I can’t think of anyone else who keeps as close an eye on what’s happening on Ridout Road as The Online Citizen 👀 👀 👀…
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With the general election looming, we’re seeing reports of movement within political parties—all of which feeds speculation over each parties’ slate of candidates. Even high(ish) profile resignations can raise eyebrows. I don’t pay very close attention to such reports myself, regardless of whether they come from the PAP or the opposition (or even among the NMPs). It feels like too much brain work to keep track of them all, so I prefer to wait and focus on who actually comes forward (and where) on Nomination Day. That said, there are occasionally names that make me do a double take.
The emergence of a new face joining the Nee Soon GRC MPs has caused a bit of a stir. Deryne Sim, a lawyer, confirmed that she’s a PAP member and has apparently been volunteering in K Shanmugam’s PAP branch for over a year. It’s not certain yet whether she’ll be standing for election, but what’s significant about Deryne’s appearance on the scene is that she used to be on the Pink Dot committee and is executive director of Same But Different, which offers legal resources to the LGBTQ+ community.
This is a Thing for conservative Singaporeans who are once again in a tizzy about whether “fielding LGBTQ activists signals an end to PAP’s pro-family policies”. For some members of civil society, it feels like another instance of co-optation. Pink Dot struggled for a long time against the government and the state’s homophobic policies and positions—the repeal of Section 377A was only won after years of tough fighting—and while they might not have been treated like enemies of the state like others (*ahem*) have been, they've not been entirely immune to the hostility shown to activists. To have someone ‘cross over’, as it were, to the PAP can throw up questions about relationships and choices and, most crucially, trust. (How comfortable or safe will people feel talking about their activism around someone who's now openly part of the party that's doing the oppressing?) Different activists will have different answers to this but, personally, I have a hard time understanding how people who have had some involvement in civil society and have witnessed the ways in which the PAP government clamps down can still believe enough in the party to want to join them. I get that they often believe they can create change from within but I find that to be just delulu thinking at this point. Also, what are you condoning or even whitewashing while you're trying to effect your 'change from the inside'? This is the sort of thing I was pondering when I wrote the chapter in my book entitled ‘Puppets in the Powerful’s Wayang’.
In other election-related news… Before the last Covid-19 election the major highlight of my GE experience was attending a different rally every night, taking in the crowds and observing the candidates. Ahead of GE2025, CNA points out that about half of the previous rally sites are now no more. It’s expected that there might be more seats and constituencies this round, so we’re probably going to need more rally sites—but it’s not clear how the authorities pick such venues.
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Who benefits from this? The POFMA Office has started interrogations for its investigation into the Transformative Justice Collective under Section 7 of POFMA, which carries heavy criminal penalties. TJC was informed of this investigation just before the Lunar New Year. It's related to previous Correction Directions that we’d received (and complied with).
This past week, Rocky was “interviewed” for a whopping 9.5 hours over two days, with close to 400 questions asked—he was interrogated as a representative of TJC and also as an individual under investigation himself. I suppose I should hang my head in shame because asking questions is part of my job but I honestly could never have come up with that much to ask about Facebook posts.
Sobi and Kokila of TJC are scheduled for questioning next week—We Defy POFMA, a group that came together to stand in solidarity, is inviting people who want to show support to send them direct messages on Instagram for more information. As always with investigations, some of us will head down to Mapletree Business City (where the POFMA Office is) to wait for the questioning to be over. The longer they take with each interrogation, the longer people stay in solidarity.
I joined in on the second day of Rocky’s questioning, getting up early in the morning to join the bleary-eyed commuters on the MRT. I was really sleepy but it was fun to hang out with the small group of friends who’d gathered. We ate tang yuan with ginger soup for the last day of the Lunar New Year and chatted about all sorts of things, then shifted over to the food court for lunch. An absurd, oppressive reason brought us there, but we didn’t let it kill our spirits and were able to make good use of that time together.
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Maxicab drivers unite! About 50 drivers of premium Maxicabs gathered at their rest area at Changi Airport on Thursday to express their displeasure with unfair labour practices. They say that after Woodlands Transport, a private operator, took over Changi Airport’s Ground Transport Concierge service, Maxicab drivers were sidelined by the company’s minibuses, leading to significantly reduced income. One driver told the press that they’d sent representatives to negotiate with Woodlands Transport but it didn’t work out, so they decided to protest.
Wu, the driver, told Shin Min Daily News (in Chinese): "Almost 100 drivers answered the call; starting from 9am, they didn't go to Changi Airport to pick up passengers. Later, about 50 of us agreed to meet at the rest area at around 4pm. We hoped that representatives of all parties could come together to solve the problem." (This is my own translation of the quote because it doesn't appear in the English version of the story!) Shin Min Daily News also described the action as a protest, but we seem to be allergic to the word in English.
As reported by both Mothership and Shin Min Daily News, Yeo Wan Ling, Assistant Secretary-General of NTUC and advisor to the National Taxi Association, was quick to emphasise that the drivers did not go on strike. Yeo stated that there was no disruption to the services provided, but I don't think you need a complete stoppage to say that at least some of the workers refused to work until their concerns were addressed. I don't know how a judge in court might rule, but as a layperson I'd say that looks very strike-like to me.
It looks like the drivers’ "gathering" wasn't in vain. Changi Airport Group had been trying out a minibus service for larger groups, but they’ve since halted the trial and are reviewing their processes. Wu told Shin Min Daily News (again, this is my translation): "The minibuses have been temporarily suspended and we started going back to the airport to pick up passengers early this morning [Friday]... At this point we don't know what will happen in the future [since CAG is still carrying out its review], but at least for now we can go back to work."
Around the region
Looking for writing from elsewhere? Check out these newsletters from around Asia:
🌏 Asia Undercovered
🇰🇭 Campuccino
🇮🇩 Indonesia at a Crossroads
🇲🇾 The Malaysianist
🇻🇳 Vietnam Weekly
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