Opinion: Let Us Speak of Grief

21 November 2023

We, the media and advocacy organisations of Singapore, support the Singapore government's call for a humanitarian truce in Gaza. We also call on the Singapore government to reverse its blanket ban on peaceful public assembly, and focus on resolutions for a better future for all in the region.

Israel must stop its vastly disproportionate attacks against Palestinians in Gaza immediately. The attacks by Hamas on Israeli civilians on 7 October, which killed more than 1,000 people, and the taking of Israeli hostages should be condemned. But the Israeli response far exceeds legitimacy, as world leaders have been saying. More than 11,000 Palestinian lives have been lost, including the lives of over 4,000 children. The courageous reporting of media workers has put a spotlight on the brutality of Israel's continued attacks on civilians in the region, and the disproportionate impact this violence has had on children. We have witnessed distressing scenes in the news and on social media of schools, hospitals, and refugee camps decimated by the shelling; journalists discovering on-air that their entire families have been massacred; and parents pulling the dead bodies of their children from the rubble. Many journalists have also been killed in this war. We cannot remain silent in the face of this suffering.

Around the globe, people across different faiths and ethnic backgrounds have participated in peaceful public demonstrations against Israel's continued assault on the Gaza Strip, and its occupation of Palestinian territories. Despite some violent clashes between the supporters of Palestine and Israel in a few cities, the majority of mass demonstrations have been peaceful. In New York City, London, Paris, Sydney, South Korea and Jakarta, hundreds of thousands have taken to the streets, calling for a ceasefire and an end to the blockade.

In Singapore, however, such public demonstrations are illegal. The only place in the city where Singaporeans can gather outdoors for 'assemblies and processions' is the 600 square-metre Speakers' Corner in Hong Lim Park. All applications to hold events relating to the Israel-Palestine situation there have been rejected by NParks and the Singapore Police Force, with the latter citing the risk of public disorder as a reason for denying these applications. Those found to be wearing or displaying symbols relating to Israel or Palestine face jail time, or a fine.

As media and advocacy organisations, we believe in the freedom of expression, and we believe that the Singaporean public needs an avenue to express the outpouring of grief and outrage many are experiencing in response to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Although the issue is undoubtedly sensitive, and the history of Israel and Palestine contested, we believe that calling for peace and voicing grief are legitimate forms of expression, and censoring public debate and expression should not be permitted. In expressing her sorrow for the loss of innocent lives and suffering in Gaza, MP Nadia Ahmad Samdin shared in Parliament on November 6 that, “A number of our youth in particular have written to me. They seek an outlet to use their voices to do something, anything - for we cannot unsee the suffering in Gaza, we cannot reconcile it with our life as normal and precious peace here, and we cannot sit silent.”

Singapore's blanket ban on public assembly and expression relating to Israel and Palestine causes a chilling effect on speech. It increases the fear of speaking out publicly against all situations of injustice, both international and domestic. Discouraging dialogue in the name of nonviolence only perpetuates the harmful perception that ideological and territorial conflicts cannot be peacefully resolved.

We cannot look away from the suffering of the victims nor stay silent about the unending cruelty. We call on the Singapore government to open up legal avenues for Singaporeans to publicly and collectively express their grief and solidarity with victims of the war, and to work for a just and lasting peace.

Signatories:
Editorial Board, Singapore Unbound
Jom
Lepak Conversations
SG Climate Rally 
The Monitor Singapore
Wake Up, Singapore
We, The Citizens