http://www.amazon.com/Conversations-Lee-...
There are just too many books on the man. So I read my copy of this book sometime back courtesy of one of the libraries instead of buying my copy.
Tom Plate's book recounted him asking LKY about the detentions under the ISA. I can't recall the exact words, but I remember them as LKY responding that he could not be totally certain it was a right or wrong decision. He was absolutely sure the reasons were honorable.
As a leader, you make decisions on two planes. Those that affect you personally and those that affect the rest of the people.
I can only clumsily speculate the discussions and decisions into interning so many people under the ISA under the guise of national security.If these men and women were not detained, what path might Singapore have taken? Not until Dr. Lim Hock Siew comments were reported in Sunday Times today, did I have an idea on how to tentatively think this through.
I see Dr. Lim was an ardent socialist. That socialist flame in him remains as bright as ever. Alas, most of us no longer buy into that ideology. No wonder the government had deemed it safe to free him.
To me the ISA was used because the government, especially LKY felt that we were too easily seduced to the socialist path. I can see from the last GE and the current PE how difficult it is to persuade others, and they you. Reason often wouldn't work, and as LKY didn't trust the electorate to "choose correctly", he decided to eliminate the opposition and competition with the ISA. This had made a farce of one man, one vote. The question remains: Are you glad he took the right to choose from us and created the Singapore of today? What about the weight on the conscience? Well it didn't hurt that the socialist ideology was Utopian attractive then. Think Sputnik and many other Soviet ephemeral but seductive successes before the test of time delivered the verdict.
Note that the Barisan Sosialis could have won the elections.
As for Operation Spectrum, I think the circumstances were different. I do not have the information to think this through. Those folks who were incarcerated, I was told, were just social workers. To label them as Marxists was to me, simply incredulous.
I ask myself from all these, where is Tan Jee Say coming from? What do you mean by the conscience of the nation? Have we put the cart before the horse. First we need to distinguish personal morality and responsibility from national values and interests. We have often been told that people have values but nations have only interests. The only nation that seem to get away with having both, but constantly as a tug of war is America. So do we promote and defend our national interests and if there is a surplus, we indulge in values? When we had achieved a social and political surplus we became confident and secure enough to release these political detainees? With their freedom they are now demanding justice for past wrongs?
Eventually we have to deal with our national ghosts. We can't hurry these things, and I think the people aren't ready yet. As such, I think Tan Jee Say would not have enough support to win the race to be President. He will frighten too many.
I believe only LKY can mount a robust and courageous defence of the use of the ISA that is clear and convincing. It was a waste of time challenging Tony Tan. Each time he would be evasive. All the present day ministers, including the PM aren't up to the task. LKY had used it to build Singapore but not without considerable controversy. I seriously doubt those coming after him is able to handle the ISA responsibly. They will use it as a foil to fend off their fears, which is exactly the wrong way about it. Then it would open the door to rapid onset of corruption and the demise of Singapore.
The next President must privately look at this issue with wisdom and understanding. He would not be able to change the law, but he must have the wisdom to prevent its misuse. It is clear to me that such a man cannot be Tony Tan or Tan Jee Say. It is a choice between Tan Cheng Bock and Tan Kin Lian.
Update: (Aug 22) Just discovered from Vincent Wijeysingha a blog post on the 1987 detentions by Janette Chong Aruldoss. Got to run, but will catch up with this when I am able.
In my view, Nothing could justify the use of ISA on political opponents. I am ashamed of the this ignominious past in our history. And shame on you.
ReplyDeleteIf a ruling party do not have recourse to detain or bankrupt its political opponents, would its ministers have the gall to pay themselves obscene $$$?
ReplyDeleteSaycheese
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." - Lord John Acton.
ReplyDeletePAP has been in power continuously for the past 50 years or so. We know that no party can cling on to power forever. In Japan after 54 years, the LDP has been replaced peacefully by the Democratic Party of Japan in 2009; and in Taiwan Chen Shui Bian's DPP replaced Kuomintang between 2000~2008 after more than 50 years of KMT's rule.
The ISA is an evil piece of legislation and should be reviewed and if necessary replaced by an anti-terrorism act to address terrorism issues. ISA should never be used against political dissent.
We can imagine an alternative government being elected in Singapore in near future. But it is also plausible that they might be tempted to use this act to give the PAP a taste of their own bitter medicine. It would be a sad day for Singapore indeed.
The information provided to the people during the infamous detention of those involved in the marxist plot did not justify their detentions. Walter Woon and Vivian B. (or is it Tharman?)have said that the govt did not prove its case. Goh Chok Tong said that Dhanabalan left the cabinet because he was uncomfortable with the arrests. The whole thing look stage managed. There were no reports of an impending armed attack on any of our institutions nor was there a discovery of an arms cache. There was no palpable threat to our national security.
ReplyDeleteKuan Yew, an astute politician saw a growing threat from a group of young people to his dominance over Spore. He tried to get the younger leaders to do the job of orchestrating the detention of these young people. Some of whom were Catholic workers. But the younger leaders clearly lacked Kuan Yew's killer instinct. And things from his perspective when roman catholics began to have special masses and prayer meetings for those who were detained. So Kuan Yew stepped in and took over the reins of the operation. Abp Yong, the roman archbishop was confronted by Kuan Yew. And at a press conference called by Kuan Yew, Abp Yong validated the govt's interpretation of the impending threat posed by his workers. Things got pretty bizarre when he even detained the lawyers who were attempting to represent some of those detainees.
Perhaps operation spectrum needs to be reviewed by a special commission. The evidence and the facts should carefully assessed again. If there was wrongdoing, then reparations should be made. Those responsible for the abuse of the ISA should apologize to the victims.