-
“news org’s have not actively tried to use any of those clever circumvention technologies to fight online censorship of their own news reporting by authoritarian governments. “
-
THAILAND — John Mark Karr: Luckiest pervert in history, or getting a helping hand?“…the man I believe purposely concocted a false confession in the JonBenet Ramsey murder in order to be extracted from Thailand.”
-
FEER - Statement on Singapore Banning the REVIEW“The Singaporean government today announced that it has banned the Far Eastern Economic Review from the country. I has explicitly warned that not only is the Review Publishing Company forbidden from importing or distributing the Hong Kong-based monthly,
-
“Taiwan government’s policy of homeless dogs and stray cats is “KILL THEM ALL”. I can’t change that, BUT…. At least, something we can do. and it’s up to you.”
-
“If you eat a whole container of SK-II Pan-Cake each day you will not suffer from chromium deficiency. However, if you eat more than four containers for a prolonged period of time, you will experience some toxic effects. If you eat 100,000 containers you will die. Don’t do this.”
-
“And exit an undervalued yuan; enter an undervalued yuan and a undervalued yen.”
-
JAPAN-THAILAND - Japanese Ultramen intercede Thai military coup“Thailand’s military rulers, installed in a coup last week, have banned dancers or actors using tanks as a backdrop.”
[link]
October 3rd, 2006 at 9:56 am
[…] I missed the outcome of the Far Eastern Economic Review v Singapore tussle until I caught it at AsiaPundit. […]
October 3rd, 2006 at 12:49 pm
Singapore has nothing to fear except FEER itself…
October 7th, 2006 at 2:35 pm
I’m no big fan of Lee Kuan Yew. A Malaysian singapore airlines pilot’s PR was once revoked and he had to leave Singapore for his role in trying to raise pilot’s pay. But on this matter, I would be quick to point out the other evil - the western media. Once again it is clear that the Western media is exploiting the conscience of the populace by spinning the event as an example of infridgment on freedom of the press.
FEER was banned because they failed to comply with the requirements to appoint an agent and submit a banker’s guarantee. You can very easily do your own internet reseaerch to verify this. But once again, you can see that they tried to spin it as an infridgment on freedom of the press in order to capture the populace’s sympathy.
The requirement for banker’s guarantee is reasonable for a foreign based publication to impose accountability on what they print. If there are alternatives to impose accoutability that is easier to implement than a banker’s guarantee $150,000, I would like to hear it.
I have been a victim of such manipulation by the Western media in the past. In the past, when I was still a teenager, they used to tell me stories about Dr. Mahathir’s alledged abuse of power, corruption, dictatorship etc. etc.. Makes me think that the Western media (and also many underground local media) were a bunch of civic minded, highly principled, and idealistic group. I lent my support, read what they printed. Subscribed to their magazines which occasionally were banned in Malaysia. I was determined to see the day, when Dr. Mahathir stepped down, these people would barge into the country, and present evidence after evidence of Dr. Mahathir’s abuse of power and put this man behind bars, like Pinochet. All the evidence which they could not print because it would cause their press to be banned. But as soon as Dr. Mahathir stepped down, all their negativism about Dr. Mahathir also went away. I have been taken for a ride. Theirs was not an agenda to restore justice and fairness in Malaysia. Theirs was an anti-Mahathir campaign designed to bring him down. Their accusations were rile and cannot be held up in the court of law, which is why they never bother to pursue and settle the score with dr. Mahathir in the court of law even after his retirement. If their accusations could be held up by the court of law, Dr. Mahathir who is unfavorable looked upon by the present government should be in jail today. But he is not. He’s a free man because the accusations that had been levied on him in the past, has no evidence. They were rile to defamed him, to discredit him.
It the past it was easier for the western media to manipulate the people. If you really wanted to dig the truth out, you will need to go to the national library. It would take a person an entire afternoon the verify the authenticity of a story. In today’s wired world, it takes just a search engine and a couple of minutes, but it takes someone with a critical mind to differentiate hard evidence and hearsay.
Now, we have someone going around the world telling the rest of the world that Lee Kuan Yew and the Lee Family has many skeletons hidden in the closet. Why not just put the evidence out on the internet for all to see? If he says that the Lees have skeleton but have no evidence to back up, then its clearly defamation.