Preaching from flawed perch

I really do not like it when public servants perched in their lofty crystal towers preach of values they don't seem to have. A case in point is this recent letter from the Ministry of Manpower, which was a response to this letter featured on The Online Citizen.

The ministry's letter states "it is critical to remain objective and ensure that employees' claims are valid". This value of objectivity surfaces again in another line: "We urge NGOs to assess each case objectively and comprehensively, rather than rushing to assign blame".

Yet, the letter in disclosing the work MOM did in this case, goes on to provide, "we reviewed documentary evidence of salary calculations and records of the company and established that Yang was not owed any salary".

How is that being objective when you rely on the documentary evidence of one party, and totally remain silent on the evidence of the other?

A lot of times the person representing the company in such manpower dispute resolution sessions at Ministry of Manpower has had some form of legal training. How does this stack up against the foreign worker who speaks little English and has peripheral knowledge of his legal rights?

The fact is the Ministry of Manpower in being the investigator and adjudicator of such claims is hardly in a position to be objective.

Many years ago, a body of corporate lawyers representing employers in Singapore recommended that the resolution of employment disputes should really be the remit of a properly equipped and independent tribunal, as is the case in jurisdictions of similar standing to Singapore. That paper is probably now gathering dust on some public servant's shelf.

Notwithstanding the lack of judicial training and legal qualifications, which would go towards determining ability, a public servant whose mandate is to protect the job market in Singapore and therefore the employer hardly has the will to work in the interests of workers.

It is an inherent trait in this role that such a public servant cannot be objective let alone preach to others about being objective.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?
Feel free to react below or leave a comment.

Cane Irresponsible Employers of Foreign Workers

PEOPLE & POWER: HUMAN TRADE



WITNESS: MIGRANT DREAMS

Part I



Part II



Afterthoughts:

1. Some years ago, the leading broadsheet of Singapore dedicated a whole section to foreign workers who had prospered in Singapore and returned to their respective countries to build beautiful homes and families. That story, as these documentaries show, has now changed.

2. What is even more shocking is the regulator's reaction to such mistreatment of foreign workers. The documentaries portray them as a manipulated eunuch. They come across as powerless. They appear to have failed to discharge their duty as guardians of these workers. They seem unsuccessful in protecting Singapore's reputation as a responsible state.

3. An example should be made of irresponsible employers, who allegedly lace their pockets with the debts of these foreign workers and put to risk hundreds or thousands of lives beyond the shores of Singapore.

4. Singapore was quick to introduce corporal punishment to stem the inflow of illegal immigrants into Singapore. The government says it has worked. Perhaps, employers who irresponsibly bring into Singapore workers but have no jobs for them should be treated the same.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment. Do you really need to print this?

Younger Lawyers Respond To Senior Lawyer

In the past week, I have received a range of reactions from different sections of the legal fraternity in relation to the AWARE coup.

Firstly, there are those who consider themselves "God's Children" and see it as their religious mandate to do all that they can to endorse the work of those who wash away their sins and of those around them.

Secondly, there are others who are absolutely appalled by the intolerance and immaturity displayed by some very senior members of the profession. The letter below is one example of those in this category.

Another lawyer is going further and initiating a customers' revolt. He writes, "I am going to call up DBS and terminate my credit cards. The DBS person on the line will ask me why (they always ask for that kind of customer feedback). And I am going to say that it's because of their Head of Marketing, Josie Lau. I will say that I have a very poor opinion of her behaviour in the Aware saga, and that for that reason, I have decided to stop using DBS credit cards. Furthermore I will request for my feedback to be given to DBS's senior management. It's a matter of principle. I am only one customer. But I will do what I think is right."

Thirdly, there are others who ask me, "Why should I care?"

Of the three categories of persons above, the third worries me the most. To these persons, I respond with a poem by Pastor Martin Niemöller:

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

Then they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
I did not speak out;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out for me.

It is important to care about what happens around us although I wouldn't go as far as the late Winston Churchill. He said, "You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life."

Another young lawyer, Sivarajan Sivalingam, has best summed up the importance of being taking an interest in such issues: "Be AWARE lest you be caught unAWARE."

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment. Do you really need to print this?

*****

I write in response to the article titled “Lawyer's key role in Aware coup” (ST, 24 Apr 2009) detailing Dr. Thio Su Mien’s involvement in the AWARE saga. I was disappointed with the contents of the report, and what Dr. Thio had to say on certain issues.

She feels that AWARE has given too much precedence to what she naively calls “promoting a homosexual agenda” – i.e. the fact that “homosexuality is regarded as a neutral word, not a negative word” in AWARE’s secondary school sex education programme. I think this misses the forest for the trees.

Dr. Thio (given her credentials) must be familiar with the ordinary linguistic difference between the passivity of a neutral stance and the element of “activeness” involved in "promoting a homosexual agenda" (quite frankly, a tired turn of phrase). More significantly, it ought to be noted that during the heated debate early last year surrounding the Petition to repeal section 377A of the Penal Code, AWARE unlike the Law Society did not comment on the matter. Most importantly, the examples Dr. Thio cites are all premised on hearsay and carry an element of scaremongering – i.e. “The suggestion is that in this programme, young girls from 12 to 18 are taught that it's okay to experiment with each other. And this is something which should concern parents in Singapore. Are we going to have an entire generation of lesbians?” This undeniably is nothing but hyperbole, and as such, I find it impossible to agree with Dr. Thio’s view.

Her insistence that AWARE “seems to be only very interested in lesbianism and the advancement of homosexuality” is a fallacy that does a great disservice to the previous committee, whose past reports to the CEDAW Committee have been comprehensive in addressing the discrimination that women in Singapore face, and how this can be addressed have been nothing short of impressive. Dr. Thio seems to fixate on the work of one of AWARE's sub-committees thereby effectively ignoring the wide-ranging support AWARE provides to women in Singapore. This is not only inaccurate, but unfair.

It has been repeatedly said that AWARE is a secular and non-partisan NGO premised on the equality of women and furthering the best interests of women. As a woman, I cannot condone an organisation that claims to speak for me while in the same breath claiming that all women are equal, but some are more equal than others.

Puja Varaprasad
25 April 2009

The Man Bank

Seen on the back cover of the December 1962 edition of the Malaya Law Review.

Imagine what would happen if this same advertisement were to be carried by a publication of similar standing today?

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment. Do you really need to print this?

True Colours

Afterthought:

1. A friend shared this advertisement with me earlier today.

2. I like advertisements, especially those that get you talking or those that generally leave you feeling positive about the world we live in. This is one of them. It's also one of those advertisements that really keeps you guessing till the end. How you react at the end will probably be an indication of your own values, personality and outlook.

3. The Swedish company behind this advertisement, Bjorn Borg, comes across as a socially responsible entity. I am also not sure if the brand has anything to do with the tennis star of the same name. Nevertheless, it reminds me of other positive brands like The Body Shop. Unfortunately, the company doesn't have a presence in Asia so it's really hard to tell.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?

Sexist Developments

I get really hilarious stuff in my mailbox from time to time.

Two days ago, I got this from a male:


Within the next two hours, I got this from a female:


As much as the two e-mails were not part of the same chain of communication and their original sources remain unverified, I just thought the irony of the whole situation was worth capturing.

In defence of our own sexes, indeed.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?

Ho To Goodyear

I asked a friend, "Why do you think Ho Ching is stepping down as chief executive of Temasek Holdings?"

My friend replied, "Because Singapore wants a Goodyear this year!"

Afterthought:

1. Ho Ching's successor is a 51 year old American known as Charles Goodyear.

2. Dedicated to my peer, Clement Tan.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?

Preserving JBJ Name

A reader of this blog, Lin Yu, shared the following poem about Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam earlier today:

You could have made it big, you could have been very rich
But you gave it all up for what is your belief.

You could have given in to all the troubles and you could have given up the fights
But for the love of your country, it is a thought you neither haboured nor took flight.

Alas, a son of Singapore has left us with honour and dignity
But his name and his spirit will always be in our history.

Afterthoughts:

1. Lin Yu, thank you for sharing your poem. The poem has been edited for grammatical accuracy.

2. Some persons have recently initiated a petition to the Prime Minister to get the Government to preserve JBJ's "public spiritedness and love of the law". First, they desire "a professorial chair in the name of Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam be created in the Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore". Second, they desire "a scholarship fund in the name of Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam for graduate studies in political science and/or constitutional law and/or civil society studies".

3. Personally, it is not in the interest of a Government controlled by the People's Action Party to do so. It will be a miracle if the Government responds positively to such an effort. Of course, it is possible, if enough backers of the Government write in to them to do so, the Government may be prompted to react in some manner. But if you know some of these backers, they will probably tell you that they have better things to do.

3. My own sense from the Cabinet's neutered response to JBJ's death is that there is a conscious lack of interest or desire to give JBJ's expiry more attention than he deserved during his lifetime. This conclusion can be drawn particularly from the condolence letter that the Prime Minister sent to JBJ's family.

4. As much as I laud the efforts of those petitioning the Prime Minister, I think they will need to do more legwork before the Government responds. For example, by raising the seed funds needed to realise what they wish to see for JBJ.

5. Fortunately, the political hero of my generation, Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong had the foresight to put in place helpful measures before he stepped down as Prime Minister. He began an ambitious programme to move Singapore's local universities on a path of being self-reliant. The process of giving to our local universities is therefore far more transparent than it used to be.

6. Since the petitioners desire to give to the National University of Singapore, a "professorial chair in the name of Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam" in the Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore will cost $2,000,000. The "scholarship fund in the name of Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam for graduate studies in political science and/or constitutional law and/or civil society studies" will cost $150,000.

7. A total of $2,150,000 will need to be raised. The Government will respond by matching the gift dollar-for-dollar. Singapore residents who pay taxes and contribute will also enjoy double tax deduction. Those who strongly desire to preserve JBJ's "public spiritedness and love of the law" should consider setting up a fund-raising committee to raise the necessary $2,150,000.

8. Indeed, like many other things in Singapore, we need to help ourselves first before the Government helps. If any response comes, this is probably what the Prime Minister will tell the petitioners.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?

Jokes From Readers

JOKE #1

"Dharmendra Yadav was in the queue for F1 tickets when he felt someone massaging him. He turned around and saw an elderly Chinese man.

"What do you think you are doing," Dharma asked.

"Pardon me," said the Chinese man, "I am in the massage business so I decided to practice a little while waiting in the queue."

Dharma said, "I am a lawyer but do you see me screwing the guy in front."

Om."

JOKE #2

"Dharmendra Yadav goes to England and asks his PR man to give him a new name. His PR man calls back the next day to tell him his new name. Kling Eastwood."

Afterthought:

1. Readers, who prefer to remain anonymous, recently shared the two jokes above on this blog.

2. I am not sure if they jokes are adapted from elsewhere. I thought they are rather creative. And I wanted to share these with other readers.

3. My friends often share that this blog is too serious. To the readers who sent those jokes, thank you for sharing. Please do keep them coming. It will help keep this blog less serious!

4. I am not sure what's with the ending "Om" in the first joke. Perhaps, the reader is alluding to the beautiful Hindu word often chanted by believers of Sanatana Dharma in the world over. In certain parts of the world, I do get people offering to massage me while I wait in a queue. I think it is a great idea. What better way to kill time!

5. In the second joke, I am not sure what's a PR man. A superhero of sorts, maybe? And, unfortunately, I still don't catch the Kling Eastwood part.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?

From Ashwinder to just Ash

Petronas, Malaysian oil company, advertisement:

"The world is changing but we should always be proud of who we are."

Afterthought:

1. When I first landed in England in 1999, I was intrigued by how Asians there had a penchant for shortening their names to biteable English-sounding words. For example, Ashwinder Singh Gill would simply be called Ash or, similar to the case of the video above, Samyveloo Reddy would be just Sam.

2. Coming back to Asia about 5 years ago, I noticed this trend had caught on here. My Chinese peers, in particular, have adopted English names. My friend Sian Teck is now Jason or Kinn Oei is now Jervis.

3. When I asked my friends about this, they said it helped them in the course of their work. They shared it made it easier for people to remember their names.

4. Today, there are various short versions of my name circulating among my friend. To some, I am Dee. To others, I am Dom. To many, I am Dharm. To a few, I am Dharam or Endra.

5. Nevertheless, I am happy to remain Dharmendra Yadav. The world may be changing but it doesn't change who I am or where I came from.

6. Finally, I wish to thank my friend, Michael Chua, for kindly showing me how to embed a Youtube video into a blog posting.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?

Prominently Politically Pink

Ho Kwon Ping, Chairman of Singapore Management University, Executive Chairman of Banyan Tree Holdings and Chairman of MediaCorp writing in Today Weekend on 6 September 2008:

"Optimists hope that the decriminalisation of gay sex — a yawn to anyone except the homophobic and the gays themselves — will eventually occur. In reality, rather than in law, gays in Singapore today have never had it so good, and should within a short time, become fully-accepted — not just tolerated — members of an increasingly diverse, and therefore vibrant, Singapore community. But if we pat ourselves on the back for being so “bold” as to accept casinos and Formula 1 events into staid Singapore, why can’t the boldness extend to a simple act to enable gays to realise their dream — indeed, their simple right — to be normal Singaporeans like anyone else, no more and no less."

Afterthought:

1. A blogger hopes that more such "alternative views" about how Singapore should go forward will be expressed by other prominent persons in Singapore.

2. Pink is now a colour associated with the homosexual community. For example, there is the Pink Paper, "Britain’s only national lesbian, gay and bisexual newspaper and the biggest circulating gay publication of any kind in the country". This association to pink has its roots in the Pink Triangle, which "was used by the Nazis in concentration camps to identify and shame homosexuals" and "has been embraced by the gay community as a symbol of pride".

3. Yesterday, about three days after Ho's views were published, the Prime Minister of Singapore speaking at the Forbes Global CEO Conference showed why pink is in.

4. Ho noted in his article that "gays are seen to be at the leading edge of the “creative class” — which Singapore is trying to develop as part of its new knowledge-based, creativity-oriented economy".

5. Perhaps, the creative minds, if any, behind PM Lee Hsien Loong's image are indeed sending a message out to Singapore and the world. What more pragmatic way to have it expressed than at the Forbes Global CEO Conference.

6. For reasons I have made known in the past, it is time for Section 377A of the Penal Code to go.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?

Foreign Bodies In Singapore

DEDICATED TO SIVA GOVINDASAMY ON THE SOFT LAUNCH OF GEE SIVA!

Former Straits Times journalist, Siva Govindasamy, reacting on Gee Siva! to objections expressed by Singaporeans living in Serangoon Gardens about having a dormitory for foreign workers located there, 7 September 2008:

"Stereotypes are well and truly alive in this modern multi-ethnic metropolis. We want our own space and are selective about which foreigners will be allowed into it, making a serious dent in the attempts to evolve into a tolerant multi-cultural society."

Afterthought:

1. I have observed from time to time that Singaporeans are becoming increasingly intolerant in some ways. The angst that some Singaporeans express when foreigners move into their respective neighbourhoods, especially those issued work permits, is one example of this.

2. I have lived for the past decade in a neighbourhood with many foreigners, Taman Jurong in Singapore.

3. The presence of these foreigners has brought its own inherent opportunities and challenges. Efforts have been made to integrate both Singaporean and non-Singaporean communities. Community events that see the attendance of both these groups are a norm. The joint numbers have also helped some shops in the neighbourhood stay in the black. To allay residents' concerns about crime, there is also a visible police presence.

4. On balance, I would say it has made a neighbourhood that was once ignored as the appendix of Jurong a more vibrant and diverse place to live in.

5. Looking at the objections raised by the residents of Serangoon Gardens, which Siva has rebutted point-by-point, I would submit that the residents are just being selfish. It only reflects a Singaporean mentality that has become too used in looking to the Government for solutions to the extent of being pragmatically insensitive. We can be more accepting of differences in our society.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?

Singapore Chief Justice on Golf

Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong speaking at the welcome dinner of the inaugural ASEAN Law Association Judicial Cooperation Programme, 12 August 2006 -

“I don’t play golf and so [I] have no understanding whatsoever of the passion that impels avid golfers to forever seek the perfect game, sometimes thousands of miles away from home to play at classic golf courses. I am also told that golf is a very self-directed game, in that a golfer does not compete with another golfer, but with himself. I suppose that is why golfers, who blame fate for every untoward event in their lives, feel personally responsible when they make a hole in one. I am also told that golf provides a good testing ground in civility and good manners. In primitive society, when native tribes beat the ground with clubs and yell, it is called witchcraft; in civilised society it is called golf.”

Afterthought:

1. I really like the comparison made between witchcraft and golf here. How times have changed indeed.

2. This blog will now carry a new section called "Quotable". This section will feature quotes that I find in my daily life that has left an impression on me and which I feel is worth sharing on this space. If necessary, I will leave an 'afterthought' about the quote featured. All credit for the quotes should of course go to the respective authors.

Happiness,
Dharmendra Yadav

Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this?