IMF and stuff

As many of you have heard, the upcoming IMF/WB meetings are to be held next week in little ol` Singapore. One of the many little ironies that exist in the universe, is that a central theme of this years IMF/WB meetings is “Good governance and Social Accountability”. Let me remind you that this is taking place in a country where a public gathering of more then 4 people is illegal, unless 1) they register for a permit 30 days prior 2) it is organized by the gov’t itself (did I mention that its been the same party in power since 1965?).

To show the world that they are not really bad guys, the benevolent Singaporean authorities have allotted an air-conditioned indoor space for civil society organization (CSO is the local equivalent of NGO) to protest. Oh yeah, the “Hall” is 8 by 8 meters, and all participants need to register and identify themselves before they can get in…

So basically it’s a big sham. I would define the reaction here as somewhere between martial law and a paranoid farther of a teen-age girl on prom night. You know who I feel bad for? Believe it or not Singapore. Why? Two reasons. 1st, Singapore is a nice place to visit and apparently a good place to do business. 2nd, they set themselves up for a PR disaster. Even if the IMF meeting ends really well for the world poor, apologizes for past mistakes , and promises to try really hard to make up for it (which of course it won’t) no one will talk about it. All that will be remembered is the crackdown on dissenting views.What the Singaporean authorities should have done, was let the foreigners have their protests and make into a non-issue, instead of turning it into the central issue.

I doubt that this would have a significant affect on local politics, and definitely wouldn’t cause the Singaporean masses to pour unto the streets. Unfortunately the political awareness here is still far form that. Instead their crackdown has only acted to consolidate local dissatisfaction with their gov’t, and increased international awareness of the screwed up reality here.

The best explanation I have heard so far for the gov’ts actions came from a local activist who said "It represents a certain blindness on the part of the Singapore government toward matters of public opinion, which can be traced to the fact that they are so used to ignoring it.” Such wide criticism of public policy is just something that doesn’t exist here, and after so long I guess the politicians just stopped believing it exists. I hope this fiasco serves as a wake call for the Singaporean leadership to finely initiate political reforms that will give voice to people they rule. I think by now Singaporeans have earned it, even if it take international attention to remind them of that.