New Naratif's Political Agenda: Recent Episodes
New Naratif
A fortnightly discussion on Singapore politics and current affairs, featuring PJ Thum and guests, brought to you by New Naratif.
Roy Ngerng was just a blogger writing on Singapore using publicly available information when, in 2015, he was sued by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for defamation. The court found him guilty and he was ordered to pay SG$215,000 in damages and costs. His life destroyed, he eventually left Singapore for Taiwan. He talks to PJ Thum about the sheer injustice of his case, which is covered in the new book "Ridiculous: Untold Tales of Singapore". In the first half, they discuss the political situation in Singapore, and the impact of decades of harsh oppression on Singaporeans' mental health and society. In the second half (39:44), they talk about his five years in Taiwan, its economic and social policies, and how they compare to Singapore.
Buy "Ridiculous: Untold Tales of Singapore": https://www.wordimagesg.com/product-page/ridiculous-untold-stories-of-singapore
PJ Thum talks to Irie and Muhammad, two founders of Quasa, a peer support and community network for queer Muslims in Singapore. They talk about Quasa, what it does, why it’s needed, and what they want to achieve. They also discuss the lives of Queer Muslims, what they want, their relationship to their faith, the challenges the face, and the banality of their lives and desires in contrast to how others perceive them. They also ponder religious and cultural discrimination, and the extent to which power structures and discrimination within the Muslim community replicate the power structures and discrimination in the Singapore socio-political system as a whole.
https://www.instagram.com/quasasg/
https://twitter.com/quasasg/
New Naratif held a contest inviting people to tell us who they thought the next Prime Minister of Singapore should be, and why. The winner, with 57 votes, was Yeo Kian Hwee, who (presciently) picked Lawrence Wong. He speaks to PJ Thum about his thoughts on the succession and a Lawrence Wong premiership. As Yeo was born in Malaysia, they also have a discussion about the difference between Malaysian and Singaporean politics, and PJ also gives a brief impromptu history lesson about two of the PAP's big policy missteps, "Stop at Two" and the Second Industrial Revolution. Thank you to everyone who voted in the contest!
You can watch the episode of "The Show of PJ Thum" referred to in the conversation (on Singapore's economic quandary) at: https://youtu.be/ZFI8GJI0hUo
New Naratif explains and explores the forces which shape Southeast Asia. Find out more about our movement at https://www.newnaratif.com/hello. Please join our movement at https://newnaratif.com/join/ or donate at https://newnaratif.com/donate/ - your funds support all our original, hard hitting, independent research and journalism.
Dr Chee Soon Juan is the Secretary-General of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) and one of the most respected and feared opposition leaders in Singapore, so it was a little inexplicable when he decided to start up a restaurant, "Orange & Teal". Singapore's food & beverage industry is notoriously difficult and competitive, and on top of this he started his venture in June 2021 in the middle of a pandemic! PJ Thum visited his restaurant to talk to him about why he started Orange & Teal, his experience in his first year, and what he hopes to achieve. They also talk about the future of Singapore, his vision for the SDP, and its changing perceptions and role in Singapore politics.
Transcript available at https://newnaratif.com/dr-chee-soon-juans-orange-teal/
To learn more, please visit: https://orangeandteal.sg/
https://www.facebook.com/orangeandtealsg/
https://www.instagram.com/orangeandtealsg/
New Naratif invited people to tell us who they thought the next Prime Minister of Singapore should be, and why. PJ Thum interviews the four finalists: Roderick Foo, for Louis Ng; Joel Wong, for Prof Teo You Yenn; Yeo Kian Hwee, for Lawrence Wong; Steven Yeong, for Teo Chee Hean.
Read their written arguments and vote for who you think made the best argument at https://newnaratif.com/NextSingaporePM!
Ahead of the publication of the revised and updated edition of her memoirs, legendary Singaporean civil society activist Constance Singam sits down with PJ Thum to talk about her long career in activism. They talk about the "AWARE Saga", when it was taken over by a group of fundamentalist Christians, which she was a direct participant in as the then-outgoing President of AWARE. They discuss the race, nationalism, and identity; the intersections of Singam's life with so many historical events; and how identity is fluid and ever-changing. They conclude with a discussion on activism in Singapore, what she's learned from a long career, and her hopes for a better life for Singaporeans and all peoples.
"Where I Was: A Memoir About Forgetting and Remembering" is available for pre-sale at https://www.ethosbooks.com.sg/products/where-i-was. You can also follow Ethos Books' Facebook and Instagram page for more information.
Leong Mun Wai is a Non-constituency Member of Parliament for the Progress Singapore Party and the CEO of private equity firm, Timbre Capital. He explains to PJ Thum about Singapore's financial reserves, where it comes from, and how it is spent. They talk about the need for more transparency and accountability over how it is spent, and the inherently political nature of the trade offs between saving Singaporean income and investing it in social welfare and Singapore's future. They also talk about the recent Monetary Authority of Singapore (Amendment) Bill, how it suggests a loosening of financial discipline and responsibility, and why it is potentially very troubling for Singapore.
Leong's speech in Parliament on the Monetary Authority of Singapore (Amendment) Bill can be found here.
Mysara Aljaru talks to PJ Thum about her research into narratives about Singapore's Malay community in the mainstream media in Singapore. They discuss racial stereotypes, the challenges facing the Malay community, the systemic and historical underpinnings of racism, and how racism can be overcome.
In particular, they argue about whether racism is a cause or a symptom of the oppression of Malays in Singapore, the role of neoliberal capitalism and nationalism in that oppression, and whether it is possible to end discrimination over identity.
In defiance of its own laws and the UN Convention of Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Singapore government intends to hang a man with borderline intellectual functioning for smuggling 42.72 grams of diamorphine—a form of heroin used to treat severe pain. PJ Thum speaks to Emmy Charissa, a disability rights activist; Kokila Annamalai, an anti-death penalty activist; and Mila Rockey, sister of death row prisoner Syed Suhail and also an anti-death penalty activist, about Mr Nagaenthran’s case, the lack of a fair trial that accommodated his disabilities, and drug trafficking and the death penalty in Singapore.
Things you can do to help #SaveNagaenthran:
- Sign this petition
- Write to President Halimah Yacob
- Write to your local MPs
- Support the Transformative Justice Collective
What is the Foreign Interference (Countermeasures) Bill? How will it impact our lives? How do we avoid running afoul of it? Why is this law so important? Lawyer Carol Yuen, NCMP Leong Mun Wai, and Progress Singapore Party Women's Wing leader Wendy Low will discuss this mammoth, complicated law with New Naratif managing director PJ Thum and unpack its far reaching implications. This interview was recorded live on 30 September 2021.
On today's episode, PJ Thum speaks to Faris Joraimi about his book, Raffles Renounced. They talk about how the book came about, how it rejects the orthodoxy of Singapore’s history, its national myth, and how it challenges the Raffles-centric view of the country’s history. They also discuss race and what it means to be Malay in a hyper-racialised society.
This interview was recorded on 8 May 2021 and has been edited for clarity. Please visit New Naratif's Youtube channel for the full interview.
Purchase Raffles Renounced at https://www.ethosbooks.com.sg/products/rafflesrenounced
The Online Citizen has been banned in Singapore via the government's suspension of its class license under the Broadcasting Act. Editor-in-Chief Terry Xu joins New Naratif managing director PJ Thum to discuss the banning of TOC, what Terry plans to do next, and the proposed new anti-foreign interference law and how it will impact both TOC and New Naratif. This interview was recorded live on 15 September 2021.
Ryaihanny Sahrom is a legal professional and a freelance writer with a passion in human rights for marginalised genders. Speaking to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han, she argues that effectively addressing crime requires a societal shift in how we define justice, moving from retribution towards abolishing the environmental conditions that create it in the first place. This, she argues, is also an Islamic approach to transformative justice.
Resources to start your journey on abolitionist politics:
http://criticalresistance.org/resources/
Are Prisons Obsolete?
Why I Believe Prison Abolition is a Muslim Issue
Content warning: This podcast includes references to sexual assault
19-year-old Elijah Tay is already a veteran activist, having started at just 14. They return to Political Agenda to talk to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up, Singapore) about their personal life journey, their founding of My Queer Story SG and LGBTQIA+ activism, and their advice for other young people who are trying to create positive change in the face of familial, societal and institutional resistance.
For more, please visit this link.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Up and Out is an Instagram page dedicated to better quality sex education for Singaporean youth, while also speaking out against the outdated sex-ed curriculum of the Singapore education system. PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up, Singapore) talk to the founders, Vanessa and Vivian, about the importance of uncensored, inclusive, and holistic sex education and how it can be achieved. They also discuss their own lives and how they became activists. This podcast was recorded on 21 January 2021.
You can donate to them here. To learn more and support their cause, please visit:
Shop Catalogue
Survivor Waitlist
Linktree
If you are a business owner or an artist of any kind, and you want to collaborate, you can DM them on Instagram or send an email to upandout.contact@gmail.com.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Malaysia is falling apart: people are struggling with hunger in their homes, their healthcare system is falling apart, their leaders are bickering amongst themselves, and their parliament is failing to hold those leaders accountable. How did a prosperous country end up in such dire straits? Lim Wei Jiet, a human rights lawyer, speaks to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up, Singapore) about the ongoing humanitarian and political crises in Malaysia, how it happened, and where it might go. They also discuss lessons that Singapore can draw from this and how Singaporeans can help their Malaysian brothers and sisters.
This interview was recorded on 27 July 2021
For more information on how you can help, please visit this website.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Aleesha Khan works on sexual violence and mental health in Singapore and she runs Self_ally, an Instagram page which provides resources to survivors of trauma and abuse. She talks to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up, Singapore) about her life story, her activism, and her work. They discuss some of the psychology of racism in Singapore, from both the viewpoint of those who perpetuate racism and those who experience it, and what might be done about it.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
For more, please see instagram.com/self_ally
Content warning: This podcast includes references to suicide.
Shaza Ishak is the managing director of Teater Ekamatra, Singapore's leading ethnic minority theatre company. She talks with Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) and PJ Thum about her life story and the challenges she faced as a female Indian Muslim professional in Singapore. They go into detail about Teater Ekamatra, minority representation, and its role in Singapore; and, more broadly, the role and sustainability of the arts in the country, and how it can survive and adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic.
To learn more and support Teater Ekamatra, please visit ekamatra.org.sg/
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Trigger Warning: Sexual violence and self-harm
At seven, Devika Satheesh Panicker was sexually assaulted. After a year of abuse, her parents learnt of the matter and the perpetrator was arrested and incarcerated. Yet this was only the beginning of a long journey for her, first as a survivor and subsequently as an advocate for sexual violence awareness. Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) and PJ Thum talk to her about her life and experiences, her career and advocacy, and her experience as an actress and Vasantham beauty pageant winner. In particular, she discusses the issues and challenges around sexual violence in Singapore (particularly around the issue of consent) and provides crucial advice for how to listen and help survivors.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Heckin' Unicorn sells subtle & unique LGBTQIA+ merchandise, such as enamel pins, socks, and notebooks, that allow people to express their identity. Its founder, Teo Yu Sheng, talks to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) about the origins of Heckin' Unicorn, its ethos and mission, his personal journey, and how he reconciles capitalism and activism. They also discuss his personal philosophy, the Unicorn Library, and his hopes for the future.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Min Cheong and Jufri Salim of the Singapore Democratic Party sit down with Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) and PJ Thum to talk about why they decided to join politics, what they hope to achieve, and their vision for Singapore. They also talk about the evolving challenges of politics in Singapore, the false dichotomy between democratic values and "bread and butter" issues, and about housing, inequality, and education policy.
About the SDP: yoursdp.org
This podcast has been edited for clarity. For the full interview, please visit our website to watch the Youtube video.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Innovative musician and activist Subhas Nair released his new album, Tabula Rasa/Tak Boleh Rasa, direct to fans via Telegram. He talks to Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) and PJ Thum about the music on this album, unpacks its complex commentary of politics and society, and explains his decision to bypass conventional distribution channels - even streaming platforms - to sell his music direct to his audience.
To purchase the album: https://subhasmusic.com/tabularasa
Jolene Tan is author of "After The Inquiry", a new novel on censorship, propaganda, idealism, and everyday authoritarianism in Singapore. She discusses the novel with PJ Thum, and they go into detail in particular about the protagonist, Teck, and what the novel might reveal about Singapore. In the non-spoiler discussion, they delve into depth about the unseen forces which shape how Singaporeans think and act; how certain values are replicated by the incentive structures of the system; and her authorial process.
This interview has been edited for clarity. Please watch the Youtube video above for the full version, which includes the spoiler discussion, in which they dive deeper into the plot and ending.
You can purchase the novel at https://www.ethosbooks.com.sg/collections/latest/products/after-the-inquiry
Learn more about Jolene at https://jolenetan.org/
The Substation, Singapore's foremost experimental arts space, is due to be evicted from its building. Its board consequently and controversially decided to close the space. T. Sasitharan, former Artistic Director of The Substation (1996-2000) joins PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han to talk about The Substation, its importance, and the problem with how the arts are funded and censored in Singapore. They address the disingenuous nature of how the National Arts Council represented the Substation issue, and more broadly exchange thoughts about why the arts are important to Singapore's future.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
A recording of a livestream with PJ Thum and Terry Xu, Editor-in-Chief of The Online Citizen Asia (TOCA), about the 8 March 2021 raid on Terry's home, his interrogation by the Singapore police, excessive/unchecked police powers, and the impending law against "foreign interference" that will target both TOCA and New Naratif.
Muslim women in Singapore who work in frontline roles in the public sector are generally banned from wearing a headscarf (tudung, or hijab). This has long been a source of unhappiness for Muslim women, who are forced to choose between their faith and their work. Educator and active citizen Nur Friday talks to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) about the issue from the perspective of a tudung-wearing Singaporean. She talks about the importance of the headscarf to her faith, the lack of representation for Muslim women, the problems with PAP government policy making, the transformation of the issue from a Muslim issue to a national issue, and addresses misconceptions about the headscarf and Islam.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
For more information on the issues highlighted in the podcast, please visit the original link on the New Naratif website here.
Kokila Annamalai has been ever-present in activism for many years, most recently raising public awareness of the migrant worker dormitory scandal at the heart of Singapore's COVID-19 crisis. She talks to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) about her life, her work and the theory and practice of activism. She talks about decentralised movement building, shifts towards non-violent and restorative cultures, and community organising. They also discuss the death penalty, drug policy, and the unfairness of the legal/justice system in Singapore.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
For more information, please visit Beyond Social Services and Transformative Justice Collective.
In this bonus episode, we bring you part 2 of PJ's interview by The Drunken Ramblings Podcast. Part 1 was released on their channel at https://www.facebook.com/TheDrunkenRamblingsPodcast/posts/223515112838708 or on Spotify. In Part 2, PJ talks about how he became a historian, The History of Singapore podcast, his approach to history, how and why he started New Naratif, Project Southeast Asia at Oxford, the nature of academia, issues of race, the larger context of New Naratif, and his father.
Liyana Dhamirah is head of Red Dot United's (RDU) Youth Wing and author of "Homeless", and Elijah Tay is RDU's youngest member at just 19 years old. PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (WakeUp Singapore) speak to them about why they decided to join politics, what they hope to achieve, and about RDU and their values and vision for Singapore. They also talk about the challenges of building a new political party from scratch in Singapore, and about housing, inequality, and education policy.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
PJ Thum discusses the ongoing campaign of harassment and intimidation by the Singapore Government against New Naratif, and talks about his experience being interrogated by the Singapore police. Hosted by Sean Francis Han (Editor-in-Chief, Wake Up Singapore). This interview was recorded live on 5 March 2021
For more, please visit https://newnaratif.com/new-naratif-under-attack/
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
June Chua is a transgender woman, former sex worker, founder of The T Project, Singapore's first (and to date, only) transgender shelter, and Alicia Community Centre, a safe space for the LGBTQIA+ community. She joins PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) for a fun, high energy podcast, to talk about her life and her activism. They discuss the state of transgender rights and social services in Singapore, the intersection between Singaporean activism and privilege, different ways of effecting change in Singapore, and her experience with the PAP government.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
On Tuesday, 16 February 2021, Jolovan Wham was jailed for 22 days and fined SGD8,000 for three charges, including organising the 2017 MRT protest commemorating the 30th anniversary of Operation Spectrum. Fellow participant Sean Francis Han sat down with PJ Thum to talk about his role in the protest, how he first learned about Operation Spectrum, why he chose to take part, and how it transformed his life. They discuss how the incident permanently changed his view of the Singapore government, and his feelings of betrayal and anger. They also discuss the laws that Jolovan was convicted under and the nature of rule of law in Singapore.
1987: Untracing the Conspiracy
Function8
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Wendy Low and Terence Soon are the newly appointed Heads of the Progress Singapore Party's new Women's and Youth Wings, respectively. In Part 2 of this interview, they discuss how they can make a difference in an environment which is incredibly unfair and restrictive towards opposition politicians. Terence talks about the Youth Wing and its relationship to the party as a whole. Both then discuss the challenges to creating a more diverse PSP, especially with regard to women and youth.
Click here to listen to part one of this interview.
In advance of the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation on the 6th of February, Sya Taha and Saza Faradilla join PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) to discuss the issue of Female Genital Cutting (FGC) in the Singapore context. They talk about the situation in Singapore, why FGC is practised here, and the physical, emotional, and psychological harm that it causes. They also discuss the unique aspects of the situation in Singapore as compared to other places, the effects of FGC on Women's Rights and bodily autonomy, and the barriers towards eliminating its practice.
Content warning: Discussions of genital cutting, violence against children, and mental/physical trauma.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Wendy Low and Terence Soon are the newly appointed Heads of the Progress Singapore Party's new Women's and Youth Wings, respectively. They sat down with PJ Thum in advance of the launch of the PSP's new Women's Wing on 30 Jan 2021. In part 1 of this interview, they talked to PJ about why they decided to join politics, what they hope to achieve in politics, and about the PSP and their own values and vision for Singapore. Wendy also talks about the new Women's Wing, the challenges of building a new political party from scratch in Singapore, and some important women's issues.
Watch the Progress Singapore Party Women's Wing launch at 11am on Saturday, 30 January 2021, at the PSP Facebook and YouTube pages. Speakers include PreetiPls, Joanne Soo, Nurul Fathiah, and Hazel Poa. Hosted by Anita Kapoor.
You can visit their website for more information.
Reetaza "Reetz" Chatterjee is the founder of Your Head Lah!, a mental health collective that aims to centre and amplify marginalised voices. YHL believes that being able to tell our own stories on our own terms and building community with one another are central to collective healing and liberation work. Reetz talks to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) about her own experiences with mental illness and her journey in figuring out her role in activism. Together, they break down the dominant narrative of mental illness being individualised, "disordered" responses, instead reframing mental health issues as valid responses to living in a capitalist world that is deeply unjust and violent. They also talk about the mental health landscape in Singapore and how YHL is making change through community care and fun.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Content warning: Mentions of self-harm and suicide.
Fidellithy Tan is writer and host of the "History of Colonisation" podcast. Beginning with the Portuguese colonisation of Ceuta in 1415, at the start of the so-called “Age of Discovery”, she aims to provide an introduction to Western colonisation of Latin America, Africa, and Asia and how colonialism continues to impact our lives today. She discusses with PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) about how she came up with the podcast, what she aims to achieve, and her thoughts on history, colonialism, and education in Singapore.
For more information, visit hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up, Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Charles Yeo skyrocketed to fame in Singapore's recent General Election with his courageous and relatable performance on the party political broadcasts. He subsequently was elected Chairman of the Reform Party at just 30 years of age, and has gained a devoted following online. He sits down with PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (WakeUp Singapore) to talk about that infamous broadcast, his life and how he came to enter politics, and his political beliefs. They engage in a robust disagreement about immigration policy, and discuss Charles' plans and vision for the future as Chairman of the Reform Party.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Note: New Naratif has been made aware of previous misogynistic comments by Charles Yeo. We were unaware of these comments, and we thank everyone who brought our attention to it. We apologise for failing to do our due diligence and challenging Mr. Yeo on those comments. Misogyny is a form of hate speech and we don’t tolerate any form of misogyny. We are sorry for this error and will do better. Read the full statement here: https://newnaratif.com/podcast/charles-yeo-the-chairman-of-the-reform-party/
Every 4-5 years, the human rights record of every member state of the United Nations is reviewed. Stakeholders, including the government, civil society, and international organisations, can submit reports to the UPR to be taken into consideration in the review. Singapore's next review is coming in mid 2021. Jolene Tan and Emmy Charissa, who contributed to Singapore's civil society reports for previous and upcoming iterations of the review, sit down with PJ Thum to explain the UPR, why it matters, and how the process and outcome impacts Singapore in many ways. They discuss the importance of human rights to Singapore, the recently submitted report from a coalition of Singapore civil society groups, and the limits of their reporting capability.
The Climate Crisis is the greatest existential threat that humanity faces, and yet we are collectively unable to deal with it adequately due to a whole host of systemic forces which incentivise exploitation and destruction of the planet. Annika Mock and Kristian-Marc James of SG Climate Rally join PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (WakeUp Singapore) to talk about the global, Singaporean, and human context of the climate crisis, how structural change can occur, how SG Climate Rally seeks to create change and sustain itself, and how Singaporeans can make a difference.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
With the election of a new President, how will US foreign policy change and how will this affect Singapore? Prof Ian Chong, an expert in the international relations who studies China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and USA-Southeast Asia relations, joins PJ Thum to talk about Trump’s existing foreign policy and Singapore’s role in it; whether Trump has been beneficial to Singapore; the place of small states in an international order; the impact of a Biden Presidency on Singapore's foreign relations; the repercussions of domestic behaviour on international relations; and the balance countries take between political, economic, strategic, cultural, and human rights interests (and why all those are interlinked)
Why is American politics so divisive? Why does it seem like nothing gets done? Why are Americans so obsessed with their Constitution? If you're befuddled and puzzled about the nature of American politics, this is the podcast for you. Antonio Peronace, a longtime political insider in Washington D.C. who directed media operations for the Democratic Caucus first in the House of Representatives and then in the Senate, sits down with PJ Thum to answer questions crowdsourced from the New Naratif membership, about what American politics is really like from the perspective of those who practice it.
Theme music: "Utopia" by Subhas Nair (subhasmusic.com).
We live amidst crises: The fast moving and lethal COVID-19 pandemic; the slow moving but ultimately, even more lethal climate crisis; the crisis in neoliberal capitalism, which has created massive inequality between rich and poor; the crisis in liberal democracy, which has created illiberal outcomes; the crisis in nationalism, which has sown massive conflict globally. How do activists cope with these complicated and interwoven crises to fight for a better world? How do they develop solidarity? How can they unpack and challenge the fundamental assumptions which underpin the modern world? The "Activism in Crisis" online conference sought to discuss all these questions and more. Two of the organisers, Tim Min Jie and Suraendher Kumarr, join PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (WakeUp Singapore) to discuss these and also the challenge of organising an online conference while making it fully accessible to people of very different abilities and needs.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Preetipls (Singapore’s TOP everything!) has made waves as a viral internet sensation with videos ranging from her parody of 'Orchard Road’s Fashion Police' to videos poking fun at more serious topics such as 'racial harmony' in Singapore. She discusses her life, comedy, and philosophy with PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore). In particular, she discusses her political awakening and how she became an activist and how she is trying to create positive political change in Singapore.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up Singapore. You can find out more about them online on their website, Facebook and Instagram.
Philosopher Farhan Idris returns to Political Agenda to discuss how liberation of the mind goes hand in hand with liberation of the body, and how Bras Basah Open tries to create spaces where people can come together and engage in new modes of humanistic inquiry, discussion and critique for collective freedom. He also discusses his life, being a philosopher in Singapore, his experiments with truth, and Bras Basah Open’s upcoming events at the Singapore Writers Festival.
Singapore is, by many measures, one of the richest countries in the world with a government famous for efficiency and extensive intervention in society. Yet experts estimate that up to one third of the country lives in poverty, and civil society has organised, independently of the government, to help those in need by matching them to other independent donors. PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (WakeUpSingapore) talks to a volunteer with Wares Mutual Aid, a community-run spreadsheet which aims to help connect individuals or groups of people in Singapore who have needs with offers of support, who explains how it works and why it exists. In support of the principle that the community and system should be the focus, not the people involved, the volunteer has requested to be anonymous.
For more information, please go to gg.gg/waresmutualaid or instagram.com/p/B_69uR_nVtW/
On 1 October 2020, PJ Thum delivered the keynote lecture at the Progress Singapore Party (PSP) fundraising dinner. In it, he outlines three major ideologies which underpin People's Action Party (PAP) governance in Singapore and explains how the PAP has tied these to Singapore's national identity.
Further, reflecting on GE2020, PJ explains how the Worker's Party has positioned itself in relation to these ideologies. He challenges the PSP (and all other political parties) to articulate a coherent alternative. Until a political party has formed a coherent platform and articulated clearly what the party's values are, PJ argues, it cannot attract loyal members, have committed supporters, or develop a coherent, sustainable party. Please note that the opinions expressed in this speech are PJ's personal views and are not endorsed by the Progress Singapore Party.
The trial of Parti Liyani rocked Singapore and brought down Liew Mun Leong, one of Singapore’s most powerful businessmen. She had been accused of stealing from members of the Liew family, and a first trial convicted her. This sentence was then overturned in the High Court. Serious questions were raised in the High Court judgement about the police handling of the investigation and the conduct of the first trial.
Dr Stephanie Chok, a H.O.M.E. (www.home.org.sg) volunteer who has been part of the team supporting Parti Liyani from the beginning of her ordeal, gives PJ Thum an inside view on the case, the possible mishandling of the investigation by the police, the problems with the trial, and how this is not an isolated incident but related to broader structural issues plaguing Singapore.
To donate to HOME, go to www.home.org.sg/donate/
Subhas Nair is a musician, activist, philosopher, athlete, and renaissance man. He came from truly humble beginnings and worked hard, going from New Town Secondary to Hwa Chong, and then to university to study urban planning. He’s well known as a rapper but he’s also an activist who campaigns for social justice and most recently campaigned about the injustice of the death penalty. He also volunteers with children. He discusses his life, his music, his philosophy, and all the positive change he wants to bring to the world with PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up Singapore.
Yesterday, on 21 September 2020, New Naratif Managing Director PJ Thum was interrogated for four and a half hours, had his mobile phone and laptop seized, and his home invaded by the Singapore police. Today, he sits down with Sean Francis Han to explain what exactly the Elections Department of the Prime Minister's Office is accusing New Naratif of having done, how this is an abuse of the law and demonstrates the accuracy of New Naratif's criticisms of Singapore's People's Action Party (PAP) government, and how this is part of a long standing campaign of harassment and intimidation by the PAP government against New Naratif.
This episode is a collaboration with Wake Up Singapore.
Lune Loh, co-founder of Students for a Safer NUS, member of tFreedom, and Executive Director of TransNUS, speaks to PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (WakeUpSG) about her activism, her life as a trans woman in Singapore (especially during National Service), and the recent kerfuffle over an educational event on bondage and rope play organised by tFreedom.
Watch a longer extended interview on YouTube at https://youtu.be/Q5sHcRsxP-Q
tFreedom Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/tembusufreedom/
tFreedom's Public Statement on the Petition: https://www.facebook.com/820854038089252/posts/1598966110278037/
/s@ber's Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/StopAtBadEndRhymes/
Lune's Poetry Blog: lune.city
Jolovan Wham, the well known Singaporean human rights defender and activist, talks to PJ Thum about his most recent stint in jail for civil disobedience. They discuss Singapore’s arbitrary laws, his experience with jail, issues with the criminal justice system, and why he is advocating for prison reform. Learn more, and get in touch with Jolovan, at prisonlife.sg.
Picking up from last week's episode, PJ Thum continues his conversation with Sean Francis Han, the Editor-in-Chief of Wake Up Singapore. In August, Wake Up Singapore conducted a survey of Singaporeans' social and political attitudes, with some surprising and some not-so-surprising results. In this week's episode, they discuss the results of that survey.
On this week's episode of Political Agenda, PJ Thum speaks to Sean Francis Han, the Editor-in-Chief of Wake Up Singapore. Wake Up Singapore bills itself as a community of young activists looking to bring alternative voices to the major issues in Singapore and around the world, which advocates for reform and social justice. Part one of this interview is about Wake Up Singapore and looks at the sustainability of activism in the country.
PJ sits down with Tan Jee Say of the Singapore Democratic Party to talk about Singapore's economy and economic policies, and the SDP's campaign pledges. Recorded amidst the heat of campaigning on 6 July 2020 and first broadcast on onlinecitizenasia.com.
Last year, Professor Stefano Harney made headlines in Singapore when he gave all 169 business students in his course the same grade. The university called these grades bogus, but Stefano felt the students deserved it and gave them all an A grade.
This week on Political Agenda, PJ Thum speaks to Professor Stefano Harney about this incident and what it reveals about meritocracy in Singapore.
Prof James Warren, author of several groundbreaking subaltern histories of Singapore including "Rickshaw Coolie: A People's History of Singapore 1880-1940", reflects on a long career working on Singapore history in this lecture delivered at the National Library of Singapore in January 2019.
On this week's episode, PJ Thum speaks to Dr Paul Tambyah from the Singapore Democratic Party. They discuss his vision for Singapore, healthcare, the role of non-Singaporeans in the country and other pressing issues. This interview was originally recorded live on The Online Citizen Asia's Facebook page.
Historian Thum Ping Tjin ("PJ") responds to the POFMA order by Minister of Law K Shanmugam against Episode 8 of "The Show with PJ Thum", by analysing how Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act 2019 (POFMA) was used against Episode 8. He notes how the POFMA order did not challenge any of the fundamental conclusions of Episode 8; and demonstrates how its use against Episode 8 proves his arguments correct. He also shows how the PAP government have not kept their word. They have used the law against interpretations; against statements which do not cause public harm; and against Singaporean critics - all of which they said they would not do.
"Discretion" - https://youtu.be/OhzA60_4_sI
Episode 5 - "How the PAP Government Abuses "Rule of Law" to Control Singapore" - https://youtu.be/nPfoQyutztk
Episode 8 - "How bad laws are created and abused in Singapore (A POFMA case study)" - https://youtu.be/AWjPx48lRVM
Episode 8.5 - "The POFMA Cut of Episode 8, 100% lawyer approved!" - https://youtu.be/rF1eaCItE-g
For more of "The Show with PJ Thum", please see https://newnaratif.com/theshowwithpjthum.
New Naratif explains and explores the forces which shape Southeast Asia. Find out more about our movement at https://www.newnaratif.com/hello. Please join our movement at https://newnaratif.com/join or donate at https://ne
Kokila Annamalai, Ngiam Shih Tung, and Gan Theng Wei sit down with PJ Thum to talk about all the issues surrounding Singapore's elections, and in particular the ways in which it is not free and unfair. This podcast was recorded in April 2019.
Feroz Khan and Al Lim, authors of "Educating for a Climate-Crisis World", talk about our need to transform the fundamental values we teach ourselves and our children in order to adapt to the ongoing climate crisis.
PJ speaks to Hallam Stevens and Monamie Bhadra Haines, professors at Nanyang Technological University, about the TraceTogether app, and more broadly about Citizen Science, and the broader societal implications of using such technology to address deeply contentious and difficult political issues.
PJ uses the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act 2019 (POFMA) as a case study, to demonstrate how Singapore's People's Action Party government writes poorly worded laws that give themselves immense amounts of power, while misleading the Singaporean people by saying the laws will be used responsibly and for good purposes but then using the law chiefly to silence critics and suppress opposition. See the full video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWjPx48lRVM
N.B.: This video was filmed 31 January 2020. Error at 17:09 - The date is 5 February, not 5 January (the caption has the correct date).
"Discretion": https://youtu.be/OhzA60_4_sI
"1984" film clip is from https://youtu.be/cAKtpCo8fPE
For more on "The Show with PJ Thum", please see https://newnaratif.com/theshowwithpjthum.
New Naratif explains and explores the forces which shape Southeast Asia. Find out more about our movement at https://www.newnaratif.com/hello. Please join our movement at https://newnaratif.com/join - your fees support all our original, hard hitting, independent research and journalism.
Last week on World Press Freedom Day, we talked about Freedom of the Media in Indonesia. Today, we talk about Freedom of Expression, including the Media, in Singapore, in a chat with Dr James Rowlins. James earned a PhD in French Literature and Film at the University of Southern California and was a lecturer in film and media studies at the Singapore University of Technology and Design when the university was in its infancy, from 2012 to 2018. While there he had the opportunity to witness many interesting incidents in Singapore, including over Amos Yee, The Real Singapore, and The Online Citizen, among others; and also personally had interesting encounters over issues of freedom of expression and freedom of academia. Last year he wrote an article for New Naratif called Out of Bounds: Freedom of Expression in Singapore Revisited.
Historian Thum Ping Tjin ("PJ") explains Singapore's Oxley Road dispute between Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his siblings, Lee Wei Ling and Lee Hsien Yang; how Lee Kuan Yew's legacy is crucial to the PAP continuing to win elections and monopolising power; how this demonstrates the weakness of public institutions in Singapore; and how Singapore has the appearance of the form of public accountability and transparency but not the substance. To see the video, please visit https://youtu.be/ikJq1xEzUhI
N.B.: This video was filmed 31 January 2020.
"Discretion": https://youtu.be/OhzA60_4_sI
New episodes of The Show with PJ Thum drop Fridays until May. For more, please see https://newnaratif.com/theshowwithpjthum
New Naratif explains and explores the forces which shape Southeast Asia. Find out more about our movement at https://www.newnaratif.com/hello. Please join our movement at https://newnaratif.com/join - your fees support all our original, hard hitting, independent research and journalism.
Historian Thum Ping Tjin ("PJ") explains how Singapore's economy has evolved over time, how it is heavily dependent on foreign funding, and how the PAP tried to wean Singapore off foreign funding and failed miserably, leading to Singapore's current economic quandary.
Yeoh Lam Keong and The Future of Singapore discussions:
- Part 1: https://youtu.be/KIZKbR1SOiQ
- Part 2: https://youtu.be/56PxMROHKhU
- Part 3: https://youtu.be/vzapkKi4EQo
- Part 4: https://youtu.be/gJmr-UgdDx4
- Part 5: https://youtu.be/k0YXEyVQwso
- Part 6: https://youtu.be/FyrZlAKyVQI
New episodes of The Show with PJ Thum drop Fridays until May. For more, please see https://newnaratif.com/theshowwithpjthum.
New Naratif explains and explores the forces which shape Southeast Asia. Find out more about our movement at https://www.newnaratif.com/hello. Please join our movement at https://newnaratif.com/join - your fees support all our original, hard hitting, independent research and journalism.
PJ speaks with Zakir Hossain Khokan, a migrant worker from Bangladesh and founder of "Migrant Writers of Singapore", who is currently ill with COVID-19 (but recovering), and Jay and Michelle, two Singaporeans who volunteer with his organisation, about their work and other initiatives, including aid to workers in the ongoing crisis ( 2:30 ). Zakir also talks about how he's doing with COVID-19, his own history, how he came to be in Singapore, and his experience in the past 17 years of a migrant worker ( 7:40 ). Then the group discusses the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, what their group are doing, and segues into a discussion about broader structural and systemic issues facing migrant workers in Singapore (16:03).
If you'd like to learn more:
Daily Life in Covid 19:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/693814274723293/
One Bag, One Book
https://www.facebook.com/onebagonebook/
Migrant Writers of Singapore
https://www.facebook.com/Migrant-Writers-of-Singapore-535923550127166/
New Naratif:
Myths and Facts: Migrant Workers in Singapore:
https://newnaratif.com/research/myths-and-facts-migrant-workers-in-singapore/share/cwguhz/e06f967fb0d355592be4e7674fa31d26/
A Creative Outlet for “Invisible” Hands:
https://newnaratif.com/journalism/creative-outlet-invisible-hands/
Book:
Call and Response: https://www.booksactuallyshop.com/products/call-and-response
Donations:
Collective of Migrant Efforts (COME):
https://www.giving.sg/campaigns/homeforall-migrants
Historian Thum Ping Tjin ("PJ") explains how the People's Action Party in Singapore uses/abuses the concept of the "Rule of Law" to control all forms of political activity, by criminalising all behaviour but selectively investigating, harassing, and charging only its critics and opponents. Also, he tries to sell you some cologne. Watch the video at https://youtu.be/nPfoQyutztk.
Historian Thum Ping Tjin ("PJ") explains how the People's Action Party in Singapore, through purposeful social design since the 1960s, has created a system through which the state is able to intimately interfere in peoples lives and create public dependence on the state; and how this dependence on the state then makes people afraid to speak up or oppose the government. See the video at https://youtu.be/72kugG5JDwE.
On 13 March 2020, Wong J-Min, an 18 year old student, held Singapore's first Climate Strike when she skipped school to protest in front of the offices of ExonMobil. On 22 March, 20 year old Nguyen Minh held up a placard in front of Toa Payoh Community Club which said "Singapore is better than Oil." PJ Thum talks to these two young Singaporeans about themselves, their activism, their goals, and their hopes for the future. Support them by making a sign, taking a photo, and putting it online with #Fridays4FutureSG, #ClimateStrikeSG, and tagging@Fridays4FutureSG.
PJ comments on the oppression of peaceful climate change activists, Lee Hsien Loong's continued teasing of us about an election amidst the coronavirus crisis, and sex with a condom; and continues his explanation of how the electoral system is deeply unfair. The historic use of arrests and lawsuits, the threats of punishment, and the slanted media coverage create an atmosphere of fear in which people are afraid of voting against the governing People's Action Party. Lisa the Clairvoyant Malayan Sun Dog then predicts the result of the next Singapore General Election. For the full video, please visit https://youtu.be/ysPRlRIUO7I.
For some reason, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong wants to call an election in the middle of the coronavirus crisis. Historian Thum Ping Tjin (“PJ”) comments on this and explains how the electoral system is deeply unfair. It is designed to maximise the seats and votes for the governing People’s Action Party (PAP), and the point of the system is to legitimise PAP rule, not to reflect popular will or ensure democracy. Recorded 28 January 2020, Aired 27 March 2020. Please join New Naratif as a member: newnaratif.com/join.
Thum Ping Tjin talks to Tan Wah Piow about childhood, his time in the University of Singapore, his activism, his fraudulent conviction and the PAP government's attempted abuse of the National Service Act against him, his subsequent flight and exile from Singapore, all the people who helped him along the way, and his reflections on Singapore’s politics and political activism today. Recorded 13 November 2019.
A recording of a conversation between sociologist and author of This Is What Inequality Looks Like, Teo You Yenn, and New Naratif's Editor-in-Chief, Kirsten Han, about their writing process, and what it's like to do the work they do in Singapore.
In a speech in early 2019, then-British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt extolled Singapore as a model for the UK post-Brexit. This idea has persisted throughout the Brexit campaign and the debate over the future direction of post-Brexit UK. Implicit in these models is a vision of Singapore as an economically liberal, “low-tax, low-spend, low-regulation” environment that appeals to many anxious over Brexit. This is underpinned by a myth of Singapore having successfully transformed itself from a small fishing village into a gleaming, modern, cosmopolitan, and prosperous society while uplifting its people from poverty into a country with one of the world’s highest per capita GDP. But how accurate is this vision of Singapore? In this talk, given at Oxford on 21 November 2019, Dr PJ Thum unpacks the common myths and misunderstandings surrounding Singapore, explains the economic, political, and social mechanisms used by the ruling People’s Action Party to achieve its aims, and offers potential lessons for a Britain searching for its role in post-Brexit world.
Across the world, young people have stepped up to lead social movements and speak out on a range of causes, from the climate crisis to gun control in the US.
In Singapore, young people have also stepped up to take action, whether it's pressuring their university to reform its sexual harassment policies, or take part in organising the country's first ever climate rally. But there's also been less-than-happy conversations about young people and social movements, given the recent cancellation of a "Dissent and Resistance" programme at Yale-NUS.
What is the the role of youth activism in society? What is the state of student activism in Singapore? Following a democracy classroom on the same topic, New Naratif's Editor-in-Chief Kirsten Han sits down with Kristian-Marc James Paul (SG Climate Rally), Mandy Chng (Sayoni), and Rocky Howe (Cassia Resettlement Team).
One year ago on 29 March 2018, PJ Thum went before the Singapore Parliamentary Select Committee for Deliberate Online Falsehoods, or “fake news”, to use the common shorthand. To his surprise, instead of speaking about his submission to the Committee, he was ambushed with a six-hour interrogation about a paper he published in 2013—or, to be more precise, about one paragraph in that paper, about Operation Coldstore, the 1963 arrest and detention without trial of over 112 opposition politicians, trade unionists, and activists.
Why did the Minister for Law and Home Affairs torpedo the Select Committee, destroy its credibility, and waste all this public time and money over what he wrote? In this lecture at the University of California, Berkeley, he explains how historians understand Operation Coldstore and the historical evidence surrounding it, how this relates to the mechanisms of and justifications for social control in Singapore, and the hierarchy of priorities that influence decision making for the governing People’s Action Party leaders.
It's been about a year since Singapore's Select Committee on Deliberate Online Falsehoods held its open hearings. Although no Bills have yet been tabled, Singapore is expecting legislation to deal with "fake news" and foreign interference. But what would their impact be?
In this episode, we talk to political scientist Ian Chong and Editor-in-Chief of The Online Citizen Terry Xu about security concerns and the impact on free speech in Singapore.
The legend and myth of Lee Kuan Yew looms large, not just over Singapore but over many countries around the world which aspire to emulate his achievements. But who is Lee Kuan Yew, and what exactly did he accomplish? The very first book to try to tackle Lee using a rigorous research-based approach was James Minchin’s No Man Is An Island: A Portrait of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew. As a researcher, Minchin was given incredible access to the upper echelons of Singapore’s elite. He interviewed cabinet Ministers, senior officials, close associates and former adversaries of Lee, both in Singapore and Malaysia. When the book came out in 1986, it was revelatory, detailing both Lee’s spectacular successes and his failures and serious misjudgements, including his abuses of power, his shabby treatment of his colleagues, and his dangerous dependence on prescription drugs which impaired his judgement at a critical time. Minchin’s portrait was not challenged by Lee, but the book is next to impossible to find in Singapore and years later, Minchin himself was banned from entering Singapore. He remains banned to this day.
On 15 November 2018, PJ Thum sat down with James on one of his frequent visits to Kuala Lumpur. They spoke about his life in Singapore, his experience writing the book, his ban from Singapore, and his reflections on Singapore’s politics today.
On 28 January, Singapore’s Ministry of Health revealed that the personal data of 14,200 people living with HIV had been leaked. The news has drawn attention to both the stigma against HIV and concerns over data collection and protection in Singapore. In this episode, we speak to Avin Tan of Action For AIDS and software engineer Chong Kai Xiong.
2019 marks the 200th anniversary of Sir Stamford Raffles' arrival and the beginning of colonisation in Singapore. Following up on 2015's SG50 celebrations, this year Singaporeans will be hearing plenty about the SG Bicentennial. But how—and why—are we commemorating our own colonisation? How do Singaporeans view colonialism, and what impact has the dominant historical narrative had on our lives? We talk to freelance researchers Nurul Fadiah Johari and Farhan Idris, and artist and musician Bani Haykal about their reactions to the bicentennial.
In its 60 years in power, the People's Action Party has used three, very starkly different, official historical narratives. In this lecture, PJ Thum explains this historiography and how the current narrative aims to legitimise the continued subjugation of Singaporeans, weaponise nationalism, and perpetuate colonial mindsets.
Protests are often seen as disruptive and destructive, and are generally frowned upon in Singapore. Activists and performance artists have been arrested and charged under the Public Order Act in recent years, even for indoor forums and solo outdoor performances. In this episode, we sit down to talk to former student activist Tan Tee Seng and civil rights activist Jolovan Wham about activism, social change, and the rule of law in Singapore.
In our final episode of Political Agenda for 2018, New Naratif's Managing Director PJ Thum and Editor-in-Chief Kirsten Han sit down to talk about recent developments in Singapore, from the anointing of Heng Swee Keat as successor to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, to the ongoing maritime dispute between Singapore and Malaysia, and the upcoming bicentennial of Raffles' landing on the island.
Singapore has an ageing population. It's a situation often described in anxious, alarmist tones, with the growing number of senior citizens framed as dependent on a shrinking pool of able-bodied working adults. Yet the country is doing well in terms of health life expectancies, indicating that Singapore's elderly aren't as helpless or infirm as they are often portrayed as being. Is it time for a fundamental overhaul of the way we think about ageing? In this episode, we talk to Dr Kanwaljit Soin, founding president of Women's Initiative for Ageing Successfully (WINGS), and Fong Hoe Fang, the founder of Ethos Books currently in the process of retiring to future adventures.
Our team’s been busy in Kuala Lumpur for our first open meeting in Malaysia, so instead of a new episode of Political Agenda, we’ll be airing a lecture that our Managing Director PJ Thum delivered at Stanford University in October. He discusses the history of Singapore, covering how the country developed politically and socially from as a post-colonial country in the 1960s to the much-envied yet authoritarian state that it is today.
There are almost a million work permit holders in Singapore, labouring in a range of low-wage, stigmatised professions: construction, manufacturing, domestic work. But many face physical and social segregation, and are excluded from data on Singapore’s resident population. This week, Dr Stephanie Chok from the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (HOME) and Debbie Fordyce from Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) join New Naratif to talk about this marginalised segment of Singapore’s population, and what the impact is on not just Singaporeans, but also the workers and their families back home.
Political Agenda is a fortnightly podcast by New Naratif, where we get interesting people together for a conversation about an important Singaporean subject or issue.
Singapore’s hawker centres have been described as a “cultural institution”, a source of pride as much as a source of good eats. Yet the hawker industry is in crisis today, with rents and overhead costs rising even as hawkers are pressured to keep their prices down. In this episode, PJ Thum heads to Chinatown Food Complex to speak to three hawkers, Jialiang, Yu Ting and Uncle Arthur, about the difficulty of surviving, not as cultural symbols, but viable businesses.
(All three of their stalls can be found at Blk 355 Smith Street Chinatown Complex, Singapore 050335:
Yu Ting and her friend Alex serve up fusion Japanese-Italian food at Sutachi at #02-60.
Uncle Arthur runs Chinatown Sun Seng at #02-61 serving up homely Singaporean and Chinese cuisine.
While you’re enjoying all this great food, Jialiang will be at Smith Street Taps at #02-62 supplying you with craft beer to quench that thirst. You can also order chocolate truffles from him online at Demochoco.)
On 6 September, the Indian Supreme Court decriminalised homosexuality when it ruled on Section 377 of its penal code. The historic ruling on this colonial-era law gave a boost to Singapore’s LGBT movement, prompting a renewed push to repeal Section 377A of Singapore’s Penal Code. New Naratif sits down with Ready4Repeal co-author Johannes Hadi, Clement Tan of Pink Dot and PhD candidate Pamela Devan to talk about the anti-gay law and other LGBT issues in Singapore.
From our speakers:
- Ready4Repeal: http://ready4repeal.com
- Pink Dot: http://pinkdot.sg
- Check out Pamela Devan’s work: http://www.bu.edu/sociology/graduate-programs/current-students/pamela-devan/
If you are in need of support or resources, check out these LGBT or LGBT-friendly organisations in Singapore:
- Brave Spaces runs a hotline for LBTQI women: http://bravespace.org/programmes-services/brave-helpline/brave-helpline-faq/
- Oogachaga is an LGBT-friendly counselling organisation: https://oogachaga.com/
- The T Project is a homeless shelter for the transgender community: http://www.thetprojectsg.org/
- The Kopitiam Brothers is a group by transmen for transmen: https://www.facebook.com/thekopibros/
- Pelangi Pride Centre is an LGBT community space and resource centre: https://www.pelangipridecentre.org/
- Same But Different is a legal guidebook for LGBT couples and families in Singapore: https://www.singaporelgbtlaw.com/
- The Bi+ Collective is a space for people who are bisexual: https://thebipluscollective.wixsite.com/tbcsg/about
- Prout is an app to connect you with others in the LGBT community: http://proutapp.strikingly.com/
- The Healing Circle aims to provide a safe space for LGBTQ+ Malay Muslims to embrace both their spirituality and sexual orientation: http://www.thehealingcircle.sg/
New Naratif turned one on 8 September 2018 and we marked the occasion with our members with a live recording of Political Agenda! Managing Director PJ Thum and Editor-in-Chief Kirsten Han reflect on a rollercoaster year and take questions from the audience.
Crazy Rich Asians opened in the US a week-and-a-half ago and was welcomed as a milestone, a “moment” and a win for representation. But how does it portray Singapore, in which the story is set? We sit down with Ruby Thiagarajan of Mynah Magazine, Aisyah Amir of The Local Rebel and Yale-NUS undergraduate Faris Joraimi to talk about representation, inequality and Crazy Rich Asians from a Singaporean perspective.
This is New Naratif’s Political Agenda — a fortnightly roundtable discussion series of current affairs and issues of national importance in Singapore. Hosted by Managing Director PJ Thum and Editor-in-Chief Kirsten Han.
This week, we talk nationalism and National Day in Singapore with political scientist Dr Ian Chong and theatre director—and former National Day Parade creative director—Glen Goei.