by Tan Wei Wei Celeste
Over the past few years, the term “protest” came out repeatedly for many times. In United States, we have the Black Lives Matter protests going throughout the country in all 50 states. In Philippines, protesters called on legislators to junk the proposed anti-terror bill known as Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 with concerns over the rights of free speech and independent media. In Hong Kong, the protest first started in 2019 with concerns over the extradition bill. In Toronto, the protest for justice and racial equity started after the death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet, a black woman who died after falling from her balcony under police officers presence. In Israel, Israelis are protesting police brutality after the killing of a teacher at the hands of Israeli police. Similarly, for Brazil, police brutality and divides over President Jair Bolsonaro’s lockdown restrictions carried on amid coronavirus outbreak. In Chile, Chileans are protesting to request for food aids from government due to the lack of food available during a general quarantine. In Thailand, protesters are calling for a reform of the monarchy under the constitution. Not forgetting the recent protest in United States when President Trump refused to concede his loss and urged his supporters to rally at the Capitol building.
What was more shocking is protest that happened in Singapore against transphobia outside the Ministry of Education headquarters last Tuesday. The group of five first started the protest peacefully by holding placards stating “#FIX SCHOOLS NOT STUDENTS”, “WHY ARE WE NOT IN YOUR SEX ED”, “HOW CAN WE GET A’s WHEN YOUR CARE FOR US IS AN F”, “trans students will NOT be erased” and “trans students deserve access to HEALTHCARE & SUPPORT”. As they did not have police permit to carry out the public assembly, the three individuals were eventually arrested when they ignored the police’s warning and continued with their activities.
Unlike other countries, mass rally and public demonstrations are rare in Singapore because they are illegal if conducted without a police permit. It then leads me to wonder what motivated them to protest? Were they aware that this is against the law? Linking it to what is happening around the world, why is there an increase in protests across the world? Is it an indication that people are being more vocal? Or is it an indication that there is a lack of alternative platforms to voice out our concerns?
Currently, we have: REACH (reaching everyone for active citizenry @ home), a lead agency in facilitating Whole-of-Government efforts to engage and connect with citizens. SG Youth Action Plan, that was formed in 2019 to allow young people to provide policy recommendations and enter projects to lead the change they hope to see. Weekly Meet-The-People Sessions at various constituencies, where citizens get to meet their elected Member of Parliament. People’s Association, which serves as the bridge between citizens and government. HappyDot, that conducts surveys frequently to collect public opinion. Even on our social media platforms, we can post freely which has a huge ability to garner attention. Are these platforms not sufficient? Or are they not effective?
While I personally opined that it is normal to be unhappy over certain issues and it is both good and necessary to have feedback for the Government, I think that this feedback should be voiced out on appropriate platforms that are effective yet not damaging to the society. So, the real question here is are there such platforms in status quo?
Sources:
https://mothership.sg/2017/08/ways-to-make-the-government-listen-to-you/
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