A protest, arguably the largest that Singapore has ever had, was held at the Speakers' Corner yesterday. Singaporeans from all walks of life arrived at Hong Lim Park to oppose the flawed Population White Paper. The event was organized by Transitioning.org, a non-profit society aimed at helping unemployed Singaporeans.
Speakers of the historic event include former presidential candidates Tan Kin Lian and Tan Jee Say, members of opposition parties as well as ordinary Singapore citizens. Although the objective of the protest is clear, the amount of people who attended is uncertain.
Reuters reported that at least 4000 turned up while Associated Press (AP) stated at nearly 3000 attended. Others like BusinessWeek and South China Morning Post noted that there were "thousands of Singaporeans" present. However, there was one newspaper which stood out from the rest.
No matter how unprejudiced and neutral The Straits Times claims itself to be, we all have the answer in our hearts. In its article today, it continues to prove that it is nothing more than a government mouthpiece by quoting AFP (Agence France-Presse) that the number was 1000 to 1500.
The fact is that the AFP report, which was brought by Yahoo News, claimed that "more than 2000 people" turned up. So where on earth did the digits 1000 and 1500 came from? You may check out the link for proof. http://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/-/world/16160139/mass-rally-in-singapore-seeks-immigration-curbs/
Since the last general elections, Singaporeans have become more and more open to supporting opposition parties and showing their displeasure at incompetent government policies. The massive turnout no doubt continues to show that locals are more willing to participate in politics these days. It is only a matter of fact before another GRC goes to a non-white party.
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