belief, I have now discovered this is not so. The attacks, it appears, instead of hurting me is actually promoting my image. The publicity generated attracts attention and that attention nurtures a curiosity that leads to the realization, upon further scrutiny, that the Singapore administration is really not what it claims it is. It also increases my importance as someone worthy of the negativity, has perhaps a point to make after all. If I was someone of no consequence, they wouldn't have taken the trouble.

Therefore the Singapore Dissident will continue posting. What I had said of Lee Kuan Yew and his son who run the administration stands. It is not my intention to mount personal attacks against either one of them. Instead my writings are intended to attack their actions and governance as detrimental to the interests of Singapore, and not against them personally.

I am sure you can see the distinction I am making.

I wish to thank all those who have encouraged me to continue writing and I don't intend to let them down. Except for a few commenters who have made it their purpose to deliberately damage this blog, I have put up nearly all comments that I have received for the last post.

Singapore Dissident rides again.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com