TR EMERITUS

From Wayang Party: Senior lawyer Dr Thio Su Mien who was the alleged mastermind behind the takeover of AWARE explained that her concern about the direction that Aware was taking was partly prompted by a letter from a parent who was concerned that the society was promoting a homosexual agenda. (read report here) He wrote to the Today newspaper in 2007 to ask why Aware’s choice of a movie for a charity show was Spider Lilies, about two lesbians who fall in love. (this writer by the name of George Lim happened to be a member of Dr Thio's Church, COOS too). As the old guards have taken pains to explain, "Spider Lilies" was about the relationship between a tattoo artist and a Web camera woman and is one of the many films screened by AWARE over the years. It was a film about love, companionship and longing. Homosexuality was never on its agenda. (read report here) Dr Thio believed that the screening of "Spider Lilies" to a small group of women is tantamount to promoting a homosexual agenda. What about screening a talk show on cable TV hosted by a famous lesbian watched by millions of viewers? Won't this have a bigger impact on the women which Dr Thio is so concerned about? We all know that Dr Thio is the founder and director of a very well known and prestigious law firm in Singapore - TSMP Law Corporation: TSMP is in a joint venture with Allen Arthur Robinson, an international law firm. Allens and TSMP have been involved in many significant and high-profile deals in Singapore and South East Asia in recent years. One of its clients in Star TV which Allens-TSMP helped in its acquisition of a 20 per cent stake in Indonesian national terrestrial television broadcaster, PT Cakrawala Nadalas Televisi (ANTV), and the formation of a related joint venture in Indonesia. (source: Allens Arthur Robinson) Star TV operates Channel 18 on Starhub cable TV and it screened a celebrity talk show "The Ellen Denegeres Show" hosted by the famous Ellen Degeneres last year. (source: Starhub) Now does Dr Thio Su Mien know that Ellen Degeneres is a lesbian who married Portia de Rossi in Los Angeles in 2008. (source: Daily Mail)?   Ellen Degeneres had conducted interviews with gays and lesbians on her talk show. Which has a larger audience and a far greater impact? The Ellen Degeneres Show or Spider Lilies? Why didn't Dr Thio protest against Star TV's screening of The Ellens Degeneres Show which was hosted by a self-proclaimed lesbian? Isn't she worried that young Singaporean women may be influenced by Ellens Degeneres to change their sexual orientation or worst still, to think that same-sex marriage is acceptable? As a business partner of Star TV, she could have exerted pressure on them not to screen the show if she is so concerned about homosexuality and even boycott them as a mark of protest which is well within her means since she owns TSMP Corporation. We are amused that Dr Thio was so obsessed with Spider Lilies to the extent of urging her "mentees" to join AWARE and change it from within while she remained silent on The Ellen Degeneres Show screened by her business client Star TV.  Read More →

By Eugene Yeo and Fang Zhi Yuan Some readers have asked us if we are pro-gay and why we have come out strongly in support of the AWARE old guards. We have initially adopted a neutral stance towards the AWARE saga, but in the light of the recent revelations that the takeover was orchestrated from behind the scenes by Dr Thio Su Mien, we felt we have no choice but to speak out against the actions of the new exco. As the AWARE old guards have rightly pointed out in their press conference, the issue here is never about homosexuality, religion or the direction of AWARE. What is really at stake is the space for a diversity of views in our secular, cosmopolitan and pluralistic society. Singapore is a multiracial, and multicultural nation. We must be able to tolerate inherent differences in beliefs and values so as to co-exist peacefully with one another. There are other avenues which Dr Thio can turn to to express her unhappiness and disagreement with AWARE's work and direction. She can write in to the press, contact them in person and attend their meetings. What will our society become if we simply resort to hijacking each other's organizations because we do not see eye to eye with one another? Dr Thio revealed that she was disturbed by what she saw as signs that it was promoting lesbianism and homosexuality which prompted her to urge women she knew to challenge Aware’s attempts to redefine marriage and families. Did Dr Thio ever contact the old guards of AWARE to highlight her concerns to them? According to Dr Kanwaljit Soin, a founding member of AWARE, she was not aware of Dr Thio's involvement with the organization. Dr Thio is entitled to her own opinion that AWARE had lost sight of its original purpose and become pro-lesbian and pro-homosexual. As a well established and respected senior lawyer, she has the means, resources and connections to start another women organization from scratch to challenge AWARE. It is not befitting of her status to orchestrate a sneaky takeover from behind the scenes so as to further her own agenda. There must be space in our society for differing views to be aired freely and openly without imposing our beliefs and values on one another. If we allow AWARE to be taken over by another group today without thwarting their plans, will it set a precedent for other secular groups to be taken over by similar moral vigilantes who disagree with their direction and vision? Religious organizations should confine their own preaching and activities to their respective communities and not infringe on the public space of civil society which should be kept secular and non-sectarian both in nature and spirit. Nobody is stopping Dr Thio from counseling homosexuals in her own Church. However her belief that homosexuals can "change" their sexuality through counseling should not be allowed creep into the consciousness of mainstream society. Once the floodgates are open, there is no stopping a highly motivated and organized vocal minority from exercising their new found freedom to propapagate their values either covertly or overtly to convert the unsuspecting masses. There is no place in civil society for such sneaky behavior. State your agenda clearly when contesting for the elections and let the members decide for themselves if they share your vision instead of using underhanded means to seize control of an established organization. Everybody should be given the space to expose themselves to a wide spectrum of views so as to make an informed choice of their own will. We are worried at Dr Thio's insistence that homosexuality has no place in Singapore society and her shallow mindset that adopting a non-committal stance towards homosexuality is tantamount to promoting it. Let live and live. Face up to reality. Homosexuality exists in every society. It is impossible to change the sexual inclination of people just like you can't force one to love the other. To quote from the American poet Maya Angelou: "We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their colour."  Read More →

We are glad that the truth is finally out. What happened at AWARE AGM on 28 March was a planned takeover by a group of women, guided by their “feminist mentor” Dr Thio Su Mien, who have taken it upon themselves to, as they put it, “bring AWARE back to its original, very noble, objective”. The issue is not whether AWARE has indeed strayed from its original aims. What is really at stake is the space for a diversity of views in our cosmopolitan and pluralistic society. Singapore is a multiracial, mulitreligious and multicultural society. As we progress, the diversity will grow. We have to be able to co-exist, to live with differing views on many issues. What has happened at AWARE is a threat to Singapore’s pluralistic society. A “feminist mentor” takes exception to some of AWARE’s programmes, decides to monitor the organisation’s activities, and then encourages women she knows to challenge AWARE; they could have invited AWARE to a seminar to discuss the programmes; they could have written to the media. Instead, these women joined AWARE in the few months before the AGM and then voted their representatives onto the Executive Committee – without giving any indication that they were acting together. They continued with this stance until Thursday when they finally told the truth. The cannot be the way forward for Singapore. We cannot have people acting like moral vigilantes running around and taking over established organisations. If Dr Thio and her mentees feel that AWARE has strayed from its original aims, or that some of the programmes are unsuitable, then go ahead and criticize AWARE, but do so openly. Better still, form their own organization to offer parallel programmes with what they see as the right messages, and let the public choose which they prefer. Their motives and actions will then be visible to all. There will be transparency and accountability.    Read More →