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SINGAPORE: Families will be able to board public buses with open strollers from Apr 2 as part of plans to make travelling with young children on public transport more convenient.
Second Minister for Transport Ng Chee Meng made the announcement in Parliament on Wednesday (Mar 8) during his ministry’s Committee of Supply debate.
He noted that it is challenging to have to fold up strollers before boarding buses, but the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and bus operators have genuine concerns for children’s safety, for example, if the bus brakes or swerves suddenly.
“Parents will have to be fully attentive and take responsibility for the safety of their children, and hold on tight to the open strollers at all times,” he said. “As we work towards a more inclusive public transport system, I urge other commuters to be patient if it takes a bit longer for families with open strollers to board our buses.”
In a press release, LTA said parents and caregivers can approach bus captains if they require assistance. If there are space constraints, bus captains may request that strollers be folded.
The agency also said that various institutes of higher learning are developing restraint systems to help families secure the strollers on board buses. A prototype of the system will be tested from the second quarter of this year, it said.
REDHILL MRT STATION TO BE “ACCESSIBILITY TEST-BED”
Mr Ng noted that all MRT stations and bus interchanges are now barrier-free, and 92 per cent of public buses are now wheelchair-accessible. This will be extended to 98 per cent of buses by the end of next year, and all buses by 2020.
To help passengers with visual difficulties, LTA will also start testing audio announcements on buses. This will be tested as an enhancement to the new passenger information display system now being trialled on bus service 106, he added.
LTA also plans to collaborate with SG Enable, an agency dedicated to supporting people with disabilities. As part of this collaboration, SG Enable will “adopt” Redhill MRT station, which is used by many of the disabled community who travel to the Enabling Village at Lengkok Bahru.
“Redhill station can then be a test-bed for new mobility technologies and infrastructure designs that can make public transport more accessible for persons with disabilities,” he said. “The hope is that through this project, we are able to co-create solutions with the Enabling Village community.”
He also noted that it is a challenge for people with disabilities to make the last-mile journey between Redhill station and the Enabling Village, because of the hilly topography and 400m distance. And he challenged LTA and SG Enable to come up with a solution to improve this.
IMPROVING PEDESTRIAN SAFETY AND ACCESSIBILITY
In an update, Mr Ng said lifts have been installed at 23 overhead bridges to improve pedestrian accessibility, and another 24 will be completed by the end of next year. However, he said lifts are not always the “most optimal solution”.
“They are expensive – they cost S$4 million in capital cost per pair of lifts, and to maintain them takes about S$40,000 per year,” he said. “If the lifts were to be shut down for maintenance or repair, the crossings would no longer be barrier-free.”
He said a better solution would be to implement at-grade pedestrian crossings where safety is not an issue and the impact on traffic “not excessive”.
“These are more convenient for the elderly and faster to build,” he said. “With our Green Man Plus programme, the elderly and persons with disabilities can get more crossing time.”
He added that the Government is also making streets safer for the elderly and less mobile through the Silver Zone programme. These Silver Zones are specially demarcated areas in residential areas with a large population of elderly residents and a relatively high accident rate involving seniors.
There are now nine Silver Zones and the programme will be expanded to another 41 locations islandwide.
To improve pedestrian safety, LTA will widen narrow footpaths with high pedestrian volumes where possible, from the current 1.5m or less to at least 1.8m.
New rules have also been introduced to protect pedestrians sharing footpaths with bicycles and personal mobility devices, he added.
A private school in Guangzhou has apologised after saying it would only accept students whose parents are university graduates.
Canadian Foreign Language School, a bilingual institute in the Guangdong provincial capital, posted the message on WeChat and on an electronic display board at its entrance on Friday.
The message led to outrage among netizens, with some accusing the school of class discrimination.
“We sincerely apologise,” the school said in a statement on Tuesday. “Our intention was to introduce quality education with a win-win for the school and for families. Considering various actual conditions, we withdrew the notice on the day.”
The school, part of the Canadian International Educational Organisation, which was set up in 2000, provids primary school and junior high school education in Guangzhou.
The education authority in Panyu district said private schools do have the autonomy to decide which students they accept, but it added that Canadian Foreign Language School’s message was against the principle of equality.
The school’s management team has been ordered to stop sending out the wrong message and to regulate its recruitment practices, the authority said.
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SINGAPORE – The National University of Singapore (NUS) has suspended the academic who had openly criticised another man who made public an imam’s comments.
The university told The Straits Times on Wednesday (Mar 8) that it had suspended Associate Professor Khairudin Aljunied from his duties on Monday (March 6).
This “follows from (his) purported comments made in relation to insensitive remarks about Christians and Jews allegedly made by a religious leader”, a spokesman for the university said.
During this time, the university will internally investigate Dr Khairudin’s involvement in the matter, though he will still receive his pay, the spokesman added.
“As part of due process, NUS will launch an internal investigation into Assoc Prof Khairudin’s involvement in this incident. Assoc Prof Khairudin will continue to be paid his full salary during his suspension,” the university said.
When contacted, Dr Khairudin said he was unable to comment due to the ongoing investigations.
Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam told Parliament last week that the police are looking into the conduct of everyone involved in the case.
Last month, investment associate Terence Nunis posted a video online of an imam at Jamae Mosque who, after a sermon, reportedly recited a prayer in Arabic that said “God grant us victory over Jews and Christians”, among other things.
The video gained traction online and offline and, as part of due process, the imam has been placed on leave while investigations, which the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) is assisting in, are ongoing.
The case sparked a storm in the community, and many felt the postings could be used to cast aspersions on Islam and religious leaders. Some also felt the imam’s recitation had been taken out of context.
Dr Khairudin, a tenured academic at NUS’ Malay Studies department, had posted on his Facebook page a fictional conversation between an imam and a “silly convert”.
In the post, Dr Khairudin described the convert as being stupid for getting upset over the verses.
Mr Shanmugam had said that Dr Khairudin “encouraged vilification” of the whistleblowing individual. He said: “Mr Khairudin’s position and actions are quite unacceptable… He supports a position that is quite contrary to the norms, values and laws in Singapore.”
On Saturday, the minister added that police will investigate the case thoroughly and interview all parties involved, including those who filmed and publicised the video.
“Whether there is a case for further action against any of the parties, will depend on the outcome of investigations,” he added.
“The Government does not take sides in this issue – if anyone is found to have committed an offence, action will be taken.”
NUS added on Wednesday that it “takes a serious view of any actions or speech that condone the promotion of hatred, ill-will and enmity that targets specific faith communities”.
“Members of the NUS community must observe standards and policies on staff conduct, which include respecting different views and communicating responsibly,” it said.
This article was first published on March 8, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
KUALA LUMPUR – Rapid-fire moves by Malaysia and North Korea to hold each other’s citizens hostage on Tuesday substantially escalated diplomatic tensions that have been simmering since the estranged half brother of North Korea’s ruler Kim Jong Un was killed in Kuala Lumpur three weeks ago.
Both nations banned each other’s citizens visiting or resident in their countries from leaving, an unusual and swift deterioration in relations that put both at risk of violating international law and increased the likelihood of further isolating North Korea by upending a rare friendly relationship with a foreign government.
Experts in international relations said the sweeping, tit-for-tat bans were likely the first of their kind since World War II. They were rooted in the slaying of Kim Jong Nam at Kuala Lumpur’s international airport on Feb. 13, which Malaysia has blamed on a North Korean spy operation using VX nerve agent, a deadly chemical. North Korea has accused Malaysia of a biased and bungled investigation.
“North Korea is really shooting itself in the foot,” said Jeffrey Robertson, a professor who specializes in South Korean diplomacy at Yonsei University in Seoul. North Korea’s actions will give fresh momentum to South Korean attempts to persuade other states-or even the United Nations-to sever ties with Pyongyang, he said.
North Korea threw down another challenge at the international community Monday by launching four ballistic missiles that landed in Japanese waters. It also ordered the expulsion of Malaysia’s ambassador, who was at home for consultations, after the Southeast Asian country ordered Pyongyang’s ambassador to leave following disparaging remarks.
Read also: Pyongyang bans Malaysians from leaving North Korea: KCNA
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– Malaysia, North Korea Bans Each Other’s Nationals
SINGAPORE – Officials will be considering how offenders of underage sex such as mixed martial arts instructor Joshua Robinson may be “dealt with more severely through higher penalties”, said Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam on Wednesday (March 8).
His remarks follow the Attorney-General’s Chambers’ statement that it will not appeal against Robinson’s four-year jail term.
The 39-year-old pleaded guilty to having unprotected sex with two 15-year-old girls and showed an obscene video to a six-year-old.
His sentencing last Thursday sparked strong reactions from the public, with the father of the child expressing disappointment online. A petition calling for harsher punishment was also started on Sunday.
“I can understand people’s unhappiness,” said Mr Shanmugam, who is on a working trip in Australia, in a statement in response to media queries. He referred to Robinson’s offences, which he added were “more serious” than a range of other cases involving sex with underaged girls.
These include, for example, a young man of 18 having sex with his 15-year-old girlfriend, or a case where 51 men were charged with having sex with an underage prostitute. They were jailed for between four and 20 weeks each, he said.
Read also: AGC not appealing 4-year jail sentence of MMA instructor in underage sex case
“I have asked my officials to consider what approaches are necessary for offenders like Robinson to be dealt with more severely through higher penalties,” said Mr Shanmugam.
Currently, as the sex was consensual, the law does not provide for caning.
He added that the original decision was “cleared at the highest levels – by the previous AG himself, based on precedents from previous cases”.
“In our system, decisions on prosecution, sentence to ask for, and appeals, are all within the discretion of the AGC. We need to respect the decision of AGC,” he said.
“I do think that the sentences for such offences committed by Robinson need to be relooked at. That is why I have asked my Ministries to study this,” he added.
But he said that it is premature to reveal what penalties are being considered.
Here is the full transcript from Mr Shanmugam’s interview:
What are your views on the matter?
I can understand people’s unhappiness. This man Robinson exposed a 6-year-old girl to pornographic material. He was also charged for having sex with two girls aged 15.
There is a wide range of behaviour which is currently dealt with, in respect of having sex with under-aged girls, for example: (a) a young man of 18 having sex with his 15-year-old girlfriend; (b) A few years ago we had 51 men charged with having sex with an under-aged prostitute. They were jailed for between four and 20 weeks each.
In the context of all the facts, viz having sex with two underaged girls and showing pornographic material to a six-year-old, Robinson’s conduct here, was more serious (even though the girls agreed to having sex with him).
I have asked my officials to consider what approaches are necessary for offenders like Robinson to be dealt with more severely through higher penalties (as AGC have explained, because the sex was consensual, the law does not provide for caning).
Comments on AGC’s decision not to appeal?
I have been told that the original decision on what sentences to ask for was cleared at the highest levels – by the previous AG himself, based on precedents from previous cases. So this matter had received attention at the very highest level. AGC have explained why they have decided that they could not appeal. I can understand that having taken a position in court, on what the sentence should be, it is difficult for AGC to now appeal. As they have explained, the position they took was based on precedent. In our system, decisions on prosecution, sentence to ask for, and appeals, are all within the discretion of the AGC. We need to respect the decision of AGC.
If we don’t think the sentences, based on precedents, are adequate, then we consider what can be done. I do think that the sentences for such offences committed by Robinson need to be relooked at. That is why I have asked my Ministries to study this.
What penalties are you thinking of?
It is premature to answer this now; this will be considered.
This article was first published on March 8, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
During the Committee of Supply debate on Monday, Manpower minister Lim Swee Say told Parliament that his ministry is working on strategies to ensure that there would be enough jobs for Singaporeans, and better ones as well.
In a time of slower economic growth and digital disruptions, Lim identified four key thrusts: ensuring quality job creation, raising workforce adaptability, enhancing inclusiveness and complementarity, and building fair and progressive workplaces.
Read also: Budget 2017: What startups and SMEs need to know
1. Create quality jobs for Singaporeans
“The real threat we face in the competition for jobs is not technology, but global competition. We should focus more on how to partner with technology to take away customers and jobs from our competitors before they do it to us,” said Minister Lim.
This is the scope of the Lean Enterprise Development Scheme (LEDS), which MOM launched over a year ago.
LEDS brings together various agencies to make it easier for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to boost their business capability and gain access to labour and markets. Where necessary, LEDS is even prepared to relax the foreign-work quota temporarily to expedite matters for these SMEs.
Minister Lim said LEDS’s scope will be strengthened this year with the introduction of new programmes. It will help more SMEs go digital and expand overseas, and speed up the development and deployment of “cluster” solutions for firms. It will also work closely with sectors to tackle the manpower shortage.
2. Help Singaporeans take on new jobs
Minister Lim said creating quality jobs can prevent rising unemployment and under-employment. However, the problem of structural unemployment – such as job and wage mismatches – still persists.
To raise workforce adaptability, Mr Lim said MOM will make better use of technology to help job-seekers and employers find each other.
The national jobs bank has been made more user-friendly to provide better search functions, and the portal is also moving to become a “one-stop, non-stop online marketplace” for all job-seekers.
Channels of job-matching services will also be expanded through closer collaboration with private-sector employment agencies. In fact, MOM has partnered with two agencies to help PMETs (professionals, managers, executives and technicians) who have been made redundant, and those unemployed for three months or more.
The new partnership will debut in the second quarter of the year.
Additionally, MOM will enhance the Adapt & Grow initiative – introduced last year – to help PMETs, who make up the bulk of workers in the workforce.
The Professional Conversion Programme, which was also launched last year to help PMETs switch careers and move into growth sectors, will receive enhanced salary support.
An “Attach and Train” scheme, which offers training allowance and attachment in companies in growth sectors, will be introduced to help PMETs prepare for new jobs in another sector. MOM is looking to start in the logistics sector.
Read also: Budget 2017: 5 things that may affect you directly
3. Strengthen local-foreign workforce complementarity
The slowdown in job and workforce growth makes each worker even more valuable, said the minister.
As such, he emphasised the need to strengthen the inclusiveness of our local workforce and to strengthen our social cohesion. In other words, the local and foreign workforce must complement each other better to sharpen Singapore’s competitive edge.
Because Singapore can never be self-sufficient, foreign workers will be a “permanent feature” here. But they must complement us rather than compete against us, he said.
This way, foreign workers will help narrow the talent gap and create more good jobs for Singaporeans.
However, Minister Lim warned that MOM will take action against employers who discriminate against local workers in hiring.
The number of bosses put on the Fair Consideration Framework watchlist stood at 250 as at the end of last month, but many have improved and adopted “fair and progressive practices”, he said.
Currently, there are still 50 employers on the list who “have not been receptive or cooperative”. As a result, MOM rejected more than 500 Employment Pass applications from them.
“We will continue to curtail their work pass privileges until they improve,” he added.
Employers will also receive differentiated treatment for MOM’s services. For instance, Human Capital Partnership employers will enjoy “fast lane” access to MOM’s development schemes and services, and also have hotline access to MOM.
Employers who have fair workplace practices – which is the majority – will be in the “normal lane”. Employers who engage in unfair HR practices, such as those on the Fair Consideration Framework watchlist, will be in the “slow lane”.
“This will send a clear message to all employers that foreign manpower is and will always be an integral part of our Singapore workforce,” said Minister Lim. “However, we do expect and require all employers to give fair consideration to the recruitment and development of our local manpower.”
“This is not only the right thing to do for our people, but also the right thing to do for businesses for both to grow better in the future economy.”
4. Enhance the employment protection framework
The minister said the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) and the Employment Claims Tribunals (ECT) which is scheduled to open on April 1, are “major steps forward in strengthening our employment protection framework”.
He added that the Tripartite Standards will also be introduced to complement existing employment laws, and Tripartite guidelines will push for progressive practices at the workplace. Additionally, a Tripartite Workgroup will be set up to look into the well-being of freelancers.
Members of Parliament (MPs) on both sides of the House had raised concerns about whether freelancers are adequately covered under existing labour laws and the possibility of them having inadequate savings for medical and retirement needs.
A survey by MOM showed freelancers were most concerned about the lack of income security arising from work injuries, attending training or skill upgrading courses, as well as the ability to seek sufficient clients and collect timely payments.
In response, Minister Lim said the Government “will form a tripartite workgroup to study these issues and address the concerns of freelancers, and come up with workable solutions for the well-being of the freelancing workforce in our future economy.”
The group that the Government is most concerned about is the estimated 32,700 people who are doing primary freelancing not by choice.
“Under the Adapt and Grow (scheme), we hope to reach out to as many of them as possible and help them to move into full-time employment,” said Minister Lim.
“The first survey is a good starting point for us to gain better insights into the freelancer landscape in Singapore. We will continue to monitor the development and together with our tripartite partners, we will find practical solutions to address the issues faced by freelancers,” he added.
Read also: Singapore lines up 4 key strategies to create enough, better jobs
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SINGAPORE: Nineteen years after it entered operational service, the RSS Independence – one of the first warships wholly designed and built in Singapore – retired on Wednesday (Mar 8).
The Fearless-class patrol vessel, along with its sister ships, was built under a collaborative effort by the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), the Defence Technology Community and the local defence industry. The vessels have been operational since 1996.
The RSS Independence was commissioned by then-Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Tony Tan Keng Yam on Aug 22, 1998, to take over the operational duties of patrol craft RSS Independence to safeguard Singapore’s maritime interests and to maintain its territorial integrity.
The RSN said the RSS Independence will be remembered for its role in rescuing five fishermen from their capsized fishing trawler in the waters off Pedra Branca on Sep 22, 2015.
Former crew of the RSS Independence take a wefie for memory’s sake. (Photo: Xabryna Kek)
The navy added that RSS Independence had “valiantly taken on the duties and was involved in numerous operations at sea, as well as in maritime surveillance, patrol and escort operations”.
It also flew the RSN flag high in a number of important bilateral and multilateral exercises, such as Exercise Malapura, Exercise Singsiam, the Singapore-Indian Maritime Bilateral Exercise and the Western Pacific Naval Symposium Multilateral Sea Exercise.
The RSS Independence has flown the Singapore flag high in various important bilateral and multilateral exercises (Photo: Xabryna Kek)
Speaking at the ceremony, Chief of Navy, Rear-Admiral (RADM) Lai Chung Han paid tribute to RSS Independence and to the generations of its crew members.
He said: “In her years of service, RSS Independence was an integral part of the RSN’s frontline force which protected Singapore’s territorial waters and safeguarded our sea lines of communication, staying true to her motto ‘We Will Defend’.
“The success of RSS Independence would not have been possible without the unwavering dedication, professionalism, tenacity and sacrifice of the generations of officers and crews who have served onboard.”
RSS Independence was decommissioned at a sunset ceremony at Tuas Naval Base on Wednesday evening. Officiated by RADM Lai, the ceremony marked the start of the progressive handing over of duties from the patrol vessels to the new Littoral Mission Vessels (LMV).
RSS Independence (L) with its successor LMV Independence (R). (Photo: Xabryna Kek)
The name RSS Independence along with its operational duties will be handed over to the LMV Independence during a commissioning ceremony on May 5, to be held in conjunction with the RSN’s 50th anniversary celebrations. “The LMVs are faster, more versatile, and equipped with sharper capabilities to further strengthen the RSN’s effectiveness in seaward defence, and the protection of Singapore’s sea lines of communication,” the navy said. The eight LMVs that were added to the navy’s fleet will be fully operational by 2020.
Also present at the decommissioning ceremony were past and present crew members of RSS Independence as well as senior RSN officers.
The RSS Independence’s name and operational duties will be handed over to the LMV Independence (Photo: Xabryna Kek)
Seoul – The political fate of South Korea’s scandal-hit President Park Geun-Hye will be decided by the country’s highest court Friday, a spokesman said, when it will rule on whether to confirm her impeachment.
Park was impeached by parliament in December over a major corruption and influence-peddling scandal that rocked the nation and prompted millions to take to the street to demand her ouster.
Eight judges at the Constitutional Court have been reviewing the validity of the motion.
“It has been decided that the ruling on the impeachment of the president will be announced at 11am on March 10,” a court spokesman said Wednesday, adding the decision would be televised live.
If her removal is upheld, Park would become the first-ever South Korean president to be sacked by impeachment, and an election to choose her successor would be held within 60 days.
If it is rejected, Park, who has been holed up in the presidential palace with her power suspended, would immediately return to office and stay until the end of her term in February 2018.
The 65-year-old conservative president was elected in 2012 partly thanks to the popularity of her father and late army dictator, Park Chung-Hee.
But the scandal involving her secret confidante Choi Soon-Sil has triggered a dramatic downfall of the leader who once was dubbed the “queen of elections” due to staunch support from conservative voters.
Choi is accused of using her presidential ties to force local firms to “donate” nearly $70 million to non-profit foundations she then allegedly used for personal gain. She is currently on trial for abuse of power, coercion and fraud.
Park is accused of colluding with Choi to extract money from the firms and letting the friend handle a wide range of state affairs, including the nomination of cabinet members.
A number of former presidential aides and cabinet members have been arrested and charged with abuse of power or leaking secret state documents to Choi at Park’s order.
Park has denied all wrongdoing. If she is forced out, she would lose the executive privilege that protects her from criminal indictment.
Thousands of her supporters have protested in Seoul and in front of the Constitutional Court in recent weeks, hurling personal threat against judges and vowing a “civil war” if she is sacked.
SINGAPORE – A student’s decision to add some shine to her HDB block by covering a flight of stairs with gold foil has won praise online, with many netizens offering their support and encouragement.
But to the authorities, all that glitters may not be gold.
Photos of the golden staircase at the HDB block in Jalan Rajah first emerged on Reddit two days ago, while citizen journalism website Stomp also caught wind of the matter.
Soon, it emerged that it was the work of Ms Priyageetha Dia, an art student at Laselle College of the Arts.
In a Facebook post, she wrote that while she was apprehensive of the consequences, the process of covering the stairs had been invigorating. “At the end of the five-hour long hushed deed, the intervention of the gold finally reverberated against the ever lifeless and grey architecture on the 20th floor of my block.”
She added that she considered her work as art, and not vandalism, as her intention was to enhance the space and her surroundings.
“My work does not seek to obliterate a public space; vandalism in all sense has no respect for another individual,” Ms Priyageetha wrote.
Many online professed to liking the blinged-up stairs.
Former Nominated MP Janice Koh also weighed in with her support.
Not everyone was as enamoured, however.
Some netizens also worried that the stairs would be slippery with the covering.
The Jalan Besar Town Council told Today that while it appreciated Ms Priyageetha’s desire to enhance the space, her act “constitutes an unauthorised act and is thus not permissible”.
However, a spokesman did extend an olive branch, saying that the council wants to “explore ways in which we may be able to work together”.
seanyap@sph.com.sg
