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Time to change P1 priority system?

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Parents question 'fairness' of the Primary 1 registration scheme's several tiers and its societal impact
By Sandra Davie, The Straits Times, 11 Jul 2013

IT IS that time of the year. Anxious parents hoping for "good news" at the annual Primary 1 (P1) registration exercise.

But this year, there are more furrowed faces, as spaces at popular schools fill up more quickly within the first two phases. It means more parents have to take their chances by balloting to secure a P1 place for their child.

Over two days last week, when Phase 1 - for siblings of children studying in the chosen school - ended, 13 schools filled up at least half their places compared with 11 schools last year.

On Tuesday this week, the tension notched up even further, when the results of the second phase, Phase 2A1 - for children whose parents are alumni association members - were released.

Some 28 schools had half their places taken up by this phase.

In popular schools like Henry Park, Ai Tong, Nanyang Primary and St Nicholas Girls', only a third of places remain. Other sought-after schools like Catholic High, Nan Hua, Pei Chun and Tao Nan were left with 40 per cent or less spaces.

The stress from balloting

LESSER-KNOWN heartland schools, on the other hand, have 300 to 400 places left to be filled.

The anxious parents awaiting their round know that the handful of popular primary school places remaining means balloting - and the stress that goes with it.

Coming up - next week - is Phase 2A2, for children whose parents or siblings were former pupils of their school of choice.

At Nanyang Primary, for instance, where 272 of the 390 places were taken up under the first two phases, parents who called the school were told another 80 to 90 places are likely to be taken up at Phase 2A2. It means a number of those in later phases that involve proximity - many having moved or bought million-dollar homes near the chosen school - may be left without places.

The Ministry of Education (MOE) can expect even more calls, after this year's P1 registration exercise, to review the priority rule for alumni and parent volunteers and those with church and clan connections.

Giving priority to children whose siblings are already in the school makes sense; it is convenient for parents to have their children in the same school.

But the other priority admission criteria have drawn much flak over the years. Giving the children of alumni, and clan and church association members priority for admission essentially allows parents to pass on their privileged access to their children.

The preference given to parent volunteers is criticised for favouring the rich, such as wealthy couples where the wife can afford to be a stay-at-home mum and has time to volunteer. The average Singapore family has both parents working, leaving them little time to put in 40 hours a year of volunteer service at a school.

Many have called on MOE to scrap the priority given to those with connections to the school, to free up more places for those living near the schools.

Education Ministry's stance

THE ministry has argued many times before that key stakeholders - such as former pupils, members of the school advisory committees and parent volunteers - help build up and strengthen the schools' traditions and ethos.

But it is well-known, and clan officials confirm it, that many parents who take up membership just before the registration are hardly ever seen again.

Also, many parents who pay the one-time membership fee to become alumni members do not give support in other ways. And some school alumni groups impose hefty membership fees. Nanyang Schools Alumni Association charges $1,000. Raffles Girls' Primary School Alumni Association and ACS Old Boys' Association charge $500.

Business development manager Sharon Lek, 37, feels such fees are exorbitant. Her husband, an alumnus of Nanyang Primary, must fork out $1,000 to take up alumni membership so their son can have P1 priority. Her husband has not done so and they may send their son to a school in Bukit Batok, where they live.

She and her business manager husband feel strongly that parental connections and money play too big a role in giving children priority in P1 registration. She makes a further point: Exclusiveness means some schools will lack diversity in their pupil bodies.

Unlike Madam Lek, many other parents are usually driven by self-interest - to secure a place in a school of their choice for their children. Rightly or wrongly, they see a place in a school like Methodist Girls' School or CHIJ St Nicholas as the ticket to a good secondary school and then junior college and university.

To be sure, the heat generated over P1 registration is not new and surfaces each year. But it seems worse this year, as more places get snapped up by those with connections, leaving out those who depend on the dicey but fair method of balloting for a place.

It may be time for the Government to do a serious study of P1 registration, in particular a review of vexatious issues like the rich-poor divide and the student mix in "brand name" schools.

Several suggestions have emerged to ensure a more equitable way of allocating P1 places.

Most parents have no gripes over Phase 1 where priority is given to siblings. The priority given to those living near the schools is also sound as convenience is an important factor. Children shouldn't have to wake up in the wee morning hours to get to school.
So keeping Phase 1 is not an issue. But thereafter, as some have suggested, all parents should be allowed in Phase 2 to register their children at any school. Balloting will determine who goes to which school. Of course, if a parent chooses to register at a school that is very far away, the parent will only have himself to blame for the inconvenience caused if the child gets a place.

Another idea: Do away with the priority given to parent volunteers and those with alumni, church or clan connections.

Proximity and privilege

THIS opens up more places to those living near the school under Phase 2C. The problem with allocating places by proximity is that many popular schools remain in the Bukit Timah belt, which has scant public housing and where private property prices are sky-high. Basing it on distance again ends up privileging the rich.

This problem can be fixed if some of these schools are relocated to neighbourhoods which have a mix of different housing types.

A less drastic tweak is to set aside at least half the places to be given to those living near the schools, and then allocate a smaller, fixed proportion to those with connections through volunteering, alumni, church or clan ties. This way, there is no way those with connections can fill up all the school places.

Now, there is no cap for the earlier phases so if a school has many people with such connections, all the places get taken up earlier, leaving as good as zero chance left for those living near the school, and who depend on the ballot.

P1 registration woes are a perennial issue. In 1993, The Straits Times put the spotlight on the concentration of "good schools" along Bukit Timah - which have become known as the "Bukit Timah belt of schools". Twenty years later, the problem remains.

The MOE has to be more proactive in moving some of the popular schools to HDB neighbourhoods to help rebalance the pupil population mix.

Lack of diversity in schools can widen social inequalities. Sociologists note that in elite schools, peers form exclusive circles. They share resources, hoard opportunities and look out for one another, and these networks yield benefits beyond graduation - in the job market and elsewhere.

They may grow up assuming everyone is like their classmates and them: cognitively able, from well-endowed homes. They are less likely to learn empathy for those who are different.

Revamping the criteria to lessen the advantage for those with school connections will no doubt incur the ire of affected parents. But it is a necessary step to lessen the social stratification already evident in some schools.

And Singapore's children, and society, will be the better for it and the Education Ministry more likely to realise its vision that "every school is a good school".







- Phase 1: For a child who has a sibling studying in the same primary school. All children registering under this phase will get places.
- Phase 2A(1): For a child whose parent has been a member of the alumni association since at least June 30 last year, or is a member of the school advisory or management committee.
- Phase 2A(2): For a child whose parent or sibling is a former pupil of the school, or a member of its staff.
After this phase, half the remaining places go to Phase 2B and the other half to Phase 2C.
- Phase 2B: For a child whose parent volunteers at the primary school, or is either a member of the church/clan connected with it or an active community leader.
- Phase 2C: For all children who are eligible for Primary1 in the following year and not yet registered in a primary school.
- Phase 2C Supplementary: For a child who is not yet registered in a primary school after Phase 2C.
- Phase 3: For a child who is neither a Singapore citizen nor a permanent resident.
There is no cap on the places that can be allocated under phases 1, 2A(1) and 2A(2). Suppose there are 100 places in a school. Say, Phase 1 is filled by 20 students with siblings in the school.

Under Phase 2A(1), there will be 80 places left. If 80 children apply and all qualify, the school will be full.

However, if the number of applications exceeds the number of vacancies in a specific phase, Singapore citizens will be admitted ahead of permanent residents, before home-school distance is considered in this order of priority - within 1km, between 1km and 2km and outside 2km.


More marriages, fewer divorces registered in 2012

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By Olivia Siong, Channel NewsAsia, 10 Jul 2013

More couples tied the knot and fewer married couples called it quits last year, according to the latest report "Statistics on Marriages and Divorces" released by the Department of Statistics.

The total number of marriages registered in 2012 was 27,936.

The total number of marriages comprises both civil and Muslim marriages. This was 2.5 per cent higher than the 27,258 marriages registered in 2011.



Assoc Prof Paulin Tay Straughan, Deputy Head of the Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore, said: "To be fair to the Singapore government, our country has some of the strongest pro-family stance ideologically, when it comes to policy and so forth. Compounded over time, I'm hopeful that it has sent the right message. That this is a society that will support marriage." 

Men and women are marrying later in life.

For men, the median age at first marriage rose from 28.9 years in 2002 to 30.1 years in 2012. For women, it rose from 26.3 years to 28.0 years.

Experts attribute this to many young people wanting to establish a career before they get married.

Assoc Prof Paulin Tay Straughan added: "I think it'll be very hard to get Singaporeans married at an earlier age. Nonetheless, something that we should try. The second more immediate concern of course is, the implications of older mothers at child birth. This has implications on complications and neo-natal care and so forth. So I think in terms of medical expertise, we have to build up sufficient care for this."

The median age at remarriage also rose. The median age of grooms who were remarrying rose from 40.1 years in 2002 to 42.1 years in 2012. For brides, it increased from 34.1 years to 36.4 years.

Among first marriages for couples in 2012, 68 per cent of grooms married younger brides. This was lower than the 73 per cent in 2002.

In terms of educational qualification, the median age at first marriage in 2012 was higher among grooms and brides of all educational groups.

The median age at first marriage for grooms with primary or lower education was 42.1 years in 2012, compared to 30.9 years in 2002.

Over the past decade, more grooms with primary or lower education married brides with at least secondary qualification.

In 2012, the proportion was 73 per cent, compared to 52 per cent in 2002 for grooms in civil marriages.

For grooms in Muslim marriages, the proportion jumped from 45 per cent in 2002 to 70 per cent in 2012.

Last year, more people married outside their ethnic groups. In 2012, 21 per cent of total marriages were inter-ethnic marriages, up from 12 per cent in 2002.

Inter-ethnic marriages were more prevalent among Muslim marriages (34 per cent) than among civil marriages (18 per cent).

The total number of marriages dissolved (comprising divorces and annulments) was 7,241 in 2012.

In 2011, there were 7,604 divorces and annulments which was a peak.

Assoc Prof Paulin Tay Straughan said: "There could be many many factors. But I do think that you know, when we marry later, probably it contributes to more stable marriages. Because one of the difficulties when you marry very young, you jump into a marriage and then subsequently five, ten years down the road, you start to regret, "have I missed out on life? Why did I get married and tied down so early?"" 

Compared to 2002, persons aged 45 years and over accounted for a larger share of divorcees in 2012.

The proportion aged 45 years and over rose from 26 per cent in 2002 to 39 per cent in 2012 for male divorcees.

The proportion for female divorcees aged 45 years and over rose from 17 per cent in 2002 and 25 per cent in 2012.

The median age at divorce rose in the last 10 years.

The median age for male divorcees was 41.6 years and 38.0 years for female divorcees last year. In 2002, it was 38.7 years for male divorcees and 35.6 years for female divorcees.

Couples who were married for five to nine years accounted for the largest group at 31 per cent of civil divorces in 2012.

The next largest group was those who had been married for 20 years or longer at 22 per cent.

Among Muslim divorces, couples who were married for under five years and five to nine years formed the largest groups at 28 per cent each.

Among the civil divorces, the top two main reasons for divorce were "unreasonable behaviour" and "having lived apart or separated for three years or more".

Among Muslim divorces, the top two main reasons for divorce were "infidelity or extra-marital affair" and "financial problems".

There were a total of 344 annulments under the Women's Charter in 2012, a decrease from 370 annulments in 2011.

Statistics also showed that more men are marrying older women. Some 32 per cent of grooms married older women last year, compared to 27 per cent in 2002.

Commenting on the figures released by the Department of Statistics, the National Family Council said it is encouraged by last year's trend in marriages in Singapore.

In a statement, the Council said it noted an increase of 2.5 per cent from the 27,258 marriages registered in 2011 to 27,936 in 2012, and a fall in divorces and annulments for the same period.

It encouraged all to embrace the notion of having a good family as part of definitions of success.

It said the National Conversation should go beyond material concerns to focus on the emotional rewards of parenting.




Baby boom unlikely despite more marriages
By Priscilla Goy, The Straits Times, 12 Jul 2013

MARRIAGES in Singapore hit a 50-year high last year, but will this result in a "baby boom"?

Unlikely, sociologists and experts told The Straits Times, though they remain hopeful that there could be a slight increase in the number of babies in the future.

There were 27,936 marriages last year, the most since records began in 1961.

Sociologist Tan Ern Ser, referring to the figures released by the Department of Statistics on Wednesday, said more people are marrying later, "a fact which may not be helpful to enhancing fertility rates".

Singapore's total fertility rate (TFR) last year was 1.29 births per woman, far below the replacement rate of 2.1.

Other experts agreed with Associate Professor Tan, but added that Singapore may still see a few more babies.

Said Mr Jonathan Siew, centre manager at Care Corner Counselling Centre: "I don't think the percentage rise in number of babies would match that of marriages, but there may still be a slight increase."

But to see a more significant increase in the birth rate here, more should be done to encourage singles below the age of 30 to tie the knot, said sociologist Paulin Straughan.




Why more older couples split up
Focused on kids and careers, they grow apart after children leave home
By Priscilla Goy, The Straits Times, 12 Jul 2013

AFTER years focused on parenting, some couples lose the romance in their marriage. When their children leave home, they struggle to relate to each other and split up.

Sociologists and experts whom The Straits Times spoke to said this is one key reason why people aged 45 and above accounted for a larger share of marital break-ups last year - despite an overall decline in the number of divorces.

But the statistics also revealed that more people aged 60 and above are getting hitched, and this may be down to people remarrying, said experts.

Figures from the Department of Statistics, released on Wednesday, showed that the number of divorces and annulments fell by 4.8 per cent to 7,241 last year, the first drop in seven years.

But 38.8 per cent of divorced men last year were aged 45 and above, up from 26.3 per cent in 2002. The figure was 25.3 per cent last year for females in the same age group, compared to 17.3 per cent 10 years before.

National University of Singapore sociologist Paulin Straughan said older couples may split up after their kids leave home, as they did not spend enough time building their relationship as a couple. Instead, they invested the time in their careers and children. "Much of the marriage is tied to the couple's roles as parents, rather than their roles as husband and wife. So when the children leave, the parents don't know what to do with each other," she said.

Mr Jonathan Siew, centre manager at Care Corner Counselling Centre, said: "The wife may initially choose not to divorce when her children are still young.

"But when the children have grown up and can support themselves, if the marital situation hasn't improved, the wife may choose to opt for divorce."

For marriages to work, Institute of Policy Studies sociologist Mathew Mathews suggested that couples work on developing their relationship from the start. "People should be more open to marriage preparation and marriage enrichment programmes. When you know that you've been through good times previously, there's something that you can look back to, and you'd feel more committed when going through crises."

The statistics also suggested that more people are rediscovering love later in life.

Some 420 men and 77 women aged 60 and above got married last year, compared to 145 men and 19 women in 2002.

Remarriages also made up 25.1per cent of total marriages last year. A decade ago, the figure was 18.9 per cent. Mr Siew drew a link between the two sets of figures, explaining that those getting hitched older may be tying the knot for the second time.

Harry Elias Partnership family lawyer Koh Tien Hua said people, even after a divorce or a spouse's death, are not afraid of recommitting themselves because "marriage is still something that's greatly valued".




Out-of-court legal scheme to ease pain of divorce
Specially trained lawyers to help couples settle matters amicably
By Ian Poh, The Straits Times, 11 Jul 2013

DIVORCING couples can now avoid a bruising court battle by using a new service to help them settle matters relating to their break-up amicably.

The Collaborative Family Practice assigns specially trained lawyers to help couples negotiate post-divorce issues such as who gets the assets and how much maintenance should be paid.

Its aim is to save them time and money and help avoid more heartbreaks.

The service - launched yesterday by the Singapore Mediation Centre - has already won the support of the Subordinate Courts and the Law Society of Singapore.

Chief District Judge Tan Siong Thye said families required all necessary assistance to help properly manage the "painful transitions" that follow a divorce. Speaking at the launch event at the Singapore Cricket Club, he said the courts should be the "last option".

Under the pilot scheme, divorcing couples will pay a discounted $300 an hour for assigned family lawyers who will be specially trained to work in this area.

They will help clients withdraw from the table if they become too emotional, and counsel them if they try to negotiate in bad faith.

Couples can also get advice from specialists such as financial advisers and child experts. And if an agreement to settle is reached, the Family Court will prioritise closing the case.

But if the dispute eventually ends up in court, the couple's assigned lawyers are not allowed to represent them.

The new service makes use of collaborative law, where all parties work together to resolve divorce issues amicably.

This approach can improve client awareness of the issues and keep costs low. Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon had called for it to be used in March at the Subordinate Courts workplan seminar.

Family lawyers Helen Chia and Rajan Chettiar are the first two on board - with 17 more expected in the coming days.

The two lawyers have already settled their first case.

Ms Chia said: "With the service, family lawyers can help divorcees create a better platform for the next stage of their lives."

The Singapore Mediation Centre also provides a Neutral Evaluation service, where an impartial third party called a "neutral" will deliver a legally binding decision based on the merits of the case, in a confidential process. Announced last year, it targets couples who are unable to settle a dispute amicably but are also unwilling to foot the significant costs of court proceedings.

Online sites have responsibility to give accurate info: Observers

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This is especially so during crises, as rumours spread fast and cause anxiety
By Tessa Wong, The Straits Times, 11 Jul 2013

BLOGGERS and websites have a responsibility to give accurate information, especially in times of crisis, observers said in response to Government criticism of those who spread false information during the recent haze.

On Monday in Parliament, Minister for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim said some had caused unnecessary anxiety with their inaccurate posts. He cited examples in his reply to MPs' questions on misleading and unverified information online on the haze which could be harmful.

These included a screenshot showing wrong PSI information; blogger Ravi Philemon quoting his friend, alleging that N95 masks being brought into Singapore were not for the public; and The Real Singapore website falsely attributing an article to PAP MP Irene Ng.

Many observers agreed it was right to call out such behaviour.

Like many other connected societies, Singapore is not immune to false information spreading swiftly and having serious consequences, they said.

"In a national crisis, to put out false rumours is as severe as a bomb hoax: it can cause public panic," said MP Zaqy Mohamad, chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Communications and Information.

While Singaporeans are generally discerning about what they read online, "in times of uncertainty or crisis, discernment may very well give way to the search for misinformation that confirms or validates how they make sense of a difficult situation", said Mr Eugene Tan, Nominated MP and associate professor at Singapore Management University.

Prominent websites and bloggers can have thousands of readers, making it easier for rumours to spread easily from person to person.

"There's a risk when untruths become more credible as (they are) repeated online by several sources," said MP Baey Yam Keng, vice-chairman of the GPC for Communications and Information.

Readers expressed similar views on The Straits Times Facebook page.

"As an opinion leader (with) many followers... there is a need to think twice before posting anything online," said a Mr Edmund Mong.

The onus is on bloggers and websites to exercise "some measure of editorial judgment and not just pass on any rumour", said Professor Ang Peng Hwa, director of the Singapore Internet Research Centre. If a post turns out to be false, "the responsible thing is to take it down or correct it immediately".

The Government can also be quicker in disseminating comprehensive information, said former nominated MP Calvin Cheng. While it made an effort during the haze to to clear up misperceptions about the haze by using websites such as Emergency 101 and Factually, these came out a few days after the haze reached record levels, he noted.

But others argued that the intention of the posting also matters in deciding how culpable one is in spreading false information.

While Mr Philemon's erroneous post risked stirring panic and causing unhappiness, some observers, such as blogger Siew Kum Hong, felt he did it out of a desire to inform. He did not "seek to sensationalise" the unverified information, said Mr Siew.

On the other hand, they said the article that The Real Singapore website attributed to Ms Ng appeared to be borne out of mischief.

The identity of the website's editors is unknown, but the site claims to be 50 per cent news, and runs articles mocking Singapore, its institutions and leaders without much backing.

Former nominated MP Zulkifli Baharuddin said that while those out to make mischief should be punished severely, "it's different if someone passed on information based on ignorance".

Under the Telecommunications Act, people who transmit a message known to be false or fabricated can be fined up to $10,000, jailed for three years, or given both punishments. The penalties are higher if it is a bomb hoax.

Some have urged that this law be used only as a last resort.

Nominated MP Tan Su Shan suggested setting up an independent fact-checking panel to act as an ombudsman, with powers to call out netizens who publish false information and discipline them.

"The Government can sometimes come across as heavy-handed, which ends up lessening people's trust. It may be better to have a non-partisan panel, one with buy-in from all citizens," she said.




'Rumour-mongers named to be fair to online community'
By Tessa Wong, The Straits Times, 11 Jul 2013

MINISTER for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim explained last night why he named individuals and websites that spread rumours when speaking in Parliament on Monday.

He did so to be fair to the online community. "Otherwise, the majority in the online community may be inadvertently associated with spreading rumours. That would be unfair, because they were not spreading rumours," he wrote in a Facebook post. He also said that he had mentioned many examples of Singaporeans using the Internet to do good and clarify doubts.

Dr Yaacob was referring to his reply on Monday to questions from MPs on the online rumours and false information some netizens had spread about the haze, causing unnecessary anxiety and doubt.

Among the examples he cited was blogger Ravi Philemon's post, in which he quoted a friend saying that nine million N95 masks being brought into Singapore were not meant for the public.

Dr Yaacob last night laid out the sequence of events in Mr Philemon's case.


"The upshot of Ravi's post is that the Government announcement the day before is not true. But what is his basis for suggesting so? The truth is, he had no basis for his assertion," the minister said.

Mr Philemon has since said on his blog he felt it was his responsibility to highlight "at least some of the feelings and sentiments of the general public".

Dr Yaacob said he was happy to learn that Mr Philemon had driven to Johor Baru to buy masks to distribute to the needy. "But let's be clear - doing good offline does not mean one is excused from acting responsibly online," he added.

Nathan hopes to inspire youth with his stories

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New book contains excerpts from memoirs rewritten more simply
By Janice Heng, The Straits Times, 12 Jul 2013

FORMER president S R Nathan hopes that young Singaporeans can draw lessons from the stories of his life, collected in a new book.

"Just as I am grateful to those who have offered me a helping hand, I feel a corresponding obligation and a desire to repay that debt, by helping today's young people benefit from my own experiences," he said last night.



He was speaking to about 100 friends, relatives, past and present politicians as well as ambassadors at the launch of 50 Stories From My Life.

The 184-page book comprises excerpts from Mr Nathan's memoirs, An Unexpected Journey: Path To The Presidency, rewritten in simpler English for a wider readership. It costs $19.90 with GST and is available at major bookstores.

The stories span more than 80 years and many aspects of his life. These range from sleeping rough along the five-foot-way as a teenager to meeting key players in Singapore's history, from first chief minister David Marshall to founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew.

Though the world has changed greatly in the last 50 years, many of his experiences may be those that young people today continue to face, Mr Nathan, 89, told reporters.

"That is, difficulties in life, hardships to overcome and sometimes a sense of despair."

One lesson from his book, he said, "is not to give up".

Mr Nathan also stressed the need for young Singaporeans to keep learning long after graduation, particularly in an age of global competition.

"Economically, if Singapore is going to prosper, it must keep up with the world."

One self-described member of the younger generation who has been inspired by Mr Nathan is Mr Chan Chun Sing, 44.

The Acting Minister for Social and Family Development was guest of honour at the book launch and recalled working with Mr Nathan to set up the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies in 1996.

Mr Nathan was the institute's founding director, and Mr Chan was then a young officer from the Defence Ministry.

"I still have vivid memories of what Mr Nathan taught me as a young officer," said Mr Chan, who noted three lessons he rediscovered on reading 50 Stories From My Life.

One was the importance of values. Another was that "our circumstances don't define us, our responses to circumstances define us". And the last was the need for Singapore - a small country with little relevance to the world - to create its own relevance and form a network of friends overseas.

But Mr Chan hoped Mr Nathan's latest book would not just provide lessons for the young.

"I hope these 50 stories... will encourage even more Singaporeans from all walks of life to also join in this collective effort to bring about a collective memory and sense of nation."



NEVER GIVE UP

Many of my experiences would be something that today's young may themselves experience. That is, difficulties in life, hardships to overcome, and sometimes a sense of despair. So the lesson from my book is not to give up.

- Mr S R Nathan.

He hopes young Singaporeans can draw lessons from the stories of his life





Among 50 stories from Nathan's life: Love
By M. Nirmala, The Straits Times, 8 Jul 2013

FORMER Singapore president S R Nathan, who has just turned 89, is declaring once again his love to the woman he courted for 16 years before marrying her in 1958.

He has dedicated his new book, 50 Stories From My Life, to his wife Urmila Nathan, or Umi, as he fondly calls her.

Some 55 years after a wedding, two children and three grandchildren, Mr Nathan glows when talking about his wife in an interview at his office in the Singapore Management University.

Their love story is one chapter in his new 184-page book.

Written for younger readers, the stories have been extracted from his much thicker 672-page memoir, Unexpected Journey.

Born poor, he pulled through a tough life as a destitute and survived the Japanese Occupation.

Armed with a university diploma in social studies, he worked his way up the career ladder as a mediator in union disputes, a diplomat, the executive chairman of The Straits Times Press and a two-term president of Singapore.

In pages on the only romance of his life, Mr Nathan writes about how his gaze first fell on his future wife when he cycled past her two-storey house in Muar.

Cupid's arrow found his heart when he saw a girl standing by the window on the upper level. He was running errands on his bicycle for the Japanese who had occupied Malaya and the region in 1942. He was 18 then and she, 13.

"She was very attractive and I was on cloud nine. Umi took a fascination to me," he chuckles.

When asked to describe what love is, Mr Nathan ponders for a long while and replies: "It's difficult to describe love.

"It's an emotional feeling and something triggers inside you. You just know this is the person you are meant to be with. You forget about the whole world and you think only about this person. Your imagination runs wild."

He saw her daily while running errands for the Japanese.

"I possessed only one good shirt at that time. It was mauve in colour, and it made quite an impression on Umi, or so she tells me," he lets on.

Their courtship was one of persistence against the odds.

He was a Tamil and she a Bengali, two different Indian language groups. He felt her parents would have wanted a well-educated Bengali suitor, ideally a lawyer or a doctor, and he was neither.

Even when they met in her home, they could not display their affection and chemistry. They kept their serious romance under wraps from her father who had a tendency to smash plates when his temper flared. "It was a very difficult time in our lives.

"She even tried to discourage me from pursuing her by showing her anger against me. But I never gave up," says Mr Nathan.

The toughest test of their courtship took place in 1952 when Mrs Nathan left for a two-year teacher-training course in Britain.

"Her leaving was very painful," recalls Mr Nathan.

"We parted tearfully," he says, adding that he cried all the way back to Singapore.

The couple wrote many love letters. "We wrote without any inhibition. And each time, we wondered if there was another suitor hanging around."

On married life, he says they do quarrel, even on petty matters, but sort out their problems by the next morning.

Guided by old-fashioned values of hard work, courage, loyalty and duty to a higher course, Mr Nathan adds one more to his list - faith.

When asked what were the factors responsible for his personal achievements, he points his finger skywards and gives credit to God.

He choked on his emotions when he spoke of how he could not let down Singapore leaders like Goh Keng Swee and Lee Kuan Yew who entrusted him with key public sector duties, even though he was only a diploma holder.

"I could never betray their trust in me," he says.

These values and the reasons for Singapore's success, he feels, need to be understood by the young and that is why he has donated 2,000 copies of his book to the Education Ministry to distribute to school libraries across the island.

Institute of Technical Education student Fu Qihui, 21, has not read Mr Nathan's biography as it was too thick. "I will read his new book as his life can motivate me to do better in school."

After the launch this Thursday, the book will be available in leading bookstores.





230 needy ITE students to benefit from education fund in 2013
By Sharon See, Channel NewsAsia, 5 Jul 2013

The S R Nathan Education Upliftment Fund is expected to benefit some 230 needy ITE students this year, up from 180 last year.

The fund is given out through the ITE Monthly Financial Assistance Scheme, which provides a S$150 monthly allowance.

ITE said the fund helps ease the students' financial burden, allowing them to focus on learning and completing their studies.

It added 99 per cent of those under the ITE Monthly Financial Assistance Scheme completed their ITE courses last year, compared with 95 per cent in 2010.

The fund stood at S$10 million as of 31 March 2013, and the returns go towards educational improvement programmes.

The award ceremony was held in conjunction with former President S R Nathan's book launch.

The book, "S R Nathan - 50 Stories from My Life", contains selected stories from Mr Nathan's memoirs that he felt would be meaningful to Singapore's youths.

Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said he hopes students can be inspired by Mr Nathan's experiences.

Mr Heng said: "Mr Nathan's life story gives the inspiring lesson that nothing is impossible for those guided by strong values. Mr Nathan himself shared that never in his wildest dreams did he think he would one day be the president of Singapore. His tenacity, resilience and clear moral compass were the constants throughout the many twists and turns of a career that eventually led to the Istana. We may not all become heads of state, but the lessons of his life are universal -- we can and should strive to show the same qualities in the challenges that we face."

PM urges WP chief to clear doubts on fellow MPs' integrity

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A PAP MP who lies will be out; and if innocent, must clear his name, he says
By Leonard Lim, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday urged Workers' Party (WP) chief Low Thia Khiang not to leave grave doubts about the integrity of his fellow MPs unresolved, following the recent hawker centre cleaning dispute.

At the heart of the issue, he said, was integrity and honesty.

"If we cannot trust a politician to tell the truth, then we cannot trust him or her to safeguard public funds, to put public interest ahead of personal gain, or to make decisions affecting the well-being and security of Singaporeans.

"This is the standard that we must hold ourselves to, and that Singaporeans have rightly come to expect from those in politics, whether in government or opposition. This is why we must take accusations of dishonesty against political leaders very seriously," he said.



Mr Lee said that if any of his People's Action Party (PAP) colleagues were accused of dishonesty - as WP MPs Sylvia Lim and Pritam Singh had been - he would get to the bottom of the matter.

And he made clear the rules for his own party: "If he has lied, there is only one option - he has to go. If he is innocent, I will insist that he clear his name publicly."

The PM's statement comes after a dramatic parliamentary exchange on Tuesday when Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan accused Ms Lim and Mr Singh of making false and untruthful statements when they tried to cover up their town council's demand for extra payment for cleaning of high areas at Bedok hawker centres.

The minister produced a dossier of what he said was "incontrovertible evidence" that a staff member of the WP-run town council, Mr Tai Vie Shun, had asked the hawkers to pay extra. Such cleaning is usually done and paid for by town councils.

Ms Lim, who chairs both the WP and the town council, denied the charges.

Dr Balakrishnan withdrew his parliamentary privilege, signalling his readiness to be sued by the two MPs if he had defamed them.

In the House, Mr Low said he would find out who had actually asked the contractor to give a quotation for the cleaning.

But on Wednesday, he told reporters there was no need for this, as an earlier WP investigation had proven the claim to be baseless.

He also deemed Dr Balakrishnan's remarks to be personal attacks and questioned if it made for "good politics", quoting the PM's comment a week ago that the country needs to get its politics right.

Yesterday, Mr Lee said Mr Low was wrong to have done so.

He also noted that Dr Balakrishnan's statement was not his personal opinion but was that of the Government and had been approved by the Cabinet.

Noting that Mr Low had "reversed course without explanation", Mr Lee turned the argument on good politics back to the WP. "Good politics is first and foremost about integrity," he said. Mr Low's decision not to investigate was especially troubling in the light of past incidents, such as Mr Singh's plagiarism of an article.

In an oblique reference to the WP's slogan, he said of the unresolved hawker issue: "This is not how members of a First World Parliament should conduct themselves. Neither is this the sort of politics Singapore needs."

The WP last night said it will respond to the PM's statement in due course.





WP's refusal to conduct probe 'troubling'
This is in light of past incidents involving the party: PM Lee
By Leonard Lim, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

THE Workers' Party's (WP) refusal to conduct an investigation into the hawker centre cleaning issue is troubling in the light of past incidents, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said yesterday.


The other was the award of a contract in 2011 - without any tender - to a company owned by close WP supporters.

During last year's Budget debate, Mr Singh called for an ombudsman but failed to attribute his speech to a blogger's post written in 2008.

He later said he had the blogger's permission to quote liberally from the post.

He reiterated this in a Facebook post last night, adding: "While my conscience has always been clear on the matter, I leave the public to judge why the PAP officially raised this issue some 16 months after it took place, that too in the context of a completely separate matter."

Mr Lee, in his statement yesterday, also pointed out that the WP-run Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (AHPETC) failed to explain why two years ago, it appointed a company owned and run by close party supporters to handle its affairs.

The People's Action Party (PAP) disclosed in May, during a parliamentary debate on town councils, that a tender was not called and the company, FM Solutions and Services (FMSS), had been appointed at a much higher price than the prevailing rate.

"Now FMSS, running AHPETC, has tried to charge hawkers extra for cleaning their hawker centres, and Ms Lim and Mr Singh have tried to cover it up," said Mr Lee.

Mr Singh, who is also the vice-chairman of AHPETC, which oversees the hawker centres involved in the cleaning row, insisted at the height of the controversy last month that no town council staff had asked hawkers to pay extra for cleaning the high areas.

These costs are borne by town councils.

This was WP chairman Sylvia Lim's position as well on Tuesday, after a dossier of notes and letters on the issue was produced by Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.

He said it showed that Mr Tai Vie Shun, a property manager from the WP-run town council, had asked for it.

Dr Balakrishnan framed the issue as one about clean politics, rather than the cleaning of hawker centres.

This point was repeated by Mr Lee yesterday.

He went into detail on why integrity and honesty were important in politics, and why WP chief Low Thia Khiang's description of the charges made against his WP colleagues as "personal attacks" was wrong.

The country's success has been due to honest, upright politicians whom the citizenry can trust to "uphold the public interest, to speak the truth even when it is inconvenient, and to admit mistakes when things go wrong".

This, he said, is how the Government has built trust between Singaporeans and their leaders. If politicians cannot be trusted to tell the truth, then they also cannot be trusted to safeguard public funds or public interest.

He also said that before any minister accuses someone of dishonesty, "he must make sure that he is fully able to back up his charge".

On Wednesday, a day after the tense debate in Parliament, Mr Low said he disagreed with Dr Balakrishnan that the issue was about integrity and clean politics.

"It is market cleaning. Let's put it right and into proper perspective," Mr Low had said.

The WP's case is that the issue is a misunderstanding that arose from a "misleading" e-mail sent to the town council by the National Environment Agency on Feb 7, and from confusion over whether the discussions were about annual or quarterly cleaning. High areas do not have to be cleaned in the latter case.

Political watchers like former Nominated MP Zulkifli Baharudin said last night that the Prime Minister has a point when he framed the issue as one of integrity.

The reason Mr Lee is wading into the debate, he added, had to be seen in the wider context of how opposition supporters, especially those online, are giving credence to statements made by non-PAP politicians without much regard as to whether they are truthful.

Said Mr Zulkifli: "After this episode, the lesson is: Politicians must get their facts right, especially if they want to use it for political advantage."



HEART OF THE ISSUE

If any of my PAP colleagues is accused of lying, I will investigate and get to the bottom of the matter.

If he has lied, there is only one option - he has to go. If he is innocent, I will insist that he clear his name publicly. The matter has to be resolved one way or the other.

It cannot be left as an 'I say, you say' matter of opinion, which leaves a permanent question mark hanging over his reputation, and the reputation of my Government.

Mr Low cannot leave these grave doubts about the integrity of his fellow MPs unresolved. This is not how members of a First World Parliament should conduct themselves. Neither is this the sort of politics Singapore needs.




READ DOCUMENTS, THEN DECIDE

There are certainly people who will take that view. I think the real answer to that is, all the documents are out there, lined up. Just read them and then you can decide whether it is true or untrue. Don't form impressions before reading the documents.

Ask yourself why Mr Tai has not responded. One of the two MPs did not say a word in Parliament in response to the allegation. And they say, move on.

If a PAP MP has lied in public, I think all of you will find it unacceptable. And all of you will expect the PM to investigate, and if indeed the allegation is true, you will expect the person to resign.

I am talking about PAP MPs. That is what is expected of us, and that is the system of integrity we have run.

- Law and Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam, responding to a question on how some see the Government's challenge to the Workers' Party as being politically motivated and not a question of integrity. He was speaking at a National University of Singapore forum last night


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Staying on course in a messier environment

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In an article printed in the June edition of Ethos, the Civil Service College journal, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong called for greater diversity in the civil service, and a change in the Government's approach to policymaking. The article was based on a speech he delivered at the Administrative Service dinner in March.
Published The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

FUNDAMENTAL changes are under way in our society. Our demographics and population mix are shifting. Elderly Singaporeans worry about retirement needs and health-care costs. Younger Singaporeans have high aspirations, yet harbour nagging anxieties about whether they can achieve them. Businesses are struggling with the significant slowdown in foreign worker growth.

Income distributions are widening. Social media is fundamentally changing relationships between the Government and people, and within society. The interests of different groups are now more diverse and stridently expressed, as we can all attest. Many countries grapple with these challenges. We see this in their economic and political difficulties, whether in Europe, the US or even China.

Singapore is not immune from these global trends, but we are better placed than others to overcome our challenges.

Singaporeans are well educated. We have an efficient and well-run system. Our strong economy gives us resources to improve lives. Our reserves, if carefully husbanded, will help us to weather storms. We are located in the most dynamic region in the world. Above all, we have a Government that is committed to serving Singapore. We should therefore look to the future with confidence.

Breaking out of silos

OUR job as political leaders and civil servants is to build upon these strengths, and work with Singaporeans to solve our problems and build a better Singapore.

This means getting both our policies and politics right.

Our first priority is to deal with pressing problems, especially housing and public transport. These are urgent political and national imperatives.

We must make visible progress on these problems, and address the valid concerns of Singaporeans. The Ministry of National Development and Ministry of Transport are fully seized with the task, but these are issues for the whole Government.

As a Government, we need to respond faster and more coherently to new and urgent priorities.

Whether we are resolving issues like housing and public transport, or battling an imminent danger like Sars, we need to break out of ministry silos to think and act as one Government. In particular, we must share more data across agencies, to put together a more complete picture of the overall landscape; and take a whole-systems perspective, not just that of our own ministries.

To respond strategically to our new environment, we must make some major shifts in philosophy and policy.

We must find a new balance between self-reliance and social support to mitigate widening income distributions. We must strengthen safety nets for specific groups of Singaporeans, especially our elders.

We also need to rethink major social policies, including health care and housing. The Government is doing so across different platforms, including in Our Singapore Conversation.

While these strategic shifts are essential, some hard truths do not change. We must continue to strengthen and reinforce our core values. We must stay united and face the future together.

We will always need a strong Home Team and Singapore Armed Forces to keep our country safe. We still rely on a competitive, vibrant economy to provide good jobs for our people and generate resources for our social programmes. We must strengthen our Singapore identity, while remaining open to the world.

We need a high-quality public service that is competent and honest, staffed with able and committed officers, imbued with a sense of responsibility to the nation and a spirit of service to their fellow citizens.

But staying put is not an option, and we have to navigate this uncertain environment together.

That is why close cooperation between the political leadership and the civil service is so important. Both must be clear about their respective roles.

The political leadership has to set the direction, develop the narrative, manage the politics, and carry the ground. For this to work, policies and programmes have to deliver not only practical results but also political dividends. For its part, the civil service has to develop options imaginatively, analyse issues objectively, and implement policies well.

It has to be more customer-centric, for citizens see our front-line officers as the face of the Government. Ministers and civil servants have different roles, but a common mission - to improve the well-being of our fellow Singaporeans.

What civil service must do

FORTUNATELY we have an excellent civil service, especially the Administrative Service. But there is more that the Administrative Service can do.

First, the Administrative Service must increase the diversity of experiences among its officers. Administrative officers (AOs) should be sensitised to the challenges faced by the less fortunate, to anticipate their needs and ensure that our policies continue to benefit all segments of society. AOs should also have more experience in business. It is one thing for a ministry to set rules like foreign worker dependency ratios, quite another to be a small to medium-sized enterprise having to cope with such changes which may massively impact business.

The Administrative Service has posted AOs to the People's Association and the community development councils.

It has seconded officers to companies like Shell, McKinsey and IDEO, and it is constantly on the lookout for good mid-career recruits. Many AOs also volunteer with voluntary welfare organisations or serve in charities during their free time.

The Service must also reach out to external parties to work with the Government. For example, the Ministry of Trade and Industry is engaging industry associations to develop productivity road maps, because the associations know their own industries better than Spring or International Enterprise Singapore can. We should also bring in more officers from the private and people sectors, and help them adjust to the Service's culture and environment so they can contribute more.

Second, the Government must change its approach to policymaking. We no longer have the luxury of making policy "in a lab". Today's environment is more complex and fluid, and our trade-offs more stark. Ideas are more vigorously and widely contested, especially online.

Our policy process must adapt to this new landscape. We must gather a wider range of views, especially from outside the Government. We must market-test and adjust our policies more. We must also acquire a better feel of how our policies impact different groups, and what their likely reactions and concerns will be.

With win-win solutions more elusive, we must be more willing to "satisfice" (pursue the minimum satisfactory condition or outcome) to achieve our main goals. This includes recognising when it is better for the Government to wait for the right time to solve a problem, or to take a partial step and defer a fuller solution to some more propitious moment.

These imperatives apply to all our policies, whether community projects like developing Wisma Geylang Serai, perpetually thorny issues such as public transport or car ownership, or major reviews like our housing policy rethink.

The adjustments will not be easy to make. They require confidence and skill on the Government's part, and maturity and commitment on the part of the public. But they are essential to avoid blind spots, generate buy-in and improve the quality of our policies.

Third, the civil service must harness the energy and passion from within its ranks, especially among our younger and more junior officers. Many officers have a healthy idealism, and lots of ideas to change society for the better. We should tap their passion, and empower them to identify problems, develop solutions and drive change. Give them the satisfaction of championing an idea, and seeing it through from concept to completion. If we dampen their fire, they will leave for more exciting opportunities elsewhere.

Upholding values and the public good

THESE changes can be unsettling. In this "messier" environment, we may feel off-balance at times, but we cannot go off-course. Always let our core values guide us, and remember that our role is to serve Singaporeans and Singapore.

This is true for both political leaders and civil servants. Three values in particular are salient.

Firstly, always carry ourselves with the highest standards of integrity and incorruptibility. This is fundamental to our mission, and a key factor in Singapore's success. Our system functions properly because policies are developed for the public good rather than for private or vested interests. We do not tolerate any impropriety. Anyone breaking the rules will be caught and punished, whatever his post and however embarrassing it may be. If we lower our standards, we are headed down a slippery slope.

Secondly, serve with humility. Let us do the right things and do things right, but never be self-righteous or arrogant.

Being humble also means accepting that Government does not have all the answers. That is why we must engage the public more, to walk in their shoes and tap their diverse perspectives.

Lastly, always be stewards of the public good. We are in positions of authority, and must live up to the trust bestowed on us. Stewardship also means improving those around us - our colleagues, the rest of the civil service, and most importantly, the lives of Singaporeans. Ultimately, stewardship means developing our successors and handing on to them a better Singapore than the one we inherited.

To do good, be shrewd

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Sharing Singapore's varied expertise with Indonesia can reap rewards well beyond the haze
By Kishore Mahbubani, Published The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

SINGAPOREANS should send a thank you note to Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for taking on responsibility for the haze in Singapore. This gesture, and apologising for it, demonstrates why Dr Yudhoyono is perceived to be a global statesman.

At the same time, we should also send a thank you note to the Indonesian minister, Mr Agung Laksono, who said: "Singapore should not be behaving like a child and making all this noise."

Why thank Mr Agung? He frankly reminded us that there is a significant section of the Indonesian elite who do not have a sympathetic view of Singapore.

This is a long-term political reality we will also have to deal with. The physical haze may be gone in a few months but the political haze we have to live with will linger on.

The big question is: What can we do to dispel both the physical haze and the political haze? Who do we turn to for answers?

The short answer is the famous Italian writer of the 15th and 16th centuries (1469-1527), Niccolo Machiavelli. Most people associate his name with cunning and evil. A leader who is described as Machiavellian does not take it as a compliment. Yet all this shows a fundamental misunderstanding of his writing.

As a student of philosophy at Dalhousie University in Canada, I learnt from my professor, David Braybrooke, that while it is true that Machiavelli advised us to be shrewd, he advised us to be shrewd so that we could do good, not evil.

This goal was to enhance virtu, a Latin word which has a larger meaning than virtue. Those who want to understand Machiavelli better can read Isaiah Berlin's 1971 classic essay on him in the New York Review Of Books.

To be shrewd and generous

LET me suggest three ways in which Singapore can be shrewd and do good at the same time.

There is an old adage which is found in nearly every religion in the world: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

Clearly all Singaporeans would like the people of Sumatra to think of the people of Singapore before they set off fires. To demonstrate why they should think of us, we should lead the way by thinking of them.

One spectacular gesture that Singaporeans could have made at the height of the haze would have been to send some masks to the people in Sumatran towns which were affected by the haze even more than Singapore.

We need not have taken the masks from the supply here. They are available for purchase globally. We could have bought some from overseas and shipped them to the affected towns.

Given the huge amount of anger among Singaporeans at the height of the haze, it would have been politically suicidal for any politician to suggest this.

Yet, for the long-term survival of Singapore, we need to have strong citizen voices who can speak the unspeakable in moments of anger.

To understand how difficult it is to do the right thing, look at the anger Dr Yudhoyono suffered at the hands of his people when he apologised to Singapore.

The second way to be shrewd and do good is to think long-term about the haze problems. To grasp this point, just ask yourself a simple question: What could Singapore have done immediately after the first major haze in 1997 to prevent a recurrence of the haze in 2013? How could we have used the past 16 years better?

The simple answer is that we could have done a lot.

I am a great believer in education. An educated citizenry behaves better than an ignorant citizenry.

Singapore has one of the best education systems in the world. Schools in California have adopted Singapore textbooks. If we share the fruits of our educational systems with children in California, how much of it could we have shared with children in Sumatra?

If, say, we had handed out books in Bahasa Indonesia explaining the dangers of the haze to 10- year-olds in 1998, then those children would now be 25 years old and working in the fields.

And if we had engaged in poverty eradication efforts then, it would have had an even greater impact.

The people can be educated.

Can oil palm plantation owners also be educated? The short answer is yes. There is a rising tide of global norms encouraging companies to be responsible.

A key driver of these global norms is Professor John Ruggie of Harvard, who worked with Mr Kofi Annan on the "Global Compact", 10 universally accepted principles in human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption for responsible businesses to adhere to.

Prof Ruggie spoke at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy on June 11. He addressed the Indonesian Parliament the very next day.

It was a pity he came just before the haze. If he had come during the haze, he could have discussed the global norms that oil palm plantation managers in Indonesia would have to conform to.

In short, these are global forces that we can use to our advantage.

This can also be demonstrated in the third way we can be shrewd and do good. The best thing that can happen to Singapore's long- term future is for our Asean neighbours to take on board the notion of "sustainable development".

Fortunately, there is a global movement to promote "Sustainable Development Goals" (SDGs).

The United Nations Secretary- General, Mr Ban Ki Moon, has made an effort to launch SDGs when the UN "Millennium Development Goals" (MDGs) expire in 2015. Three global leaders have been chosen to spearhead this effort: Dr Yudhoyono, British Prime Minister David Cameron and Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

Some institutions in Singapore have already committed themselves to promoting SDGs. One such institution is the National University of Singapore (NUS). It is an asset that NUS has high standing regionally and globally. We can now use this enhanced global reputation to serve Singapore's long-term interests.

One early way is to set up a Centre for Sustainable Development at NUS. It could promote intensive research on the subject as well as promote best practices in this area through short-term executive education (EE) courses.

The Lee Kuan Yew School alone has educated over 10,000 people in its EE courses. Just imagine the impact if 10,000 more were educated in sustainable development courses.

Private wealth, public good

THERE is only one problem. All this requires money. When money is mentioned, the automatic answer of many Singaporeans is: "Our rich Government can take care of it."

Yes, the Government can do so. However, if it did so, the sense of ownership of sustainable development will not be felt by Singaporeans.

To engineer a change of attitude to the haze problem, we need more "bottom-up" initiatives to match "top-down" initiatives in dealing with long-term challenges like it.

A study by the Boston Consulting Group said that Singapore had more millionaires per capita than any other country in 2012, totalling 17 per cent of the population. These millionaires have a choice: Will they choose to be passive in response to the haze or will they choose to be active and do good by supporting the "Centre for Sustainable Development" in Singapore to protect their lungs?

And yes, I can anticipate the reactions of many readers to this article.

Many will say: "How shrewd of Kishore to use this haze to raise money for the NUS."

That is precisely the point of this article: To do good, you have to be shrewd.


The writer is dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.
By Invitation features expert views from opinion leaders in Singapore and the region.

No smoking in Nee Soon South except at designated areas

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By Poon Chian Hui, The Straits Times, 11 Jul 2013

NEE Soon South is set to become a giant no-smoking zone by the end of the year. And if it works, other areas will follow.

In a bold effort to clamp down on the rising number of smokers, the Health Promotion Board (HPB) wants to make the entire neighbourhood of 50,000 people in Yishun the first "100 per cent smoke-free" constituency.

Current National Environment Agency (NEA) rules tell smokers where they cannot light up. HPB's plan is to tell smokers they cannot puff in any place other than "designated points" in public areas.

This could mean no more smoking at open carparks, parks and other open places.



The plan goes beyond NEA's regulations, which ban smoking in most indoor areas, such as pubs and malls, and more recently, covered walkways and void decks.

"Aside from residential areas, we also aim to make Lower Seletar Reservoir Park smoke-free," said Nee Soon South MP Lee Bee Wah, whose strong support had helped HPB to choose her constituency as its first test case.

The pilot scheme, she said, will be rolled out in stages, with designated smoking points to be set up in the estate. HPB's plan, however, does not tackle the issue of people smoking in their flats.

And while the MP and officials acknowledge that the plan is challenging, they believe it will work.

"If a smoker has to 'hide' to smoke... it will be a matter of time before he quits altogether because of the hassle," said Ms Lee. "Despite the magnitude of this project, we foresee that residents will be cooperative."

HPB chief executive Zee Yoong Kang, too, hopes the initiative can "create a new normal" where smoking is no longer accepted.

"It may look like a daunting task right now. But if there is strong community support, an impact can definitely be made."

Some 14.3 per cent of adults in Singapore smoke, up from 12.6 per cent in 2004. HPB aims to cut this to under 10 per cent by 2020.

If the scheme, which is a collaboration with the National Environment Agency, takes off in Nee Soon South, HPB will try to extend it to other constituencies in a bid to make the country's public places smoke-free.

Grassroots leader and stallkeeper Toh Boon Teck, 64, who has lived in Nee Soon South since 1986, believes that the key is to explain the scheme to residents.

"We just have to put in a bit of effort to spread the message," said the chairman of the residents' committee for Nee Soon South Zone C.

He noted that residents now take it upon themselves to tell others not to light up at Yishun Park Neighbourhood 8, which was made smoke-free last year.

One 40-year-old smoker who wanted to be known as Benny wondered how the project would cut smoking rates, given that people can still puff at home.

But most smokers The Straits Times interviewed seemed resigned to having fewer places to puff in the future.

Accounts executive Aisyah Tan, 28, who picked up the habit 10 years ago, said that while smokers tend to complain about new restrictions, they eventually abide by the rules. "People will probably get used to it," she said.


Many locals asking about being crane operators

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Inquiries pour in after Khaw urges more S'poreans to take on the work
By Daryl Chin, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

MORE than 1,200 Singaporeans have stepped forward to inquire about being crane operators, National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said yesterday.

The "overwhelming response" - which was revealed on his blog - came two months after he bemoaned the lack of locals willing to do the job.

But although more citizens have been inquiring, Singaporean crane operators remain in short supply. In May, Mr Khaw pointed out that only half of the 3,600 people doing the job here were local. Although crane operators earn between $2,000 and $7,000 a month, Singaporeans are put off by the risks and perception that it is blue-collar work.

Mr Khaw's comments came amid a ramp-up in the Housing Board's Build-To-Order scheme. "A few hundred more" Singaporeans were needed, he said then.

Coverage of his remarks appears to have led to some supply trickling in.

The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) runs a crane operators' apprenticeship programme, which puts trainees through a sponsored 12-day course and pays them $3,000 over six months when they start the job. It is already at full capacity with more than 60 would-be operators signing up. Trainees work on a crane simulator, giving them hands-on knowledge, said Mr Khaw.

"In view of the increased demand, BCA is talking to industry firms so that there are more training providers which can set up additional training facilities," he added.

Meanwhile, construction companies have stepped forward to recruit local crane operators. For instance, Straits Construction executive director Kenneth Loo employs 28 of them and is on the hunt for more.

About 50 companies have registered an interest in taking part in the Crane Operator Apprenticeship Programme. This could result in about 100 job vacancies involving three types of crane.

Tower cranes, up to 300m high, are used to build tall buildings. Crawler cranes move on tracks and are used for drilling, while mobile cranes move on roads and are for general lifting.

BD Cranetech director Jeffrey Lim said the shortage of locals can be traced to the possible dangers involved in the job and the perception it is blue-collar work.

For instance, tower crane operators must manually climb to the one-person cabin near the top, where they sit in isolation for a shift lasting eight hours or more.

"Educated locals might look down on such menial work, even though these are the highest- paid blue-collar jobs around," said Mr Lim. "But what the Government is doing now is necessary. If you don't change the perceptions and attitudes now, it will be harder to do so in future."

Guan Chuan Engineering's Mr Raymond Lim was a courier before becoming a crane operator.

"What I treasure most about this job is the stability," said the 30-year-old. "The pay is not too bad either."


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Asia spending too little on poor: Report

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S'pore trails high-income peers, 'missing middle' losing out on protection
By Himaya Quasem, The Straits Times, 12 Jul 2013

MOST Asian countries, including Singapore, are failing to spend enough on social programmes to help the poor and vulnerable, a study has found.


This includes schemes, such as health insurance, cash transfers and skills training, that can cushion the low-income, disabled or elderly against calamities including unemployment and natural disasters.

The lack of such investment was particularly pronounced in South-east Asian countries surveyed.

This region enjoys an average gross domestic product (GDP) of around US$6,678 (S$8,563) per head, the second-highest after East Asia. But it spends an average of 2.6 per cent of GDP on social protection, compared with East Asia's 6 per cent.

The report, which used data from 2009 and was released last month, said South-east Asia's low rate of investment may be due to "a relative lack of commitment to expanding social protection, the importance attached to other development priorities, or a historical legacy of past practices".

Singapore spent 3.5 per cent of GDP on social protection, which includes the Central Provident Fund (CPF).

This was far below the 19.2 per cent spent by Japan and 8 per cent spent by South Korea, the only other high-income countries in the study.

Malaysia spent 3.7 per cent of GDP on social protection, and Indonesia, South-east Asia's largest economy, spent 1.2 per cent, the report said.

The report, titled Social Protection Index: Assessing the results in Asia and the Pacific, said while the CPF system had given Singapore one of the highest savings rates in the world, it "has been criticised for not being designed to address the needs of vulnerable and poor groups or of a growing number of self-employed and low-wage workers".

The report also warned of a "missing middle" group of people who are falling through the gaps.

Those in this category are not in a position to benefit from social insurance schemes because they are not employed in the public sector or large private sector firms. But they are also ineligible for handouts as they are not deemed poor enough.

Singapore's social policies have contributed to a population with a high educational attainment, health status and rate of home ownership, said Mr Bart Edes, director of the Asian Development Bank's poverty reduction, gender and social development division.

But the Republic faces challenges in terms of wage stagnation and a rapidly aging population, he added. This means Singapore's motto of "self reliance" when it comes to tackling inequality needs to be fine-tuned.

"If people work hard and save, yet still do not have adequate means to support themselves and their families…then they will require a safety net to catch them," Mr Edes told The Straits Times. "There are limits to how self-reliant elderly widows can be if they have an insufficient pension to sustain them through their golden years. Skills training will not be of much use to them if they are frail or disabled."

The report praised East Asia, - consisting of China, Japan, South Korea and Mongolia - for its "relatively high" spending on social protection.

But China, which committed 5.4 per cent of GDP was deemed to be lagging behind its neighbours, including Mongolia which spent almost 10 per cent.

"Although the PRC (People's Republic of China) is developing rapidly and is ambitiously expanding its social protection system, its relative spending in 2009 was still low compared with that of the other three countries," the report said.

It added that South Asia, which includes India, the Maldives and Nepal, represented the poorest part of the continent in 2009 and spent the least on social protection, at an average of 2 per cent of GDP.


Total tally
- Laos: 0.9%
- Cambodia: 1%
- Indonesia: 1.2%
- The Philippines: 2.5%
- Singapore: 3.5%
- Thailand: 3.6%
- Malaysia: 3.7%
- Vietnam: 4.7%

Are Singaporean workers... expensive & entitled?

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These are the charges some employers have levelled against locals in a recent debate over wages and skills. Robin Chan investigates.
The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

A YOUNG university graduate walks into his first job interview at a shipping firm waving a salary survey his school provided for him and demands a starting salary above $4,000.

But that is what a more senior employee gets only after three to four years on the job.

Another, applying for an analyst position at an investment bank, asks if he will have his own office and secretary.

There are others: Singaporean professionals turning down overseas postings, job-hopping with a vengeance or wanting more benefits and less work.

These stories of professionals behaving badly have emerged in the wake of a Sunday Times commentary last month in which a multinational corporation (MNC) boss asked: "Do Singaporeans deserve the salaries they are paid?"

They lack the skills, and the hunger, he observed.

The article sparked much discussion, with readers writing in worried that the new generation might be too soft and lack the skills to keep up in the global contest of talent.

Others empathised with the plight of the Singaporean worker, saying salaries need to rise faster to keep up with the high cost of living.

There does seem a growing perception that the Singaporean employee is getting more demanding and less deserving of his pay. But are the criticisms justified? Or are these Singaporeans just misunderstood?

Common complaints

CERTAINLY, there is no lack of gripes about the Singaporean worker. The more than 10 employers, headhunters and human resource experts The Straits Times spoke to mostly agreed that some of the criticisms are deserved.

Mr Chan Chong Beng, president of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (Asme) and the founder of interior design firm Goodrich Global, says he finds foreign professionals much more motivated at work.

"The foreigner is worried that you don't give him work," he says. "The Singaporean is worried that he has too much work! The foreigners are also actually more committed to their work, that is the general consensus within my company."

Mr V. S. Kumar, managing director of local courier company Network Express Courier Services, says Singaporean workers only seem motivated just to do enough and have no qualms about dropping everything and leaving on the dot at 5.30pm every day.

However, his staff from India, the Philippines and Vietnam are keen to stay back after office hours to learn new skills.

Others criticised Singaporeans for lacking communication skills.

One consultant from the United States says his Singaporean team members tend to be more quiet during team meetings and conference calls with clients.

Mr Na Boon Chong, managing director at HR consultancy Aon Hewitt, says: "If you're talking about the ability to present their ideas, to communicate, then, in general, local PMETs are behind their Western counterparts. The differences might be down to culture and the respective education systems."

When they do speak up, however, it is to demand things such as more work-life balance and faster promotions.

Mr Asothan Samynathan, general manager of Ark Vision Spare and Engineering, a distributor of marine equipment, says: "Singaporeans are quite impatient and want to become managers and above in a short time."

In MNCs where overseas assignments and postings are common, Singaporeans have also tended to be more resistant to being moved, the employers say.

Mr Peter Baker, director of human resources at shipping firm Maersk Line in the Asia-Pacific region, says: "People from countries like Vietnam, China, Indonesia or Australia are more willing to move away, whereas Singaporeans, historically, have been less willing to move outside of Singapore."

What do employees think about all this?

Some found the criticisms unfounded or an over-generalisation. National University of Singapore (NUS) student Claudio Chock, 24, who is set to graduate with an arts degree, says: "It is very subjective. There may be some who lack communication skills, but there are others, too, who do have the soft skills."

Others say Singapore workers may be falling behind foreign co-workers. An assistant manager at OCBC bank, Mr Gary Hoon, 25, says there "is a basis of truth" that it has been relatively easier for Singaporeans in the past five to 10 years.

But he says a bit of perspective is needed: "Comparing the entire Singaporean workforce with this small select group of employees who left their home country to make it into another country to work here, naturally they would be more driven."

Another, who gave his name only as Mr Toh, 34, and is now self-employed after leaving a job in sales at an MNC, feels it is only fair that a salary should reflect the amount of work put into the job.

But he adds Singaporeans probably want more out of a job than before: "I also look at opportunities for personal growth and good mentorship. If a company can't give me what I am looking for, then I'll find a better job."

Generation misaligned?

PERHAPS Singapore has become a victim of its own success.

The much-celebrated rapid economic growth and first-class education has led to a better quality of life for the majority of Singaporeans very quickly.

Just over the last decade, Singapore's per capita gross domestic product rose from $38,865 in 2002 to $65,048 last year.

According to the World Bank, this makes Singapore, on a per head basis, wealthier than Hong Kong and the United States.

The number of degree and diploma holders has surged from 31 per cent of the labour force in 2002 to 48 per cent last year.

Could this affect the hunger and competitive drive?

Indeed, former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew once observed: "The spurs are not stuck on the hinds (of Singaporeans). They are part of the herd - why go faster? But when you're lagging behind, you must go faster to catch up with the herd."

With this economic and educational progress has come higher expectations from Singaporeans for a certain quality of life.

Says Mr Toby Fowlston, managing director at recruitment firm Robert Walters Singapore: "Good academic qualifications are not a rite of passage, especially given the ever-increasing numbers of graduates who are hitting high academic standards."

Aon Hewitt's Mr Na, too, has noticed a distinct change in attitude to work: "Where I'm seeing change is in these workers wanting work-life balance instead of just focusing on career progression, the more qualitative aspects.

"The PMET (professionals, managers, executives and technicians) is becoming more assertive about what he or she wants and is more comfortable voicing these concerns. It is very different from 10 to 15 years ago."

Better work-life balance has been a major topic in the Our Singapore Conversation.

A recent survey of 6,000 university students here by consultancy Universum found that the main thing they want from their careers is work-life balance, beating job security, intellectual challenge and an international career.

In the last decade, unemployment has also been remarkably low here, so finding a job or switching jobs has not been difficult.

More than nine in 10 polytechnic and university graduates who entered the job market last year were able to get a job within six months of graduating.

The impact of a tight labour market has also created "an employee's market", says Mr Victor Tay, chief operating officer of the Singapore Business Federation.

"Workers can be a lot choosier, not just with salary, but also the job scope, exposure they will receive and even the location of their offices," he says.

The shortage of workers has also led to a situation where people are prematurely promoted before they reach the necessary performance level, he adds.

A tight labour market - getting tighter with more restrictions on foreign workers - has also inflated wages in some sectors. Salaries do not reflect real productivity-driven growth - straining companies' costs, while further raising expectations of employees.

Dr Richard Arvey, head of the Department of Management and Organisation at NUS Business School, says: "When unemployment is so low that people can hop jobs, that puts pressures on companies to maintain or raise the salaries and it raises expectations of many of the people here."

The latest unemployment rate is 1.9 per cent, and among residents it is 2.9 per cent, both much lower than in the United States and Britain where unemployment has soared. Even compared to other competitive Asian economies such as Hong Kong, where unemployment is 3.4 per cent, and South Korea, where it is 3.2 per cent, it holds up well.

This has been supported by new growth drivers in the form of the integrated resorts, as well as government intervention by way of the Jobs Credit Scheme during the financial crisis, which prompts employers like Goodrich Global's Mr Chan to bemoan that the Singaporean worker is "overprotected" by the Government, leading to a stronger sense of entitlement among workers.

"How will they react when the economy really gets bad?" he wonders.

At the same time, the pursuit of higher salaries is partly because Singaporeans are increasingly worried about maintaining social mobility and their living standards.

Property prices have soared, fuelled by low interest rates and easy money. An influx of foreigners to boost the economy has put a squeeze on resources.

A survey of 1,000 white collar workers in Singapore by recruitment firm Michael Page found their most pressing concern this year to be meeting their growing cost of living with their current salary.

Sociologist Tan Ern Ser at the Institute of Policy Studies says that a younger generation entering the workforce is finding it much more difficult to achieve their aspirations compared to their parents, creating a "misalignment" of expectations with reality when they start to work.

"With rising competition for jobs and rising costs of the big ticket items, they feel that the goal posts have shifted further away," he says.

Regaining its mojo

THERE is no quick fix to helping the Singaporean white-collar worker recover his edge. The answer lies with employers, employees and schools and the need for them to adapt to changing economic circumstances and societal expectations.

In the workplace, HR practices need to evolve to get the best out of the new generation workforce, and retain and develop individuals better, say the experts.

OCBC bank has changed its HR programmes across different generations to allow for leadership development, there are job rotations internationally and any employee who has worked for five years in the company is entitled to a three-month unpaid break, no questions asked, says Ms Jacinta Low, head of HR planning at the bank.

As for improving communication skills and critical thinking, schools could start honing these skills at an earlier age.

More project work at schools that requires teamwork and problem-solving, and public speaking and presentations to build up confidence are all needed, employers suggest.

Schools and employers need to also emphasise and better reward technical skills rather than just academic ones, they say, to encourage Singaporeans to place more emphasis on these abilities.

Many employers also point to overseas experience as doing wonders to a person's development, especially at an early age.

This requires support from schools, parents and a mindset change among Singaporeans themselves.

Improving commuting to workplaces outside the CBD such as Tuas will also help make it easier to attract and retain Singaporeans in a larger variety of sectors.

But all that cannot replace what is perhaps the biggest factor - self-motivation and pride to continually get better.

As living standards and aspirations rise, it is even more of an imperative for the individual Singaporean to strive to improve, to compete and stay relevant.

"You feel the stress of competition, but it is fair game. In this day and age it is unavoidable, and it should spur you on to greater heights," says bank assistant manager Mr Hoon.




What workers say

Focused on where he wanted to go
By Debbie Lee, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

SOME newbie white-collar job applicants may have lofty salary expectations, but not Mr Toh Tiong Han.

His job as a mechanical engineer at a small business firm started at around $2,000 a month, much less than what most fresh graduates expect these days.

Mr Toh, 28, landed the job three years ago after graduating in bioengineering from the National University of Singapore (NUS).

It was not that he was setting his sights low, but - confounding the stereotype of young folk being less driven - he was intensely focused on where it might take him.

First, it allowed him to do what he was interested in, mechanical engineering in medical devices such as prosthetic limbs. This involved transforming basic ideas into marketable products, giving him useful experience.

Second, while working, he started a master's degree in mechatronics at NUS to gain a specific qualification.

But it was not an easy path - he faced constant pressure from family and friends to switch to a higher-paying job.

However, Mr Toh recalls: "I knew it was difficult to find something else that I really liked, so I was confident about my decision. I ignored them."

Still, juggling work with part-time studies for two years entailed its share of sleepless nights. He did not factor in time spent on project work and experiments, on top of the three nights a week already spent at school.

"Once, to complete my course work, I didn't sleep for the whole night," he said. "I went to work the next day but did not dare sit down because I would fall asleep."

His hard work paid off when he landed a job at a US multinational corporation - which he declines to name - in February. And he got his master's degree this week.

"The MNC offers me job security and the opportunity to go up the career ladder."




Money shouldn't be the top priority
By Debbie Lee, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

HE IS driven and ambitious, but money is not all that Singapore Management University (SMU) graduate Bryan Lee wants.

"Money shouldn't be the biggest priority," he said. "In the short term, an overemphasis on money could lead to a well-paying job, but you may end up sacrificing your family time and personal interests for it."

The 24-year-old, who will be graduating with an accountancy degree later this month, works as a management associate in financial services.

His job involves managing the wealth of high net-worth individuals, and reviewing their portfolios and financial strategies.

Mr Lee's salary is in the $3,000 to $3,500 range, which he describes as "realistic" for what his job involves.

He was offered the full-time position by his boss at the company - a big name in its field which he declined to name - after working part-time for the past three years.

Although he is not new to the company, coming on board full-time has posed several challenges.

"Making the clients have confidence in me is something I have to work on," he said.

"I'm just out of school, and they are a different demographic. They know my boss and colleagues, but I'm a new face."

His university days, however, have primed him to thrive in a competitive workplace.

"People could be in school seven days a week, doing projects and academic work," he said.

However, he has not come across unrealistic salary demands among his peers.

"Even when taking salary into account, we don't take on a job just because it pays well. We have to consider our long-term career goals, such as where we want to be in 10 or 15 years' time," he said.





What trouble employers

Many overestimate their own value
By Lester Wong, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

FED up with job-seekers who lack experience yet want high salaries for managerial positions, beverage company Pokka Corporation Singapore is trying a different tactic.

It decided at the end of 2011 to hire Singaporean management trainees with lower salary expectations, whom the company trains from scratch. These trainees ask for a $3,000 monthly salary, compared to $5,000 to $6,000 by applicants with a few years' experience.

Pokka's group chief operating officer and managing director Alain Ong said hiring Singaporeans for professional and managerial roles at a reasonable salary is difficult. He explained: "Beverages move quickly off the shelves, new products are always coming out. It is more demanding than luxury goods or electronics. Potential employees know this and ask for unrealistic salaries."

When Mr Ong, 38, started out in the industry 13 years ago, the monthly salary for a key account manager was around $4,000. "These days, (they) seek the salary of a department head - $7,000 to $8,000 - with only three to four years' experience."

On hiring trainees who lack the experience of more senior candidates, he said "salary is not their only consideration. The priority is learning and some even asked if we are sending them for training programmes".

As for the new generation of PMET workers who "have a different mindset; they want a work-life balance, to go to the gym, and don't believe in working late constantly", Mr Ong emphasised it was still important to engage them.

"Like it or not, the Gen Y workers will form the main working force for years to come and it is of paramount importance for companies to start understanding them and adopt the right HR strategies to tap their potential."




Job seekers today do the interviewing
By Lester Wong, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

WHEN Mr V.S. Kumar first landed work as a dispatch rider in 1982, he was just happy to have a job.

"A job was like God to us then. But these days, sometimes I feel as if I am not the one interviewing the applicants, but they are interviewing me instead," said the 50-year-old who worked his way up to be managing director and owner of dispatch company Network Express Courier Services, one of the largest locally based courier companies with 185 employees.

Mr Kumar feels that despite this sense of entitlement in the younger generation of job seekers, the high expectations are not always warranted.

He said: "We've had some who apply for a managerial position expecting us to give them a $5,000 salary immediately, just because that was what they received at their previous job. But how would I know what kind of productivity they can deliver?"

New managers at his firm usually start at $3,000 to $4,000 a month. Once hired, some have been a let-down.

Mr Kumar said: "Generally, the new generation of local PMET (professional, manager, executive and technician) workers I've met aren't willing to learn new things. Their excuse for not knowing something is to blame their previous company for not teaching them."

He cited an employee who claimed to be certified in accounting but did not know how to do a goods and services tax report. Mr Kumar contrasted such workers with their foreign counterparts from India, China and the Philippines in the same departments who were "very flexible and stay on after office hours to learn new skills".

He said: "This attitude of people thinking very highly of themselves has to change. I don't mind paying high, but I must know and trust in my workers before I can pay them well."




Need to show you can go global
By Robin Chan, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

SINGAPOREANS may be well known for their dislike of overseas postings, but the Australian director of human resources for Asia-Pacific at shipping giant Maersk Line has a message for them:

It is vital that you smash that stereotype.

Mr Peter Baker, 43, who has lived in the United States, Taiwan and Bulgaria, said: "Every one of our senior managers, including Singaporeans, has worked across multiple countries.

"We need to help Singaporeans understand it really is mandatory that people have experience outside of their home location... It will make them a very well-rounded business leader."

What he advocates is for more Singaporeans - who have cut their teeth in multinational corporations (MNC) and succeeded - to become role models and mentors to others. This will help to break stereotypes and show others what it takes to climb the ladder in an MNC.

"People need to be able to look and see successful Singaporeans in global companies," Mr Baker said.




Moving overseas is not easy
By Robin Chan, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

NO WONDER it is difficult getting employees to take up a foreign post - relocating overseas is challenging for Singaporeans, says a top headhunter.

In fact, after having gone through it himself, Mr Gary Lai, 37, who is the managing director of recruitment firm Charterhouse, says he understands the concerns of Singaporeans who do not want to give up a high standard of living here, or prefer to be near their families.

"I've been very unsuccessful in moving Singaporeans overseas," admits Mr Lai, who is married with a six-year-old daughter.

He relocated to Shanghai for a year with another headhunting firm in 2010 before returning home.

Being apart from his elderly parents, and also worries about his marketability if he stayed overseas too long, were concerns for him.

"China is also not the best place to raise a family," he added.

On the difficulties of relocating, he noted that with both husband and wife often working nowadays, the woman's career is just as important as the man's.

This makes it difficult when either one has to give it up to move.

Companies have also found it hard to move Singaporeans to overseas offices because they may cost more, he said, and Singaporeans worry whether their child will fit back into the competitive education system when they return home.

Thus, Singaporeans need a lot more pull factors to relocate, and that is why a company would rather find someone "hungrier" to do the job for less, he said.

In contrast, "it is easy to move anyone from elsewhere to Singapore", with its low taxes and business hub opportunities.

"There is a buzz in Asia, in Singapore," he said.

Slower pace of life comes with trade-off, says Shanmugam

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By Elgin Toh And Robin Chan, The Straits Times, 13 Jul 2013

IF SINGAPOREANS want a slower pace of life, they must also accept a trade-off in living standards, Law and Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam said at a forum at the National University of Singapore (NUS) last night.

He painted a stark picture of the scale of the challenges facing the country, as pressures from an ageing society set in and the competition on its doorstep heats up.

There is also a fiscal challenge as public spending already outstrips revenue from taxes in this year's Budget, a situation that is likely to exacerbate in the coming decades. The only reason there is no actual deficit is the income stream from the reserves built up over many years.

Weighty realities like these "keep ministers up at night", he said, as they seek to maintain the focus on the long-term development of the country.

"Many people... assume that all other things will remain the same - I will have this lifestyle, I will have this job, I will have this quality of life, and I can afford to slow down," he said.

"But the real answer is: your lifestyle and quality of life and the state of society will be different. As long as we debate that and agree that that is an outcome that we are prepared to accept, yes, the answer is, we can afford to slow down."

Elaborating on Singapore's internal challenges, he cited population figures: Each retired person will be supported by just 2.1 working adults by 2030, down from the current 5.9, and 13.5 in 1970.

Furthermore, as the proportion of senior citizens grows, they will hold more votes and could potentially push politicians to spend more to benefit their age group - as is the case in Japan.

Such trends will affect the amount of taxes today's young will have to pay in future.

Turning his attention to Singapore's place in the world, the minister raised the possibility that making a living would become much harder for the country.

As Asian countries continue to rise economically, Singapore's status as an air, sea and financial hub, for instance, would come under threat if these functions were replicated in other cities in the region, he said.

He gave the example of how China was, for security reasons, developing a trade route that went through Myanmar, bypassing the narrow Strait of Malacca where its ships could be stopped by "a few submarines".

"And when China says it's going to do it, it will be done," he said, adding that this was a point of great concern for Singapore, since 150,000 jobs here depended on its sea hub status.

But beyond these threats and challenges to Singapore's prosperity, there were opportunities that could be seized, he contended.

He painted a vision of Singapore as the New York of Asean, a region with a combined economy larger than India's, he noted.

Already, through free trade negotiations, Asean countries have done away with three-quarters of tariffs on intra-Asean trade.

If Singapore maintained the rule of law, non-corruptibility and safety, it could become a services centre in the region, and reap enormous benefits, Mr Shanmugam said.

Asked about political competition, he said both one-party and multi-party systems can fail.

But Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and China, he noted, succeeded post-World War II because they had good leadership and political stability.




Biggest risk for S'pore is a populist govt that spends increasing amounts of money: Shanmugam
Channel NewsAsia, 13 Jul 2013

Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said one of the biggest risks for Singapore is a populist government that spends increasing amounts of money to succeed.

Already, he noted, there are other challenges facing the nation, such as an ageing population, a shrinking workforce and rising healthcare costs.

Mr Shanmugam said: "There's always something else on which money can be spent. But every time the government agrees and puts down a programme, you must remember it's hard-coded, very difficult to take it back.

"Whenever we put down a programme today to spend money, I think the biggest risk for Singapore is a populist government that decides that the way to succeed is to spend more and more money. Every programme that you put down money (for), today, would just mushroom in 10, 15 years.

"So the impact will not be seen in the next five years. Next 10 years will be okay, but after that, how are we going to afford it? How sustainable is it going to be?"

Mr Shanmugam was speaking at the National University of Singapore U@live forum on Friday evening.

About 330 students, faculty staff and alumni attended the event.

The minister stressed that Singapore has succeeded because it has put in place systems, and thought ahead.

But he also pointed out that there has not been enough debate on the challenges facing Singapore.

Mr Shanmugam noted that a lot of the debate has been focused on day-to-day issues -- which he acknowledged are important as well.

However, he suggested that more debate is needed at this stage of Singapore's development -- on the country's next 20 to 30 years.

He added that moving forward, what is important for Singapore is for there to be good, competent people in government, and political stability.

And while Singapore could slow down if it wanted to, there are trade-offs -- like quality of life that society has to be aware of.

Mr Shanmugam said: "If we start saying, "Can we slow down?", of course we can slow down. But you've got to ask whether the Chinese will slow down, you've got to ask whether the Indians are going to slow down, you've got to ask whether the Malaysians are going to slow down, and preferably be slower than you.

"But if you think you can organise all of that, you can afford to slow down. Alternatively, you must be prepared for another trade-off. If you don't want them to slow down, and let them overtake you, you no longer need to be an air hub or a sea hub, it's possible. But then you need to agree that quality of life could be different."

Mr Shanmugam also weighed in on the dispute over the cleaning of two hawker centres under the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council.

He stressed that Singaporeans will be able to form their own judgements, given that documents are available for perusal.




S’pore needs to choose good people who can deliver: Shanmugam
By Kok Xing Hui, TODAY, 13 Jul 2013

The ability to think ahead has given Singapore success over the years, said Law and Foreign Minister K Shanmugam. However, there is no reason to assume that the chasing pack cannot do the same and compete with the Republic, he warned.

Speaking at the National University of Singapore (NUS) U@live forum yesterday, Mr Shanmugam noted that Singapore’s positions as air, sea and financial hubs are being challenged by China’s new oil route which bypasses the Strait of Malacca and Singapore, Malaysia’s new financial centre and Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, respectively. The forum was attended by about 330 people comprising NUS alumni, students, faculty and staff.

Domestically, Mr Shanmugam said a rising expenditure in the face of an ageing population is Singapore’s main challenge. Even today, the Republic’s expenditure is exceeding its revenue and the deficit has to be made up with investments from reserves that Singapore has “squirrelled away”, he said.

During the question-and-answer session, Mr Shanmugam was asked by a participant what sort of political system would be best suited to enable the long-term planning that Singapore has thrived on.

Mr Shanmugam replied: “It doesn’t matter who you vote for, but choose good people. Choose people who can deliver and please vote them in, in a way that gives political stability. There is nothing written in stone that, 20 years from now, the ruling party would be the same as the ruling party ever was.”

He drew a comparison between one-party China and India, which is dubbed the world’s largest democracy.

While China has brought 500 million people out of poverty in 30 years, an Indian child spends only four-and-a-half years in school on average, with an infant mortality rate of one in six children, Mr Shanmugam said. What matters, he stressed, are good people leading the government — people who are incorruptible and clean, able to think long term and are highly persuasive.

Mr Shanmugam was also asked why the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) has the discretion to decide when to press charges.

In response, he cited the analogy of a man who has not eaten for three days and steals a sandwich, and another person who steals to make a profit.

While both committed a crime, he questioned whether the former should be charged.

He also gave the example of a young man with a scholarship to a university who came to see him with his parents at a Meet-the-People Session.

The youth made a “stupid mistake” which would land him in jail and cost him his scholarship, possibly even his place in university, Mr Shanmugam said. Should he be charged or should the Attorney-General give a stern warning and not ruin his future, Mr Shanmugam asked.

“The real answer is: Choose people who are good, put them there, but make sure that your society is educated well enough to know what is happening. If the AGC exercises his discretion badly often enough, it will be obvious,” he added.

Six outstanding individuals honoured at Singapore Youth Award

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By Lim Yi Han, The Straits Times, 7 Jul 2013

The Singapore Youth Award was given to six individuals for their contribution to the society on Sunday at the Istana.

The six recipients were selected from 107 nominees, the most number of nominations received in the past five years.

The winners include paralympian Laurentia Tan, 33; non-profit group Halogen Foundation co-founder Martin Tan, 35; scientist Juliana Maria Chan, 29; musician Muhammad Riduan, 27; national netball player Jean Ng, 34 and arts and drama teacher Koh Hui Ling, 33.



Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean was the guest of honour at the event. The award, which is in its 38th year, is administered by the National Youth Council.

Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong said that he hopes that the recipients would be "role models" and urged young people to pursue their dreams in diverse fields, not just in academic.





Youth leader finds it pays to pay it forward
By Lim Yi Han, The Straits Times, 8 Jul 2013

WHEN Mr Martin Tan was 17, his father died of a heart attack.

It dealt a big blow to the teenager, who was very close to his dad. Fortunately for him, leaders from several churches stepped in and made sure he never felt helpless or lonely.

He decided to pay it forward and in 2003, he set up Halogen Foundation Singapore, a non-profit organisation which yearly trains more than 10,000 young people aged 10 to 25 to be leaders.

Yesterday, the 35-year-old received the Singapore Youth Award from Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, in recognition of his work in the youth sector.


"People have told me that I'm wasting my time, and I can get a better-paying job. But I don't think life should be lived based on the world's definition of success," said Mr Tan, who studied film at Ngee Ann Polytechnic and has a degree in mass communications.

"Small changes will bring about big differences. You don't have to be somebody to do something," he told The Straits Times.

Administered by the National Youth Council (NYC), the award, in its 38th year, is given to those aged 35 and below who have made outstanding contributions to society and have excelled in their respective fields. This year, the council received 107 nominations, the most in five years.

Other recipients of this year's award were paralympian Laurentia Tan, 33; scientist Juliana Maria Chan, 29; musician Muhammad Riduan Zalani, 27; national netball player Jean Ng, 34; and Drama Box associate artistic director Koh Hui Ling, 33.

Referring to the varied backgrounds of the recipients, Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong told reporters at the ceremony: "It's a very positive sign of how our youth sector is developing."

"In Singapore, we are still a land of opportunity for young people to pursue their dreams and these dreams can be in diverse fields. They are not limited to academic areas," added Mr Wong, who is also NYC chairman.

Dr Chan, one of the award recipients, encouraged youth to dream big.

"Have big dreams, even if they are unconventional," said the scientist, who also works for the Agency for Science, Technology and Research.

"When we do research in science, most of the time we fail, but don't give up and persevere through the failures."

Likewise, Ms Tan, Singapore's first Paralympic medallist, urged young people not to "give up in the face of adversity".

The equestrian, who also won The Straits Times Athlete of the Year award in February, said she is "very honoured and delighted" to receive the award, and could not have done it without a "great support network".

She added: "There will be challenges in life but there are solutions around challenges by being creative... The opportunity is always there."

PM Lee urges the young to make Singapore better

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They have job edge over their peers elsewhere, and should step forward
By Rachel Chang, The Straits Times, 8 Jul 2013

WHEN it comes to securing jobs, Singapore's young are in a more fortunate position than those in other countries, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said yesterday.

This position of strength should be used to bring Singapore to greater heights, he added at a community event in his Teck Ghee ward.



Opportunities abound here for the young, he noted, in contrast to Europe where youth unemployment averages 25 per cent and has even breached 50 per cent in Spain.

Sketching out the predicament facing the millions in this group of people called "NEET", which stands for Not in Education, Employment or Training", Mr Lee said: "After graduation, for 10 years they cannot find work. They cannot start their families."

The situation scars them for life as it affects their employability and confidence, and makes them restless and desiring of change, he said.

Ahead of Singapore's 48th birthday bash next month, Mr Lee told his audience of young people that the challenge is to make tomorrow's Singapore even better, and "seeing where we are today not as the summit of where we can be, but as a new base from which to scale greater heights".

He said he was heartened to see young people already taking the lead to build a better Singapore, and hopes many more step forward.

Mr Lee, who is also People's Association (PA) chairman, was at the launch of a two-month-long National Day campaign by the PA Youth Movement (PAYM).

Over this month and next, some 6,000 members of the youth wing will take part in more than 100 activities to express their national pride under the "PAYM Loves Red" initiative.

During his speech, Mr Lee also urged young Singaporeans to see success not according to individual achievements, but in collective terms.

Improving Singapore will involve the Government playing a bigger role to help the less fortunate and strengthening the social safety net.

But the successful must also do their part to give back, said Mr Lee, "because they have benefited from the system".

"All of us joining hands to improve our lives together, that is the meaning of the red in our Singapore flag," he said. "Universal brotherhood and equality of man."

His remarks on giving back continue a theme he has touched on in recent months.

Last month, for instance, he urged Singaporeans to do more to help fellow citizens.

Participants at the PA event agreed that they were in a better position than young people elsewhere.

"My sister went to the United States and said that she saw people queueing up to apply for jobs. We would never have to do that here," said 16-year-old Kimi Soh, a student at Nan Chiau High School.

But some remained worried about whether their aspirations in the workplace would be met.

Said Benjamin Choy, 16, a business student at ITE College Central: "Besides 'foreign talent', employers may also pick university and polytechnic students before us."




Youth campaign to show patriotism ahead of Aug 9
By Rachel Chang, The Straits Times, 8 Jul 2013

FROM singing national songs at kopitiams to taking pictures of iconic Singapore places where they want to be, the young people of the People's Association (PA) have come up with novel ways to show their patriotism this National Day.

Over 6,000 of them have come up with 102 activities to show their love and loyalty, as part of a two-month campaign by the PA's Youth Movement (PAYM) in the lead-up to National Day.

The initiative, known as "PAYM Loves Red" and launched yesterday by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, goes beyond celebrating National Day, said PA chief executive director Ang Hak Seng.

"It is a ground-up initiative where youths connect with fellow youths, express their passion and convey their appreciation and aspirations for Singapore in their own creative and unique ways."

Many of the activities - like a bread run for the needy organised by students from the Singapore Management University - have a community outreach bent, which shows their desire to "make a meaningful impact", said Mr Ang.

Others are more whimsical, like a "book spine poetry" competition by the Serangoon Youth Executive Committee.

Participants are to stack book spines together for their titles to make up a poem, with at least one book by a Singaporean author to be included.

Yesterday, PM Lee toured contributions by the PA youth in his Teck Ghee ward: a photo exhibition showcasing the faces of the neighbourhood - from "Teck Ghee's Oldest Man", a 104-year-old resident, to "Basketball Ah Ma", an elderly woman who shoots the hoops at the local basketball court.

Parliament Highlights - 8 Jul 2013

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Singapore to push for action at haze meeting
Top of agenda at Asean meet: Seeking accurate land concession maps
By Leonard Lim, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

SINGAPORE will seek several concrete outcomes at an Asean haze meeting in Kuala Lumpur next week, and topping the agenda is an urgent push for Indonesia to provide official and accurate land concession maps.

These maps, combined with satellite technology, will be instrumental in holding companies or individuals who clear land illegally to account, Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said yesterday.

"Without those maps, it's very difficult for me to point fingers... authoritatively, bearing in mind that these activities occur in another sovereign land."

Dr Balakrishnan, who was one of five ministers who addressed Parliament yesterday on the haze issue, will lead a delegation to Malaysia for the three-day meeting, which begins on Monday.

There, Singapore will also urge the other participating countries - Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand - to agree on a date for launching a sub-regional haze monitoring system. It will help identify errant companies whose activities contributed to the air quality soaring to record hazardous levels last month.

The KL meeting will be the 15th time the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee on Transboundary Haze Pollution is coming together. The group was formed in 2006 to help Indonesia combat the annual haze, which has dogged the region for years.

As the haze is not just an environmental problem, Dr Balakrishnan said Singapore will also ask for high-level officials from all relevant agencies and ministries in the five countries to be involved in tackling the scourge. It will also urge Indonesia to renew a collaboration on fire prevention and sustainable farming practices, and to commit to ratifying an Asean Transboundary Haze Pollution Agreement as soon as possible.

Indonesia is the only Asean country yet to ratify the 2002 agreement, a point made by MPs like Mr Zaqy Mohamad (Chua Chu Kang GRC) yesterday.

At least 15 MPs asked about the haze, while various members of the House had tabled 30 questions for the session.

The extensive range of topics discussed over three hours included questions such as whether the Government could have done better in communicating with the public, and whether Singapore could impose criminal sanctions on errant companies.

Law Minister K. Shanmugam disclosed that the Government was looking at introducing extra-territorial laws to punish Singapore-linked firms if there was "credible and usable evidence". Mr Shanmugam, who is also Foreign Minister, however stressed that the primary responsibility for taking action lies with Indonesia.

Tackling the haze through regional cooperation was a point raised by Dr Balakrishnan as well.

He expressed appreciation for Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's commitment to tackling the haze, and added: "We need continued vigilance and we need decisive action by the Indonesian authorities to prevent another recurrence of the haze over the next two to three months."

But looking back, Dr Balakrishnan and Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said the haze brought out Singaporeans' resilience.

Dr Ng, who chairs an inter-ministerial committee on the haze, said Singapore needs two essential elements to withstand similar threats in future - trust between leaders and people, and care for each other. "The day we lose that trust, the day we stop caring... any crisis will be too big for us."






S'pore looking into laws to deal with firms behind haze
Extra-territorial laws to tackle errant companies to be studied
By Elgin Toh, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

SINGAPORE is looking at introducing extra-territorial laws to deal with companies found responsible for slash-and-burn practices that caused the haze, Law Minister K. Shanmugam disclosed in Parliament yesterday.

The Attorney-General has been asked to study the possibility of extending the arm of the law beyond Singapore's borders, as well as to "consider what legal options are available, if credible and usable evidence is received that Singapore-linked companies are involved", he said.

The announcement was made in his response to MPs' questions at the first parliamentary session since the haze crisis began last month.



Many MPs had asked if tougher action could be taken against errant companies and Indonesia.

Several MPs were uncompromising in urging stiff measures against the companies, with Ms Irene Ng (Tampines GRC) calling for a boycott of companies found to be at fault.

Mr Shanmugam, who is also the Foreign Minister, said the primary responsibility for taking the companies to task lay in the hands of Indonesia.

Singapore, however, has formally sought from Indonesia, via a diplomatic note, clarification on whether Singapore-linked companies were involved and, if so, evidence of wrong-doing.

"We are awaiting Indonesia's response," he said.

Mr Shanmugam, who praised Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for showing "statesmanship" by apologising, stressed that Singapore had hitherto adopted a cooperative stance in its dealings with Indonesia and other Asean states.

The approach has yielded encouraging outcomes, he added.

A three-way cooperative process involving Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia has been set up to tackle the haze problem.

It was significant, he added, that all Asean countries now had to report at Asean summits "what they have done and what they have not done" on the haze issue.

Singapore has also offered to renew environmental collaboration with Indonesia's Jambi province, and to repair the air quality and weather monitoring stations it set up in 2009.

Later, Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan explained that collaboration with Jambi lapsed in 2011 owing to local reasons, like the change in the province's leadership. Urging MPs to be sensitive about cross-border relations, he added: "If you want to go to your neighbour's house even if it's for collaboration, you need permission."

Mr Shanmugam had made the same point, saying he did not consider it wise for Singapore to be too abrasive.

Several MPs suggested more forceful action, with Workers' Party chief Low Thia Khiang (Aljunied GRC) asking why Singapore had chosen not to raise the issue at the United Nations, as it did during the 2006 haze crisis.

Exerting pressure could result in relationships being downgraded from "friendly" to "cool and correct", said Mr Shanmugam.

"We must maintain a clear, long-term perspective of the bilateral relationship and do our utmost to avoid hurting this relationship as much as possible."

While not ruling out UN action, he added that assertiveness could be counterproductive as it could cause groups in Indonesia to align against a solution.

"What we want to avoid is creating a situation where for political reasons, parties or people within Indonesia then take a position to say, 'Singapore is threatening us. And therefore we must react, and therefore we must not do what they ask'.

"I think we can very quickly get into those sorts of dynamics. International relations have to be handled delicately," he said.





More resources for early warning system
By Joyce Lim, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

MORE resources are being poured into enhancing Singapore's haze early warning system, Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan told Parliament yesterday.

To improve its early detection and warning capabilities, the Meteorological Services Singapore (MSS) of the National Environment Agency (NEA) would be using more meteorological data, more computer modelling of images and finer resolution of satellite images. It will also install more wind sensors.

For a start, it hopes to get feeds from new satellites which have greater resolution as early as next year, said Dr Balakrishnan.

"We need resolution down to about one- to two-kilometre range, to be able to identify a hot spot. The new satellites will also have greater spectral sensitivity, which means you can also see fires at an early stage, maybe even at the underground level," he said.

More wind sensors beyond Singapore's shores would also be needed to provide a more accurate prediction of weather patterns, "whether there will be rain or drought", he added.

Better information such as the speed and direction of the winds would be able to determine how quickly the haze would reach Singapore.

Dr Balakrishnan gave this answer in response to the flurry of queries from MPs on how Singapore could do better in coping with the haze.

Beyond the overview of tackling the problem at the regional level, he also spelt out the steps to improve monitoring as this would help people plan and prepare for their day.

But he cautioned about the difficulties of early warning: "We must not forget that while the fires are beyond our immediate sight, the haze actually only takes a few hours to reach us. This makes early warning very challenging even with perfect knowledge of the ground situation and winds. Under ideal conditions, the longest warning that we can have from the time the smoke emerges from the fire to the time the haze hits us is around six to 10 hours. This helps frame how difficult early warning is."

Noting that it would be impossible to achieve 100 per cent accuracy, the minister added that enhanced capabilities for early detection could improve the precision of forecasts.

The minister also explained his decision not to publish real-time data or raw data instantly during the recent haze crisis, to avoid "the risk of confusion or worse, publishing unverified or inaccurate data".

With accuracy as his primary consideration, he said he found that publishing the 24-hour PSI, the 24-hour rolling average PM2.5 and the three-hour PSI were essential, as the shape of the three-hour PSI graph and that of the one-hour PSI graph were "virtually identical".

Despite not publishing real-time data, Dr Balakrishnan reassured the House that the ministry is monitoring spot-data closely and would intervene when a sudden change is spotted.




N95 masks were meant for health workers in an epidemic
That's why it took time to get stocks out to public during the haze episode
By Grace Chua, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

SINGAPORE's stockpile of nine million N95 masks was not readily available in the shops last month because they were meant for an infectious-disease epidemic, said Dr Ng Eng Hen in Parliament.

The masks, which filter out small particles, were not originally for the public. They were kept by the Government to prevent the spread of disease to health-care workers, he explained.

"That stockpile is quite important in case, touch wood, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (a virus similar to Sars) viruses come here," he said yesterday. "So the way they were stored... the assumption was for a particular rate of use."

He was responding to MPs' concerns that there were delays and bottlenecks getting N95 masks to the public during last month's haze episode - a major concern which saw queries from six legislators.

Dr Ng, who is Defence Minister and chairman of an inter-ministerial haze committee, explained that retailers' distribution channels could not cope with the spike in demand. "There are few systems where one day to the next, your demand is one day, 5,000; the next, one million," he said.

But despite the crunch, the Government decided to provide for the needy, he added, distributing about a million masks to 200,000 households.

"We didn't know how long the haze would last," he said in response to a question from Mr Baey Yam Keng (Tampines GRC).

"There wasn't really a shortage, but out of concern that the poor and vulnerable would not be able to get (masks), we met and decided that ministries would push the masks out."

The Government is now rebuilding its supplies of N95 masks, added Health Minister Gan Kim Yong.

But, he stressed, the masks may not fit everyone. Responding to Workers' Party MP Lee Li Lian (Punggol East) on the options for children, Mr Gan explained that there are no N95 masks suitable for small children.

"MOH will continue to explore the different masks available in the market to see which of them will be suitable for use by our children," he said.

The hoarding of the precious N95 last month also drew the attention of MPs. Mr Desmond Lee (Jurong GRC) asked if the Competition Act could include provisions to prevent essential items from being hoarded.

Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Lee Yi Shyan replied that the Control of Essential Supplies Act, last used in the 1980s for petroleum, was still in place to provide for control and rationing of necessities in a crisis. But the Act was not invoked this time as the spike in PSI was for only a short time.

Households could also buy their own N95 masks even after the haze subsided, he added, to have their own small stockpiles so the Government would not have to distribute many masks in a brief period.






Task force met before crisis struck, says Ng Eng Hen
By Grace Chua, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

CALL it great timing but a fortnight before the haze enveloped Singapore, the national inter-agency haze task force had actually met to work out how to coordinate its action plans should the haze return.

The meeting was held on May 29, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen disclosed in Parliament yesterday.

"The task force is in fact activated yearly ahead of the dry season, to review its procedures and responses and coordinate agencies' ground actions," said Dr Ng, who chairs an inter-ministerial haze committee that oversees national efforts to tackle this year's crisis.

The committee was formed last month.

The task force, on the other hand, is almost 20 years old.

Set up in 1994, it holds its yearly review before the annual dry season, when the threat of haze rears its ugly head.

Made up of 23 public agencies, it reports to a Crisis Management Group on Haze, part of a series of groups set up in 2004 to handle specific threats when they arise.

The task force further reports to a Homefront Crisis Executive Group made up of the permanent secretaries of relevant ministries, like the Ministry of Communications and Information.

Dr Ng's new committee, however, comprises ministers from key ministries like Environment and Water Resources, Foreign Affairs and Health, and oversees overall national efforts to tackle the crisis.

The committee is "an added and new step, and one calibrated appropriately to deal with the haze problem", he said.

Yesterday, replying to MPs' questions on the national action plan, he said the focus is on three areas: protect public health and safety; work with Indonesia to curb the burning; and maintain social and economic resilience.

So, when there was panic-buying of N95 masks and bottlenecks in getting the masks to retailers, "the first task was to restore calm and protect the vulnerable".

Hence, priority was given to handing out free masks to needy households and distributing three million masks to retailers.

As the haze persisted, the Health as well as the Social and Family Development ministries sent out more boxes of masks to retailers, introduced subsidised GP visits for the young, old and needy, and gave subsidies to childcare centres to buy portable air-conditioners.

Dr Ng's committee also came up with plans to ensure there is no disruption of essential services like utilities, and to protect workers who spend long hours outdoors, like those in construction, shipyards and cleaning.

But he admitted that people could have been given more information with greater timeliness, although "not everyone wants or needs the same amount of information".

He assured the House the response to crises is robust, saying "our basic structure is comprehensive and sound, but we should always learn from every episode".

"MPs rightly ask: Can Singapore withstand the next national threat, the next big one, one even more severe? I believe so but only if we maintain the trust and care for one another. Trust and care between leaders and the people and for each other."






Some cause anxiety by spreading rumours
By Goh Chin Lian, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

SOME mischievous individuals set out to spread rumours and cause unnecessary anxiety during the recent haze, said Communications and Information Minister Yaacob Ibrahim yesterday.

Their impact, he added, was amplified because of the Internet and social media. Still, he noted that Singaporeans largely helped one another.

The first of five examples of misinformation he cited took place on June 19, when the National Environment Agency (NEA) website said the Pollutant Standards Index was 321. Someone circulated an altered screenshot alleging that NEA had reported the PSI as 393.

Said Dr Yaacob: "This was a calculated and mischievous act, intended to undermine public confidence in the NEA."

On the same day, The Real Singapore website put up an article falsely attributed to Tampines GRC MP Irene Ng.

Someone had impersonated her to comment on the Government and Singaporeans' reaction to the haze, while the article was plagiarised from another netizen's Facebook comment, noted Dr Yaacob.

He also named blogger Ravi Philemon who, on June 22, alleged that a friend said nine million masks would be brought into Singapore, but none were for the public.

This was even as the Singapore Armed Forces and People's Association staff and grassroots volunteers were "working hard into the early morning" to ensure one million masks would be distributed from warehouses to community centres, to be given out to households the next day, he added.

In another case, someone accused Tan Tock Seng Hospital of jacking up the price of its N95 masks when the price remained the same. And on June 25 when rain and hail fell over western Singapore, someone alleged, "without foundation or basis in fact, that Singapore was receiving acid rain", said Dr Yaacob.

He assured MPs Vikram Nair (Sembawang GRC) and Baey Yam Keng (Tampines GRC), and Nominated MP Tan Su Shan that the Government acted by declaring the rumours false on its Cut Through The Haze microsite, before they took root and caused further alarm and harm.

In such cases, the Government may ask for a correction so that the right information is put up online or ask the site to remove the content, he added.

While Ms Tan suggested that the Media Literacy Council help people who fall prey to misinformation, content providers and the larger Internet community could verify and correct any misinformation as well, noted Dr Yaacob.

He pointed out, however, that prominent members of the online community such as Mr Philemon, had rejected the idea of an Internet Code of Conduct, and greeted the formation of the council with scepticism.



Striking a positive note, Dr Yaacob said many members of the online community came up with crowdsource apps to find shops where masks were available or to share air-conditioned rooms.

Others like undergraduate Jeremy Chua set up the SG Haze Rescue page on Facebook calling for the donation of excess masks.

Said Dr Yaacob: "They show that there are many good-hearted Singaporeans who know how to harness the Internet positively."

In a blog post last night responding to Dr Yaacob, Mr Philemon said that he did not fabricate the comment on the nine million masks, but simply reposted a friend's comment.

Mr Philemon had posted on Facebook last month: "Yes the 9 million masks are coming into Singapore... But none will be for the public, the entire batch will be under exclusive control by the G and all distributions of the masks will be under the tightest of scrutiny."

Yesterday, the blogger said he also went to Johor Baru to buy N95 masks when they were sold out at pharmacies here, so that he could distribute them to others.






'New rules do not target individual bloggers'
Regulations targeted at news sites, says Yaacob
By Tessa Wong And Rachel Chang, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

BLOGGERS have been and will continue to be free to comment on government policies and do not need to feel curbed by the licensing regulations on news sites instituted last month.

The Government has not stopped any of them commenting on the ruling since it kicked in, Communications and Information Minister Yaacob Ibrahim told Parliament yesterday.

And despite accusations that the move would stifle Internet freedom, this has not occurred, he noted, even as several bloggers critical of the rules watched from the public gallery as he fielded questions on the regulations.

"Since we... announced the law on May 28, nothing has stopped the bloggers from commenting," he said, reiterating the Government's stance that the change does not target bloggers.


The new rules, which require news sites to post a $50,000 performance bond and take down offensive content within 24 hours, kicked in on June 1, three days after the announcement.

The idea that the rules would have a chilling effect on bloggers is "far-fetched". Said Dr Yaacob: "I don't think they are so easily 'chilled'."

If future operators cannot afford the bond, the Media Development Authority (MDA) would be willing to set a "reasonable" amount in line with the news site's finances.

"The intention is not to prevent the site from operating under a licence. On the contrary, the intent is to allow a qualifying site to continue to operate, under an individual licence," said Dr Yaacob.

The whole idea behind the framework is to hold news sites to a higher standard than other sites, he added in response to questions in Parliament.

To qualify as a news site, they must have at least one news story on Singapore a week and attract at least 50,000 unique visitors from here in a month.

Some members pointed out that the definition for news sites was broad, and Non-Constituency MP Lina Chiam who filed an adjournment motion on the rules said this could lead Singaporeans to believe the rules had been "crafted to censor blogs, especially those that discuss politics".

Dr Yaacob said this was not the case, and that the regulations were squarely targeting news sites to hold them to "a higher level of responsibility". "We need to license you so that you know that whatever you do, you must do it well and do it accurately because you're reporting for the benefit of Singaporeans," he said.

He noted that bloggers, Internet commentators and niche websites provide their personal views and do not regularly report on news. Hence they do not fall within the scope of the new licensing.

"However, should these websites morph into online sites reporting on Singapore news, MDA will have to separately assess if they meet the two criteria for licensing," he said.

Mr Choo Zheng Xi, part of the Free My Internet movement which opposes the rules, said he was "gratified" to see Dr Yaacob challenged by all three parties in Parliament - the ruling People's Action Party and the opposition Workers' Party (WP) and Singapore People's Party.

"We feel vindicated that our concerns over the new regulations are shared across the political spectrum," said the co-founder of sociopolitical blog The Online Citizen.

Separately, in a written response to a question filed by WP MP Chen Show Mao (Aljunied GRC) on the criteria for media accreditation, Dr Yaacob said factors include the reach and distribution of the news organisation, and its professional standing.

"The platform of the news organisation, whether traditional or online, is not a consideration. The licensing of online news websites is not related to accreditation and has no bearing on the criteria used to accredit the media organisations," he said.

The Government is discussing the licence details with the three companies which own the 10 news websites that come under the licensing framework - Singapore Press Holdings, MediaCorp and Yahoo Singapore.

Yahoo is the only one among the three that does not have press accreditation for its reporters.




Trust needed for govt role as info provider and regulator
By Lydia Lim, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

WHEN it comes to information, many MPs want the Government to up its game as the primary source of timely, accurate facts and figures in time of crisis.

But there are some who fear that the Government is not just a supplier of information but it can also be a suppresser of news and views it finds inconvenient.

These two divergent views of government in today's information society were the focus of questions yesterday when lawmakers quizzed ministers about the haze and a new licensing framework for news websites.

They did so just weeks after the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) shot up to dangerous levels for a short spell, sparking mass anxiety over health and safety.

Yesterday, MPs gave voice to Singaporeans' demand for action to address the source of the haze in Indonesia, and for earlier warnings should air quality plummet again.

Minister for Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan devoted a substantial portion of his response to explaining the complexity of providing timely and accurate information, given that the source of the haze is "hundreds of kilometres away and spread over an area that is many times the size of Singapore".

He produced two satellite images and a chart to show how factors such as cloud cover and wind conditions make detection and prediction difficult.

"Under ideal conditions, the longest warning that we can have from the time the smoke emerges from the fire to the time the haze hits us is around six to 10 hours," he told the House.

Later, Ms Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC) asked for hourly PSI readings which the ministry has been reluctant to provide.

Once again, Dr Balakrishnan - a medical doctor - launched into a lengthy explanation of the complexity of providing meaningful data, given that other factors apart from PSI readings had to be taken into account in determining health effects.

He said Singapore was in the midst of updating the way it measures air pollutants and that he thought hard before deciding to turn down public requests for real-time data during the recent haze crisis.

"Why? I decided not to do so because the risk of confusion or worse, publishing unverified or inaccurate data, was too high. I could not take that risk in the middle of a crisis," he said.

Misinformation was the subject of three PAP MPs' questions and they gave Minister for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim the perfect opening to take aim at individuals who had circulated haze falsehoods.

He named The Real Singapore website and blogger Ravi Philemon as among those who had contributed to the confusion. The online community had rejected the Government's previous attempts to encourage their coming together to build a responsible online environment and its proposal for a Code of Conduct, he said.

"Yet, when public anxiety was highest in the days when the haze was at its worst, where were these prominent members of the online community who believed that the Internet community should be left alone? Were they helping to clarify and reject online rumours, or were they helping to spread them or even create them?" he added.

It was a surprisingly sharp retort from a minister better known for being conciliatory.

But when the House turned to consider the Media Development Authority's (MDA's) new licensing framework for news websites, Dr Yaacob had to switch from playing offence to defence. Several PAP and opposition MPs pressed him to explain the very broad definition of news sites used in framing the regulation.

These are a source of anxiety and uncertainty for the online community, the MPs said, as they potentially allow the authorities to require individual licences for a whole range of content providers.

The minister's assurance that the Government has no plans to do so, and that netizens should "keep calm and continue posting" is unlikely to persuade bloggers who worry about having to play by the same rules as newspapers, which have operated under individual licences for far longer.

Yet, as Dr Yaacob observed, since the class licence scheme for websites took effect in 1996, MDA has not asked any site to take down content critical of the Government.

But as its own ministers said yesterday, the key issue here is trust. The Government has a credible record of being upfront with Singaporeans in times of crisis but when it comes to its openness to criticism, doubts linger.

Yesterday's sitting was a reminder that the political leadership needs to work on both fronts to maintain the trust of its supporters and to win over doubters.

As Dr Balakrishnan said: "Trust is that intangible, crucial ingredient to Singapore's success. Without trust in the Government, anything we say won't be believed, anything we do cannot be implemented."




Parenthood of IVF babies: Bill to plug loopholes
By Poon Chian Hui, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

AS MORE babies here are born using assisted methods like in- vitro fertilisation (IVF), the law will try to provide more clarity on the parenthood of such children.

A Bill was tabled in Parliament yesterday, aiming to plug loopholes which may leave a child legally parentless.

The Status of Children (Assisted Reproduction Technology) Bill also covers instances where a mix-up happens, such as the 2010 case in which Thomson Fertility Clinic used the wrong sperm.

Then, a couple discovered that their baby had the Chinese Singaporean mother's DNA, but not her Caucasian husband's.

If the Bill is passed, most children will have a single set of parents, even if they are the result of mistakes.

Generally, the woman who gave birth to the child will be treated as the legal mother.

But fatherhood has been contentious. Here, the Bill provides for three main scenarios.
- The woman's husband is the legal father. If unmarried, her long-term partner can apply to the court to be the father.
- If donated sperm is used, the husband or partner can still be regarded as the father if he had consented to the IVF treatment, or accepts the child as his own.
- Sperm donor has no claim to the child, unless he later marries the woman or becomes her partner.
But if the wrong egg or sperm is used, the birth mother and her husband will be the default parents - as if the mistake did not happen. This is so that the child is not left legally parentless.

However, the person whose egg or sperm was used by mistake can apply to the court for parental rights within two years of the mistake being discovered.

Currently, the law places such children on the same footing as those who are conceived normally, said the Ministry of Law.

And where the wrong egg or sperm is used, the legal parenthood of the child is uncertain.

A public consultation that was held last November found that most people support the Bill, which comes as more babies are born using IVF, from 720 in 2006 to 1,267 in 2011.

The proposed law does not seek to regulate IVF treatment in Singapore, which is performed in 11 clinics here and is overseen by the Health Ministry.

Under existing regulations, only married couples are allowed to undergo IVF.

Professor P.C. Wong, who heads the division of reproductive endocrinology and infertility at the National University Hospital, said that the new rules will be particularly useful if the status of a couple's relationship becomes unclear. For instance, those who get a divorce after the woman becomes pregnant, he said. Here, the Bill will clarify that the former husband still has parental rights over the child.

Said Dr Yu Su Ling of Singapore General Hospital: "The recent IVF mix-up is a stark example of a child who may have ended up being an orphan without the protection of this law."

Lawyer Kuah Boon Theng welcomed the Bill, as legislation in this area is "long overdue".

"Our laws have to catch up with technology," she said, adding that the Bill will also ensure that children who are conceived with donor sperm are less vulnerable to paternity challenges.


Related


American researcher committed suicide, no foul play: Coroner

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By Feng Zengkun, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

AMERICAN researcher Shane Todd had killed himself by hanging, a coroner's inquiry into his death has found, dismissing claims by his family that he had been murdered.

Delivering his finding of suicide yesterday, State Coroner Chay Yuen Fatt said evidence from 65 witnesses, heard over a 10-day hearing in May, had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Dr Todd had hanged himself in his apartment here last June. "There was no foul play involved," said the judge, adding that he hoped Dr Todd's family would find closure from his finding.



The decision caps a controversy that had reached the highest levels of both the United States and Singapore governments after a Financial Times (FT) report in February suggested that the Montana native was murdered.

The 31-year-old's parents had claimed in the FT report that their son was killed, possibly over military-related research he had done at the Singapore Institute of Microelectronics (IME), which could have compromised US national security. But this was rejected by the judge, who said a review of Dr Todd's work at IME did not turn up any such research.

In fact, evidence from his friends and colleagues suggested that he had "great difficulty" coping with his work. This was after he had asked to be transferred to conduct research in a field he had little experience in.

"He probably took it hard upon himself when he failed to attain a certain level of proficiency in the field," said the judge.

Other evidence which reinforced the initial classification of suicide by the police included the fact that Dr Todd had visited suicide-related websites in the months before his death.

There was also proof that he was depressed, including records that showed Dr Todd had sought medical treatment for depression while he was in Singapore.

The court's findings remain at odds with his parents' belief that he was murdered - even though their own medical expert from the US had recanted his finding in court that their son had been strangled to death by an unknown assailant.

The Todds, who had walked out of the inquiry on May 21 saying they were unhappy with the State producing Dr Luis Montes - whom they regarded as a "last minute" witness - said in a statement that they were disappointed with the court's decision but had expected it.

The US Embassy here, however, said the inquiry had been "comprehensive, fair and transparent".

Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam yesterday said the Todds' murder conspiracy theory was based on "untruths, pure fantasy and pure imagination".

He added that Mr Raymond Bonner, who wrote the FT article, had not verified the facts, and said the London-based newspaper should "do the honourable thing" and correct the untruths.

But an FT spokesman, responding to queries from The Straits Times, said it stood by its reporting.



EXCUSE FOR NOT TESTIFYING

The family walked out of the proceedings before they were supposed to give evidence, and their reason for doing so was that Dr Luis Montes was called as a surprise witness, and they said they didn't know who he was and had never met him before... The family had dinner with Dr Montes two days after Dr Todd died. So you have to conclude that this was trumped up as an excuse for them for not testifying.
- Foreign Minister K.Shanmugam




Todd family's allegations untrue: Shanmugam
By Feng Zengkun, The Straits Times, 10 Jul 2013

LAW and Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam yesterday dismissed allegations from American researcher Shane Todd's parents that Singapore had mishandled the inquiry into their son's death.

After a state coroner ruled on Monday that he had committed suicide, Dr Todd's parents sent a statement to the media alleging that the verdict had been predetermined.

Mr Shanmugam told The Straits Times at an event in Yishun that he understood the Todd family's grief but their allegations "have not stood up to scrutiny and have been found to be untrue".

Asked whether the Government would consider taking action against the Todds if they continued to impugn Singapore's justice system, he said: "The facts are there and people can judge for themselves. We will just have to leave it to the people to judge."

He added that Singapore was legally required to hold a coroner's inquiry into the death and had done so, saying: "It was a full, open inquiry and all evidence was presented."

The US Embassy in Singapore said in a statement on Monday that the inquiry had been "comprehensive, fair and transparent".

Told that the Financial Times (FT) had stood by its February report which suggested that Dr Todd had been murdered, Mr Shanmugam said: "The responsible thing to do would be acknowledge that the original article was full of inaccuracies."

Asked in a press conference on Monday whether the Government would consider suing the FT if it did not correct the article, Mr Shanmugam said: "I don't think that's a path we want to go down."

Yesterday, Acting Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin slammed the FT for standing by its report. He said in a Facebook post: "So The FT believes that their irresponsible piece of journalism stands? Creating conspiracy out of nothing... I wonder if their sensationalism led the Todd family down this unfortunate path."




Todd 'never had any classified military information'
Evidence proves beyond reasonable doubt that he killed himself: Coroner
By Feng Zengkun, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

CONTRARY to his parents' claims, Dr Shane Todd had never possessed any classified military-related information while he was at the Singapore Institute of Microelectronics (IME), an inquiry into his death found yesterday.

This, therefore, puts paid to allegations that their son was murdered over his work, which he had claimed could compromise United States national security.

In finding the American researcher's death a suicide, State Coroner Chay Yuen Fatt said evidence presented during the 10-day inquiry in May proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the 31-year-old had killed himself. The cause of death: asphyxia by hanging.

Dr Todd's parents have claimed that he was killed over his work at IME, ever since his body was found hanged against a door in his apartment in June last year - shortly after he quit his job. They said their son was concerned after the institute made him do work for Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei Technologies, which had been accused by the US of espionage.

This, however, was not backed by evidence from a comprehensive review of Dr Todd's work at IME, said Judge Chay in a 145-page decision issued yesterday. He said that while IME was involved in five projects with Huawei, none - including one that Dr Todd had worked on - was classified military work.

On the evidence showing that Dr Todd was "worried about the possibility of violating export control laws and compromising US security", Judge Chay said "on an objective assessment, there was no basis to have such worries".

In fact, Dr Todd's perception of events could have been skewed by his depression and anxiety at the time.

For instance, evidence showed that after he was transferred to another research group on his request in 2011, he apparently had "great difficulty" coping because he had little experience in the new field of research.

He was also known as a perfectionist and probably "took it hard upon himself" when he failed to shine in the new group, said Judge Chay.

"These factors, probably in part or in whole, triggered a relapse of his previous history of depression", which contributed to his decision to commit suicide in June last year, he added.

The fact that Dr Todd had quit IME and had a job offer from a US firm when he was found dead does not rule out suicide, said the State Coroner. E-mail and Internet searches on Dr Todd's laptop, presented as evidence, suggested that he was worried he would not be eligible for the US government security clearance required for his new job back home.

An early draft of a suicide note found on Dr Todd's laptop had stated: "If I went back to the US, I foresaw that I would have the same difficulties there."

Judge Chay said: "These concerns in all likelihood caused him to feel that his deep sense of failure (which was magnified by his psychiatric anxiety) would follow him back to the US.

"In (his) mind, all these factors eventually outweighed the happy prospects of reuniting with his family in the US and culminated in his ultimate decision to take his own life."

The State Coroner's findings yesterday bring an end to the closely watched case.

The court's decision cannot be appealed but the public prosecutor may direct the coroner to reopen the inquiry if further investigations are necessary - for instance, if there is significant new evidence.

Commenting on the case after the decision was delivered, Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam said he understood the Todd family's grief but "at the same time, we need the strength to face the truth, not make fictional untrue statements and allegations".



PUSH FACTOR

The deceased was concerned about his ability to obtain (security) clearance for his new job... These concerns in all likelihood caused him to feel that his deep sense of failure would follow him back to the US. In his mind, these factors eventually outweighed the happy prospects of reuniting with his family in the US and culminated in his ultimate decision to take his own life.
– State Coroner Chay Yuen Fatt, on what may have pushed Mr Todd to suicide


TRUTH MUST BE FACED

Many of us are parents. We can understand the family's grief. At the same time, we need the strength to face the truth, and not make fictional, untrue statements and allegations.
– Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam




Key findings of State Coroner
By Lim Yan Liang, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013
- Medical expert engaged by the Todds was ‘unreliable’
United States-based pathologist Edward Adelstein, who was engaged by the Todds, had initially found that Dr Shane Todd was garrotted, and then hung to conceal the cause of death.

But he changed his view when he testified via videolink during the inquiry, saying Dr Todd was killed by taser or a chokehold in an attack by “more than one assassin”.

State Coroner Chay Yuen Fatt said he found Dr Adelstein’s evidence “nothing short of bizarre and extremely unhelpful in the way that it detracted from the critical pathological issues before the court”.

“To put it bluntly, Dr Adelstein had, on his very own accord, showed himself to be an incredible and unreliable expert,” he added.
- The State did not ‘spring a last-minute witness’ on the Todds during the inquiry
The Todds walked out of the coroner’s inquiry on the seventh day, after their lawyers’ application to have proceedings adjourned for them to vet a new witness for the State was turned down.

They later told reporters that the witness Frenchman Luis Alejandro Andia Montes’ participation in the inquiry was “sprung” on them and they had no time to prepare to question him.

Dr Montes, a former colleague of Dr Todd’s at the Singapore Institute of Microelectronics (IME), subsequently testified that he met the American researcher for a beer on the evening of June 23, refuting the Todds’ claim that their son was killed on the morning of that day.

Judge Chay said yesterday that while the confirmation of Dr Montes as a witness by the State Counsel was late, he was satisfied that the French national was not a surprise witness as it was not due to any reason that was within the State’s control. “When one also takes into account the fact that (Dr Todd’s parents) had actually met Luis Montes before... Luis Montes could not reasonably be said to have been a surprise witness to the NOK (next of kin).”
- Police did not lie about Dr Todd using ‘nuts, bolts and pulleys’ to hang himself
Dr Todd’s mother Mary alleged that the police said her son had drilled holes into his bathroom wall, bolted in a pulley, then slipped a black strap through it to hang himself – an allegation the police investigations officer (IO) Muhammad Khaldun Sarif denied.

Judge Chay found that the officer had “absolutely no reason” to have mentioned nuts, bolts or pulleys to the Todds.

“The disconnect between what IO Khaldun actually said and what the NOK heard on both July 27 and 29, 2012, could, in my view, be explained by a miscommunication which was compounded by the fact that the NOK were (very understandably) in an emotional state and Mary Todd, in particular, had not slept in many days,” he said.
- Suicide note was written by Dr Todd
Mrs Todd said that the grammar in a two-page PDF suicide note purportedly written by Dr Todd, was “Asian” and uncharacteristic of her son, who was “a much better writer than this”, while her husband Rick said the note was too “cold” to have been written by Dr Todd.

The judge disagreed: “It seems to me that it was not inconsistent for a person who was contemplating suicide to not be his usual effusive and warm self.”

“As for Mary Todd’s allegations of ‘Asian grammar’, it was a quantum leap of logic to say that these grammatical mistakes necessarily had to be ‘Asian’ and therefore linked to the IME and/or Huawei,” he said.

“Having considered all these arguments and also taking into account not just the PDF note but all other evidence in the round, I was satisfied that the PDF note was in fact written by the deceased.”




Coroner's inquiry was comprehensive, fair and transparent: US Embassy
The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

The United States Embassy in Singapore issued a statement on the coroner's inquiry on Dr Todd's death yesterday.

"The death of Dr Shane Todd in June last year was a profound loss for his family, friends and colleagues, and our heartfelt sympathy goes out to them.

In accordance with Singapore law, a coroner's inquiry was conducted to determine the cause of Dr Todd's death.

The findings from that inquiry were released today.

Officers from the Embassy attended the entire hearing and were with the Todd family during their time in Singapore.

Ambassador David Adelman met with the Todd family in December last year and May.

The coroner heard testimony from a wide range of witnesses in open court and received evidence in the form of written statements and records.

The Todd family was given the opportunity to participate in the hearing and was represented by experienced Singapore legal counsel.

The inquiry into Dr Todd's death was comprehensive, fair and transparent."


Childcare abuse case: NTUC First Campus dismisses teacher in incident

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Two more parents lodge reports; teacher 'admits actions'
By Priscilla Goy And Lim Yi Han, The Straits Times, 9 Jul 2013

A CHILDCARE teacher who allegedly abused a three-year-old boy was sacked yesterday following her arrest, even as more police reports were lodged.

The 51-year-old, who was working part-time at a My First Skool branch in Toa Payoh, admitted that her actions were "inappropriate and has accepted the dismissal", said a statement from NTUC First Campus, which runs the childcare centre.

The statement added that two more parents whose children go to the Toa Payoh branch have also made police reports, and that the childcare chain will "fully" cooperate with these investigations.



The case first came to light when a video of a child being dragged across the floor and pushed to the ground last Friday was circulated online.

It immediately caused an uproar, and the teacher who allegedly committed the abuse was arrested on Sunday.

Yesterday morning, NTUC First Campus chief executive Chan Tee Seng and My First Skool general manager Adeline Tan met about 10 parents whose children were taught by the teacher to address their concerns.

Credit officer Eddie Khor, who attended the briefing, had lodged a police report the day before. He had spotted small bruises and scratches on his 2 1/2-year-old son's legs about two to three months ago.

These bruises appeared after his son was transferred from the toddler level to the playgroup class, which is for children aged 30 months to three years old. The boy had also resisted going back to school.

"When my wife raised this matter to the centre, the teachers just told us that children hurt one another when they play around and the staff did not bother to look at any closed- circuit television footage to confirm this," said Mr Khor, 34.

He decided to go to the police after watching the video on Sunday. He is also considering withdrawing his son from the centre.

The other parent who lodged a police report declined to be interviewed.

The Straits Times spoke to 10 other parents who send their children to the Toa Payoh centre, but most said they did not intend to transfer their child.

Among those whose children had been taught by the teacher at the centre of the abuse allegation, most also said they did not have a bad impression of her.

Barista Erma Kader, 41, whose six-year-old son goes to the centre, said: "I will not take him out of school just because of one case. The teacher used to take care of my son, and she is nice and caring."

Accountant Mei Teo, 32, who has two daughters in the centre, said she found the teacher "okay" but added: "When it comes to children, you may have to be stern. But you definitely can't use physical force."

The teacher was named on Facebook by the child's mother. Naming her publicly may lead to the identification of the boy, who is protected as a minor under the Children and Young Persons Act.

NTUC's My First Skool is one of the largest pre-school operators here, taking care of about 10,000 children at 101 centres.

Last year, the Government received 75 complaints of "alleged inappropriate child management" in pre-schools - ranging from teachers raising voices to scratches on children. Nearly all were unfounded. In two cases, action was taken against the teachers and pre-schools.






Teacher held after video shows 'abuse' of boy, 3
By Walter Sim And Lim Yi Han, The Straits Times, 8 Jul 2013

A CHILDCARE teacher was arrested yesterday after shocking footage emerged of her apparently dragging a three-year-old across the floor and pushing him to the ground.

The 51-year-old - who was working part-time at NTUC My First Skool in Toa Payoh - was pictured grabbing the child by the arm when he ran towards her, before forcing him to sit.

The boy was later seen limping and was said to have suffered a fractured shin.

Parents reacted with outrage after a clip of last Friday's incident - which was captured on security camera - was posted online by his parents.

Yesterday, Acting Minister for Social and Family Development Chan Chun Sing promised a thorough investigation into factors such as teachers' training, and called the incident a reminder of the "heavy responsibility" involved in childcare.

NTUC First Campus CEO Chan Tee Seng said at a press conference that he was "very disturbed" and "saddened". He said the teacher with 16 years of experience - who has been suspended - behaved in a "totally unacceptable" way. "My heart goes out to the child and his parents," he added.

Last night, the boy's mother told The Straits Times that she and her husband asked to see the footage after becoming suspicious. "My husband and I haven't slept in two days, and my son is still in a lot of pain," said the 30-year-old service industry worker, who asked not to be named. "I hope he is mentally strong to forget about it, and to push this negativity aside."

She added that her son was resting at home and had been transferred to another branch of the childcare chain at the family's request.

NTUC First Campus has said it will pay for the boy's medical expenses. It will meet the teacher today as part of an internal probe, which could lead to her dismissal.

Our Singapore Conversation themes identified, dialogue to continue

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Various views’ gathered during engagement, not all issues raised reached a conclusion
By Ng Jing Yng, TODAY, 15 Jul 2013

After almost a year of the national conversation on the country’s future direction — a process kickstarted at last year’s National Day Rally — the Our Singapore Conversation (OSC) committee has distilled five broad themes from the discussions involving some 46,000 Singaporeans and the project is likely to go on indefinitely, with the various ministries looking to continue the engagement.

According to committee members who attended a meeting on Saturday, the themes centred on providing opportunities for all Singaporeans, building a caring and compassionate society, allowing Singaporeans to have a peace of mind on needs such as affordable healthcare, a kampung spirit, as well as trust and collaboration between voluntary welfare organisations, the Government and the community.

The OSC was divided into two phases: The first comprised of open-ended, exploratory focus group sessions, the second distilled inputs that have surfaced and grouped them into themes for further discussions.

The 26-member committee, headed by Education Minister Heng Swee Keat, comprises Singaporeans from different backgrounds, including grassroots leaders, unionists, people from the private sector, academics and political office-holders.

At Saturday’s meeting, committee members deliberated over the progress report of the OSC and what the next steps to take going forward are. Members at the meeting told TODAY that it was agreed that the discussions should continue to allow Singaporeans to enter into deeper discussions on many issues which did not yield a consensus.

The process has also given the various ministries a better idea of how to engage Singaporeans, they said.

Mr Ismail Hussein, who heads the Islamic Banking Unit of Maybank Singapore, said the engagement process has gathered various views but the process has to continue because “not all issues raised had a conclusion”.

Nanyang Business School graduate Stanley Chia cited the diversity of views and suggestions that were gathered for both short- and long-term solutions. “Ongoing conversations will allow Singaporeans to find some middle ground on key issues,” he said.

Mr Chia said that during the meeting, the members also talked about the execution of suggestions from Singaporeans.

To prevent the OSC process from being seen as just a “talk shop”, it is important to emphasis to Singaporeans the substantive “changes that have been made” either at the national or community level, he said.

The members also felt that it was important to communicate to Singaporeans that the Government will not be able to do everything and the public can also play a part to create change in society, he added.

‘CONVERSATION MUST CONTINUE’

The OSC process was expected to take about a year but Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yaacob, who is also part of the committee, stressed that the fact that the national conversation would continue should not be seen as “an extension”. Madam Halimah said: “The year of consultations is over. The question is do we abruptly stop the process?”

She added that the ministries can continue to engage stakeholders on the areas that were narrowed down in the second phase of the OSC.

The committee will also continue its work even after it submits its report. “What the committee wanted was not just to come up with the report and we wash our hands (and say) that’s it,” Mdm Halimah said. “After report comes out, committee members feel they should at least see what happen to some of the recommendations.”

Moulmein-Kallang GRC MP Denise Phua, who is also on the OSC committee, reiterated that the OSC “should not be a one-time phenomenon”.

She said: “Conversations of such nature are crucial ... Societal issues these days are not as uni-dimensional and a lot more complex, with stakeholder groups having sometimes conflicting needs, aspirations and proposed solutions.

“Governments will have to learn to evolve to allow for greater ownership and participation by the citizenry and the OSC is one key platform.”

Ms Phua said the OSC discussions “allow people of different perspectives and needs to meet, hear out and be reminded that there are different worldviews, and hopefully arrive at some acceptable fundamental principles and solutions”. She added: “Even if there were no conclusions, agreeing to disagree amicably and respecting that we are not all the same, are useful outcomes.”

Speaking on the sidelines of a community event yesterday, Mr Heng told reporters that he was “very pleased” with the progress of the OSC.

He added that during the committee’s meeting on Saturday, the members sketched out the broad themes and how to act upon ideas that arose from the discussions. “(The OSC) is not a short-term project, but a long-term project for our future,” Mr Heng said.

Commenting on two of the themes – creating opportunities for all and building a caring and compassionate society – he said: “Those are very important themes that will undergird a lot of our work as a society - not just the Government but as a society in the coming years”.

When asked if these themes will be shared during the National Day Rally next month, Mr Heng said that the details are still being worked out.

'Screenagers' out of touch with reality

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Tips from American trainer on connecting today's tech-savvy children with the real world
By Jane Ng, The Sunday Times, 14 Jul 2013

A single mother whose sons wanted iPhones and iPads made them sit beside her while she paid the family's bills to show where their money went every month.

The boys eventually saw there were essentials to be paid for, and no way their mother could afford the gadgets.

American author and trainer Tim Elmore, 53, who coined the term and wrote the book Artificial Maturity: Helping Kids Meet The Challenge Of Becoming Authentic Adults, gave this example to show how parents can make their children more aware of reality.

This is one way to help a generation overexposed to online information from an early age, yet woefully underexposed to real-life experiences.

Addressing 500 educators at Temasek Polytechnic's Seventh Character and Leadership Education Forum last Friday, Dr Elmore shared his research in the United States on the character traits of these "screenagers" - so-called because of their love for gadgets with a screen - and what parents can do if their children are having too much screen time.

Children who do not have enough real-life responsibilities could end up with a warped sense of reality or entitlement, with opinions formed by what they see on Facebook or YouTube, for instance, said Dr Elmore.

"This is the first generation of children that don't need adults to access information. But they do need adults to process the information, to help them interpret the data," he said.

One way is to give them more responsibilities and raise their awareness about the world around them.

He said parents should help children identify their strengths and match their talents with real-life work, so that the children can move beyond thinking they are "successful" online just because they have several hundred Facebook friends or win online games.

It also helps to get them interacting with other adults.

"Connecting face to face with people on a regular basis can deepen their emotional intelligence and empathy," he said, citing a University of Michigan study that showed that empathy levels among college students in America have dropped by 40 per cent in the last 10 years.

Encouraging young people to serve the community is worth trying too.

"Let them see there are others who need help. Give them community service opportunities to balance their self-service time," he said.

Recognising the traits of this generation will help alleviate the frustration many educators and employers face dealing with them, said Dr Elmore.

He suggested that teachers make some changes to the way they teach, so as to better engage this generation.

His suggestions: Use YouTube videos or visual images to hook them in, and explain why something is urgent or critical, before delivering the actual lesson content.

He recalled a maths teacher who found his students were not paying attention to his algebra lessons. The teacher decided to post videos of his lectures on YouTube and let students watch them at night, and used lesson time to help them with their homework.

Employers hiring the new generation need to change their mindsets too, said Dr Elmore.

Instead of mentoring schemes for new workers, consider "mutual mentoring" where older colleagues share their experience and younger ones are allowed to value-add with what they know.

Participants at the forum said they got a better idea of what made this generation tick.

Mr Damien Chiang, 36, who teaches mathematics at Anglo- Chinese School (International), said he has been using methods used by his own teachers and they may not be suitable for today's students.

"My teachers did not give me a lot of airtime but children today feel a greater need to be heard," he said.

"And even though they may appear aloof and withdrawn face to face, they open up when communicating via a screen, for example, through SMS. So I will make an effort to connect with them first before imparting knowledge to them."

Mr Sreedharan Denesh, 54, who conducts character and leadership lectures at Temasek Polytechnic, said even though Dr Elmore's research was based on children in the US, he found many of the survey findings to be true of young people in Singapore as well.

"It was a good reminder that even if the children appear confident and are savvy enough to learn things on their own, they still need a good role model or guidance from teachers. They may seem smart in the subjects but struggle with other soft skills," he said.




The 'artificial maturity' of tech-savvy youth
By Jane Ng, The Sunday Times, 14 Jul 2013

Dr Tim Elmore has been studying the generation of American youngsters born after 1990 - "who do not buy CDs to get music and find e-mail too slow and old". This is what he has found:
- They know a lot, but...
They are tech-savvy and they know a lot. They have been online from a very young age, are adept at using the latest gadgets and social media, have a vast amount of knowledge at their fingertips, and often know more than adults.

But they have very little real-life experience, creating an imbalance he calls "artificial maturity".
- Arrogant, low self-esteem
Dr Elmore found that teenagers adept at discovering new information online may develop an arrogant attitude because they know more than adults, including their parents or teachers.

But at some point, they realise their knowledge is hollow and begin to have self-doubt, and their self-esteem can take a hit.

He also found these youngsters to be more self-absorbed, and possessing lower empathy than those born a decade earlier.

They are also poor face-to-face communicators, preferring a screen as a buffer.
- Some dangers
"Artificially mature" young girls who are confident online may attract sexual predators, but end up not knowing how to handle the real-life situation when they meet the older males and may be coerced into having sex.

Cyber-bullying, which is more stealthily done than real-life bullying, is also a possible danger, said Dr Elmore.

"They have a lot of information but few life skills," he said.
- At the workplace
This generation prefers to text rather than talk face to face with colleagues or supervisors. Some may feel superior to older colleagues because they are more techie.

Senior colleagues may not like their attitude.

Dr Elmore hopes his findings will help adults frustrated with this generation to understand them better. "The kids are recipients of the leadership we gave them or failed to give them. Now it's time to adjust what we gave them," he said.

First-class food, third-world toilets

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Austrian cleaning consultant aims to raise industry productivity, standards
By Toh Yong Chuan, The Straits Times, 15 Jul 2013

AFTER six months in Singapore, Mr Oliver Andersch is charmed by the hawker fare. "First-class food," he cooed.

But the Austrian has not been quite as impressed with the cleanliness and hygiene of the hawker centres. "Third world," he slammed. "They use the same cloth for everything - wiping away food, cleaning tables. This is disgusting," he said, shaking his head.

It is his job to help make it better. He is Singapore's only "ang moh" (Caucasian) toilet cleaner.

Although the 43-year-old holds the title of "cleaning excellence and development director" with cleaning company ISS Facility Services, he told The Straits Times: "I'm basically just an experienced cleaning guy." He trains his firm's cleaners to do their jobs more efficiently, with all sessions conducted one on one. Some 200 cleaners have gone under his tutelage.

And he hopes to improve Singapore's cleaning standards, which are both primitive and inefficient in his view. "Singapore has an international reputation as a clean city, but the cleanliness is maintained by a big army of cleaners whose productivity is low... They go about their work like robots."

Asked how inefficient these cleaners are, he replied without hesitation: "It is about 10 to 15 years behind Europe.

"The same work can be done by about 30 per cent fewer cleaners, if they use proper methods and tools."

For instance, he said, most cleaners do not have a standardised workflow and do their job haphazardly. His method starts with the toilet. "The toilet is the hardest to clean so if a cleaner can get it right, the rest will be easier. It is also where clients usually check."

He proudly showed an A4-sized laminated card of the six-step cleaning method that he put together. It is a systematic workflow - from dry to wet areas, and from the cleaner sections to the dirty areas like urinals and toilet bowls.

When The Straits Times observed a training session last Friday, Mr Andersch, with his sleeves rolled up, was showing 42-year-old Nan Aye Wai how to clean a toilet. "Don't bend your back when you mop. You have to watch your health too," he was overheard saying.

After the one-hour session, he told this reporter that Ms Nan, a permanent resident, "has a good feel of the cleaning workflow" and she will get better with practice.

Mr Andersch, a trained chemist, came to Singapore in January with his wife and two young daughters. It is his first stint in Asia, after more than a decade in Austria as a cleaning consultant. His contract runs for two years but he is prepared to stay longer.

He is not bothered by the label "ang moh toilet cleaner", after The Straits Times explained what it meant. "A cleaning job is a respectable job, so who does it and the colour of the skin doesn't matter," he said.

"If I don't clean the toilets myself, how am I going to show the cleaners how to do it?" he said. "There is no shame in having to clean toilets. Someone has to clean the s***."

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