Archive of The Data Lounge article, “Singapore Denies Gay Group Permit to Meet” (25 May 2000)

Singapore Denies Gay Group Permit to Meet Thursday, 25 May 2000

SINGAPORE — Authorities in Singapore have turned down a request for a public forum forwarded by a fledging gay and lesbian group , saying it would “legitimize practices considered unlawful” in the city-state, the South China Morning Post reports.

In a statement, authorities were quoted as saying they “cannot allow the holding of this public forum, which will advance and legitimize the cause of homosexuals in Singapore.” The gathering would have been the first of its kind in Singapore.

Alex Au, who is becoming the most prominent spokesman on gay and lesbian rights issues in Singapore, made the request of police in early May, “It’s a tip-toe into the water, so to speak, because this will be the first time anyone knows of where we will apply for a public entertainment license for an event with gay and esbian writ large in the theme,” he said at the time.

All public gatherings of more than eight people require a police license and authorities in Singapore are under no obligation to explain their reasons for denying applications. All attempts made since 1993 to register gay and lesbian organizations in Singapore have been rejected.

——————————————————————– “Mainstream moral values of Singaporeans areconservative.” ———————————————————————

Police quoted Singapore’s Penal Code which deems consensual sexual relations between adult members of the same sex “unnatural,” punishable by a fine and a sentence of life imprisonment. Any male abetting or procuring “an act of gross indecency” with another man can also be jailed for up to two years.

“The mainstream moral values of Singaporeans are conservative,” the police statement said.

Au, in a provocation to a government that has a low tolerance for dissent or criticism said on Wednesday, “It seems that civil society can only operate within the narrow confines of what the authorities deem to be the public interest.”

Au’s criticisms were echoed by Dana Lam, president of the Association of Women for Action and Research. She said the statement by authorities “makes the environment sound very hostile to the gay segment of the population.”

Said Lam: “If we can deny people their right to an open forum, if we can threaten imprisonment to their face for what is essentially a private act, what will we do next?”

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Acknowledgements

This article was first archived by Davestar on SiGNEL:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/signel/message/664