Singapore Island's lack of Rule of Law hurts it's interests

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It appears that the Singapore dictatorship made up of father, the bedridden senile 91 year old Lee Kuan Yew who has lost his normal senses and mobility and the son whom he appointed Prime Minister will never learn.

Only last week one of his Ministers in the Labor Ministry had sent a lawyers letter to a Committee Member of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party threatening, to sue him for defamation of character in Lee's island Kangaroo Courts unless he apologized and paid damages of $5,000.00 for something he wrote in his Face book on the unjust treatment of Chinese bus drivers who were recently jailed just for going on strike. Please see Singapore state controlled newspaper report http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/minister-receives-s5000-damages-defamation-case

Needless to say, once again, anyone reading what this man wrote will not consider it defamatory of anyone let alone something which attracts a damages award.

But the aforementioned 91 year old comatose bedridden old fellow, Lee Kuan Yew is his name, unfortunately continues to believe that the only way to govern is by intimidating and silencing everyone in his island through defamation of character law suits which he will invariably win before his well chosen Kangaroos in his Kangaroo Courts. In fact even before he steps into any courtroom in his island one already knows that he has won. The only question remaining is the amount of the damages.

You will see that expectedly this poor official in the opposition party instantly apologized, instantly paid the fine and would have even done the hop skip and jump if so demanded, under the imminent threat of being forthwith sued, jailed and bankrupted not necessarily in that order.

This is the sort of fear that the 91 year old bedridden dictator has managed to successfully instill in his entire tiny population of about 2.5 million locals and another 2.5 million recently arrived immigrants, mainly from Communist China.

The local Singaporeans of course are fully aware of the complete lack of credibility and integrity in the Singapore courts run by a bunch of handpicked minions specifically ordered to abuse the law to destroy every single one of Lee's political critics.

In the past there has been a steady activity in defamation actions against critics over decades, which include another of Lee Kuan Yew's victims, JB Jeyaretnam who perhaps holds a world record in the number of defamation law suits filed against him, and the amount in damages which has run into millions ordered against him, and bankruptcy as well to keep him out of politics.

Today’s Chee Soon Juan of the same opposition party has suffered the same, if not a worse fate for his daring to stand up to the old bedridden tin pot tyrant.

And in the list of his victims are countess others including myself, punished through abusing the law for daring to criticize him.

Any astute foreign investor in Singapore would know, just as local Singaporeans that the island lacks the rule of law, whose application can vary from one to another depending on who you are.

Besides the law being routinely abused to punish critics, its application constantly varies on the circumstances. One example is the Tak Boleh Tahan (translates in English to mean "I cannot take this anymore") in 2008 when I was in Singapore for a short visit. The Singapore Democratic Party members were prosecuted and convicted for holding a peaceful protest whereas Lee Kuan Yew’s people were allowed to do the same thing at the same location with impunity.

An examination of Singapore Island court cases over the years would show the double standards very clearly; one law for government supporters and another law for its critics.

It's like this, if you want to live a peaceful life, join the 91 year old bedridden dictator and sing his songs. If not, brace up for some rough going.

This message is so entrenched and understood in the tiny island of no more than about 2.5 million locals today that it has begun to hurt the Lee government and the island's interests. Tens of thousands of educated and skilled locals faced with this Hobsens choice of either joining the bandwagon or being marginalized or even punished have decided to take the third option; they have left the island for settlement abroad. Also the vast majority of lawyers have either refused to practice law, emigrated and the younger ones have refused to enter the profession. Today the island with no less than 5 million has no more than 2,000 local lawyers and diminishing. There is another 2,000 foreign lawyers desperately brought in to fill the void.

Although it is impossible to know how many foreign investors have either backed off from investing in the island or have pulled out their investments due to the island's lack of the rule of law, we will never know.

With the judiciary in the island known to be corrupted in their abusing the law politically, the island continues to suffer a lack of arbitration work which they are actively trying to attract. Who in their right minds would want to arbitrate a case at a place which routinely abuses the law for the government's political ends. Who would want to come to an island of Kangaroo judges and Kangaroo courts?

As Singapore continues to abuse the law, uses Kangaroo courts and Kangaroo judges and openly shows that its laws and rules are bent one way for some and another way for others, its problems will continue and increase. Even more Singaporeans will leave the island, even more investors will not invest in the island, and it will end up as it is today, with criminals and bank embezzlers being the only ones wanting to come because no one else will accept them.

Gopalan Nair
Attorney at Law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont, California, USA
Tel: 510 491 4375
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com