UN convention to enforce mediation settlements across borders named after Singapore
By Ivan Lim Contributor to AsiaN Singapore: An international rules-based mechanism for resolving commercial disputes between countries has been named after Singapore in recognition of the key role the republic played in drafting and winning consensus for the treaty. The convention will be signed in the city-state on August 7 at a ceremony which […]
New party for Singapore tsunami?
By Ivan Lim Contributor to AsiaN Singapore: In 2018, the political sphere in Singapore was abuzz with talk of the opposition replicating the “Malaysia tsunami” effect to sweep the entrenched ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) from power in the next general election before 2021. This referred to the feat of the Pakatan Harapan (PH […]
Determined to thwart risk of becoming “Sinkapore”, Singapore prepares for perfect storm peril
Singapore: Climate Change has conjured up apocalyptic images of low-lying island states, going under in a matter of decades. With unabated greenhouse gas emissions and global warming, triggering melting ice sheets, the rising sea-levels could soar dramatically by 1 meter by 2100, according to climate scientists. The dream city-state of Singapore with a population of 5.86 million […]
Euphoria, optimism as Singapore celebrates 200th anniversary
Singapore: From a distance, you spot this eye-catching artistic display at an open ground of the Macpherson housing estate. Close-up and you see red, green and blue heart symbols painted over the white panels cardboards and featuring such words as love, family, strength, peace, and vision. The Garden of Hearts showpiece is one of about 200 […]
Asean wary of being used as pawn in Washington-Beijing jostling
[Singapore] Despite the personal rapport between Donald Trump and Xi Jing-ping, Sino-US rivalry has been escalating over trade, technology, and security issues. As Trump puts it: “I am President of United States and Xi is President of China”. National interest trumps friendship. And the businessman-turned-politician has made it clear that in the contest for supremacy, America must […]
Singapore editor Balji launches tell-all book
[Singapore] A new book has shed more light on how Singapore’s authoritarian leader Lee Kuan Yew rapped the knuckles of independent-minded journalists whom he deemed to have failed to toe the official line. In his memoir, The Reluctant Editor- The Singapore Media as Seen Through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist -, P.N. Balji shared […]
Education system in Singapore
This year, Singapore celebrates its bicentennial of its founding in 1819 by Englishman Sir Stamford Raffles who set up the first premier school named after him. Raffles Institution (RI) is the alma mater of many illustrious Singaporeans, including Lee Kuan Yew. Education has moved up the quality ladder since, playing a key role in the […]
Singapore COUNTRY REPORT: Professional Ethics Still a Media Imperative
In the internet age, some people brush aside the need for conventional full-time journalists or media organizations to give us our daily news. “That is already passe,” said a former reporter colleague of mine, surprised to hear that Asia Journalist Association (AJA) accept mainly working journalists. “Nowadays, a journalist is anyone who posts online—the bloggers […]
Press Watch – Singapore:
Singapore’s leader Lee Kuan Yew, who dominated the political scene from 1959, when he first came to power, till his death on March 23rd, 2015, corralled the press as an instrument to help realise his own nation-building agenda. Retired newsman Yeo Toon Joo, who spent 12 years (1963-1975) in an English major daily, The Straits […]
Press Watch – Singapore: Reporter Warned Over Leakage of Official Secrets
It was a what is being described as a state secret that Janice Tai, a young reporter of The Straits Times (ST), Singapore’s premier mass-circulation daily, stumbled upon while chasing a story. She was following up on a tip-off about an online resale portal that the state housing agency, the Housing Development Board (HDB), was […]
Singapore, Former President of Asia Journalist Association 
Trump, Kim, and the Three P’s of Summit Diplomacy: 
