This article is available (for now anyway) for free on ST online. It's one of the things that I've been really busy with recently.
I'm not going to say much about this. The petition is not about me. It is about the public, the people -- straight, gay, whatever -- who believe that Section 377A is wrong and should be repealed, and are willing to put their names down in writing to stand behind it. It is about helping people have their voice in Parliament. It is about recognising the petitioners, who are working so hard to make this happen.
So if you agree with this view, please go to Repeal377A.com and do your bit. If you disagree, that's OK and thanks for reading this post.
PS. This will be the second time that a petition will be presented to Parliament. The first was in 1985, when JBJ presented a petition by Sivadas s/o Sankaran, about the applicability of Parliamentary privileges to submissions to a Select Committee of Parliament.
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17 comments:
Mr Siew,
what is the minimum number of signatures needed for a petition to be accepted for debate in parlimant. I understand that you need a certain number for it to even be submitted.
Also, the high no. of anonymous signatures may be rejected if there is a mimimum quota of signatures needed. After all, people can just sign and re-sign anonymously to up the nos.
I am aware that somewhere in the 80s-90s there was also only one other petition. I thought it was Simon Tay (another NMP) on the maintenance of elders bill. Thanks for the info. Perhaps you can enlighten the public on how petition works and how different it is from, say, trying to sponsor a bill. And also, what are the procedure for the government once the petition is submitted and accepted for consideration, if ever.
All the best. Hope things go well for you.
Thank you for doing this.
Thank you very much for agreeing to George and Stuart's request and proposal to submit the petition to Parliament!
Your willingness to stand up for and support the minority and to fight against inequality are most admirable!
Thank you Mr Siew for doing this.
I'd like to suggest a possible compromise to propose in parliament.
For symbolism, we can keep Section 377A. But for practicality of application of law, we can suggest amending the text slightly to (1)exclude private acts and (2)exclude consenting adults.
This compromise with serve to remove potential blackmail on homosexuals, while seemingly still retaining some sort of "conservatism".
Thanks, Mr. Siew.
You're a hero.
To readymade, bihui, kris and mg: Thank you.
To lau min-tsek: The minimum number is 1. Anonymity is not allowed. The petition is not a bill and is not legislation, it is a call to Parliament to do something. You can find some additional details on the procedure here.
To quzy: I understand where you are coming from. But I'm not sure if that amendment would make this any less contentious. In any case, the petition has gone out and it is not possible to make amendments.
i really don't know how to put it - but thank you, for doing what you are doing.
Thanks for doing this, you're a good man.
Mr Siew,
What you are doing is very important for our country's legislative process.
I sincerely hope to see you being nominated as an NMP again.
If you are not, it only shows how mature our political process is.
Dear Mr Siew,
I salute you for standing up to the big boys. My friends & I are rooting for this cause although we know it is very much a battle between David & Goliath.
Thank you!
Catherine
Don't waste your time championing the gays.....Use your position to champion the poor.
Pls go to http://www.keep377a.com/ if you disagree with repeal377a. 15,000 vote so far and it make me proud to me a singaporean.
Good on you for starting this Parliamentary Petition to repeal 377A. I read your statements regarding marital immunity against rape for a man who rapes his own wife, and just like you, I am extremely appalled that we still legally allow such things in our modern society. As such, while we're at repealing 377A, we should also show solidarity with respect to women's rights in this still largely MCP country and start a campaign to repeal Section 375, as well!
15,000 votes out of billions of people around the world? And you call yourself a proud Singaporean? Keep working hard cos Singaporeans are so "kiasu" they will want to have at least a billion votes.....And be No.1 in the world for most votes collected to repeal a wholesome penal code.
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