When lesbian and gay bloggers cried foul over the takeover of the Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE) at the end of March 2009 because some of the new leaders were known anti-gay campaigners, other netizens wondered why the gay community was so invested in AWARE. A few even wondered: Had AWARE under the old guard "lost its focus" and become a campaigner for "gay rights"? Was that why gay people were so upset -- that the supposedly women's organisation had been snatched away from them?
Each time I saw those comments, I chuckled. The truth is quite the opposite.
New president Josie Lau. Shortly after the announcement, her employer DBS bank - where she works as the vice-president for consumer banking group cards and unsecured loans - issued a statement making clear that it had told her not to take that position and that the bank is conducting an internal review as she had breached its staff code of conduct twice. Her department was also responsible for nominating Christian fundamentalist group Focus of the Family (FOTF) last November to receive a S$15,000 donation as part of its Christmas credit card donation drive.
Singam explained the various factors that might have figured in that history, not least among which was the "off-the-record" warnings from the authorities (Registrar of Societies?) to AWARE not to support gay equality. Despite her best efforts, I had the sense, watching from the back row, that the audience was largely unconvinced.
That said, a distinction should be made between AWARE's track record and the values held by many of AWARE's old guard -- Constance Singam, Dana Lam, Braema Mathi, Lena Lim, Tan Joo Hymn, and others. As so eloquently put by Singam to the media recently, "Our values are based on the fundamental rights and responsibilities of women as women. These include being treated as informed individuals capable of choice, being deserving of opportunities equal to those of men in education, marriage and employment; and being able to control their own bodies, particularly with regard to sexual and reproductive health." [1]
Braema Mathi told Channel NewsAsia: "AWARE is simply an organisation that will always, I hope, stand up for any form of anti-discrimination - whether you are heterosexual, homosexual, transgender, transvestite, divorced or a single mum." [2]
In 2007, AWARE broke its silence on a gay issue, to my knowledge for the first time, when it said it supported the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code. This was when the government was proposing to revise the Penal Code, yet retaining Section 377A which made male-male sex an offence. Although the law referred only to men, I believe AWARE's view was that the state's perpetuation of stigma and prejudice against gay men indirectly impacted gay women. This, in addition to their stance that any discrimination, against anyone, is wrong in itself.
I doubt very much, however, if many gay men or women even knew that AWARE had taken this stand over Section 377A, certainly fewer than those who knew that the Law Society also called for the repeal of 377A.
Thus, to imagine that the gay community saw old AWARE as a gay-rights campaigner would be far off the mark.
* * * * *
So why is the gay community interested in what happened at AWARE's last Annual General Meeting (AGM)? Because the new guard who captured the executive committee are worse.
If I have to use an analogy, it'll be like this: Old AWARE and the various LGBT groups were like ships sailing on the high seas. The LGBT ships were sailing towards one destination; AWARE was sailing towards its own destination. Then suddenly we see pirates seizing the AWARE ship, pirates whom we suspect would be gunning for us next, given their track record (anti-gay letters to the press). Wouldn't raising the alarm be the natural thing to do?
* * * * *
Inevitably, some readers will think that the pirate analogy is overblown. Here again, they may say, the militant gays are suffering from a persecution complex imagining threats where none exist. Give the benefit of the doubt to new AWARE. What's wrong with Christians being part of civil society, etc, etc...
Frankly, I have nothing against Christianity per se. For heaven's sake, there's even a gay-affirmative Christian church here in Singapore, and Reverend Yap Kim Hao, the former head of the Methodist Church, has been outspoken in his support for gay equality. What I am disgusted with is unchristian behaviour by those who claim to be Christian: the promotion of prejudice and discrimination and the use of stealth, just like pirates.
I also stand firm, like the great majority of Singaporeans, against any attempt to mix religion with politics, which agenda partly explains why the new guard at AWARE have to resort to stealth.
* * * * *
It begins with the new guard's claim that their religion is irrelevant to why they mounted a coup at AWARE, now further embellished by a suggestion that they were not even a group acting in concert.
From the beginning it was belied by the fact that the new guard leaders and their supporters joined within the same three-month period. They had not been active in AWARE before. If ever they had spoken up publicly, it was not on women's issues. It was -- always -- on homosexuality, where the same anti-gay stance, informed by fundamentalist Christianity, was preached. [Addendum 1]
The blog alicecheong pointed out that:
There is a lot of press coverage from Straits Times [3] today. The most interest of all, is that
"it appears that some of the newcomers in its leadership are familiar faces at the Anglican Church of Our Saviour at Margaret Drive."
Based on the Straits TImes article, that means, the following are all attending Anglican Church of Our Saviour.
1. Josie Lau (President) and husband Alan Chin
2. Charlotte Wong (Vice-president)
3. Irene Yee (Committee member)
4. Jenica Chua (Honorary secretary)
5. Mauren Ong (Honorary treasurer)
6. Sally Ang (Assistant honorary secretary)
That is 6 posts out of the 11 posts ... where all the 5 decision posts - President, Vice-president, Honorary secretary, Honorary treasurer and Assistant honorary secretary are taken by the same clique.
Now, the Church of our Saviour (COOS) is not a particularly large church. Its notoriety exceeds its size because it is the home of Choices -- the ministry that promotes the shibboleth that homosexuals can change to become heterosexuals, an idea long debunked by professional psychologists. The leader of the rabidly anti-gay Focus on the Family is also a member of COOS.
In her first interview with Channel NewsAsia, Talking Point, 18 April 2009, Josie Lau came very close to denying that she even knew Maureen Ong, the treasurer, prior to being elected into the executive committee (exco) of AWARE.
P N Balji, the interviewer: Can I ask a question? This was not a well-organised, well-thought-through constitutional coup?
Maureen Ong: No, not that I know of.
Josie Lau, referring to Maureen: I didn't know her until I was...
Laughter, for no apparent reason, led her not to complete her sentence.
Yet, as comment #49 appended to the Youtube clippings of the interview on The Online Citizen pointed out:
49) concerned on April 20th, 2009 6.54 pm
The Church Of Our Saviour is a small Anglican community church and does not have sizeable membership numbers compared to the mega churches. The claim made that these women did not know each other before ending up in AWARE's exco beggars belief.
A person trained in the actuarial sciences should calculate the remote odds for the outcome of 6 attendees of a neighbourhood church running for office for 11 positions in a secular national women's group by sheer coincidence without any prior communication amongst themselves.
Why is it so difficult to come clean about a pre-planned effort to take leadership roles in AWARE ? The need to deny gives greater credence to some undisclosed agenda that the persons involved are not prepared to be forthcoming about.
Furthermore, in another part of the interview, Josie Lau spoke of a "we" in terms highly suggestive of a cabal with a pre-defined agenda "coming in" to pursue their aims. Referring to the values of the old guard versus the new guard, she said:
Josie Lau: ... at the broad level it's still the same but we are coming in with new ideas. we had earlier said we are pro-family, pro-women, pro-Singapore.
And what a slip it was. "Pro-family" is Christian fundie-speak for anti-abortion and anti-homosexuality.
And there's more. At the AGM, Claire Nazar, who had been an AWARE member "for only a little over a year herself" [4] was the one who nominated Josie Lau for the exco. But Nazar soon became horrified at what she called the new guard's "Stormtrooper tactics" and quit within 11 days. [5]
Reliable sources told me that at the meeting when she quit, the new guard accused her of not doing what she had promised to do. Over what, I'm not sure, but it may have to do with the mass sackings of all subcommittee chairs, something which Nazar later told the Straits Times she opposed. According to my sources, Josie Lau said to Nazar, "But you said you would support me."
Does that expectation not suggest a prior conspiracy?
* * * * *
Many other parts of the interview also reeked of evasion and contradiction.
For example, during the interview, after Maureen Ong explained that according to the society's constitution, a vacant presidency had to be filled from among the non-office-bearing exco members,
Maureen Ong: ...we had six elected ordinary committee members... we went around the table on the night of 15 April and she [Josie Lau] was the last "man" standing....
Josie Lau: That evening.... I was the last woman standing, and I felt that I had to pick up the baton to run and continue to lead this organisation...
One would get the impression that Josie Lau reluctantly became president by default. Yet her employer, DBS Bank had earlier said in a public statement that prior to the exco meeting of 15 April 2009,
... Josie broached the subject of her intent to run for President of AWARE. We reviewed her request and subsequently informed her that while the Bank continues to support her involvement in AWARE, we could not support her intent to run for President,
-- DBS Bank, 17 April 2009.
Here's another contradiction: On TV, Josie Lau said,
Josie Lau: My priority right now is to reconcile the team which clearly has fissured.
Now, here's something the public does not yet know: The television station's original plan was for a member each of the old guard and the new guard to be in the interview. Josie Lau objected vehemently and insisted they would not share the interview room and program with anyone from the old guard. So much for reconciliation.
There's also the extremely curt email (so much for reconciliation, again) they sent to Braema Mathi telling her she's been relieved of her position as chair of the subcommittee preparing AWARE's report to be submitted to the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Without even a customary word of thanks, the email said:
Kindly note that your term of office as chairman of the CEDAW Committee has ceased at the date of the AGM on the 28 March 2009.
Kindly submit all the work in progess by Friday 17 April 2009 without fail.
Regards
Sally Ang
I'm not even certain that the reason set out there -- that Braema's appointment ceased automatically with the AGM -- is fully accurate. The Sunday Times, reporting what Claire Nazar said to them [6], reported that a vote had to be taken:
[Claire Nazar] was also troubled by how at the first exco meeting -- a 3 1/2-hour session -- about a week after the AGM on March 28, the committee replaced almost all the appointed chairpersons of sub-committees based only on a majority vote.
That broke with Aware's tradition of allowing chairpersons who were doing a good job to continue their work.
* * * * *
As a final note, I will draw attention to the hypothetical scenario put by P N Balji to Josie Lau touching on sexual orientation.
P N Balji: As one possible example, if Aware finds that a member, a women in Singapore, has been discriminated against in her company because of her sexuality, what will be your stand on that?
Six seconds would pass as Josie Lau looked uncomfortable while gathering her thoughts, before she replied,
Josie Lau: Aware is a secular organisation. We're not there to push our personal beliefs or personal religious affiliations. We are all an inclusive... we don't discriminate people of any race, religion, or, you know, whether you're a man or woman coming in.
So far, all motherhood statements, though you'd notice that she hasn't come around to sexual orientation yet.
Josie Lau continuing: Now, talking about sexual discrimination, it is going to be a very controversial topic. and the new exco will have to take a look at this and see what is the direction we want to take. We haven't even had a chance to discuss individual ideas yet. Just give us a chance....
Firstly, it's an utterly incompetent reply. For three weeks, accusations of the new guard being a homophobic bunch hijacking AWARE to push their agenda have been circulating. Yet, they don't even have a spin-ready answer to this? I'm not expecting them to give us an answer we agree with; I'm saying that at the very least, they should have got their spin ready. Being tongue-tied for six seconds, almost shocked that Balji would ask such a question, is about the worst impression they can give of themselves.
Secondly, unlike how easy it was for her to mention equality on the grounds of race, religion and male/female gender, she was stunningly incapable of saying the same of sexual orientation, describing it only as a "controversial topic". Please. Gay equality is only problematic if you don't believe in non-discrimination and equality. If you did, it would roll off your tongue as easily as race, religion, etc.
That she tripped over this told us everything we needed to know about the direction of AWARE under the new leadership.
Footnotes
1. Sunday Times, 19 April 2009, Constance Singam quits as Aware advisor
2. Channel NewsAsia website, 19 April 2009, AWARE old guard says debate is healthy.
3. Straits Times, 18 April 2009, Some attend the same church
4. Sunday Times, 20 April 2009, Claire Nazar: Why I quit as Aware president
5. ibid.
6. ibid.
Addenda
Correction 22 April 2009: Angela Thiang did have one letter published by the Straits Times that was not on the topic of homosexuality. Her 4 August 2008 letter argued for a tightening of abortion laws - the other pet topic of Christian fundamentalists.
The article was first published on yawningbread.org.
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Btw, the current politically correct way of addressing these fundies is not to call them Christians. No, no. They are labelled now as "SPCs",- "Self-Professed Christians".
it will show on yr countenance...don't we find such people really beautiful, no matter how they look? From what I see of Ms Josie Ho however, she wears an almost-perpetual sneer on her face that does nt seem...nice. And that is something that no amount of make-up or plastic surgery in the world can hide...sorry Josie. :p
If the new people at the helm have decided: "Hey, feck those lesbians over the side of the ship!", well, put it this way - What would people say if, for example, they amended the charters to say: "We're here to support all Singaporean women. Oh, except Filipinas. Or, hmmm, Malays. Or any black women. Or Greeks. All THAT lot can fuck off, because AWARE will no longer serve or support them."
It's the same principle of actively cherrypicking who can - and Can't - sit at the Captain's Table with the rest of the new AWARE crew. International and outside observers know very well what an Orwellian country Singapore is. However, as repessed as her citizens are, they have a moral and a civic duty to Prevent this likely equally Orwellian stance by AWARE:
"All of our members are equal. But some are more equal than others..."
These lovely 'christians are are transparent as a jar of pickles.
Look forward to kicking the new fundies out. The likelihood of a similar counter petition like what we witnessed with Keep377A may not happen as every IP address here is logged and verified (NRIC) to prevent spam. We shall see.
The real war now will be fought at the EGM to see if they rally their entire female members from their so called church/supporting sister churches/bigot networks /loser clans (you get the picture) to sign up and keep evil alive. We will again wait and see.
Actually, I shudder to imagine what Christian heaven will be like if Josie & her minons were there. God won't stand a chance! They would hijack His throne!!! And when pressed who will enter the kingdom, she will obviously reply," I'm not at liberty to say" LOL.
Also, imagine Maureen taking over ArchAngel Michael. Hmm. Dun think with her weight she can lift off with the puny wings she made herself. Need to lose those baggage sister ....LMFAO!
It'd also be good to know who else may have been involved in the coup, given the meeting (or war council) that took place after PM Goh's statement a few years back saying that gays would be employed by the government (which for some reason gave the fundamentalists apoplexy, despite the fact that hundreds, possibly thousands,of gays probably did in any event).
COOS and Cornerstone may have been acting in concert then given that a standard letter of protest was on on both websites. Were COOS members acting alone here, or was there some similar meeting?
Well if that's not a hostile takeover, I don't know what is!
Perhaps COOS really stands for-
Church Of Our Satan. >:(
Yup, makes more sense now.
These fundamentals are a serious threat to the peace and harmony of any secular and multi religious-racial society and must be stopped and punished like terrorists. No mercy. Wake up, they will never show you any if the tables were turned. Strike while we can. Sign up and vote them out.
Know your sleeping enemies:
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thio_Li-ann ;
** http://www.tsmplaw.com/dr-thio-su-mien-phd-london-directormenu1-60
These people are the opposite of "christian'. ( Follower of Christ)
This whole 'saga' would be truly amusing, had it not been for the actual evil intent of these people.
"apparently they have changed the locks without informing the staff (channel news asia)...."
WHAT???!!!
I'm dumb founded...with these homophobic b***s running AWARE, i could forsee it changing into BE-WARE.
My God(literally).
In an emotionallycharged news conference on Thursday, the new guard said AWARE has lost its focus. They accused the old guard of steering AWARE into becoming a single purpose organisation.
Drama erupted even before the news conference started (ENEWS: with current Honorary Treasurer Chew IJin accusing the new guard of intentionally excluding her from their news conference.)
"I'm utterly disappointed and disgusted because I'm meant to do a presentation alongside you, Lois (Ng, Executive Committee member)," said Chew.
During the oneandahalf hour event, the group introduced wellknown corporate lawyer Dr Thio Su Mien, as their socalled "feminist mentor".
Dr Thio is the Senior Executive Director of TSMP Law Corporation and mother of Nominated MP, Dr Thio Li Ann, and Senior Counsel Thio Shen Yi.
The new exco said AWARE had become a single purpose organisation overly concerned with promoting lesbianism.
They repeatedly raised examples, like how the old guard had backed a lesbian film screening in 2007 and organised a lesbianfriendly Mother's Day event in 2006. And they wanted to bring the association back to what they say is its original noble cause.
When contacted for comment, former AWARE president Margaret Thomas said those comments were ridiculous and not deserving of any comment.
Dr Thio Su Mien also revealed that she had emailed several groups with her concerns about the direction the association was taking, which prompted reporters to ask if the takeover was orchestrated.
"It depends on what you mean by organising. It is kind of flattering in a way. I'm frustrated, I talk to people, I collect info, I send to different people. You want to join, (then) join. I will help you. We discover that networking helps," said Dr Thio, adviser to the new AWARE exco.
The new exco said none of them intend to step down, but revealed that taking up office has come with risks.
Several members received death threats which have been reported to the police.
"Each day, I fear for the physical safety of my children, my family. There's even a blog site detailing my children's names and which schools they go to," said Josie Lau, AWARE's president.
The team will go ahead with the extraordinary general meeting planned for May 2 and is looking for a new venue to accommodate its burgeoning membership. It is now 880 and still growing. CNA /ls
Source: Channel NewsAsia - Friday, April 24
(fr Yahoo Singaproe)
By their actions alone, anyone wiith a good sense of ethics & FAIR PLAY would be thoroughly & utterly disgusted by their actions:
SINGAPORE: It was a tense atmosphere at the AWARE office on Thursday evening as members of the old guard tried to prevent the new executive committee from changing the locks at the office.
The centre's manager, Schutz Lee, said she was not informed of the plans to change locks.
Ms Lee, who has been working there since February, was also fired without reason by the new executive committee at 8pm on Thursday.
Members of the old guard turned up hurriedly at the scene, anxious over the documents kept there.
Dana Lam, former AWARE president, said: "I walked in and there were three burly men sitting at the counter. It's not something we encounter at AWARE because it's a women's centre and we are giving counselling sessions to women who have been abused.
"The men have apparently been instructed by the president to change the lock in the centre. There is a vote of noconfidence going on here. By right, they have no right to make any changes. I am worried for my materials 25 years of research material, including confidential material."
Source: Channel NewsAsia - Friday, April 24
(from Yahoo Singapore)
There already signs within the Singapore Government that the born again Christains are making their presences there. What can the Singapore Government do to assure us that what happens in Aware will not happen in the Singapore Government.
Or has it already happened ???
Anyone read the Straits Times today?
Thio Su Mein is the mother of Thio Li-Ann.
P.S- I find Thio-Li Ann has an almost-unhealthy obsession with anything or anyone homosexual.
She's psychologically unsound.
but it appears the really cool and smart women need to set up their own organization and branch out ...
anyway in other news, I am setting up a gay polo team.. any takers?
check out www.gaypolo.com
off to Santa Barbara Polo Club in CA for a long week of daily Chukkahs and training with my team mates...
anyway, Josie does dress well and looks classy ... I must admit that to her credit (I think she is Singapore's Anita Bryant) ...
anyway, I am glad Singapore organizations are so easy to infiltrate, especially if you have the funds...
but personally I did manage to infiltrate your Polo Club... the gay Polo team is coming there this Fall:) if I lived there I think I would be Captain by now
Good Luck to every one and keep your wits about you but there is a bigger world out there and setting up a new organization and organizing a charity event to do it
I am just a simple American and the reason why I am still a Republican that I never expect the Govnt to do a thing for me and I like low taxes, that's why we now have GOProud...
this is a lady thing and lady issue, its like guys entering the ladies bathroom, we don't belong in this conversation
also havig Alex write about this stuff is werid and out of place, let a women writer do this stuff, don't he and Michael Jackson have some note comparing to do when it comes to seducing little teenage boys?
AWARE = Alex writes about real Eunuchs
"anyway, Josie does dress well and looks classy ... I must admit that to her credit (I think she is Singapore's Anita Bryant) ..."
Yes, indeed, she's so beautiful & classy, she should be in the running for Ms Singapore Universe...NOT.
But hey, like you say , lagunabro, i suppose with money, underhand exchanges under the table,
& a faux-high-class attitude mostly for flaunting....even Josie's qualified for it huh??
this is a lady thing and lady issue, its like guys entering the ladies bathroom, we don't belong in this conversation"
AAAAAAAAAAAARGH! This is a response that typifies the very worst type of gay guy there is - shallow, Shallow, SHALLOW.
Are men not supposed to be involved with women's rights issues - is That what this 'Connor' is saying? Are men not allowed to have views on, or show support for, women's groups? Should we turn our back on issues that affect our mothers, sisters, neighbours, co-workers and friends? As gay men, should we ONLY be concerned with issues that directly affect gay MEN, and ignore whatever Lesbians have to deal with, as well as women's rights in general?
Are you telling me that I cannot and should nto sit here, 10,000 miles away, and not feel disgusted at the play of events in this story - in which case, presumably, I shouldn't give a damn about earthquake victims or putting a 1 coin into a cancer charity's tin or should laugh about human rights violations around the world?
Shame on you. Shame. On. You!
The moment we, as a species, start ignoring the wrongs that we see around us - whether it is happening to us, individually, or to others, collectively - well, That's the point that we're not worth saving; that's the point that we lose whatever makes us truly human, and 'better' than others.
EMAPTHY. The ability to feel compassion for other people - one of the most fundamental parts of 'the human condition' there is.
The fact that this whole AWARE debacle is affecting women in Singapore - and not just Lesbians - does NOT mean that I should ignore it, and not support the Old Guard as they do whatever they can to fight back the shamless takeover by the New Guard.
You can manage one more day without reading about typical, lazy gay-feature Fluff, surely...
Again - Shame on You...!
this is a lady thing and lady issue, its like guys entering the ladies bathroom, we don't belong in this conversation"
Men! Stick to cars! Football! Moustaches! Beer! But leave the Lady Stuff to the Wimmin!
Again, there are SO many things wrong with This bizarrely selfish and faintly patronising line of reasoning that I just wanna... Aaaargh, again!
Isnt Fridae also inclusive of gay women ? This is a site for gay men and women, and goodness knows most of the articles are always directed to gay men. Its about time there were issues raised here in support of our gay sisters.
Well done Fridae.
Connor sure is one guy FOTF wld love to target & examplify as a "decadant homo" :D
If he's handsome, they willl put pressure on him to marry & reproduce so the cult can boast of 'scientifically-&-practically proven" reparative therapy, beautiful children..& an auto-addition to their worldwide 'family' @ the same time ;-)
Some advice: better don't let them see yr face, buddy...or they'll soon be coming after you like an army of bees :p
As long as Fridae don't stay vigilant to these troublemakers, get used to it. Like Josie Lau says, they are here to stay. Tarts anyone? LOL.
PS: again, seems this "connor" profile recently joined. Dun be surprised it's another one of those losers here who attend the same kampong church.zzz
1. David Ben-Guezion (President)
2. Rametkal (Vice-president)
3. Gobu Ashkenazi (Committee member)
4. Ravi Alof (Honorary secretary)
5. Gideon Saddar (Honorary treasurer)
6. Binyamin Ben-Elizaar (Assistant honorary secretary)
OR
having the Hamas hijacking the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) as follows?
1. Ahmed Yassin (President)
2. Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi (Vice President)
3. Mohammad Taha (Committee member)
4. Abdel Aziz (Honorary secretary)
5. Al-Rantissi (Honorary treasurer)
6. Ibrahim bin Osasa (Assistant honorary secretary)
OR
having fridae editors aka gay activities becoming church pastors and CGLs at COOS? That will be interesting...
You are somewhat right in saying that the island is like a small town in west virginia. I have been to west virginia not long ago and I saw churches everywhere. Similarly, in that island, you will see many 'churches' everywhere, some very, very huge, some smaller ones. But they are of the same militant spirit. When you go to the grocery store or hair stylist, you will bounce into someone who you come to you and say: "PTL, HLLYH, GTJ, AMEN!"
By the way, the trains will be jammed packed by them during early sunday mornings all over the island. Believe me.
The new gang are still using the reversal technique favoured by American fundamentalists: while aggressively firing staff and changing locks, and excluding old guard board members from decision-making, they are simultaneously accusing their opponents of being the bullies, accusing the other side of doing what they are doing themselves to distract attention and gain sympathy, and no doubt getting more of their ilk to join to pack the EGM.
There is even an obviously fake "death threat" thrown in either by some total (straight) loony, or by one of their own to give them extra sympathy and stir up homophobia. (Gay people do not refer to themselves as "a gay", but simply as "gay", and certainly not as "sleeper jihadists". Fundamentalists on the other hand do have a tendency to use the word gay as a noun). Who gains most by this "threat"?
The new lot are accusing the older members of doing dastardly deeds, and are totally misrepresenting them, while themselves seriously misleading the public and the membership about what was going on. Old AWARE appears to have had integrity. Can the same be said of the new band?
What about the "one issue"(i.e. only interested in "promoting" homosexuality) claim the new lot are making about the old AWARE? A mere glance at AWARE's record shows it's untrue, and that their work and achievements were broad; again new lot are simply trying to mislead the public and gain sympathy for their coup. Reversal again: it is the coup group themselves that are a "one issue" band: they are obsessed with homosexuality, as is the church they belong to. From some of the quotes it seems they think homosexuality is catching and that AWARE would educate children into it (they apparently used misinformation like this in their membership drive). They now admit that the coup was masterminded because a film with a lesbian theme was shown at some AWARE event 2 years ago. This was the thing they noticed, rather than the other 99.9% of things going on?
The new gang also seem to have, in practical terms, a President ("mentor") who is really running the show while not even on the Exco. I wonder how constitutional that is. She's also quoted as saying she "helped people to join". What form did this take? If so, were/are the new members really committed to the ethos of this organisation in the first place? And were people misled about AWARE and about gays in order to persuade them to join?
I do hope AWARE is able to regain its true roots and its integrity by getting rid of this one-issue Exco.
That's what I meant as a whole. Infill-Traitors from fundies and losers from within the gay communities who strike their own kind to suck up to oppressive powers = No hope. ;)
Where grace and reason fail to work now, it seems, the remaining tactic is to let those mistresses have a taste of their own medicine. I urge those 'old wives' to break open the door, yank their hair and kick their butts out!
One thing I gather from this saga is this:
While it is expected the conservative majority of Singapore do not speak well of gay/lesbian community, they too dont take well to Christians or any religious grps forcefully chafing their views down their throat.
'The Royal College shares the concern of both the American Psychiatric Association and the American Psychological Association that positions espoused by bodies like the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) in the United States are not supported by science. There is no sound scientific evidence that sexual orientation can be changed. Furthermore so-called treatments of homosexuality as recommended by NARTH create a setting in which prejudice and discrimination can flourish.
...'
http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/pressparliament/pressreleases2009/statement.aspx
'In 1973 the American Psychiatric Association concluded there was no scientific evidence that homosexuality was a disorder and removed it from its diagnostic glossary of mental disorders. The International Classification of Diseases of the World Health Organisation followed suit in 1992.'
http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/pressparliament/pressreleases2009/statement.aspx
And this Su Mien has no right to call herself "anything Mentor". She is seriously deluded to compare herself to Minister Mentor.
At the end of the day, there are many interest groups that have surfaced in this saga. (i) Christian fundamentalists group that infiltrated and hijacked AWARE and feeling self-justified (ii) the old guard that got ousted (iii) the old guard who were allowed to stay for a while and then found themselves in an unfamiliar place and promptly quit (iv) gay groups who got drawn into the debate only because the reason why the new guard ran the coup was their zeal to stem out their personalities and stem out the recognition of their existence.
The groups most directly affected would be (i), (ii) and (iii). But (iv) was drawn in because of the ideological threats posed by (i), and no doubt (ii) and (iii) would find their support very handy now in any populist movement. Perhaps within (ii) and (iii) there might even be elements of (iv)?
Within group (i), I think there are quite a number of sub-groups. Judging from the fiasco befallen them, it seems safe to conclude all of them in this group did not expect the backlash and many are "blur" about what just happened.they did not know their actions could cause so much social drama and even pose possible risks to their own families and their jobs. The sub-groups: (a) I suspect some of them may not even know why they oppose gayness - some may just be "uncomfortable" with gayness but still quite ambivalent about it, but feels that young kids should not be taught to think at too early a stage in their lives to affirm gayness. But no doubt, these sub-group of people were "taught" to hold strong views against gayness. (b) There are those who are very educated and know the political agenda behind this movement and are behind the movement eg. the Thios. These definitely hold strong views against gayness.
I do see a positive lining to this unpleasant spat. The insidious political movement of groups like Thio's have been brought up to the forefront. At least society as a whole now has a greater awareness of their agendas. Whether they support and share the same values as this group is another thing. One thing that had disturbed me a lot during the 377a debates is the applause from parliamentarians after Thio Li-Ann's speech. Were these parliamentarians, who are supposed to be extremely educated people and suppose to represent (and be assumed to be capable of representing) their wards hoodwinked by Thio Li Ann? Hopefully, they now have greater awarenss that there is a group out there (or within their NMPs) who has very extremist views, whose views may overlap with their own slightly (eg. uncomfortable or ambivalent about gayness) but certainly not totally.
Obviously (i)(b) needs to be kept in check. I think (i)(a) can be saved from all this if they have greater awareness of where they themselves stand ideologically, and not be drawn into the rigmarole unwittingly.
*The 1st letter: Dr Thio Su Mien came to the attention of the Singaporean public in 2003 when she sent a letter to the local daily newspaper The Straits Times stating her strong disagreement with homosexuality.** The letter, signed by eight persons, was in response to a speech by the then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong in which he mentioned that the Civil Service would not discriminate against employing homosexual individuals.
In her letter, she clearly believes that gays & lesbians should not even be allowed to work in civil service, which is the majority employer in Singapore. PM Goh simply showed the enlightened way of demonstrating equal opportunity and non discrimination. What kind of creature is she and what form of "x-tianity" does she practise?
** Thio, Su Mein (2003-07-22). "No to homosexuality". Streats.
On 9 February 2006, Dr Thio Su Mien also wrote another letter* to The Straits Times which, amongst other things, stated her belief that the American Psychiatric Association had ceased to regard homosexuality as a mental disorder due to "pressure tactics from homosexual activists including riots and disruptions of APA meetings"
See how one's evil beliefs can overshadow an entire system of fact, just cos she believes she has the clout and legal innings to abuse her powers. The Singapore system with its ruling system promotes elitism. And that's another fact.
*See below for 1st letter....con'td
"School Of Supernatural Living
The 8-session programme will be conducted on Friday evenings at the main Auditorium on the following dates:
Dates 2009 February 6, 13, 20, March 6,
April 17, 24 & May 8, 15
Time 7.30pm
The programme will involve reading, equipping and activation of prophetic gifts.
No registration is required, but do let us know through your cell/ministry leaders that you are coming."
Maybe I'll just pop along and activate my prophetic gifts.
It's long (100 min) but is viewable on youtube:
h t t p : / / (without spaces)
in front of this address:
video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6439295521791525424
I have no idea if COOS believe we are in "the end of days", but their buddies at Cornerstone seem to, according to their website.
An actual link to better clarify the contents at Post# 49 will prove less confusing.
"Post #50, which website? Cornerstone or COOS?
An actual link to better clarify the contents at Post# 49 will prove less confusing. "
The Cornerstone Community Church website, regarding the "end of days". The American Cornerstone church is featured at one point in the film: see the truck taking stones to provocatively try and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem (in fulfillment of apocalyptic prophecy) , turned away by police as they would start a riot.
As for the links, they are sometimes so problematic from this site it's easier for people just to google it. I did one regarding the film, but as it didn't work, I replaced it with the cut and paste version.
The course mentioned at COOS is on the home page under Announcements, School of Supernatural Living. See if this works:
http://www.coos.org.sg/
her expression always looks strained & stressed, & she had more than a few very obvious lines around her eyes & mouth. So in my observation, my guess is that she's more "Frustrated Spinster" than "Feminist Mentor". Yeah she's married, bt I suspect things are not going very well for her in the bedroom cause she really seems like she's needy of some TLC...anyone else here think likewise? :p :D
From The Straits Times:
By Zakir Hussain
'So I'm a concerned citizen and if people are so ignorant, I think I want to teach them.'-
- Thio Su mein
SENIOR lawyer Thio Su Mien on Thursday revealed the key role she played in bringing about the change of leadership at the Association of Women for Action and Research (Aware).
Appearing at a press conference called at short notice by some of the association's new leaders, she said she was alarmed to discover that Aware had lost sight of its original purpose and become pro-lesbian and pro-homosexual.
Dr Thio, 71, a born-again Christian who runs her own law firm, is the mother of Nominated Member of Parliament Thio Li-ann and her nephew, Dr Alan Chin, is married to new Aware president Josie Lau.
She was the first woman dean of the Law Faculty at the then-University of Singapore, from 1969 to 1971.
Introducing herself as a 'feminist mentor' to working women, she said she began monitoring Aware's affairs about a year ago.
Disturbed by what she saw as signs that it was promoting lesbianism and homosexuality, she began urging women she knew to challenge Aware's attempts to redefine marriage and families.
On Thursday, the new Aware leaders said that they and their families had been threatened and even received death threats, and they have reported them to the police.
Dr Thio said: 'I feel kind of responsible for these difficulties they are going through, because I was the one who mentored them over the years.'
She said she had been teaching and counselling some of them in different groups for up to 10 years.
She was 'absolutely outraged' that a group of women who just wanted to contribute to society are now facing 'ferocious attacks'. 'I don't understand what has become of our people,' she added.
Homosexual agenda?
THIO Su Mien explained that her concern about the direction that Aware was taking was partly prompted by a letter from a parent who was concerned that the society was promoting a homosexual agenda.
She wrote to the Today newspaper in 2007 to ask why Aware's choice of a movie for a charity show was Spider Lilies, about two lesbians who fall in love.
Dr Thio said she went on to discover that in Aware's comprehensive sexuality education programme, which is taken to schools, homosexuality is regarded as a neutral word, not a negative word.
'I started thinking, 'Hey, parents, you better know what's happening," she said.
'I talked to parents. I said: You better do something about this, otherwise your daughter will come back and say, 'Mum, I want to marry my girlfriend.'
'Or your son will say: 'Dad, I want to marry my boyfriend."
These parents were flabbergasted, she said, adding that such sexuality education was taking place in the United States and Europe and was not new.
'What is happening in society is that we are redefining marriage, we are redefining families,' she said.
'So I'm a concerned citizen and if people are so ignorant, I think I want to teach them.'
Pointing out that Aware's programme was already in 30 schools, she said: '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?'
Insisting that she was not anti-homosexual, she said: 'I have nothing against lesbians or homosexuals personally. On a personal front, I've ministered, I've counselled them.
'They are in pain. And very often from families where you have abusive fathers, they do things with their daughters and the daughters revolt, rebel against society.
'We understand this is what it's all about.'
Dr Thio said that Aware was formed 26 years ago by her contemporaries and friends, and had done great work in many areas.
But she noted that its membership had dropped from about 700 in 1998 to around 200 in 2006.
She was dismayed that at the annual general meeting in 2008, there was a move to give men the right to vote 'in a women's organisation where the objective is to represent all the women of Singapore'.
Only 25 people attended that AGM. The motion was defeated, but reappeared on the agenda at the AGM last month.
She then started looking into the affairs of Aware to see what was going on at the organisation set up by her friends.
She said that there were many women's issues that needed to be looked into, and cited the need to ensure that retrenched women are dealt with fairly.
'I find to my dismay that Aware seems to be only very interested in lesbianism and the advancement of homosexuality, which is a man's issue,' she said.
She felt this matter had to be discussed, but Aware should focus on going back to look after all women in Singapore.
'Can we re-focus on the excellent objectives of Aware? Go back to its original purpose for it being an NGO?' she asked.
That line alone betrays what she REALLY thinks of Singaporean parents.
Below's another perfect example presumptuousness:
'I have nothing against lesbians or homosexuals personally. On a personal front, I've ministered, I've counselled them.
'They are in pain. And very often from families where you have abusive fathers, they do things with their daughters and the daughters revolt, rebel against society."
Right. Are you insinuating MY father is a rapist???
Try telling him that...moron. Abused girls are NOT lesbians. They do NOT suddenly wake up one morning & say "You know, now I'm so used & abused & hurt & upset by men, I suddenly find women VERY ALLURING & ATTRACTIVE"
LMAO...sexual attraction DOESN"T work this way, so "Dr" Thio needs some lessons in biology. :p
From what I've witnessed, abused girls do have trust issues with men, some avoided them, & some may even try to 'turn lesbian', but many of them failed eventually. Cause they aren't attracted to women in the 1st place. Lesbians are women who are physiologically, aesthetically & emotionally attracted to other women...like red hair & left-handedness, some of us are just inherited with this tendency. Instead of educating the public, I'm afraid this so-called "Dr" willl confuse them even more
Friday, 24 April 2009, 6:37 am | 3,529 views
From The Straits Times:By Zakir Hussain
If that's the whole article it seems very one-sided, like another PR exercise for the new guard rather than actual journalism. Why no comments quoted in reply to her outrageous misinformation? Lazy journalism or bias?
On reports of "Burning Bush" * Thio's firm representing STAR, is it possible there is some connection between this and the decision by STAR to cut the sound during the Oscar speeches referring to gays, across the whole of Asia? Is it the same STAR company/group?
* [she claims in an online video (now seems to be removed) to have had a vision of a burning bush. The only other person I'm aware of to claim this is Moses. Maybe she didn't mean it literally.]
All I knew is STAR media is the Asian subsidary of Fox News, which is itself a vehicle for right-wing republican 'news' or more accurately propaganda in the US. If there is indeed a connection bet. the censored Oscar speeches & Thio's firm then she is literally importing US-style fundie bigotry & spreading it across Asia. May all the ghosts the Thios oppressed come together to haunt her, her family, & all her future generations for the rest of their lives.
Firstly to Thio Su Mien, one spider lily (or two) doesn't mean the agenda of an entire organization turns homosexual. Not that anything is wrong with that. I think steveuk has very aptly pointed out the many conflicts between Christian fund. principles and women rights' advocacy - these are the kinds of "discrepancies" we're looking for. Saying that neutralizing homosexuality undermines the integrity of the organization assumes the negativity of homosexuality and as such is only a religious p.o.v. Thus it should receive no more than a helpless shrug.
Now back to AWARE, I think people must be really stupid to not think that the whole upstage was NOT a coup - they share a common mentor for god's sake (haha pun intended). So now they are out in the open. No more evasion since Mother Hen has spread her wings. Now the last question remains : Who's better for AWARE. But sadly, it seems thats not what everyone is concerned about. Some are merely munching popcorn as they watch this catfight. While others are busy rallying "members" for the vote of no confidence. I still don't get why they let people join AWARE before this incident is resolved. Now its just a game of numbers.
Just a crazy thot : could this whole hoo-ha be about getting new members into AWARE. Cos they are doing really well. Maybe the old and new guard have collaborated to boost their dwindling attendance. ------- What i'm saying is the whole voting game is THIS ridiculous. Man.
I was thinking of reducing the gay context in this whole affair to stop neutral (or slightly homo-uncomfortable) Singaporeans from joining the anti-PLU camp but it seems its too late cos the new guard has brought the war to us. Aware has (as we prophecized) turned into a battlefield for their aggression.
Is there a leader among us to rally us to fight a battle of pens at least?!
Yea right! zzz.. And the Almighty God of Abraham called out her name-
" Hey F.U.C.K. face. Go get me a cuppa latte and dun forget to put the straw back in again! I drink mine in mysterious ways. While you're at it, you and your mum go trim those bushes covering your ugly faces and filthy navels. Better yet, BURN them !"
Viola, and that was how the Burning Bush was born! Yikes! :P
------------------------------
Hmmm, her daughter, Thio Li An definitely has more clout & outdid her, with direct access to the big Guy** above. Here we have a delusional family of quacks who "walks and talks" with God. How can they then not be above everyone else? No wonder.
** In an interview with the local daily, The Straits Times on November 2, 2007, Thio shared her personal story of how she converted from a "very, very arrogant" atheist to a Christian in 1987. Having entered Oxford University to read jurisprudence, she attended a Christian Union talk then and claimed to be "stopped" by a voice.
"I basically had a sense that God was talking to me. I had stood up to walk out and I heard someone say, 'Stop'. And no one was around me.... And then I just had the sense that I had encountered God, that he knew my name and I was shocked." Thio was quoted as saying in the interview.
con'td...(below)
Anyway the bible says God is merciful and he forgives. How then can these people be so unforgiving ?????? and dare ostrasize others who just happended not to fit in their "mould" that theyu have created for themselves ????
wake up wake up ....I think it's satan in disguise that is leading them . I believe in God. So please don't make me change my mind and give believers and the religion a bad name.
Lose faith if you must, in the church for it is fallible. Lose faith in its flock, if you must, for they are led astray.
Lose faith in man, if you must, for he is flawed.
BUT never lose faith in the Creator for He is the Truth and you have a direct personal relationship with Him.
Remember what is important in life. If u read the Bible, you will know that everything else is illusion and fluff. Lucifer is given free rein by God to rule earth till the end times, so there should not be any surprise of such events happening around the world, especially from self professed christians.
1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.
Amen, I rest my case.
There's nothing wrong being gay and it should NEVER be lumped as the enemy to the Govt's failing to improve nation's fertility rate. It's a failing if they cannot love their own 'unique' sons & daughters.
I'm appalled that no lesbian has been quoted ANYWHERE in this whole saga. Whether of their plights, clearing off misconceptions or confronting what's uncomfortable about gays.
Unfortunately most Singaporeans' perceptions of lesbians read as the following:
1) if you're butch you must be are too ugly or tough for men;
2) if you're femme you must be too pretty to be les; you must have been raped by yr father/ boyfriend/ some buaya man /men, or
3) this one's the worst by far: if you are a young, 'hot' and/or 'liberal' you must be taking inspiration fr Katty Parasite...er, I mean Katy Perry.
Given the prejudice/ stereotypes above we have to overcome, it really isn't easy trying to get the public to understand...that said though, almost ALL genuine lesbians I know don't fit in the above 3;
in fact quite a number of them, incl.myself, are from very stable, loving families. Most of us are nt filthy-rich, bt nt poor either.
Looks wise we are much like straight ppl, in fact nt many gay girls I know are butch; we take pride in our appearance & pay attention our dress, manners, hygiene & presentation as much as straight women...though usually we can't be bothered with detailed stuff like how to curl yr eyelashes lol.
Most of us work, pay our bills & taxes on time, visit our aging parents whenever we are free, & of course have fun with others in our social circle who share similar interests...gay-themed nights @ nitespots for instance. That's why those homo-obsessed lunatics implying 'harm & damage the gay lifestyle will bring" makes no sense to me....& any other sane, rational human being.
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