| December 15, 2004
Press statement regarding unsuccessful appeal
re: Rejection of PELU Application for Snowball party
Singapore - In a letter dated 13 December 2004, the
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) rejected an appeal to
overturn a rejection of Fridae’s application for
Snowball.04. The event was intended as a Christmas celebration
for the Singaporean gay and lesbian community, as well
as many hundreds of tourists expected to travel to Singapore
for the event.
In giving its reasons, the MHA said in a statement:
“Singapore is indeed opening up. But we are still,
by and large, a conservative society. The blatant public
display involving intimate behaviour of people of the
same sex exhibited at the previous events organised
by Jungle Media/Fridae.com would be an affront and unacceptable
to the large majority of Singaporeans.”
Fridae is extremely disappointed with the response
we have received, which, in the absence of any illegal
act, is a blatant show of discrimination against homosexuals
in Singapore.
Over the years, Fridae has successfully created an
environment for gay, lesbians and other friendly citizens
and visitors to socialise in a controlled and private
environment with minimal disruption to public peace.
Good progress has been made, in creating professionally
organised events for gays and lesbians to meet, with
consultation with police officials in regards to public
order.
These events contribute to fulfilling the basic social
needs of our community. Curbing the efforts of private
enterprises to do so amounts to telling gays and lesbians
they have no place in this country. What this decision
means is that whilst gays may work for the Singapore
civil service, they are however banned from having any
private celebrations.
Fridae finds the rejection in granting of a licence
for the party poorly justified. Considering that the
police have approved of seven prior applications and
been present at every event we have organised, it is
unlikely that the police can claim ignorance of the
nature of these events. Furthermore, as none of the
reasons given by the police breach any known law in
Singapore, there is no legal basis for such a ban.
In disallowing Snowball to be held, the police department
has effectively curbed freedom of choice and the human
rights of a minority population in Singapore in the
name of conservative social values. Furthermore, a ban
on moral grounds amounts to imposing one set of values
on others who may not share them.
Is Singapore facing a dilemma in its pro-business stance
now that "morality" comes into the picture?
And will this “morality yardstick” be applied
to other businesses in Singapore?
This decision is a contradiction of what our Prime
Minister Lee Hsien Loong envisioned for Singapore, namely,
an “open society which is welcoming of talent,
which welcomes diverse views, yet is cohesive and has
a sense of common purpose.”
The image of Singapore as a progressive nation will
be tarnished by such an act of discrimination, and our
aspirations of being a global city where diversity is
celebrated will be set back by many years.
Despite this disappointing setback, Fridae will nevertheless
continue to work with the relevant authorities to seek
consensus between private groups and public agencies
to promote full integration of gays in Singapore society.
We remain steadfast in our convictions that gays and
lesbians are productive members of society, and deserve
to be treated equally under our constitution. Any policy
that is seen to be divisive, deepen segregation or suppress
a minority group will only do lasting damage to our
national morale.
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Refund info
SnowBall ticket holders who purchased their tickets(s)
online will have the amount automatically credited through
their credit card by December 20. Ticket holders who
had bought their tickets through a retail outlet should
return to the store from December 14 to December 30
to get a cash refund. Fridae regrets any inconvenience
this may have caused our patrons, especially those visiting
from overseas.
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