Two men, aged 57 and 29, were injured today after an SBS Transit truck skidded into a drain along Bedok North. Photos and a video capturing the aftermath of the incident, that occurred along Bedok North Avenue 4 towards Changi South Lane, show the truck lying sideways inside a large drain.
Footage capturing the aftermath of the incident also show what appears to be the crash path of the vehicle, as several guards rails that typically line the side of the drain can be seen mangled, laying on the sidewalk.
SG Road Vigilante FB
A man can be seen lying in the drain, with an eyewitness kneeling beside him, as another man who looks to be a worker can be seen on top of the truck appearing to attach tow straps on the vehicle:
According to the Singapore Civil Defence Force, the incident occurred around 12.40pm and the injured were rescued and conveyed conscious to Changi General Hospital, added the police.
Tammy Tan, SBS Transit’s senior vice president of corporate communications, said that both men are presently receiving treatment at the hospital. She added: “We are investigating the incident and are thankful no one else was injured as a result.”
A 59-year old man who is visually handicapped, has kidney failure and has been declared medically unfit to work was denied long-term financial assistance by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF).
The reason they cite is this: the man receives SGD$620 a month from his own Central Provident Fund (CPF) account which is higher than the amount given for public assistance, SGD$500, making him ineligible for financial assistance.
A Facebook post shared by member of the Singapore People’s Party Jose Raymond showed the letter received by the man from MSF’s Social Service Office.
In the letter, the MSF explained why his application for financial assistance was rejected.
“We noted that you are receiving monthly pay-out from your account with the Central Provident Fund. As you have a source of income, we are unable to assist you with the financial assistance.”
Photo: Facebook/Jose Raymond
Raymond adds that the man does not have any children, or family members, and lost contact with his only brother decades ago.
It begs the question of why one’s own CPF pay-out disqualifies them from receiving financial assistance.
The rental cost of his one-room flat in Toa Payoh is borne by a temple and the man has one meal a day delivered to his home. His dialysis treatment is covered by the Ministry of Health and National Kidney Foundation subsidies.
Even if the man were to spend an average of SGD$10 a day on his remaining two meals, it would add up to SGD300 a month – just about half of his CPF pay-out. With the remaining money used for utilities, transportation, telecommunications and other personal expenses, what does he have left?
In his post, Raymond questions, “What is the policy rationale behind this? For short term to medium term assistance, an individual who earns less than $650 a month qualifies for assistance”.
He also ends his post saying, “Our citizens need to lead dignified lives”.
Netizens expressed their disbelief, with some even emphasising that CPF pay-outs should not be seen as ‘sources of income’, but as a part of the people’s retirement fund.
In a much shared and commented on Facebook post, Secretary-General of the People’s Power Party Goh Meng Seng chided Singapore’s ministers for their “impudence” at the working lunch hosted by Prime Minister Lee. Hsieng Loong for US President Donald Trump.
Mr. Goh posted a photo of the Singaporean ministers at lunch with President Trump and other members of the US diplomatic team, drawing attention to the fact that several ministers had their mobile phones in front of them at the table, and naming Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan in particular.
Though he prefaces his post with writing, “Comment by a friend…” Mr. Goh’s ire toward the ministers is palpable. The “comment,” whether it’s from Mr. Goh or the unnamed friend, points out that the presence of the ministers’ cellphones during the lunch meant that they were “not committed to 100% attention in a high level lunch with the president of the United States” and tells them this is improper for a meal with the family, let alone an important official function.
The fact that the US team did not have their phones on the table was also focused on, as well as the point that no matter what one may think of the US President, his position is still worthy of respect. The ministers should have delegated other matters to their secretaries.
The post ends with this:“If I were the master of ceremony for the event, I will tick off the secretaries of the Singapore team mercilessly.”
A number of netizens agreed with Mr. Goh
Others seemed to joke that maybe the Singaporean ministers were recording Mr. Trump’s words.
Things continue to look up for the job market: the first quarter labour market report from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) shows that the number of retrenchments are the lowest they’ve been since 2013.
And here’s even more good news: the number of employment opportunities is now greater than the number of jobseekers, especially in the PMET (professionals, managers, executives and technicians) sector. This is the first time this has happened since March 2016.
Photo: Ministry of Manpower
In the last quarter of 2017, there were 3,680 retrenchments. They are lower not only in the previous quarter, but are also down significantly from from the same period last year, when the number was at 4,000.
Retrenchments have primarily been due to business restructuring and reorganization. It pays to note that most retrenchments have come from the service industry (63%)—from professional and financial services, and also from wholesale trade.
With regards to unemployment, here are the MOM’s latest findings:
Resident unemployment has fallen from 3% to 2.8 %
Citizen unemployment has held steady at 3%
Seasonally adjusted unemployment is down to 2% in March, from 2.1% in December
There has been a growth in services across all sectors, which has given rise to more employments. With regards to total employments, there were 3,700 new employments from January to March 2018, 3,300 of which went to foreign domestic workers.
The MOM has said that the increase in services is even greater than jobs lost in construction and manufacturing.
Job seekers have an easier time than ever, with more jobs now available than there are unemployed people. The ratio of available jobs to jobseekers is now above 1. In December there were 92 opportunities for every 100 unemployed people, and in March there were 104 vacancies per hundred people. The PMET sector is responsible for this rise in employment opportunities, as well as openings in the community, social and personal services and the transportation and storage sector.
The MOM report indicates that things will get even better for job seekers this year, with employment opportunities opening up in various service sectors including healthcare, logistics and wholesale trade, finance and insurance, infocomms and media and professional services.
The MOM report warned the construction and marine shipyard sector, saying they may want to exercise caution with employment opportunities, since job vacancies are not spread out equally across the different sectors. With the unemployment rate for residents lower than it has been in the last two years, the report warned that improvements could be more difficult to achieve. “To keep unemployment low, it is critical to prepare workers and businesses to be agile and responsive to economic restructuring and the evolving employment landscape.”
Through the Adapt and Grow initiative, the MOM will be working with Workforce Singapore to help workers improve their skills, and will be helping businesses grow via various other programs as well.
Patrick Tay, assistant secretary-general of the National Trade Unions Congress (NTUC), responded to the MOM report on a post on social media, saying “For the first half of 2018, I expect retrenchment figures to remain low but we will expect to still see pockets of layoffs due to re-organisation, restructuring and re-strategisation amidst technological/digital disruption and the rise of cloud, machine and crowd.”
He also said that “Structural challenges such as skills and jobs mismatches which will be one of the main cause of unemployment in Singapore in the near and medium term.”
However, Mr. Tay’s post ended in a positive note, “Overall, it will not be an easy task but we all need to have the Right Mindset, Right Skillset and Right Toolset to navigate the wave of change and growth.”
The Jurong Gateway project breathed a sigh of relief after Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, made a u-turn on HSR project. Dr Mahathir confirmed the u-turn – that the project was temporarily delayed (not scrapped) – in an interview to Nikkei Asian Review.
He added: “There will be a need for a HSR in the future, probably right through the peninsula. But we cannot afford it at this moment. So, we actually postponed the implementation of the project.”
Dr Mahathir’s confirmation comes after the Malaysian Finance Minister said a few days ago that the HSR project may be revived sometime in the future if the price is right.
The news that the Malaysian Government has scrapped the HSR (high speed rail) project rocked the property market sentiments built around the Jurong Lake District area. Some experts suggested that the decision by the Malaysian Government could leave a ‘hole’ in Jurong Lake District area.
Dr Mahathir made the u-turn when the Japanese publication asked him if his government would reconsider the HSR project if it was scaled down. He said that the estimated price tag of $37 billion (RM110 billion) was the road block for the successful completion of the project, especially when stacked up against the huge federal debt of more than RM1 trillion ($337.9 billion).
Dr Mahathir’s reply was similar to Mr Lim’s who said a few days ago that the HR project can be “so much cheaper.” He added that “if the financial architecture is done right, it doesn’t need to cost so much.”
“If you work out the financial architecture, I think we can get it (Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail project) so much cheaper. With the Bandar Malaysia land and all that…but I don’t want to reveal too much.” – Lim Eng Guan
Dr Mahathir further noted that “high-speed trains are most effective where the distance is very long. But where the distance is short, it doesn’t contribute much. So we need to rethink HSR. We cannot say we will never have HSR in Malaysia.”
Mr Lim along with Malaysia’s Transport Minister and Economic Affairs Minister are all set to meet their Singapore counterparts to discuss the HSR project. The Malaysian government leaders’ assurance that the HSR project can be revisited in the future, has now caused some to breathe a sigh of relief.
In December 2016, Singapore and Malaysia signed an agreement to build a multi-billion dollar, 350km high-speed rail link between the two countries. The HSR project has been a shot in the arm for developments in and around the Jurong Lake District area.
Even though it is still unclear if the HSR project will be derailed by the Malaysian government, those that have bought properties in the area (or are looking to buy one there soon), need not be overly concerned that prices of their properties will plummet if the plug is pulled from the HSR project.
This is because even if the HSR project is expected to deliver higher property prices and rev up commercial and retail activity in the Jurong Lake District area, the developments in the area itself is hinged on the Singapore Government’s blueprint for the Jurong Lake District, which was first unveiled in the 2008 Master Plan when the area was earmarked as a new growth area.
There is now some 160 hectares of land that is yet to be developed within the 360-hectare district. More than 40 per cent of the mixed-use business area is set aside for residential purposes. Developments for the Jurong Lake District are centered around the Jurong East MRT station. With established businesses around the MRT station – like the International business park, IMM (a major shopping mall), along with other new shopping malls, a hospital, educational hubs, high rise offices and residential units – Jurong Lake District is looking very credible as a regional centre even without the HSR project.
Image credit: URA
According to the URA’s Masterplan, most of the developments will be centred around Jurong Gateway for a start.
Jurong Gateway is also most likely to be the crown jewel in the Jurong Lake District vicinity. With a catchment consumer base of Jurong East HDB dwellers and the Lakeside village (a designated dining place) the Jurong Lake District is likely to be developed fast and find success quickly.
Good tenants at Lakeside village may bring people closer to enjoying the lakeside. Lakeside village is connected via bridges to Japanese Garden and Chinese Garden, bringing lakeside enjoyment to the residents staying nearby.
Jurong Gateway project which includes developments along Yuan Ching Road are yet to be developed, but once this area develops with waterfront hotels, it would revitalize the area and possibly lead the Jurong Lake District to become a reality much sooner – in 5 – 7 years time. Some HDB flats around Ho Ching road area in the Jurong Lake District are built in 1972 and are ripe for selective en-bloc redevelopment, at 42 years old.
Besides, the stakeholders in the Jurong Gateway are also expected to get a boost from the announcement of the seventh MRT line – the Jurong Region Line.
The new line will serve the Jurong area and the western part of Singapore and is expected to lift the fortunes of not just the properties in the Jurong Lake District area, but also the real estate in Boon Lay and Choa Chu Kang.
The Jurong Region Line will be 24km long with 24 stations, and will run above-ground. It will open in three phases, starting from 2026. The Jurong Region Line will give commuters route choices especially for stakeholders in the Jurong Gatewayproject . For example, the two interchange stations at Choa Chu Kang and Boon Lay will connect the North-South Line (NSL) and East-West Line (EWL), giving commuters alternative travel routes.
So what’s driving the interest in the Jurong Lake District area is not necessarily the HSR project, but the successful transformation resulting from the Jurong Gateway initiative. The HSR project, if it takes off, will only be a nice bonus to the buyers of property in that area.
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Luego de la dictadura, los ciudadanos argentinos han vigilado los derechos humanos y defendido la democracia, siempre con el lema de ‘Nunca mas’.Ministerio de Cultura de Argentina/flickr
En el mes de mayo, las calles de las ciudades argentinas se tiñeron de pañuelos blancos, el símbolo de las Madres y Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo, quienes aún siguen buscando a sus hijos, hijas, nietos y nietas. En Buenos Aires la Plaza de Mayo, centro político de la Argentina, acogió a una de las marchas más numerosas de los últimos años, con hasta 200,000 manifestantes.
Organismos de derechos humanos, agrupaciones sociales y políticas, ciudadanos sin banderas ni representación política colmaron la plaza el 10 de mayo en respuesta a una decisión de la Corte Suprema que reinstalaba la política de impunidad que avaló seis golpes de Estado conducidos por las fuerzas armadas durante el siglo XX (1930, 1943, 1955, 1962, 1966 y 1976).
El 3 de mayo, por mayoría, la Corte benefició al torturador Luis Muiña con el llamado “dos por uno”, una ley ya derogada que rigió de 1994 al 2001 para resolver la situación de presos comunes muchas veces encarcelados con largas prisiones preventivas sin sentencia.
Muiña fue sentenciado en 2011 a 13 años en la cárcel por secuestros y tortura por el operativo que se realizó en 1976 en el Hospital Posadas hecho ocurrido durante la dictadura 1976-1983, sentencia de la cual ha servido tan solo 6 años, y que según el cómputo del dos por uno le permitía quedar en libertad en noviembre de este año.
Ampliando el beneficio del dos por uno a los delitos de lesa humanidad, decisión dictada por tres de los cinco jueces de la Corte, se abrió la posibilidad de que genocidas, ladrones de bebés y torturadores que actuaron durante la última dictadura militar (1976-1983) quedaran en libertad por reducción de condena conmutando las penas, ya que un año se cuenta como dos años.
El golpe militar de 1976, por el cual la presidenta María Estela Martínez de Perón fue derrocada por una junta militar, fue el más sangriento, demoledor e ilícito de la historia. En siete años y medio hubo 30,000 desaparecidos y más de 300 cadáveres acribillados, 22 asesinatos de personas de actuación pública.
Pero los ciudadanos aprendieron desde 1983 a defender los logros alcanzados respecto a los violadores a los derechos humanos. La mayoría de los argentinos entendieron el significado que la condena a las violaciones de derechos humanos tenía: los juicios importan tanto para poder reconstruir una república democrática como para reencauzar la sociabilidad democrática.
A partir de 2004 gran cantidad de jueces comenzaron a declarar la inconstitucionalidad de los indultos de delitos de lesa humanidad, reabriéndose así las causas contra los indultados por esos crímenes. El 6 de septiembre de 2006, la Corte de Casación, máximo tribunal argentino en materia penal declaró por primera vez la inconstitucionalidad de un indulto.
En 1985 el Juicio a las Juntas, oral y público, televisado diariamente e impreso en el Diario del Juicio, más el informe nacional estatal, “Nunca Mas”, contaron la verdad del terrorismo de estado con los nombres y los alias de los torturadores, la localización de los campos de concentración y las aberrantes formas de la tortura.
Los militares detenidos nunca se retractaron por sus infames actos y las acciones del terrorismo de estado seguían surgiendo a través de los años: los vuelos de la muerte, el robo de los bebes, la apropiación de bienes de los desaparecidos, las campañas sucias para mejorar la imagen de la dictadura militar.
Mientras tanto, Argentina también desarrolló los estudios forenses y los bancos de ADN que han tenido una actuación destacada identificando cadáveres en varios países de la región (el Equipo Argentino de Antropologia Forense de Argentina asistió en la investigación de los 43 estudiantes desaparecidos en Ayotzinapa, Mexico, en 2014, por ejemplo).
No a la impunidad
Más allá de las muchas crisis económicas y políticas que han azotado al país desde la restauración de la democracia en 1983, el tema de las violaciones a los derechos humanos y la necesidad de no olvidar ni perdonar se mantuvieron estables frente a todos los vaivenes.
Esa defensa irrestricta de la condena a los genocidas es el ADN de la reconstrucción republicana y la barrera última de la sociedad a pesar de tantos errores cometidos por los gobiernos democráticos.
La sociedad en su conjunto celebra cada uno de los 122 nietos recuperados por las Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo. Tambien como nacion los argentinos se indignan profundamente cuando torturadores como Miguel Etchecolaz hacen declaraciones. Etchecolaz, ex director de investigaciones de la policía bonaerense afirmó que realizó asesinatos entre 1976 y 1983, pero que no recordaba a cuántas personas había matado (y se justificó) diciendo que “el estado se presentó como única fuente del derecho al uso de la fuerza y [que] en todas las guerras de la historia ocurrieron excesos”).
En un país en dónde las reglas son violadas sistemáticamente, sobrevive una norma irrenunciable: la condena a los genocidas y el rechazo a la impunidad.
El informe de 1984 consagró una cultura de vigilancia. Wikimedia
Con esta historia, fue una certeza previsible que el beneficio del dos por uno a un agente de la guerra sucia haya sido ampliamente repudiado por la sociedad. Como recordó en el acto Taty Almeida, dirigente de Madres de Plaza de Mayo Línea Fundadora: “Nunca más el silencio. No queremos convivir con los asesinos más sangrientos de la historia argentina”.
A esta altura, el pueblo ya tiene el apoyo de la clase política. Frente a lo decidido por la Corte, el Congreso actuó rápidamente y oficialistas y opositores sancionaron una ley que limitó ese beneficio en caso de crímenes de guerra y de lesa humanidad.
El proyecto fue aprobado antes del comienzo de la movilización lo que permitió que Estela Carlotto, presidenta de Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo, pudiera hablar de esperanza y repitiera el lema que ha acompañado sus luchas de 40 años: “Señores jueces, nunca más un genocida suelto”.
La Corte Suprema falló a favor de la impunidad de los genocidas. Se equivocó. La sociedad argentina ha expresado rotundamente que no acepta la reconciliación. No la admite, aunque sea propuesta por la Iglesia Católica. El doloroso aprendizaje de la sociedad argentina es que sin justicia no hay República.
El Nunca Más y el No a la Impunidad es rechazar para siempre que el Estado te desaparezca, te viole, te mate.
Rut Diamint has received funding from the Ford Foundation and the Open Society Foundations.
Laura Tedesco does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
El gobierno no les hizo caso. Ahora la oposición ha convocado una huelga de 48 horas para presionar al presidente a suspender la elección, el domingo, de la Asamblea Constituyente.
Estos esfuerzos son un intento por instituir un espacio para el ejercicio popular de la democracia, cosa que no hemos olvidado a pesar de que los acontecimientos de los últimos 100 días nos ponen frente a una situación de violencia que supera, con mucho, las dinámicas normales de la vida civilizada.
Ya no se trata solamente de los avatares cotidianos de la escasez de productos de primera necesidad, ni de las dificultades para encontrar medicamentos, o de la necesidad de protegernos en contra de la inseguridad desbordada.
Con más de cien muertes violentas a lo largo de poco más de tres meses de protesta diaria, se puede confirmar que ya en Venezuela, se ha roto nuestra concepción republicana del contrato colectivo.
Hemos entrado en un a dinámica irreal que nos recuerda las dinámicas ficcionales del realismo mágico de Jorge Luis Borges. Es como si viviéramos en un universo borgeano en el cual todo es posible, en cual todo puede inventarse, todo puede suceder.
Cronología del absurdo
En estos tiempos profundamente líquidos, acá hasta las formas de la confrontación política se han vuelto posmodernas. Rige una dinámica anarquizada.
Cada grupo de manera espontánea puede o no actuar para cerrar calles, para violentar los espacios de la autonomía universitaria, para machacar a los contrarios, para hacer lo que le dé la gana más allá de las normas mínimas de la convivencia colectiva y sin una dirección política claramente unificada.
Las fuerzas del orden público responden con el uso desproporcionado de la fuerza y aplicación de medidas judiciales para criminalizar a la oposición, con resultado de que contamos en nuestro haber con unos 400 los presos políticos, según datos de Human Rights Watch.
Si de algo podemos estar seguros es que vivimos en una situación de guerra de baja intensidad.
Solo en guerra podrían los ciudadanos estar sometidos al terror y tragar bombas lacrimógenas de manera más o menos frecuente. Solo en guerra aparecen cotidianamente barricadas a lo largo y ancho de las ciudades principales de un país y las fuerzas militares recorren las calles.
En las últimas semanas se ha producido una escalada que no sabemos muy bien hacia dónde se encauza ni en qué punto podría derivar. El 27 de junio, Día Nacional del Periodista, grupos irregulares rodearon el edificio de la Asamblea Nacional dejando a diputados y a trabajadores de los medios atrapados durante horas, lanzándoles insultos y amenazas.
En esta fecha eminentemente civil, una horda humana entró en medio del acto y a fuerza de gritos, golpes, detonaciones e intimidaciones, que sembraron el miedo, dejaron a algunos diputados de partidos de la oposición heridos y a integrantes de la prensa, personal de la institución y algunos diplomáticos secuestrados durante algunas horas.
Esta es la representación gráfica del secuestro del espíritu republicano de la nación.
Civilización versus barbarie
Todo lector de la literatura latinoamericana poscolonial conoce nuestra obsesión con el tema de la civilización versus la barbarie. De nuevo, los venezolanos lidiamos con estas fuerzas telúricas que nos habitan.
Hemos perdido las formas de la modernidad. Nos vemos sometidos a las dinámicas anárquicas de la barbarie. Nos movemos entre el resentimiento, el odio y la incomprensión sin medir las consecuencias.
Acá nadie está libre de pecado. Todos hemos de una manera u otra contribuido con las dinámicas destructivas en las cuales nos encontramos inmersos. Los ciudadanos hemos apostados por el populismo, el gobierno se ha dejado atrapar por la corrupción y la ineficiencia, la oposición no ha construido una alternativa viable.
Todos hemos incurrido en el facilismo, en la búsqueda del caudillo salvador.
Esto nos ha llevado a desarrollar lo que parece una incapacidad estructural para el diálogo y la búsqueda de soluciones negociadas a las profundas controversias que nos habitan.
Las protestas han tenido lugar todos los días desde abril en ciudades de todo Venezuela. Hugo Londoño / flickr, CC BY
Hemos vivido tiempos de zozobra, mientras los actores políticos parecen más interesados en su propia supervivencia que en construir soluciones viables a un país que se encuentra profundamente roto, invertebrado.
¿Qué será de este país?
En búsqueda de soluciones mágicas
Los venezolanos hemos decidido rehuir la solución negociada y apostar por la construcción de una solución mágica que nos resuelva el asunto. Estamos a la búsqueda de una solución del tipo Disney World.
La mala noticia es que el mundo real no funciona igual a la ficción infantil: los buenos no siempre terminan ganando la partida.
Se nos han propuesto dos soluciones pobremente institucionalizadas. Por una parte hubo una consulta popular el 16 de julio, que no pareció tener un asidero constitucional sólido, convocó a la gente a participar en una dinámica paralela ajena a la realidad institucional del aparato estatal.
El referendum, organizado por la oposición, preguntó si el pueblo venezolano estaba de acuerdo con el plan del gobierno de Maduro de adelantar un proceso constituyente que plantea un cambio sustantivo en nuestro modelo de organización social, que propone transitar hacia el Estado Comunal, que deja muchas cosas sin aclarar.
Vale destacar que un número importante de venezolanos se opone a esta propuesta.
La segunda pregunta, que solicita a las Fuerzas Armadas desconocer al gobierno de Maduro, tiene un carácter abiertamente sedicioso en la medida en que convoca a las Fuerzas Armadas a actuar para eventualmente sacar al gobierno del poder. La gente se manifestó abierta a esa posibildad arriesgada.
Y ahora sale la huelga.
Por otra parte, tenemos la convocatoria a una Asambla Nacional Constituyente, se trata de un proceso abiertamente dominada por el partido de gobierno, que no responde a una interpretación estricta de la Constitución y que ignora tanto el conflicto social nacional como las voces disonantes.
Si se logra pasar, los 545 miembros de la asamblea, eligidos este domingo, tendrían el derecho de redefinir los contenidos de nuestra construcción republicana. No es poca cosa.
Frente a dos miradas del mismo país —a dos proyectos excluyentes a miradas dicotómicas— se observa una profunda incapacidad para llegar a acuerdos funcionales que nos permitan avanzar hacia el futuro, mediante el reconocimiento del otro, y la construcción de un proyecto de país común e inclusivo.
Si las personas no pueden construir una estrategia común y de inclusión para el futuro, en Venezuela tal vez no haya un final de “y vivieron felices para siempre”.
Miguel Angel Latouche does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
In an attempt to showcase our best side for the historical United States – Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (US-DPRK) Summit, the Singapore Tourism Board has reportedly sent out a memo to the tenants of the Income@Raffles building, asking them to leave their lights on during the nights of the summit.
The memo was shared on Twitter on Saturday by reporter Isabella Steger (@stegersaurus). In her post, she said, “Singapore’s tourism board is encouraging tenants around Marina Bay to keep their lights on during the summit so they can showcase the skyline to intl media during the Trump-Kim summit. literally the opposite of earth day.”
oh the circus is in town – Singapore’s tourism board is encouraging tenants around Marina Bay to keep their lights on during the summit so they can showcase the skyline to intl media during the Trump-Kim summit. literally the opposite of earth day. pic.twitter.com/Z8pd3PmC8y
Steger shared the post to emphasise upon the waste of electricity by leaving all the lights on just to have a picturesque city skyline.
She also shared a picture of the memo.
It read, “To showcase the brilliance of out city skyline, Singapore Tourism Board is encouraging tenants of Income@Raffles to join the rest of the city in this light-up from 10 to 13 June 2018, 1900hrs to 0600hrs the following day. The management team will be keeping our building Rooftop signage lighted during the stipulated period and we hope that you can also join us in this effort by keeping your office lights on during this period.
While Steger felt that the initiative was a waste of energy, most netizens took the side of STB.
Anwita Basu, an analyst at The Economist Intelligence Unit (The EIU), released a comment from The EIU concerning the historic summit entwine the leaders of the United States and North Korea, which was held in Singapore earlier today, June 12, to the effect that North Korea may very well emerge as the big winner resulting from the summit.
Ms. Basu first pointed out that the statement released after the summit was couched in vague phrases, though it did contain seemingly appropriate wording. She cited the examples such as “commitment to complete denuclearization,” “security guarantees,” and “stable peace regime on the Korean Peninsula”.
More importantly, she pointed out the lack of specific comment on the lifting of sanctions that have been imposed, as well as a timeline of dates for the the announced denuclearization to occur.
The statement from the EIU goes on to say that the agreements between North Korean diplomats and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in the weeks leading up to the summit were merely repeated, indicating that Messrs. Kim and Trump stuck to agreed-upon messages, and that they are eager to continue to alleviate the conflict in the region.
However, the EIU surmises that it’s possible that the the lack of clarity regarding a “verifiable and irreversible denuclearization” may show that the US and North Korea do not have the same perspectives concerning denuclearization. The EIU also believes that North Korea, in private, has not actually consented to take apart their nuclear arsenal, but only to decelerate its building up as a trade-off for further discussion.
Therefore, the EIU sees the US-North Korea Summit as a success for the DPRK, since this is exactly what they have wanted for a long time, recognition as a legitimate nation whilst remaining in isolation. The EIU further believes that edited portions of the summit will be shown on programs on state media for the months and years to come.
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is based in the United Kingdom and terms itself as “the research and analysis division of The Economist Group and the world leader in global business intelligence.” It is responsible for forecasting and advisory services through research and analysis, through country and industry reports. In Asia, the EIU has offices in China and Hong Kong.
The dear North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said it was not easy to get to Singapore for the summit with U.S. President Donald Trump.
His comments, as per interpretation) reads as follows:
CHAIRMAN KIM: (As interpreted.) Well, it was not easy to get here. The past worked as fetters on our limbs, and the old prejudices and practices worked as obstacles on our way forward. But we overcame all of them, and we are here today.
Talking like a propagandist that he is, Kim apparently spoke in the style of centuries-old Korean proverbs that talk about wisdom in a bid to attract Trump’s sympathy.
In reply to Kim’s statement, Trump said: Its true.
Trump earlier said: “I feel really great. We’re going to have a great discussion and, I think, tremendous success. It will be tremendously successful. And it’s my honor. And we will have a terrific relationship, I have no doubt.”
These were the initial remarks by both leaders before the media was asked to leave the room where the historic meeting took place.
