Singabloodypore

Singapore’s Court of Appeal reserves judgment in Vui Kong’s appeal hearing

noreply@rsfblog.org (soci) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 09:02:00 +0000

BREAKING: The Court of Appeal has heard Yong Vui Kong’s appeal. After hearing submissions from Mr M Ravi, representing Yong, and the response from Attorney-General Walter Woon for the prosecution, the Court has reserved judgement for a later date.

From Jacob 69er

The appeal hearing for Yong Vui Kong ended a couple of minutes ago.

After two stays of execution, the 3-judge Court of Appeal has reserved its judgment after hearing the arguments put forth by Vui Kong’s lawyer, M Ravi. The judges thanked M Ravi for updating them on the current international practice with regards to the death penalty. [My thanks to Seelan for this update]

I was at the hearing today which began at 10am. The Court of Appeals chambers was as cold as the mandatory death penalty which the Singapore government so efficiently practices. Over 50 people were squeezed into the small public gallery. I saw Vui Kong escorted into the chambers by four police officers. He followed the proceedings via the mandarin translation by a court interpreter. He seemed just like any other 21 year old with his spiky hair and the sides shaved. But unlike any other 21 year old, he’s facing the hangman’s noose.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t stay longer. When I left about an hour into the proceedings, i looked at Vui Kong who was seated behind a glass partition with two police officers on his left and right. I wondered what was going through his mind knowing this hearing was all about, to put it bluntly, to hang or not to hang and if it’ll be the last time i’ll be seeing him….alive.

Here are two flyers on Vui Kong. Thanks to Rachel and Seelan for uploading them here and here.

PAP nervous about New Media, introduces "guidelines"

noreply@rsfblog.org (soci) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 13:27:00 +0000

Singapore Democrats

The proposed changes to the election rules announced in Parliament yesterday are just another ploy by the PAP to instill fear in the people. As far as the Internet is concerned, citizens should be free to campaign for whichever party and candidate they choose.

The “advertising guidelines” introduced is clear indication that the PAP is running scared of the New Media and how it is a leveler of information flow.

The ruling party also knows that because of its control of the traditional media, more and more Singaporeans are turning to the Internet for information. The overwhelming sentiment in cyberspace is for the opposition and against the PAP.

The Government is thus desperately trying to regulate cyberspace during the elections even though it knows that it is near impossible to do so given the nature of the beast.

The Singapore Democrats has been actively working online through the years to garner support. Even then, we will not rest on our laurels and we intend to bring up the level of our Internet presence and campaigning during the elections with or without the changes to the Internet guidelines.

This is where our strength lies and the PAP is obviously feeling nervous about the use of the Internet by the Singapore Democrats.

The cooling-off day is obviously one such weapon that the PAP will employ to counter the SDP's use of the Internet. While specifying that no new material can be uploaded online during this cooling-off, the traditional media that the PAP controls will not come under such restrictions and this will be used against the opposition.

As for the tweaking to allow for up to two NCMPs from one GRC, it is important for Singaporeans to remember that the scheme is meant to distract voters so that they feel that opposition MPs are elected when in fact this category of parliamentarians have little or no legislative power.

Singaporeans have to understand that they need to vote for the opposition in numbers that will surpass the 50 percent mark in order that we enter Parliament to represent the people.

John Tan
Assistant Secretary-General
Singapore Democratic Party

Yong Vui Kong

noreply@rsfblog.org (soci) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 13:06:00 +0000

Please forward this information to your friends. The Court of Appeal (Supreme Court) will hear Vui Kong's appeal this coming Monday, 15 March at 10am.

Encourage your friends to come for the hearing and invite them to join this Facebook group for updates.

Link to the large flier to be printed out and passed around.

The Story of a Boy

noreply@rsfblog.org (soci) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 13:00:37 +0000

Yong Vui Kong’s appeal hearing takes place at 10am on Monday, 15 March 2010.

By Andrew Loh

Yong Vui Kong was 12 when he left his grandfather’s palm oil estate “deep in the forests of Sabah” in Malaysia to strike it out on his own. He had had enough of watching his mother being abused by his grandfather and her relatives. He wanted to help her escape what he now calls “that place of pain”. And so, he made up a story. He told his mother that he had found someone who would take him in as a godson. But the truth was, his “godfather” ran an illegal gambling business. Vui Kong went to work for this man, hoping to save up enough money so he could rescue his mother.

He was eventually thrown out by his godfather. Vui Kong thinks it was probably because he was too small and skinny to be of any use. He ended up washing cars to survive, making about RM$3 a day. It was hardly enough to pay for food, let alone accommodation. He would often pester his friends to put him up for short periods of time. He lived like this for three years.

At 15, he made his way to Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, hoping to find a better job. But things didn’t turn out the way he planned. He faced discrimination because he came from a small town and was often beaten up. He found work in a Chinese restaurant but was paid far less than his colleagues.

A local gang recruited him to hawk illegal video compact discs . Soon he was told to help collect debts. He was later given a more “important” job by his “Big Brother”, who promised to pay him handsomely. The man had treated Vui Kong well – feeding him, clothing him and taking him out to fancy restaurants. Vui Kong felt compelled to do anything “Big Brother” said. More importantly, he needed the money. His mother was suffering from severe depression and he wanted to help pay for her treatment.

He started delivering“gifts” to various clients. He did not know it initially, but the colourfully gift-wrapped packages contained drugs.

In 2007, Vui Kong was caught while making a delivery in Singapore. The police found 47.27 grammes of heroin on him. A judge eventually handed him the mandatory death sentence for drug trafficking.

Harsh Reality

In Singapore, hangings take place at dawn on a Friday. Prisoners are only told about their impending execution on Monday. Vui Kong broke down when he was informed that he would be put to death on 4 December 2009. He hadn’t seen his mother in more than two years. She was still battling depression and all through this time, the family had decided to keep the truth from her. But the thought of not saying goodbye was too much for Vui Kong to bear and his siblings decided to fly her to Singapore.

They finally met three days before the scheduled execution. It was an emotional reunion. Vui Kong knelt down before his mother, bowing to her three times. He then begged for her forgiveness and told her he had to “go away forever” to do “penance” for all the bad things he had done. He told her she would never see him again.

Did she understand the meaning behind his words? Perhaps we will never know. What must have been clear to her though was that her son had undergone a dramatic transformation. He had embraced a new way of life in prison and was now a devout Buddhist. He would wake up at 4am every morning to meditate and he eagerly sought the advice of the Buddhist monks who visited him regularly.

For the first time in his life, he was taught to discern right from wrong. He also realised that contrary to what he was told as a child, cigarettes were not the same as drugs. “If I knew they would harm anyone, I would surely not do the job,” he said in his clemency appeal to the President in 2009.

He found a friend in prison – a 22-year-old from Malaysia, who was also received the death penalty for drug trafficking. The boy would die just three months before Vui Kong’s scheduled execution. He was a trembling mess the day before the hanging. Vui Kong would later tell his brother that he stayed up all night comforting his friend, urging him to meditate so he could face his final moments with inner peace.

The next morning, the boy had to be dragged from his cell to the execution chamber, crying, wailing and begging to be freed and to be forgiven.

For himself, Vui Kong continues to hope for a miracle. He’s even started to learn English so he can better communicate with his lawyer.

“He is remorseful and feels he should be severely punished,” his brother Yun Leong explained, “but he wants to live so he can continue seeing us, seeing our mother again. He wants to keep learning and meditating and being a better person.”

When the court granted him a stay of execution in December, one of the first people to pay Vui Kong a visit was his lawyer. During the meeting, Vui Kong presented him a gift – a picture that had taken him weeks to complete.

“He would kneel for hours as he drew,” his lawyer said.

The picture is a colourful interpretation of one of the manifestations of Lord Buddha – he is standing at the gates of hell, saving souls from eternal damnation.

Debate on Singapore's Casinos

noreply@rsfblog.org (soci) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 10:06:03 +0000

Al Jazeera's video debate on Singapore's casinos

PAP member lodged false police report against opposition

noreply@rsfblog.org (soci) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:46:47 +0000

From YourSDP

Louis Tay

PAP member, Mr Louis Tay Bok Hock, had called the police in 2006 to lodge a complaint against the opposition for selling newspaper in the Bukit Panjang Constituency just prior to the general elections.

Mr Tay revealed this when he testified as a prosecution witness in the on-going trial of Dr Chee Soon Juan in which the SDP leader is being charged for speaking in public without a permit in April 2006.

Even before he could finish serving his one-week jail sentence for a protest during the WB-IMF meeting in 2006, Dr Chee was dragged from prison to answer the public speaking charge.

Mr Louis Tay said on the stand last week that he had received information through an SMS text message from a Bukit Panjang “volunteer” on the morning of 15 April 2006, telling him that “members of the SDA party had set up tables and were distributing flyers.”

Mr Tay claimed that he could not recall who this “volunteer” was.

He then immediately called Assistant Superintendent (ASP) Manoharan on the officer's cell phone, expecting the ASP to investigate the matter. Even though Mr Manoharan was off duty that day, he nevertheless immediately called his station to alert the Jurong Police Division.

Within minutes the police despatched a team to the location to investigate the matter.

Foreign funding a necessary antidote in authoritarian states

noreply@rsfblog.org (soci) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 09:23:00 +0000

From Yawning Bread

What's wrong with foreign funding for political parties? This was the question in my mind that cried out for discussion when I read the Straits Times' story of 1 March 2010, about an interview the Chinese-language newspaper Zaobao did with Chee Soon Juan, the leader of the Singapore Democratic Party.

In the interview, the reporter appeared to have pressed him about how he managed to feed his family and carry on political work despite having been declared bankrupt, raising again the issue of foreign funding. See an excerpt of the Straits Times' story at right.

Why is it an issue? We seem to be using as a starting point, a line in the sand: that political parties and leaders should not accept foreign funding. Suggestions of having done so quickly become implied accusations of either disloyalty or unfitness. It is this unexamined association that bothers me.

This link has become so internalised that even non-governmental organisations are queasy about accepting foreign funding. Their leaders are fearful that such a financial relationship can be used against them whenever the government wishes to crack down on whatever the NGO does, or stands for.

to continue reading

Nair's Hoax

noreply@rsfblog.org (soci) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 09:14:23 +0000

Well that's April Fools Day taken care of...