Calling the practice of caning and death penalty as inhuman, in its latest reports, Think Centre also recommended to S'Pore government to review and repeal outdated legislations and clauses contained within legislations that curtail fundamental freedoms.
UNIVERSAL PERIODIC REVIEW: SUBMISSIONS Download Full Report Think Centre UPR submission Download Full Report Joint UPR submission Government of Singapore UPR National Report |
S'Pore,03 November 2010, (Asiantribune.com):
Think Centre, a Human Rights NGO now active in Singapore, has called for abolition of caning and death penalty. It also wants the City State to ratify international Human Rights conventions and migrant workers to be entitled to workplace rights and other fundamental rights ‘without discrimination.'
Calling the practice of caning and death penalty as inhuman, in its latest reports, Think Centre also recommended to S'Pore government to review and repeal outdated legislations and clauses contained within legislations that curtail fundamental freedoms. It also recommended the abolishing of the practice of cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment such as mandatory caning and death penalty, convene an independent National Human Rights Institution that includes independent thematic experts and commissioners, and to ratify and ensure international core Human Rights conventions and optional protocols are enforceable.
Think Centre also recommended to reform domestic law to ensure full compliance with treaty obligations and in line with international human rights standards, and also to ‘ensure all workers including migrant workers are entitled to workplace rights and other fundamental rights without discrimination' in its statement.
The full statement is below:
"Think Centre (TC), the lead political non-governmental group (NGO) in Singapore, submitted its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) reports on Singapore today.
In all, Think Centre submitted 2 independent reports - the first being a singular stakeholder submission, and the second being a joint submission incorporating national consultation input (with fellow civil society stakeholders). Both reports were written under challenging circumstances and aims to enhance the protections and enjoyment of human rights and democracy.
Think Centre coordinated civil society consultations provided space for concerned individuals and NGOs to share their views on human rights problems and recommendations. Besides Think Centre's records of socio-political developments in Singapore over the last decade, its report observations drew upon publicly accessible sources such as news articles, court rulings, parliamentary proceedings, relevant socio-political blogs, as well as official websites of political parties, Singapore Government and international bodies such as the United Nations.
The Think Centre (independent civil society) report seeks to highlight glaring areas where the Government of Singapore needs to do more work to remedy well-documented human rights problems and ensure compliance with international human rights standards. The reports call for the full recognition and fulfilment of Singapore's obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) especially since Singapore has ratified few UN Conventions.
Both reports broadly provide a scenario of Singapore's current human rights reality focusing on human rights problems that require urgent remedies. It is an attempt to explore opportunities to move forward in promoting fundamental human rights and to open more democratic space. These historic reports submitted by Think Centre were written without fear or favour and aimed to enhance the protection and maintenance of human rights and democracy in Singapore.
Key recommendations include calling upon the Government to:
• Review and repeal outdated legislations and clauses contained within legislations that curtail fundamental freedoms,
• Stop and abolish the practice of cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment such as mandatory caning and death penalty,
• Convene an independent National Human Rights Institution that includes independent thematic experts and commissioners,
• Ratify and ensure international core Human Rights conventions and optional protocols are enforceable,
• Reform domestic law to ensure full compliance with treaty obligations and in line with international human rights standards,
• Ensure all workers including migrant workers are entitled to workplace rights and other fundamental rights without discrimination
Established since 2001, Think Centre is an independent, multi-partisan,non-governmental organisation (NGO) gazetted as the first political association in Singapore. Think Centre aims to critically examine, advocate and build societal awareness on civil society issues related to political development, democracy, rule of law and human rights. In the last decade, Think Centre has been instrumental in initiating and facilitating local civil society's involvement in human rights awareness and promotion. Regionally, TC has been active on key NGO platforms and mechanisms committed to instituting fundamental human rights mechanisms and related processes."
Sources and Relevant Links:
Asian Tribune S'Pore NGO wants caning and death penalty abolished, new rights for migrant workers 03 November 2010
Deutsche Presse Agentur S'pore defends death penalty in first rights report to UN 26 February 2011
CNA Singapore's human rights record under UN scrutiny25 February 2011
Think Cenre Dialogue with Generation X & Y Political Activists 09 February 2011
Think Centre TC Human Rights Day 2010 Message
