Switching from this site to Sampler Two

I am ceasing this site (Yawning Bread Sampler One), though it will be kept alive. All future abstracts will be put onto Yawning Bread Sampler Two, a wordpress site.

Wordpress has a few more functionalities than blogspot.

Otherwise, readers will hardly notice any difference; the rather strange style and structure of Yawning Bread continues.

An ill-judged and irresponsible scoop

Sometimes, the mainstream media can do a better job in getting the government's attention than the online media. When there is a social problem wherein one group of people are suffering, website owners should think twice before they snatch the story out of consideration for the best interest of the victims. Full essay.

Winning over conservatives

What do conservatives want to conserve and why? Why are they impervious to reasoned arguments? If they can't be convinced by facts and logic, what will move them? Full essay.

Shoes take me places

I bought a pair of cheap shoes today. Adapting to a rapidly industrialising China. Do people even realise we have to adapt, and what has halal food got to do with it? Full essay.

What 'secular state' should mean

Beyond saying "Keep religion out of politics", few Singaporeans can flesh out what the concept of a secular state should be. Without being true to secular humanism, the Singapore state will always be lurching between religious pressure groups. Full essay.

Detainees' poetry launched in Kuala Lumpur

A book of poetry and prose by Singaporeans detained without trial or in exile had its Malaysian launch last weekend. Unfortunately, they didn't make much political capital of it. Someone also forgot to update them about Singapore's national flower. Full essay.

Libel is an enemy of free speech and civilised society

Nominated Member of Parliament Siew Kum Hong has made a police report about the injurious allegations made against him in various online comments. He is right to do so. Full essay.

Parliament now faces "gay test"

A new set of Nominated Members of Parliament are to be selected. Will Siew Kum Hong get a second term after submitting the "Repeal 377A" petition in 2007? Will there be gay NMPs? Full essay.

AWARE, steeplejackers and pink durians

There's a long history of church groups seizing other organisations, and the anti-gay rhetoric we hear today is merely a tool for these people in their quest for power, argues guest writer MS05L. Guest essay.

Archiving J B Jeyaretnam's papers for posterity

JBJ was an important figure in Singapore's political history. Now that he's gone, what will become of his papers? Should they be in our National Archives? Full essay.

A great city? Making it, failing it

Has Singapore what it takes to be one of the world's great cities? From what I heard and saw on a Friday night out on the town, the answer was mixed. Full essay.

Pink dot, 16 May 2009, 4:30 pm

Hong Lim Park has seen election rallies, angry investors and a stand-off between opposition leaders and the police. Time for something different: love and fun! Join in to help make a human pink dot. Advertorial.

Education Ministry suspends AWARE's sexuality education program

Now alleging that AWARE's Comprehensive Sexuality Education program violates the ministry's guidelines in "promoting homosexuality", the government suspends AWARE's CSE is suspended. This is just wallowing in ignorance and muddled thinking. Full essay.

Lessons for the PAP from the Aware EOGM

Three observations I made of the Aware EOGM were: what kind of electorate; appeal to legalistic authority; and the choice of measures of success. All are issues relevant to a broader political canvas. Full essay.

The rosary woman and other head-shaking tales

Movie star Jackie Chan said Singaporeans have no self-respect, that's why social graces, courtesy and consideration are so lacking in Singapore. Full essay.

Fundie exco booted out of AWARE

A marathon extraordinary general meeting held on 2 May 2009 saw progressive and secular-minded women take back the Association of Women for Action and Research from a clutch of conservative Christians, who had wanted to turn the feminist group into an anti-gay vehicle.

1414 members voted for the motion expressing no confidence in the executive committee that seized power only a month before on 28 March 2009. 761 members supported the exco.

Proceedings were heated with many members wanting to speak, expressing their suspicions of the 28 March exco's motives and outrage at their stormtrooper behaviour since coming into power.

At various points in the meeting, society president Josie Lau and one other exco member said "Shut up" to the audience of about 3,000, and asked security guards to evict members from the room.

Here is Thio Su Mien, the one who orchestrated the take-over, trying to convince the crowd that she was a hero - "I'm on page 73"; "Respect your elders".



It was also revealed that the 28 March exco spent S$90,000 when the constitution required them to seek members' approval before spending above S$20,000.

After the no confidence vote, the 28 March exco disappeared from the hall. Members voted in a new exco headed by Dana Lam as president.

Flyers and flying laws

Ignored by the media, the trial of Chee Soon Juan and other Singapore Democratic Party leaders continued in the third week of April. They are accused of doing something which hundreds of people do openly every day. Full essay.

John Dorhauer on the steeplejacking of AWARE

Guest writer MS05L contacted Rev John Dorhauer on his views about the takeover of AWARE by a fundamentalist Christian group. Dorhauer is the co-author of the book "Steeplejacking", which details the war between mainstream religion and the right-wingnuts. Guest essay.

Feminism is important for men too

Many men think that the issues surrounding the Christian fundies' take-over of AWARE, the women's group, have nothing to do with them. In this guest piece, Bryan Choong recalls how the progressive feminism of AWARE made a huge difference to him and his mother. Guest essay.

Church of Our Savior supports gay marriage

In a statement released to the media on 30 April 2009, the Church of Our Saviour (COOS) said "No homosexual should ever be deprived of any right enjoyed by every other Singaporean." It is splendid news indeed that this church believes that since heterosexuals have a right to marry someone they love, so should homosexual Singaporeans. As far as Yawning Bread can recall, no other local church has so publicly supported full equality for gay people across all rights.

COOS has been linked to the controversy surrounding the takeover of the women's organisation AWARE by its members. The self-declared "feminist mentor" behind the new executive committee (exco), Thio Su Mien - the one who told the media that homosexuality is a man's issue - is also a member of the church.

In the statement published on www.asiaone.com, COOS denied that they were behind the takeover: "Church of Our Saviour did not initiate or instigate any campaign to take over the leadership of AWARE."

To press home the point, it also said that it hoped people would not hold the "wrong assumption that the exco is a pawn of the church or that it has intentions to turn it into a religious organization as that is totally untrue." It is interesting how the church is so certain that the new exco, who are not its pawns, do not have such intentions. If the new exco is independent of the church, how does the church control its intentions? I guess I don't understand the nature of divine insight.

COOS loves homosexual people. "Church of Our Saviour does not have an agenda against homosexuals. We are not antihomosexual ... We believe homosexuals should be extended understanding, kindness and love like every other human being."

It doesn't love gay activists, however, for it "does have a stand against the agenda of activists promoting homosexuality as a normal alternative lifestyle. Just as much as the Bible commands us to love the homosexual person, it also states categorically that homosexual practice is wrong."

It sounds like a rather complicated position, but we shouldn't nitpick. So long as the church supports full equal rights for gay people, we should give them some leeway. It would have been better though if COOS explained how happily married gay couples could consummate their marriages which the church so bravely supports as an equal right.

Identity mobilisation - a threat to society

We may be incredulous that Thio Su Mien and her sidekicks would engage in such blatant hyperbole about the threat of homosexuality, including the threat from those who call for a non-judgemental stance, but there is method in the madness. It's called identity mobilisation. Full essay.

Migrant worker problems must be tackled at roots

Another 200 workers from China demonstrated at the Manpower ministry on Monday. Our government's response is merely reactive and never addresses underlying problems; that's why they keep resurfacing. Singapore denies there's human trafficking here, but we're just toying with words. Full essay.

Couldn't get past the pig

Worrying news from Mexico about a flu outbreak, at a time when the global economy is already so weak. Bureaucrats and reporters should try to be alert when they do their jobs. Full essay.

Attempt at character assassination of Constance Singam?

I understand from good authority that there is an email going around imputing that Constance Singam, the former president of AWARE, has been less than transparent about skeletons in her closet, in that she had made AWARE "pro-gay" because her own brother is gay. This so-called brother was named as Clarence Singam, according to this website, as accessed on 26 April 2009 at 02:14h:

Constance is the sister of Clarence Singam, a preacher at Free Community Church, a pro-homosexuality congregation in Singapore.

That is erroneous. The fact is: the two are not related. I have suggested to Clarence and Constance to write to the webmaster to get the statement corrected. As for the senders of the emails, one has to wonder about their motives.

Bloggers' maturity demonstrated in Aware saga

Although the Aware controversy involved religion and sexual orientation, bloggers and their readers remained sober throughout, proving the government, which often accuses internet users of irresponsible speech, wrong. Netizens also shifted their opinions as facts emerged, disproving the imputation that internet users preferred lies and half-truths to facts. Full essay.

Pirate mother ship appears on horizon, guns blazing

Thio Su Mien reveals herself as the mastermind behind the AWARE putsch, but initially wanted to hide behind her hachet-women. She also concedes that it was her anti-gay agenda that drove her to this frenzy. Full essay.

Pirates ahoy! Gay netizens and the AWARE hijacking

Why are lesbian and gay netizens crying foul over the hijacking of AWARE? Was AWARE a pro-gay organisation? In their first TV interview, all the new guard could offer was more contradiction and evasion. Full essay.

DBS Bank's public hanging

Every day, companies have staff disciplinary issues. Yet, when DBS Bank had an issue with its vice-president in charge of the credit card division, it issued statements to the media. Why did DBS consider the case of Josie Lau and AWARE so serious? Full essay.

Gay marriage: Sweden, Vermont and Iowa

In recent weeks, three jurisdictions started the process of legalising same-sex marriages. Sweden and Vermont did so through legislative action, while In Iowa, the the Supreme Court struck down the ban. Full essay.

Reinforcing containment

The Films Act has been tightened despite government claims to the contrary and the new Public Order Act gives police powers to stop even one-man protests. It's the government's response to the SDP's recent tactics and the rising use of video among increasing numbers of Singaporeans. Full essay.

John Barrowman's The Making of Me

John Barrowman, an actor and dancer, tries to figure out why he's gay by talking to various researchers, in this BBC program The Making of Me.

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Running and lifting - two tales from the gender twilight zone

In Kuala Lumpur recently, I witnessed policemen chasing cross-dressers. Transgenders have big problems in Malaysia. In Thailand, one of them manned a hotel front desk so competently, the guest had problems! Full essay.

Abhisit declares emergency in Bangkok over Red Shirts

The political situation in Bangkok is deteriorating rapidly, as different forces act in their own interest. The crucial test to come may well be the army rank and file's loyalties. Full essay.

From now on, be wary of AWARE

The group that recently seized control of AWARE, the women's group, is believed to have a religious, anti-gay agenda. Perennially laid-back liberals may now have a fight on our hands. Full essay.

A heady mix: homosexuality and net videos

Web 2.0 has provided new ways of gay expression. Here are 10 examples of people using net videos to effect. None are from Singapore. The question is whether technical knowhow is enough to kickstart the creative and innovative use of technology, or whether something else, as old as time, is needed - the passion and desire to even have an opinion, and to have something to say. Full essay.

Why arrested persons shouldn't have lawyers

Despite calls by the Association of Criminal Lawyers of Singapore, the government is not agreeable to telling arrested persons that they have a right to a lawyer. This is not the only shortcoming in police procedures. Why don't Singaporeans care about this issue? Are we too eager to condemn people as guilty the moment they are arrested and conclude that since he must be guilty, why should accused persons have rights? Full essay.

Manifesto checklist

Ten things I would like to see in a party manifesto, in line with my political beliefs. But would there be any party offering these ideas? Even if there was, would that party have a candidate where I live? Full essay.

Singapore retreats on bank secrecy laws

Singapore's tax shelter status will be taking a hit as the republic relaxes its bank secrecy laws. The Financial Times reported, 6 March 2009, in "Singapore acts on bank secrecy laws" that:

Singapore’s finance ministry said it would amend its bank secrecy laws in mid-2009 to take account of the OECD’s standards on exchange of information. “Once the legislative amendments are passed in parliament, Singapore is prepared to negotiate and conclude double taxation agreements that will enable us to provide further assistance for exchange of information.” It said: “The decision ... is in keeping with Singapore’s role as a trusted centre for finance and a responsible jurisdiction, with strong and consistent regulatory policies and a firm commitment to the rule of law.”

The promised changes will allow foreign tax authorities to request information about suspected tax evaders, although Singapore said “information fishing” would not be allowed and there would be confidentiality and privacy safeguards, as allowed under OECD rules. Even so, its announcement will be applauded by other offshore centres that have lost business to Singapore.

Lee Kuan Yew, modern Singapore’s founding father, told bankers the city-state could not escape the pressure being applied to Switzerland. “We must move with the flow,” he said.

Switzerland is under intense pressure from the US and the EU to dismantle its bank secrecy laws, on accusations that it is acting a a tax haven. UBS, in which GIC,one of two Singapore sovereign wealth funds, has a significant stake, agreed to a US$780 million fine in February 2009, to end a US government investigation into whether it had helped US clients evade taxes. As part of the settlement, the bank agreed to release names of US account holders to Washington's Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The IRS is said to be interested in 17,000 to 20,000 cross-border clients, though whether this number will be released is not yet known.

A legitimate question to ask is whether GIC's faith in UBS, prompting it to buy into the bank late 2007, is misplaced. Besides the subprime and related losses, the very model of Swiss banking may now have a bleak future, a model that Singapore had hoped to emulate.

Yet, as recently as May 2008, strongman Lee Kuan Yew told Bloomberg that UBS and Citi have "very good franchises" and that in the long term, Singapore's investment should prove profitable.

One thousand

I am a liberal. What does that mean? What has that got to do with Yawning Bread and its readers? Full essay.

Matt Alber: End of the World

Taking gay America by storm is what AfterElton.com calls the "insanely popular" music video by gay crooner Matt Alber, "End of the World", from his "Hide Nothing" album.

Here it is:



I thought he had an unusual way with his stressed high notes, and then found the reason why. He's apparently a trained classical singer, and not just a singer, but that rare breed called a countertenor. Here he is with an aria from Handel's Messiah:

What really happens when gay boys get intimate with men

We tend to see sex between gay boys and men through the filter of man-and-girl sex. We assume that the encounter has analogous characteristics, of exploitation or intimidation. That there's clearly a predator and a victim. Here's a scientific study by Bruce Rind. Full essay.

Jail as a solution for age-discrepant sex

Sentencing a woman to 10 months' imprisonment for an affair with a 15-year-old boy looks excessive, especially as the boy seemed to know what he was doing, and in fact wanted to continue the relationship even when she wanted to break it off. Full essay.

Little green dot

Goh ZhiQian, in this guest essay, argues for Singapore to adopt a more environmentally sustainable approach to development. There are measures we can use to track performance. Guest essay.

Confess or we'll throw 377A at you

Even though the government has promised not to use Section 377A of the Penal Code in situations involving consenting adults, how many people know this? The police continue to threaten accused persons with 377A. Why do they do this? Full essay.

Seven months' jail for a kiss and a lick

ZQ was charged with four counts of sexual exploitation (Section 7 of the Children and Young Persons Act). Here are the key details of this case. Was the sentence for the first count right? Full essay.

Beautiful, wonderful creatures make disappearing act, part 2

A Pamela Koh wrote to the Straits Times to complain about the cuts made to Sean Penn's and Dustin Lance Black's acceptance speeches at the Oscars. Mediacorp replied. Star TV also made cuts. Full essay.

A new world after this economic crisis

The present economic crisis represents another lurch to a less US-centric world. Where previously, the US market had been preeminent in the export development strategies of many countries, its relative weight will fall post-crisis. Full essay.

Beautiful, wonderful creatures make disappearing act

The film "Milk", telling the story of assassinated gay politician Harvey Milk, won two Oscars on 22 February 2009. Mediacorp censors got to work. Full essay.

The great hunt: One year on

One year ago, alleged Jemaah Islamiyah mastermind Mas Selamat Kastari escaped from detention without trial. He has not been recaptured. The Home Minister says the government has "no credible information" as to his whereabouts. Full essay.

Reply from Catholic Youth Apostolate's ghost writer

Selwyn Lee felt that my brief quote from the Catholic Youth Apostolate's letter to Ngee Ann Polytechnic student newspaper was "irresponsible and self-serving". His case can be seen here in his complete response, together with the original unedited letter (which I had not seen before this). Responding email.

Preachers, pests and usurpers

Two students of Ngee Ann Polytechnic were annoyed when people came to preach to them as they were busy with their project work. But that is only the "soft" end of evangelism in Singapore and Hong Kong. Full essay.

On community moderation of internet content

The discussion about community moderation has tended to be about what kind of superstructure is needed on top of the digital platform. This is totally misguided. Full essay.

The hermitage is no solution

Gay, lesbian and transgender people cannot retreat into their private lives completely and think that they can live happy lives distanced from government and the law. I said so in answer to a question posed by a junior college student last week. This week, two news stories strike the same note. Full essay.

Sec-gen issues open invitation to participate in Asean community building

Surin Pitsuwan, the Secretary-general of Asean, hosted a pan-Asean pre-summit briefing for a number of civil society groups. Representing the Singapore human rights group Maruah, I registered our concerns for human rights and other issues. Here is a report of the session.

Is a general election this year now confirmed?

In what appears to be a slip-up, we can see Mediacorp at work preparing its election website. Full essay.

Nathan fluffs his reserves explanation

President Nathan gave a press conference to "explain" how and why he agreed to unlock the reserves for the government's 2009 budget, but even with polite, unchallenging reporters on hand, it was a poor job. Full essay.

Naked straitjackets

Malaysian politician quits because she sleeps in the nude. Singapore triathletes banned because they shared a room. Society is poorer for such nonsense. Not safe for work. Full essay.

366 detained without trial in last 5 years

Minister for Home Affairs Wong Kan Seng revealed to Parliament that there has been active use of a temporary law - temporary since 1955 - to detain 366 persons without trial between 2004 and 2008. None of them had anything to do with terrorism. Full essay.

Like Singapore, Dubai is crashing

This article in the International Herald Tribune makes interesting reading: Laid-off foreigners flee as Dubai spirals down. Dubai, unlike neighbouring emirates, does not have oil, and has instead built an economy on finance, entrepot trade and glitzy tourism. In the last few years, as the bubble ballooned, it's been billed as a star performer, attracting loads of foreigners, building the world's tallest tower, and so on.

Now, parts of Dubai are "looking like a ghost town" as jobless foreigners are forced to leave. Property prices in some neighbourhoods have crashed more than 30 percent in the last 2 - 3 months, the airport parking lot is full of abandoned cars, and Dubai officials have dropped hints that they'd be willing to accept a bailout from oil-rich neighbours.

And there's no light at the end of the tunnel. People can't foresee how the good ol' days will return. Is there a lesson here for Singapore?

Female teacher admits to sex with boy aged 15

Here is an interesting mirror case to that of six men charged with sex with another boy, also aged 15. These cases are worth monitoring in case there is a pattern of bias. Full essay.

Re: suggested career path for Madam Ho Ching

Temasek Holdings announced a few days ago that CEO Ho Ching will be leaving at the end of September. Speculation is rife that she will be moving into politics to take up a ministerial position. Alex Au and Choo Zheng Xi have a better idea which should interest the prime minister. Guest entry.

Ho Ching had 10-year term at Temasek; leaves early

The Financial Times reported on 6 February that Ho Ching, who earlier this week announced her imminent departure from Temasek Holdings, had been expected to serve 10 years when appointed CEO in 2002. The newspaper said, "[Ho Ching] added that her appointment in 2002 was made on the condition that she would remain for at least 10 years to carry out necessary reforms to the once-sleepy state holding company." (Financial Times, 6 Feb 2009, Goodyear to head Temasek)

Stepping down at the end of September 2009 would therefore mean a premature departure.

There seems to be no explanation yet for this apparent change in plans.

Ho Ching is the wife of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Her presence at the head of one of two Singapore government investment vehicles had complicated Temasek's investment forays abroad, giving reason to nationalists from India to Indonesia to argue against allowing Temasek to take up stakes in strategic industries like banking and telecoms.

Another possible reason for change was hinted at in the Financial Times' story. It pointed out that her successor, Charles Goodyear, came from natural resources giant BHP: "Mr Goodyear’s appointment heralds a possible change of investment emphasis for the S$185bn (US$124bn) fund towards natural resources rather than financial services, a sector in which Temasek has recently made massive paper losses in banks, such as Merrill Lynch."

According to Temasek’s most recent annual report, said the Financial Times, two-thirds of its portfolio is in the financial and telecoms sectors – with just 5 per cent in natural resources.

This overweighting of the financial sector in Temasek's portfolio characterised Ho's tenure. Is it now being seen as a serious mistake?

No need to know how the President uses his second key, says the government

Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam rebuffed calls by members of parliament for more transparency concerning how the President came to agree to release the reserves as requested by the government for the 2009 budget. What can explain the withdrawal into opacity? Full essay.

Opposition unity still illusory

Nine panellists at the forum "Opposition - where to ", organised by the Singapore Democratic Party, spoke about unity among opposition parties, joint activities and working together with civil society. But are these realistic? Full essay.

Behind Today's Lui story

I was briefly quoted by 'Today' newspaper in their second story about Lui Tuck Yew's remarks in Parliament concerning self-regulation in the internet community. Let me share with you what happened behind the scenes between the reporter and me. A peek into how "news" is made. Full essay.

Six men charged for sex with boy aged 15

The Attorney-General's Chambers appears to be aware that prosecutions for homosex can be politically sensitive. In this case, it went out of its way to explain that the alleged "victim" was a minor and that regardless of gender, there would be the "same protection of the law". Yes, but which law? Full essay.

A political tourist in Kuala Lumpur

In the Malaysian capital over Chinese New Year, my friends and I visited various places of worship, but the politics of race and religion were never far away. Full essay.

Shield us good, mock us bad, says Lui

Community moderation of online content has failed its test, said Lui Tuck Yew, the junior minister for information. What appalled him was that people were allowed to say unkind things about Seng Han Thong, a PAP MP who was set on fire by a constituent in January. Full essay.

Time for the Ox to heed the lute

Guest writer Abun Hentag examines the applicability of measures being tried by other governments to the economic downturn to Singapore and finds that we have limited scope for doing likewise. Longer term issues too remain unaddressed. Guest essay.

Half-million is the new benchmark

US President Obama has capped executive pay at US$500,000, in any company being bailed out with taxpayer money. Aren't Singapore ministers too being paid with taxpayer money? Does the recently announced 20 percent pay cut in 2009 bring it within the new half-million benchmark? Full essay.

Saving jobs, savaging filmmakers

In Parliament this week were two important announcements. The government in Budget 2009 announced a slew of schemes to cope with the economic downturn, but something is still missing. And then they showed how insincere they were when they spoke of freeing up media. Full essay.

Obama White House uploads its gay agenda

Anti-gay rightwingers like to use "gay agenda" as a sneer to suggest some kind of hidden, illicit conspiracy, but the new US President has one too. What's in it? Full essay.

Israel's unpleasant surprise

With ceasefires now declared by both sides, Abun Hentag offers his views on the recent Israeli bombardment of and incursion into the Gaza strip. Guest essay.

Move on, shut up

Is it really in the public's interest that we shouldn't know about how civil servants spend their wealth? That civil servants should keep quiet about it? Is it in the public's interest that the police should have summary powers to chase people off the streets? Full essay.

Muddy Singapore swallows China workers, parts 3 and 4

These are the much-delayed (apologies!) wrap-up stories about the six men who were being pressurised by their employer to accept a fraction of their wages after not being paid for three months. Part 3 tells what eventually happened to them. Part 4 discusses the bigger picture why our foreign labour recruitment system is dysfunctional, resulting in the mess we see. Read Part 3 and Part 4.

Are our economic priorities right?

Singapore was the first country in Asia to fall into recession last year, and the numbers are getting gloomier. Why are we so vulnerable? Full essay.

The pretty boy barber

In Singapore, the government says race, language and religion are sensitive subjects, and OB markers are set. Questioning nationhood is also frowned upon. Result: people seldom write about these topics, except in banal, politically correct ways. Let me talk about them my way. Full essay.

Independent investigation needed over Tang's kidney transplant

A hanged prisoner's kidney goes to a wealthy man who had been convicted previously of trying to buy a kidney, and who was thrown off the kidney transplant waiting list. The Minister for Health dismisses the matter as a private affair. It is not. Full essay.

Why there mustn't be an election this year

Someone whom I think should be in the know tells me an election is coming. I find this rather hard to believe. There are no good reasons for holding an election. Full essay.

Singapore government rejects AIMS' key recommendations

Refusing to make any significant moves to liberalise the internet, the Singapore government insists on keeping the law banning political films, and on retaining the Class Licence Scheme, including the registration requirement. Full essay.