Singapore bans "Zahari's 17 Years"

LazerLordz SG

Singapore bans film about ex-political detainee

41 minutes ago

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore is banning a film about a former political detainee held for 17 years without trial, the government said.
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The film "Zahari's 17 Years" about former journalist Said Zahari -- arrested in 1963 for suspected subversive political activities, including communist sympathies -- will be banned because it is "against public interests," the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts said on Tuesday.

"The film gives a distorted and misleading portrayal of Said Zahari's arrest and detention under the Internal Security Act," the ministry said in a statement.

"Zahari's 17 Years" is directed by Singapore film director Martyn See, who had several run-ins with the Singapore police last year after he produced a documentary about opposition leader Chee Soon Juan in 2005.

Singapore, frequently criticized by human rights groups for its restrictions on the opposition and media, bans political films that contain "biased references to or comments on any political matter."

The Ministry said "Zahari's 17 Years" was an attempt by Zahari "to exculpate himself from his past involvement in communist united front activities against the interests of Singapore."

"The government will not allow people who had posed a security threat to the country in the past to exploit the use of films to purvey a false and distorted portrayal of their past actions and detention by the government," the ministry said, adding that this may "undermine public confidence in the government."

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So now they do not want all narratives in the discourse. How smart and stylish. Woohoo.

It's stupidity at it's best, because you cannot ever fully stop information. Rolling Eyes A man has a right for his story to be told from his point of view. Banning on principle...blah. Like principles are worth a damn here.

mhcampboy SG

eehh im very interested lei!! Mad

the Bear SG

stupid.. we can always download it Laughing

maybe they are as out of touch or even worse than we think..

LazerLordz SG

You tell me lah..why are we being forced to look like clowns when we are abroad huh.

the Bear SG

we just have to convince the 16.7% of the people Wink

^tamago^ SG

the reasons given are quite ridiculous Laughing

lionnoisy SG

search Said Zahari

2.Will FBI agree release one who insist to kill US President
after get out from jail?Likewise,any government will not release
anyone who DO NOT undertake not to create troubles!!

3.Pl read some before making noise here.

1 - 2 of 2 items
No. Date Speaker Title
1. 17/11/1978

LIM HOCK SIEW AND SAID ZAHARI RELEASED

2. 22/08/1979

RESTRICTION CONFINING SAID ZAHARI TO PULAU UBIN HAS LIFTED

tim482 SG

why must ban this film!!!
is like the japs cannot know wad their forefathers did during WW2.

justiceforall SG

The big irony is whilst they were arresting 100's of union leaders and opponents those days - accusing them of being communists, years later Singapore government was actually working closely with Beijing.

In fact, Goh Keng Swee was even appointed an economic adviser to China !

So, what was the real reason for the arrests? Those people were not weapon-and-grenade brandishing communists.

I think the real reasons then were the same as now - to consolidate the regime's grip on power by getting rid of all outstanding political opponents. By hook or by court.

walesa SG

Real reason was them posing a reasonable threat - be they real, imagined orpotential - to the criminal who's currently in the midst of revising his own paycheck with public funds...

Atobe SG

Originally posted by lionnoisy:
[b]search Said Zahari

2.Will FBI agree release one who insist to kill US President
after get out from jail?Likewise,any government will not release
anyone who DO NOT undertake not to create troubles!!

3.Pl read some before making noise here.

1 - 2 of 2 items
No. Date Speaker Title
1. 17/11/1978

LIM HOCK SIEW AND SAID ZAHARI RELEASED

2. 22/08/1979

RESTRICTION CONFINING SAID ZAHARI TO PULAU UBIN HAS LIFTED

[/b]

When the day comes that you are accused of a crime that you did not commit, but based on the say so of the MASTER'S VOICE, then you will feel the pain of being wrongly accused.

If Said Zahari was a Communist and accused for all the criminal political acts that have been so highly publicized, why was he never brought to trial but locked up under the Internal Security Act ?

If Chia Thye Poh was accused to be a Communist and similarly accused of spouting armed revolution to overthrow a legitimately elected government in Singapore, why was he never put on trial before an open Court, and all the evidence produced, instead of incarcerating him for 32 years, and being taunted with the opportunity of freedom - IF only he will simply sign a confession to the correctness of the accusation made against him ?

As a Human Being, do you feel no indignance towards a deep injustice being done to an individual, who prefer to waste 32 years in incarceration based on a simple principle rather than submit himself to injustice ?

What moral authority remains, when political opponents are simply locked up at the whim of those wielding the powers of the Internal Security Act ?

Are we a Democratic First World Country, or are we a Communist Stalinistic Country ?

You are simply disingenious with your reference about USA, when you know little about the Political Concepts that the USA is built on.

Even the USA has the Freedom of Information Act that allow the Citizens to access Government records after a lapse of some statutory approved period, so that the Truth will be made known to all, and any injustice can be place right.

Are we not supposed to have become a First World Country ?

Why are we still living in a Third World Political Environment ?

LazerLordz SG

What the hell do you know. Don't pollute this discussion with your trash.

lionnoisy SG

2.read more guys.It was so tense between Communist block and western countries before fall of USSR and Berlin wall.

Teng Xiu Peng,after visiting SG and listened to LKY frank advises ,stopped boardcasting pro communism from Yunan to SEA.
Then Malaysia Communist Party lost support from PRC.

U think LKY treated them as big threat in election and locked them up?

Oh.Lucky all of us here free to talk.

3.I am happy to read you write years later.
Sons,a decade can change many things.

You lucky young guys never experience the hard times
of Communism vs Non-communism.Vietnam War,(sorry,
legally speaking,US Congress never declaraded war
on Vietnam),boats people,Camabodia....

PRC changed gradually from planned econmony to market econmony.

It was the big news when PRC established Shenzhen as SEZ!

4.Will FBI release one who threaten to kill US President if he
is released??Answer me.This is a real life question.

I have heart and brain.

But tell me if you were the decision maker ,the guy sitting
in front of you telling you he will over throw SG government by force
if he released,will u release him??

Dunt be a soft heart auntie!!

5.Do u know the structure of undergound communists was
so secretive?
Dunt just sitting in arm chair and telling empty words here.

Do some home works,sons.

ndmmxiaomayi SG

With Singaporeans getting more tech savvy, nothing is going to stop them. The Internet is not theirs, as well as the postal service.

The banning only goes to show that there is truth somewhere.

So I guess Dr Vivian has to speak now? Why is the Singapore Government so afraid of these sort of movies, banning them for the sake of public interest? And I wonder where's the public interest in the first place.

chiabaliao SG

That looks more like an admission from the government that the past arrest of Zahari and other political activists were unjust and it was done only to consolidate the power of PAP.

Even if the PAP could find evidence to charge the activists for criminal acts, why would they do it when the the power of ISA could be used to terminate them permanently?

I challenge the PAP to come clean with the treatment of political activists following their arrests, and make a formal apology at least. Many family members of past political victims are waiting in vain.

LazerLordz SG

There is a key difference between advocacy of violence, and screening of a film made about a person in which he tells his side of the story.

To come to a fair conclusion, one must listen to both victor and loser.

Fairness ain't much to ask for. No one's saying we should glorify his past deeds, if they were true. But by not having the chance for the common man to listen to both sides of the story, fairness does not get a chance to live.

SingaporeTyrannosaur SG

Originally posted by lionnoisy:

2.read more guys.It was so tense between Communist block and western countries before fall of USSR and Berlin wall.

Teng Xiu Peng,after visiting SG and listened to LKY frank advises ,stopped boardcasting pro communism from Yunan to SEA.
Then Malaysia Communist Party lost support from PRC.

U think LKY treated them as big threat in election and locked them up?

Oh.Lucky all of us here free to talk.

3.I am happy to read you write [b]years later.
Sons,a decade can change many things.

You lucky young guys never experience the hard times
of Communism vs Non-communism.Vietnam War,(sorry,
legally speaking,US Congress never declaraded war
on Vietnam),boats people,Camabodia....

PRC changed gradually from planned econmony to market econmony.

It was the big news when PRC established Shenzhen as SEZ!

4.Will FBI release one who threaten to kill US President if he
is released??Answer me.This is a real life question.

I have heart and brain.

But tell me if you were the decision maker ,the guy sitting
in front of you telling you he will over throw SG government by force
if he released,will u release him??

Dunt be a soft heart auntie!!

5.Do u know the structure of undergound communists was
so secretive?
Dunt just sitting in arm chair and telling empty words here.

Do some home works,sons.
[/b]

Then I'm sure lionnoisy, that you should perfectly understand the strict measures that the authorities will take against you for attempting to sow discord in Singapore-Australia relations, as well as offending the Singaporean Australian community.

We have a whole bank of witnesses in here very willing to testify against you should your case ever come up... which seems to be a distinct possibility in the near future if you keep all this up.

Arapahoe SG

Hey lazer lordz, your post on the white house response has been close.

anyway as i have observed the issue isn't about the truth. Because our history are still very short. pokito !!! as part of nation building the 1st government does not want to change the history. (His-Story) and wanted it for the official record. So that it does not affect its moral authority against the people.

(and I think it is a normal practices for all governments around the world to keep the dirt under the capert for 10, 20 years until it is no longer an issue government will make acknowledgment for the Record. Uncle Sam does the same thing regards to history)

I also think there are a lot of issue dealing LKY vs MCP and Communist in china that are not reflected to the public in detail, and our commitment to Taiwan against spreading communism in the region.

As far as fairness is concern that is not the priority if you are sitting in the Gov. Modern argument does not take nation building into account unfornately it is only news worthy.

soulwinner SG

then???

LazerLordz SG

The White House article is out there for days. Laughing

Problem is that since we have a short contemporary history, it is quite sensitive to any attempt to shift the historical record to one single side of the story. History cannot be politicised, it should be presented with all it's arguments, with warts and all. The man was released, and to claim that he is a threat just to ban the film, is illogical.

If he was a real threat, why did they release him in the first place? Come clean. IMHO, this is mindless victimisation to justify an ideological decision.