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Singaporeans
Participated in International Human Rights Torch Relay
Singapore
Democrats
21 Jan 08
For the first time in
Singaporean history, a human rights torch had come on shore, so
declared human rights lawyer Mr M. Ravi, the president of the
Singapore chapter of the Coalition to Investigate the Persecution
of Falun Gong (CIPFG).
On Saturday, a group of human rights activists and Falung Gong
practitioners gather at the Civil Service Club at Changi to
continue the international
torch relay, which had started in Greece
and gone on through countries such Sweden, Australia, New Zealand
and most recently Indonesia. An initiative of the CIPFG, the
relay is to highlight human rights abuses in China, and in
particular the ongoing harvesting of organs from Falun Gong
practitioners. The coalition is also calling for the boycott of
the Beijing Olympics 2008.
At the convening conference, Mr
Ravi expressed elation that Singaporeans are now showing more
care and concern about human rights issues and abuses. Citing his
own experience with the Falung Gong practitioners as their legal
representative when a few practitioners were charged for illegal
assembly in Singapore, Mr Ravi assured the audience that their
persecution under the hand of the Chinese authority is well
documented and not something their have fabricated.
Guest
speaker Mr JB Jeyaratnam voiced support for the cause and added
that there are also human rights violations in Singapore. He
expressed the hope that when the time comes [to stand up against
human rights violations in Singapore], that we will all be up to
it.
The Assistant Secretary-General of the Singapore
Democrat Party, Mr John Tan, recounted his interest and concern
about human rights abuses in China since his youth. He has heard
of persecution of Christians, Tibetans and, more recently, Falung
Gong practitioners. Counting it an honour to be able to play a
role in calling China to accountability, Mr Tan stressed that
China must not be allowed to get away with their abuses by
collecting international goodwill through the hosting of the
Olympics.
In between local speakers, the moderator, Mr Sng
Beng Kok, conducted e-interviews with two foreign guests. Both
the Asia Director of the Human Rights Law Foundation, USA, Ms
Theresa Chu, and the Human Rights Torch Relay Organising
Committee member in Australia, Mr Hamish Oliver Perrett,
articulated their support and wished the Singapore relay
well.
After the conference, the group held a brief
ceremony to commemorate the relay of the human rights torch and
proceeded to the Chinese embassy to hand in a petition (see
content here).
Thereafter, they went to Mount Faber Park for some photographs
before dispersing.
As their numbers dwindled, police
officers confronted the remaining ten persons and seized their
banners and torches on the pretext that the items were needed to
aid in the investigation into their possible commission of
illegal assembly.
Stories and video in Chinese from
other sources can be found here
and here.
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