TR EMERITUS

I refer to the Straits Times’ Editorial, “Gaza protests risk getting radicalised” (Nov 9). Israel has waged a bombing campaign to destroy the enclave's Hamas rulers since Oct 7, and the Israel-Hamas war has lasted for about five weeks, and the following situations are indeed exacerbating and worrisome : - 1) As the Israeli army has intensified its retaliatory bombardments of the Gaza Strip, hitting schools (For examples, al-Fakhoora school run by the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) in the Jabalia refugee camp, Osama bin Zaid school), mosques, and 18 out of a total 35 hospitals (e.g. Al-Shifa, al-Nasser Children’s Hospital, Rumah Sakit Indonesia, al-Wafa Hospital). These tragic military action had killed at least 11,000 Palestinian civilians, which included 4500 innocent children, two thousands odd women and more than fifty UN’s medical staff. Anyway, the number of deaths and casualties of the Palestinians civilians will be rapidly increased in the subsequent Israeli military operations. 2)Israeli cruel airstrikes have damaged the health system in Gaza Strip and destroyed/deprived the hope of survival for all the Palestinians casualties. 3) Israeli authorities have repeatedly obstructed UN humanitarian relief causes and efforts. These include delay opening more humanitarian relief corridors and allowing more humanitarian assistance to enter into Gaza Strip (such as water, foods, medical care facilities/equipments, medicines and power supply). 4)In the latest news received, Israel formalizes daily humanitarian pauses in Gaza, in first since war’s outbreak. However, the permanent ceasefire which has been repeatedly urged by the UN and the international community is still no time in sight. 5)Around 250 hostages who were abducted by the Hamas militants since the outbreak of Israel-Hamas war still remain the key worry of the families of the hostages. 6) Hamas is a Palestinian militant group which has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007. What disturbs and annoys Israel is : the Hamas is sworn to Israel's destruction and wants to replace it with an Islamic state. Even if Hamas will be "totally eradicated" by Israeli forces within the foreseeable timeframe, it will still be viewed as an ideological organization, another similarity of Hamas would likely be “replicated and revived or resurrected” in the near future. This could be due to many Palestinians have been displaced and brutally treated by the Israel's deadly attacks. And, when it really occurs, it will create nightmares for the Israel and the international community as a whole. 7) The only way to truly ensure the permanent peaceful coexistence between the Israel and Palestine is to follow the suggestion of China and the consensus of the United Nations to promote talks and cooperation and realize the goal of the two-state solution at an early date. In conclusion, for seeking the long-term prospects of peace and benefits for the people of Israel, Palestine and the Middle Esst countries, the authority of Israel needs to consider and work towards this two-state solution seriously.   Teo kueh Liang (Mr)      Read More →

What do you do with power? Men, especially, when you know you can do what you want in the moment of a power intoxication. I ask this because the ongoing trial of Singapore Idol ex-judge Ken Lim reminded me of the dark grip and seduction of power. And we are often a pawn in its hands. We are feted with the illusion of control, when we are no more than a means to its end. I caveat that I am in no way prejudging the case, as Ken’s case will be undergoing five different trials, each involving one alleged victim. Ken is fighting for his innocence. But some of the allegations made by the alleged victims gave me a glimpse of how power can overdrive one’s lust and self-importance. It is a stern lesson in how men need to be very wary of how power has a life of its own, and is prone to abuse because imagined impunity shields them from being called out by the victims. They are often drunk on the idea that they will not get caught. Here are some of the alleged accusations made by the victims. His charge involved four victims of insulting their modesty and one of molest. It involved a long time line between 1998 and 2021. For the insults, between 1998 and 1999, “he allegedly showed a pornographic video to a female artiste under his management who was between 19 and 21 years old then.” “He allegedly told her she was sexually inexperienced and he could help her.” Ken allegedly made a lewd remark to another young female artiste. “He purportedly asked the woman if he could be her first sex partner.” On another occasion, Ken was “accused of offering to be her sexual partner to “fulfill her sexual fantasies””. And in July 2012, “he allegedly asked a 26-year-old woman: “What if I have sex with you right now?”” Lesson? Let’s face it, a majority of such sexual offences are committed by one gender. No points for guessing which gender I am referring to. You can argue that it is part of our biological and hormonal make-up or cultural conditioning or as a result of our patriarchal society or all of the above in varying mixes, but the reality can’t be denied. As Freud puts it, “Sex is a prime motivator and common denominator for all of us. Even the most prudent, puritanical-appearing individuals may struggle greatly against their sexual appetites and expression.” “For evidence one need only look to the many scandals that have rocked the Vatican and fundamentalist churches alike. Freud observed this prurient struggle in men and women early on in Victorian Vienna. But our sexuality defines us in healthy and altogether essential ways, too.” This is compounded by power. It makes men dizzy at the commanding heights. They can’t feel their feet on the ground, and they are often driven to do things to ingratiate their lust, fleshly desires. For power is an all-consuming aphrodisiac, and it does what it wants when it takes full control. And it wants it now. Power does two things. First it numbs one’s self control. It renders him pliable to his carnal desires. Some may see it as a biochemical chain reaction set off by one’s biological and environmental precursors, but it is no less a compelling force that over time exerts its control over the person. Second, power gives one the illusion of his self-importance. He thinks less of the consequences of his actions and more of how the normal rules just do not apply to him. It grants him the delusion of impunity. He thinks he can get away with it. Sadly, history has shown us that those in power do get away with the abuses. People are not only mesmerised by it, they know much is at stake fighting it. Most times, if not all of the time, absolute power takes a revolution to overthrow. Victims thus choose to bear with it, rather than rock the boat. It just cost too much to blow the whistle. We therefore should be grateful for the forward march of civilisation and its liberal values that inspired and empowered the metoo movement. The victims are taking power and control back. They and society are putting their collective weight on the other often neglected side of the balance of power see-saw, and are throwing abusers off their throne seat. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer puts it: “We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself.” I believe times are changing, and it is changing for good.   Michael Han * The author was a Managing Partner at Han & Lu Law Chambers LLP.    Read More →

I remember discussing Singapore’s development strategy with my Economics Director of Studies at Cambridge University, Professor Ajit Singh, in 1983. He said Singapore had pursued a similar strategy to Ireland, though he thought rather less successfully. I have made the same comparison many times in my blog. Both countries have sought to attract multinational investment and the relocation of corporate HQs to their countries through a low corporate tax rate and sweetheart deals with new investors. Economists, have pointed out for some time that because of its pivotal role in the tax avoidance strategies of many, particularly US, MNCs, Ireland’s GDP is not an accurate reflection of the real size of the Irish economy. Neither are its growth rates. Ireland’s GDP shot up by 24.5% in 2015, which led Paul Krugman to famously call it “leprechaun economics.” It shot up a further 15% in 2021 when the growth rate in the Eurozone of which Ireland is a member was only 5.9%. A recent Economist article discussed the current thinking about what amendments might need to be made to better reflect the true size of Ireland’s economy. In the past looking at Gross National Income (GNI), which excludes income due to foreigners but includes income from abroad, might have been sufficient. But this no longer works because now so many US MNCs have moved their legal headquarters to Ireland. They say a crude solution might be just to exclude sectors of the economy that are dominated by large multinationals. But this would be too radical as these sectors do contribute something to output and employment. They suggest two alternatives. The first is domestic demand-consumer and government spending as well as investment, but excluding exports and imports. This is called Modified Domestic Demand and is already reported. But this has drawbacks, not least the exclusion of international trade. A second and better measure according to The Economist would be a modified version of GNI called GNI*. This excludes the retained earnings of firms that have moved their HQ to Ireland but includes international trade. Using GNI* as a measure the Irish economy’s size is only £249 billion while in terms of GDP it is worth £475 billion. The PAP Government follows much the same strategy as Ireland to use low corporate taxes and sweetheart deals with individual MNCs to attract investment and persuade companies to put regional HQs in Singapore. Economic growth, like Ireland’s has also been very rapid in certain years, like 2010 and 2011 when the economy grew by 10% and 6% respectively. The Statistics Department already calculates GNI and publishes the statistic on a per capita basis. It’s about 84% of the GDP level. However it would be interesting if the Statistics Department were to calculate GNI* for Singapore. The real size of the Irish economy on this measure is only slightly over half of that measured by GDP. It’s entirely possible that a calculation of Singapore’s GNI* would yield similar results. This would destroy the PAP’s triumphalist narrative which has always touted the size of Singapore’s GDP as a counter to any criticisms of its repressive rule. However, while they might feel pride in hearing that Singapore’s GDP has significantly surpassed Malaysia’s, a country with 6 times the population, most Singaporeans know that they are not six times as rich. In fact a UBS survey of global cities back in 2011 placed the purchasing power of Singaporean median wages as on a par with those in KL and it would not surprise me if they were still fairly similar today. Rather than looking at misleading measures of GDP per capita on a purchasing-power-parity basis which place Singapore first or second in the world, Singaporeans should look at the reality of wages per hour worked which for many are well below minimum wages in other countries which rank much lower in the table and median wages which range between a half to a quarter of those in cities in North America and northern Europe. At election time it would be better if they remembered the latter fact rather than being bamboozled by PAP disinformation.   Kenneth Jeyaretnam   About the author: I’m a Singaporean economist who became an opposition activist. I blog to provide an alternative to the porkies that the Pinkies tell. It just so happens that my alternative is the truth. That’s why I’ve never been sued in any civil or criminal court no matter how hard hitting my criticism. I’m quoted and interviewed and asked to speak across the world but largely censored in Singapore in an effort to silence my political opinions. The left hate me because they think I split their vote and because I eschew their outmoded economic models. Models that don’t work. The Right and the Conservatives hate me because I’m a liberal. I’m not sure what the middle think of me. I don’t think there are more than a handful of people in the middle, here in Singapore. I’m a Singaporean born and bred, dual heritage, my parents Singaporean established here before the State of Singapore was created. I’m not Eurasian. I read economics at Cambridge and could be broadly described as from the Keynesian school but I believe in interventions. I was formerly a successful hedge fund manager. After economics and politics my greatest interests are history, film and Makan. I run but I run so I can eat like a Singaporean.      Read More →