Welcome to SG Watch 2007!
This page features the up coming international events in Singapore which attract considerable attention to the public both in Singapore and internationally. One such notable one is the International Bar Association (IBA) conference which will take place in the third quarter of this year. The planned event is already generating attention from the Singapore Democrat Party (SDP) and some EU parliament members.
Who are we?
Singapore, even to this
day and age contineus to attract controversy from democratic and more developed
Western countries. To understand where it all started, perhaps it is worthwhile
to look a little closer to the root cause of the potshots. Just look a little
closer at the amount of foreign investments in this country, together with the
fact that Singapore is welcoming and pouring more foreigners into this already
densely populated city. And yet they blame and loathe Singapore for their undemocratic
principles and human rights abuses, only when their citizens get into trouble
with the law here. But do they really care about human rights for Singaporeans?
Also, many International Non-government
Organisations (NGOs) are taking their conferences or official meetings here
as the the government aims to provide a cosy "living room" comfort
for such events. Some organisers learn the "tough way" for falling
into such a trap, while the wiser ones spare a thought for the values they treasure
and preach.
Last year, it was the IMF/World Bank meetings that caused an uproar in Singapore, with protests from activitis both in Singapore and overseas.
But this year will see
the International Bar Association (IBA) coming to town. The IBA is an organisation
that takes a serious view on upholding the rule of law and is respective of
human rights, unlike the World Bank who has an economic agenda. Hence, it is
more meaningful to engage them when they visit, and facilitate a meaningful
discussion on the subject. Many issues in Singapore isn't about Human Rights;
it is rather an issue of life and death or "bread and butter" for
some people.
We have created this blog
specially to give coverage on this main event during the run-up and as it proceeds
avoiding the withwash of the local media. We also cover other minor events that
may be of such interest.
The purpose of this blog
is to determine how this event would fare, determine the outcomes and contrast it to previous international events and if the IBA whose
presence here would somewhat make a difference to the current situation in Singapore. Any change for better or for worst have yet to be seen. However, we will not just sit and wait. We will facilitate this information flow that will open our minds and get us thinking
Goals
Our stated goals are to
- Facilitate the sharing
dissemination of information on the latest news and updates relating to the
events (both online and offline sources) - Present different analytical
view points - Gather and present information
from the procedings - Inform the IBA on the
current situation in Singapore by working with the local population and organisations
We welcome volunteers so
if you think you have something worthwhile to contribute, please feel free to
contact us.
Thank you for supporting
us.
NOTE: We have NO known affiliation with Singapore Watch (http://www.singaporewatch.org/), which is also another blog put up by Singaporeans.
Anybody is welcome to share their thoughts and welcome to contribute their views to this blog!
Also, here are some links I would recommend
http://www.singaporedemocrat.org/articleibapage.html - SDP's corresponcence with the IBA
http://www.ibanet.org/conferences/singapore2007/ - The IBA's site on this year's conference
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