S'pore's human rights record under UN scrutiny
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By Imelda Saad | Posted: 25 February 2011 1833 hrs
SINGAPORE: The Singapore government has submitted its report on the country's human rights track record to the United Nations, as part of a review of all UN member states.
This is the first time Singapore's human rights record is under scrutiny by the UN.
One-hundred-and-fifty-nine states have been reviewed since first the first Universal Periodic Review (UPR) session in April 2008.
The 10,700-word report submitted to the UN seeks to put in context Singapore's political and social landscape.
It also looks into the protection of human rights in areas such as housing, education and special interest groups such as women, children and migrant workers.
Observers said issues that could attract attention include those concerning Singapore's position on detention without trial, right of assembly and corporal punishment including the death penalty.
In its report, the government said Singapore's diverse multi-racial, multi-religious society poses a challenge in balancing social harmony with the preservation of individual rights.
Under the chapter on political and civil liberties, the government said "no person has ever been detained for engaging in lawful political activities" in Singapore.
It added Singaporeans are free to set up societies and associations. There were 7,100 registered societies in 2009, compared to 5,300 in 1999 and 3,900 in 1988.
But the report added while Singaporeans are free to establish such groups, there are certain restrictions in the Societies Act to "ensure that groups intended for unlawful purposes or pose a threat to public order and welfare are not established".
Between 2007 and 2009, five out of 886 applications for registration were rejected.
The government added Singapore "considers capital punishment as a criminal justice issue, rather than a human rights one".
The report said capital punishment is imposed only for the most serious of crimes.
In the case of drug trafficking, the death penalty has deterred major drug syndicates from establishing themselves in Singapore.
On preventive detention, the government said it's a "last resort" to counter serious threats against public or national security.
"The need to protect witnesses and informants from intimidation is one of the reasons for preventive detention".
The Internal Security Act (ISA) for example, is not "punitive" but "preventive" in neutralising threats such as the emergence of terror group, the Jemaah Islamiyah.
The report said: "Governments around the world increasingly recognise the need for preventive powers within a comprehensive institutionalised framework to deal effectively with terrorism and all forms of violent extremism".
While the Singapore constitution provides that every citizen has the right to freedom of expression, the report said "Singapore's small size, high population density and diversity mean that actions or speech by one group of people could potentially have an impact on other groups.
"Given this, it is vital that individual rights and freedoms be exercised responsibly within a legal framework".
Civil society groups said the process is a good learning journey.
Braema Mathi, chairperson of Maruah, which represents a coalition of civil society organisations in Singapore, said: "It runs the risk of being a talk show, definitely we have to admit that, and I think this is where the test comes for the state -- whether the state is serious and to the best that all I have seen of Singapore, Singapore takes its international conventions very seriously and when it does agree to something, it tries to make sure that it acts on them.
"So I'm hoping that this will be one such structure that it will move on certain things.
"Of course, it will be foolhardy to think that 'wow! We will go and change everything overnight', but on certain crucial things, I think we must move and I hope that in the next four-year cycle, we can go there and say 'ok these areas, we have improved substantially, not just the marginal tinkering around the edges'.
"We hope that with greater publicity, (we) will be more aware of human rights. This is in a way a report card that the UN is trying to bring more and more countries onto a universal platform on how human rights is appreciated, observed and acted upon.
"I think that's a very good beginning and we hope that more of our citizens will get engaged in looking at this".
Ms Mathi said this was a rigorous process for civil society and the government because Singapore is fact oriented.
"And in that process, we also do a lot of self learning and that's a good thing," she said.
"This cannot be done in isolation, governments cannot work on these things on their own, neither can civil society. So the more we interact, the more we consult one another, the more we work towards common goals, the better we make the country."
Still, Ms Mathi said she would have seen more of the inputs from civil society groups included in the report.
"The state has given a factual accounting of our thought processes, our history, how we relate to, in broad strokes, the concept of human rights.
"Basically it is the state stating its case in a lot of ways and I think there are no surprises in that approach.
"It would have been good to have some response because for the first time, quite a number of the civil society organisations put up their report to the office of the human rights council and therefore I do think it would have been great to see some form of interaction.
"But I also understand that this is the approach the state will take and all the specific issues will come up on May 6 when the government will be due for its report submission and interaction by other governments, who will then ask questions alongside international NGOs.
"So we hope that during that period of interaction, there will be more substantive questions on the various matters raised by the different civil society groups".
The national report is one of three to be submitted to the UN.
The rest are reports by local and international civil society organisations as well as one from the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights.
Singapore, led by Minister for Home Affairs & Minister for Law K Shanmugam, will make its representation in Geneva on May 6.
The three-hour session will involve a dialogue with UN member and observer states.
An outcome document which is a summary of the proceedings and recommendations will be adopted on May 10.
The final outcome document will be adopted in September. This is where civic society organisations can also speak before the UN formally adopts the outcome document.
The final outcome document from this process will form the basis of the next review in four years.
The government has said Singapore will build on its achievements in human rights.
Preserving racial and religious harmony is top priority but it added laws will evolve to meet the changing political, economic and social aspirations of Singaporeans".
-CNA/wk -
"every citizen has the right to freedom of expression"? How about allow chinese Fan-yan to speak in radio and TV? why so many cut on Fan-yan chinese shows which show on nation TV channels? why no Fan-yan songs on chinese radio?
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PAP obstruct political freedom !!!
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Aiya..the UN has much more to care about than to look at Singapore's human "rights" track record; firstly there's China, secondly there's North Korea, and lastly there's the Middle East. Where got time to care about a little red dot...
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It's either because of CSJ or some other fools disgracing themselves.
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Originally posted by sbst275:
It's either because of CSJ or some other fools disgracing themselves.
somethimes they disgrace themselves too.
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weh u have the might, u r right
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Year in year out, UN can only talk but what can it do? Even the new US ambassador started off like a hero and ended like a wimp when he landed in Sinkapore.
Utimately, we have to "fix" this problem ourselves
We will never have something like Egypt simply because our citizens behaves differently. But this country will plunge into a kind of economic doldrums that no political party can ever pull this country out anymore.
It will become like some failed African state. Patients are being dumped out of hospitals and left to die on the streets. Inflation will be so high that that currency have to be revalued, every now and then.
Political parties will have to pander to any rich countries that promised aid, private armies will be raised, controlling different sector of the country. Frequent war border wars will also break out between neighbouring countries.
Water rationing will be a daily chore. Electricity for the rich and people will have to savange huge areas of rubbish for food and materials to sell. Land mines will also be a daily scounge for many, limbs and lives will be lost, by the way.
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Originally posted by Askingyouto:
Year in year out, UN can only talk but what can it do? Even the new US ambassador started off like a hero and ended like a wimp when he landed in Sinkapore.
Utimately, we have to "fix" this problem ourselves.
UN is a redundant organisation of yesteryears.
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Originally posted by Clivebenss:
somethimes they disgrace themselves too.
haiya