If you were not looking out for the news or missed Think Centre's scoop via email on 15th Feb 2003 with regards to an aborted anti-war protest by a group of individuals here who were asked by the Police "not to proceed with the demonstration as there was no police permit for the event"….you're not alone! That's because the majority of Singaporeans would also have missed the news.
Think Centre put-up a short blurp with regards to this protest against a possible war against Iraq.
The Straits Times on 15th Feb 2003 carried a report on it's website by the Associated Press (AP) entitled "Day of Global Protests Against Iraq War." This report was featured under the "Latest News" section which was last updated on that day at 4.12pm. Within this report, which covered basically all the protests that was happening across the world, there was a few lines which read:
"Peace activists in Singapore said about 75 people were expected at a rally in front of the US Embassy, and a protest in South Korea -- a prominent US ally in Asia -- was also planned for later on Saturday. 'We just have to put the point across that there are people all over the world, including some of us in Singapore, that are against the US attacking Iraq,' said Singaporean human rights activist Mohammed Latiff."
Once again, you can be forgiven if you had missed this because it was a small part of a long report by AP.
But at 10pm, in comes ChannelNewsAsia (CNA), with a report entitled "Police Advise Public to Ignore SMS Message on Anti-war Demonstration." Read this full report at Anti-War Police Arrests in Singapore
To cut a long story short, the Police advised six individuals who had gathered to participate in the anti-war demonstration near the US embassy not to proceed as they had not got a police permit for the event.
Questions abound:
Who were these individuals who were exercising their right to the freedom of expression which is guaranteed in the Singapore Constitution?
According to the CNA report, these "six people are helping police with investigations…" Where are they now & what has happened to them?
Also in the same CNA report it was stated that "Police say it's illegal to demonstrate in public without a permit." Question is, if they had applied for a police permit, as the law requires, would they have been granted one given the long record of denials for such permits even when the gathering is a peaceful one?
The PAP government's response to this question appeared in another CNA report entitled "S'poreans should look at issue of war in Iraq rationally: Wong Kan Seng" dated 16 Feb 2003. It said "While the small group dispersed when told by police officers they do not have a permit for the gathering, Mr Wong made it clear such permits are unlikely, as the government does not authorize demonstrations of any kind."
The Police say you need to apply for a permit & the Minister of Home Affairs says such permits are unlikely as the government does not authorize demonstrations of any kind!
Furthermore, the CNA report on 15 Feb mentions that these individuals are helping the police "…into the source of an SMS message urging them to participate in an anti-war demonstration outside the US Embassy on Saturday."
It is a known fact that, even though it would be difficult to trace an SMS message to its source, it is not impossible to do so as the authorities can ask the telephone companies to assist them if the SMS message/s was used as part of an offense.
At the time of writing, there has been no further news from either the police or the local media about this aborted anti-war protest or the individuals involved and investigations .
Day of global protests against Iraq war, AP report on Straits Times website, 15 Feb 2003:
WELLINGTON -- Waving peace banners and denouncing US attack plans, protesters in New Zealand and other Pacific rim countries kicked off a string of demonstrations around the world on Saturday against a war in Iraq.
The protests began as activists in Britain -- the key US ally in the effort to disarm Iraq -- prepared for a rally in London's Hyde Park on Saturday that organisers hoped would draw 500,000 people.
War opponents also planned a protest of up to 100,000 people on Saturday near the United Nations in New York. Police were planning extensive security that included snipers and radiation detectors.
Thousands of protesters gathered in cities across New Zealand, chanting slogans like 'One, two, three, four, we don't want your bloody war!' Over at Auckland harbour, a plane trailed a huge banner reading 'No War - Peace Now,' at the America's Cup sailing competition.
In the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, about 1,500 activists and opposition supporters ignored police warnings and gathered outside the US embassy before a barricade of 100 policemen armed with automatic weapons.
The protesters, organised by a coalition of about 20 opposition parties and human rights groups, carried placards that read 'War Is Not The Answer' and chanted 'Down with war'.
Demonstrators expressed skepticism that Iraq posed a threat to world security, saying instead that US President George W Bush's policy against the Middle Eastern country was just a way to extend American control over oil reserves.
Smaller groups gathered in Bangkok, Taipei, and Singapore. In Bangkok, several hundred people marched with banners to the US embassy. The crowd included a large contingent of Thai Muslims and Westerners, and several Buddhist monks and nuns.
Peace activists in Singapore said about 75 people were expected at a rally in front of the US Embassy, and a protest in South Korea -- a prominent US ally in Asia -- was also planned for later on Saturday.
'We just have to put the point across that there are people all over the world, including some of us in Singapore, that are against the US attacking Iraq,' said Singaporean human rights activist Mohammed Latiff.
The protests on Saturday picked up on earlier demonstrations started on Friday.
At least 150,000 people packed the streets of Melbourne, Australia, on Friday. Australia is one of the United States' closest allies and has already committed 2,000 troops to the Persian Gulf for possible military action.
Elsewhere in Asia, an estimated 6,000 people joined a protest march on Friday night in Tokyo, and a similar number marched to the US embassy in the Philippine capital, Manila. In the world's newest nation, East Timor, about 150 people marched through the capital, Dili, early on Saturday.
A massive demonstration was planned in London, where US civil rights leader Jesse Jackson and activist Bianca Jagger were slated to appear.
'It's going to be a fantastic day,' said Andrew Burgin of the Stop the War Coalition as he helped erect the stage and two large screens in Hyde Park. Organisers hoped to have a satellite link with fellow protesters in Europe.
The three main organisers of London's march -- the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, the Stop the War Coalition and the Muslim Association of Britain -- predicted it would outstrip the anti-war march in London in autumn in which 400,000 people took part.
A march in Glasgow, Scotland, was to converge on a conference of the ruling Labour Party in time for Prime Minister Tony Blair's speech.
The anti-war demonstration has not only irked the British government but also Iraqi opposition groups who hope to unseat Saddam. Mr Blair is the prime European backer of the US push to disarm Baghdad by force. -- AP
Shortlived protest as police step in, Sunday Times, 16 Feb 2003:
THE message on the cellphone read: 'Rally for peace with millions worldwide. Come down to the American Embassy at 3 pm. Let's stand united against war.'
At least six people acted on it and went to the embassy in Napier Road and nearby Tanglin Mall toting anti-war placards. But before they could even wave them, the police intervened and took all six to the Tanglin Police Station for questioning. No arrests have been made yet.
Two young children, whose parents were among the six, also went to the police station. A police statement said the adults are helping them to trace the source of the SMS, which was also sent to the media.
It said the six followed police advice not to carry on with the demonstration as they had no permit.
It started at about 3 pm with police picking up two men and a woman at Tanglin Mall. The would-be protesters carried placards in plastic bags and said they had responded to a message to protest against waging war on Iraq.
About half an hour later, housewife Noor Jahan Ibrahim Kutty, 38, and her sister, Shareefah, 25, a private tutor, arrived at the embassy in a taxi. The sixth person, a man, arrived at the embassy at about 3.45 pm.
The sisters flashed their placards and gave out flyers before police questioned them and took them away.
The sisters' flyers were photocopies of Internet anti-war articles. The placards read 'Don't attack Iraq' and 'War is not healthy for children and other living things'.
They said they sent an SMS to friends asking them to join the protest, but stressed that 'they did not force anyone else to come, and would give out flyers voluntarily to those who wanted them'.
'We're simply acting on our beliefs,' said Ms Noor Jahan. She added: 'This is my moral obligation as a human being. I'm not representing any society or my community.'
Policemen swarmed outside the embassy, the British High Commission next door and Tanglin Mall.
After everything was over, an engineer who gave his name as Mr Latiff, 33, said he went to the embassy to join the rally, and left when he saw no one else there. He too was questioned by the police, but allowed to leave.
He said: 'I feel embarrassed that while people around the world are making a statement about peace, Singaporeans are sitting back and munching peanuts in front of their TV sets.'
S'poreans should look at issue of war in Iraq rationally: Wong Kan Seng by CNA, 16 Feb 2003:
Singaporeans should look at the issue of a war in Iraq rationally, and understand the need to maintain stability here, says the Home Affairs Minister, in response to an attempted anti-war protest in Singapore.
Mr Wong Kan Seng, speaking at a Lunar New Year gathering in Bishan, said Singaporeans should look at issues objectively and rationally.
For one thing, he said, Singaporeans should not take the law into their own hands and carry out demonstrations like the one attempted outside the US Embassy in Singapore on Saturday.
"There may be others who feel the same but they do not take the law into their own hands, take to the streets and mount demonstration.
"Those who take the laws into their own hands and do things which are against the law, they'll be dealt with according to the law."
While the small group dispersed when told by police officers they do not have a permit for the gathering, Mr Wong made it clear such permits are unlikely, as the government does not authorize demonstrations of any kind.
On Iraq, he said if a war does break out, Singaporeans should look at the issue rationally, and not emotionally.
Mr Wong said: "I hope Singaporeans would understand that if it does happen, this is not an issue between different religions, between Islamic countries and the West, but an issue of mass destruction and the weapons of mass destruction is something that the countries have to deal with because it poses a danger not just to that part of the world but also to other countries elsewhere."
