Ladies and Gentlemen,
True, Lee Kuan Yew has built a concrete shining glittering glass city of skyscrapers. He has welcomed all and sundry foreigners and turned it into another Dubai where they come and they make money, and in the process, they give some jobs to locals. All very fine. But what has he done to his people? He has turned them into a people consumed with fear, not knowing what will happen next, if they said anything out of line with Lee's politically correct philosophy. He has turned Singaporeans into a people devoid of character, convictions, principles or courage. He has turned them into dumb sheep.
In Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, his sons and his Ministers pay themselves each millions of dollars, $3.7 million to be exact, which he calls a salary. This is the height of corruption. Any other normal human being anywhere in the world would object to this. After all it is taxpayers money which they are stealing. But the average Singaporean has no objection to this corruption by their leaders. They do complain in the Internet always disguised under nicknames so as not to reveal real their identities. They behave in this manner because they are afraid of what will happen to them if they identified themselves. In the meantime, the former Lee Kuan Yew, his son and every one of their friends continue the theft with impunity. Lee Kuan Yew has so successfully made them so fearful, that they have become paralyzed with fear and incapable of complaining as any normal human would.
In Singapore the Constitution which is supposed to guarantee the people their rights is totally ignored. The laws that guarantee free speech, expression and assembly which one would expect in any other country are all denied. Today you are not allowed to make a speech in public unless you have a permit. And if you did apply for a permit, it is always denied. It is always a one sentence letter that they send you "Your application has been carefully considered but it is denied"
No right to protest peacefully in public and no rights whatsoever that any other normal human being would have taken for granted anywhere else in the free world. In any other country the normal human being would have protested and be up in arms to demand their Constitutional rights. But not in Singapore. The people are afraid. They are incapable of standing up to what they consider their rights which belongs to them. Lee Kuan Yew has turned the people into sheep, numbed into obedience regardless of what Lee Kuan Yew does to them.
In Singapore, there is no free press. The entire island's media is controlled by the state and independent news is illegal. This is a violation of the Constitution which guarantees a free press. The people know this. They are aware that the government is denying their rights to a free and independent press under the law. In any other country, the people would have come out in open protest and cried foul and demanded their right to a free press. But in Singapore, the people are afraid. Lee Kuan Yew has so successfully subjugated and intimidated them that they have lost the courage to demand it. They can only suffer in silence and simply accept.
In Singapore there is no rule of law. In font of their very eyes they have seen the late JB Jeyaretnam, opposition politician being repeatedly persecuted through false charges of defamation and destroyed in Lee Kuan Yew's Kangaroo Courts. To a man they know that JB Jeyaretnam did no wrong. To a man they know that the law is being misused before their very eyes. In any other country the people would have come out in throngs and cried foul and demanded justice for JB Jeyaretnam. But not in Singapore. The people have lost all their spirit and beliefs of right and wrong. They are terrified of Lee Kuan Yew. So they simply accept in silence while Jeyaretnam is repeatedly bankrupted, jailed and destroyed. A decent human being anywhere else would have come to the aid of a man being mistreated. But in Singapore their all consuming fear prevents him from acting honorably.
It is the same scenario for all the victims of Lee Kuan Yew including Chee Soon Juan, Tang Liang Hong and every other opposition politician. In my case they sent me to jail in 2008 while on a brief trip to the island, for writing a blog criticizing his judge Belinda Ang Saw Ean who shamelessly destroyed Chee Soon Juan to please Lee Kuan Yew. But nobody came to help me. There were no demonstrations in the streets of Singapore in my support. Singaporeans couldn't care less if their fellow citizens or human beings was being abused by the all powerful Lee Kuan Yew before their very eyes. They are afraid to do or say anything because of what might happen to them if they did. They are paralyzed with fear.
Lee Kuan Yew has turned the island into another Nazi Germany. Like under Hitler, Singaporeans know that to succeed in life, they have to support Lee Kuan Yew and his policies. Even if they personally disagree with his corruption on an industrial scale of $3.7 million a year each, or their denying human rights or their denying the rule of law or anything else they may think wrong, in order to live a quiet life and succeed they have to pretend that Lee Kuan Yew is best. They have to pretend that it is all right for Lee and his friends to be as corrupt as they want. And they have to pretend as if rule of law exists after all even if they can see before their very eyes that it doesn't.
Lee Kuan Yew has successfully turned himself into a cult figure in his small island, something like a Charles Manson or a Jim Jones who was able to extract unconditional loyalty from his congregation no matter how outrageous his actions are. He has managed to brainwash an entire island into complete and total obedience. To Singaporeans Lee Kuan Yew has turned into some kind of a God incapable of doing any wrong. It is OK for him to steal millions, it is OK for him to deny human rights, it is OK for him to abuse the courts, in fact it is OK for him to do anything he wants. In fact I don't think the average Singaporean would have minded if Lee Kuan Yew raped his wife or daughter. In Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew can do anything and everything he wants. After all he is Lee Kuan Yew. He is above the law. He is God.
Lee Kuan Yew has managed to successfully change human thought process in his people and has managed to brand honest upright individuals as criminals while crooks and fraudsters are labelled model citizens. JB Jeyaretanm was an honest man, a fighter for his people. Although he fought for freedom and the people's rights, Lee Kuan Yew successfully labeled him a criminal and a cheat.
Today not many in Singapore give Jeyaretnam credit and many in fact have not even heard of him because Lee has managed to successfully black his name out from the state controlled press. Whereas Lee Kuan Yew who is openly corrupt and gives money and jobs to his relatives and cronies is called a great leader an a model citizen. In fact the concept of greatness and honor have been successfully skewed to make corrupt leaders like Lee Kuan Yew model citizens and martyrs like JB Jeyaretnam crooks.
There is no advantage to have glittering skyscrapers but yet have a complete society of people who have no sense of right from wrong, no ability to stand up to the truth, no spine, no courage, no honor, character or principles but the ability only to follow any leader however ruthless or corrupt as long as there is profit in it.
When I grew up in the island as a kid, Singaporeans had some spine, some character, some principles, some courage. Thanks to Lee Kuan Yew, for the sake of survival and the all consuming fear, they have lost all these ideals. Today the Singaporean is simply a spineless unscrupulous character, with no sense of honor, no sense of right from wrong, so long as he is safe and able to live his life unmolested by Lee Kuan Yew or his son. This is the sad legacy that Lee Kuan Yew has left, the same man who is placed on a pedestal, not only by locals but by leaders around the world as a great leader of this world, like a God
Gopalan Nair
Attorney at law
A Singaporean in Exile
Fremont California USA
Tel: 510 491 8525
Email: nair.gopalan@yahoo.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/singapore.dissident
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4 comments:
LKY reminds me of the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang or Ying Zheng.This emperior is an asshole who treated his people like slaves and enriched himself with great wealth. He murdered and instilled fear to his nation. However, he did united the Chinese with a common language and standardised the country system. His "great wall" prevents invaders from the north to harass China easily. That is why till today, many Chinese are thankful to him despite being an immoral and heartless man.
Lee Kuan Yew himself is power hunger but he did some good to the Singapore society and made many of Singapore's neighbors with jealousy. Singapore did became a real modern society in South East Asia while the others remain backwards.
Most people still honor Lee Kuan Yew because of what he achieve for the country despite his Machiavellian nature.
However, most Singaporeans DO NOT have much faith in his successor, PM Lee. In fact, the chance of his party being kick out is higher now that "THE icon of protection" is gone from this world. PAP members are probably now worried with paranoid about their future. Their mandate to rule this country will be lost in the coming GE.
Why do Singapore still have a Pledge that talk about things that remains unfulfilled after 50 years.
Why is it that China has more Presidents over the past 50 years, but not Singapore.
We do not know what will happen if Lee, Jr were to get knocked over by an object and join his parents while he is still in office.
Unlike resource rich countries or countries in the easy stage of development, Singapore has reached the pinnacle of economic development, and the island is overcrowded with people. GHrowth has to slow down because the people cannot think independently or do the creative stuff that matches the high pay that Singaporeans are comfortable with.
Singaporeans will find it difficult to integrate with a flawed world and solve real world issues. Rather, they are good at complaining when things do go wrong.
Gopalan sir,
Many Singaporeans do not know your existence, just as many think Lee Kuan Yew can do no wrong. Singapore media has done an excellent job at both.
Singaporeans these days have no fear, because they do not realise its overwhelming pressence, unless they spend a lot of time overseas.
Singaporeans are also rediscovering their foolish obedience to PAP. Lee Con Yew has done an excellent job in his dead to capture the hearts and minds of a new generation of wayward citizens.
It helps that they do not question authorities which make squeezing money out of them easy.
A $1000 vacation trip to China end up costing $6000 because Singaporean tourists are easy to con. No such luck with Hongkongers.
I think the effort by Dr Chee, Roy and other good people to bring a more civil society has hit the rocks with setback of a few year.
Loong the current PM know that and is effectively campaigning by reaching out to mourning citizens queuing for a last look at the dead despot.
It is worrying a Singaporean who spent msny years in Australia who confide in me. Does Singapore has a future if ut cannot face up to the point present. I know he is telling me a few issues.
Australia know how to conduct peaceful change of governments. The people may make mistakes in choosing leaders but the leaders will not last unless they govern from the sensible centre.
The economy runs independent of govt, and there is a geniune belief in a safety net and dignity. This is tested over and over again when natural disasters strike Australia.
Australians are able to face danger because they know what to do, not avoid them like utopia Singapore.
Singaporeans lack real life experiences for surviving in the real world. And they wonder why foreign talents get the jobs and are happier than them.
How is the Singaporean going to be like in a decade? How is Singapore going to fare without its larger than life personality cult? What kind of assurance Singapore can offer foreign investors? How will the envious neighbouring countries react to the death of Lee in a tiny rich Chinese enclave in the Malay region.
I viewed the eulogy given to the Dead Despot LKY and I have to say a few things why Singapore is finished.
The head of state, Tony Tan, give a very pedestrian and safe eulogy that you will find in a rich Yes-man relation.
The trade unionist gave one that unions overseas would frown on. and the AWARE feminist movement would be proud of.
The journalist was the worst, not difficult to see why a young, naive graduate was picked.
Even the son Loong spoke of how PAP need to have the dead despot remind them of continuing his legacy.
Boy, history tells us what happened when the demanding and strict patriarch of the family die.
Living in the west for too long, I spotted the propaganda for domestic audience. I am not sure how this country can work
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