Free speech in Singapore

The Economist March 11th 2017

Grumble and be damned

The government says it welcomes criticism, but its critics still suﬀer

LIKE most constitutions, Singapore’s promises freedom of speech. Unlike most, it allows the government to limit that freedom with “such restrictions as it considers necessary or expedient” to maintain national security, friendly relations with other countries or public order and morality, as well as to protect “the privileges of Parliament” and to prevent “contempt of court” or “incitement to any oﬀence”. Oﬃcials have not hesitated to quell their critics. Opponents of the People’s Action Party (PAP), which has ruled Singapore without interruption since independence, have often found themselves on the losing end of defamation suits regarding accusations that American or European politicians would have shrugged or laughed oﬀ.

constitutions [ˌkɑnstɪˈtuʃ(ə)n]

(a written document which forms) the set of political principles by which a state or organization is governed, especially in relation to the rights of the people it governs 宪法；章程

»Britain has no written constitution.英国没有成文宪法。

expedient [ɪkˈspidiənt]

helpful or useful in a particular situation, but sometimes not morally acceptable 权宜之计的；应急的；不得已而为之的

»It might be expedient not to pay him until the work is finished.要到工作完成才给他薪水，这或许也是逼不得已的。

privilege [ˈprɪvəlɪdʒ]

an advantage that only one person or group of people has, usually because of their position or because they are rich （特定个体或群体的）特权，特别待遇

»Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege.医疗保健应该是权利，而非特权。

contempt [kənˈtempt]

a strong feeling of disliking and having no respect for someone or something 蔑视；鄙视；轻视；轻蔑

»At school she had complete contempt for all her teachers.在学校读书时她对所有老师都不屑一顾。

»You should treat those remarks with the contempt that they deserve.你理应对那些话不屑一顾。

incitement [ɪnˈsaɪtmənt]

the act of encouraging sb to do sth violent, illegal or unpleasant 煽动；鼓动

»British law forbids incitement to murder...英国法律禁止煽动杀人。

oﬀence [əˈfens]

a crime or illegal activity for which there is a punishment

quell [kwel]

to stop something, especially by using force （尤其指透过武力）制止，平息；镇压

»(figurative) She started to giggle, but Bob quelled her with a look.她格格地笑了起来,但鲍勃用眼色制止了她。

Opponent [əˈpoʊnənt]

a person who disagrees with something and speaks against it or tries to change it 反对者；对手；敌手

»a political opponent政敌

interruption [ˌɪntəˈrʌpʃən]

when someone or something stops something from happening for a short period 打断；短暂中止

»a brief interruption短暂的中断

»I worked all morning without interruption.我整个上午都在工作，没有受到干扰。

defamation [ˌdefəˈmeɪʃ(ə)n]

the act of damaging sb's reputation by saying or writing bad or false things about them破坏名誉；诽谤；中伤:

»The company sued for defamation.这个公司因受到诽谤而提起诉讼。

suit

a claim or complaint that someone makes in a court of law

accusation [ˌækjəˈzeɪʃ(ə)n]

a statement saying that someone has done something morally wrong, illegal or unkind, or the fact of accusing someone 指控，控告；指责；谴责

»You can't just make wild accusations like that!你不能那样胡乱指责人！

»He glared at me with an air of accusation.他瞪着我，一脸责备的样子。

» [+ that] What do you say to the accusation that you are unfriendly and unhelpful?别人指责你不友善、不乐于助人，对此你有甚么回应？

shrug [ʃrʌɡ]

to raise your shoulders and then lower them in order to say you do not know or are not interested （表示不知道或不感兴趣）耸（肩）

»"Where's Dad?" "How should I know?" replied my brother, shrugging.“爸爸在哪里？”“我怎么知道？”哥哥耸了耸肩，答道。

»He shrugged his shoulders as if to say that there was nothing he could do about it.他耸了耸肩，好像在说他对此无能为力。

»figurative Thousands of people are starving to death while the world shrugs its shoulders (= shows no interest or care).成千上万的人濒于饿死，世人却无动于衷。

laughed oﬀ.

to joke about something in order to show that you think it is not important or serious一笑置之；笑言以对

»The couple laughed off rumours that their marriage was in trouble...夫妻两人对他们婚姻出现问题的谣言一笑置之。

Singapore’s government has long insisted that such measures are essential to safeguard the country’s hard-won racial harmony and public order. Recently, however, the country’s rulers have begun expounding the virtues of thick skins. In late February Lee Hsien Loong, the prime minister, said leaders need to be challenged: “If all you have are people who say, ‘Three bags full, sir’, then soon you start to believe them, and that is disastrous.” On the very same day Kishore Mahbubani, a former diplomat who runs a public-policy institute at the National University of Singapore, said that Singapore needed “more naysayers [who] attack and challenge every sacred cow”. Tommy Koh, another diplomat, urged his countrymen to prize “challengers who are subversive and who have alternate points of view”.

expound [ɪkˈspaʊnd]

to give a detailed explanation of something 详细解释；阐述；详细说明

»He expounded his views on the subject to me at great length.他详细地向我阐述了他在这个问题上的观点。

»We listened as she expounded on the government's new policies.我们听她详细讲解了政府的新政策。

thin/thick skin

easily/not easily upset by criticism 脸皮薄／厚

»I don't worry about what he says - I have a very thick skin.我不在意他说的话——我脸皮非常厚。

disastrous [dɪˈzæstrəs]

extremely bad or unsuccessful 极其糟糕的，灾难性的，极为失败的

»Such a war would be disastrous for the country.这样一场战争会给国家带来灾难性的后果。

»This decision will have a disastrous impact on foreign policy.这个决定将对外交政策产生极为不利的影响。

»His first attempt was disastrous.他第一次尝试败得很惨。

diplomat [ˈdɪpləˌmæt]

an official whose job is to represent one country in another, and who usually works in an embassy （通常指使馆的）外交官

»a Spanish/British diplomat西班牙／英国外交官

naysayer

one who denies, refuses, opposes, or is skeptical or cynical about something

sacred [ˈseɪkrəd]

considered too important to be changed 不容改变的，不可侵犯的

»His daily routine is absolutely sacred to him.对他而言，每天的日常安排绝对是不容改变的。

»humorous The cricketers wore blue, not their usual white - is nothing sacred?板球队员们身穿蓝色队服，不是他们常穿的白色——难道这也是可以改的吗？

countrymen [ˈkʌntrimən]

a person from your own country 本国人；同胞；同乡

•Didn't he feel guilty about betraying his fellow countrymen and women?背叛了自己的同胞，难道他不感到愧疚吗？

subversive [səbˈvɜrsɪv]

intended to destroy the power or influence of a government or an established belief

These comments were presumably not intended as a criticism of the Supreme Court. Just two days before it had upheld the conviction and ﬁning of three activists who took part in a protest about the management of the Central Provident Fund, a compulsory savings scheme administered by the government. The three had been marching in Hong Lim Park, home to Speakers’ Corner (pictured), a spot set up for Singaporeans to exercise their freedom of speech without any restriction what so ever, beyond the obligation to apply for permission to speak and to comply with the 13 pages of terms and conditions upon which such permissions are predicated, as well as all the relevant laws and constitutional clauses.

presumably [prɪˈzuməbli]

used to say what you think is the likely situation 据推测，大概，可能

•They can presumably afford to buy a bigger apartment.他们大概买得起一间大一点的公寓。

•Presumably he just forgot to send the letter.他可能是忘了寄信。

uphold

if a court of law upholds something such as a claim, it says that it is correct

conviction [kənˈvɪkʃ(ə)n]

when someone is officially found to be guilty of a particular crime 定罪，判罪

•As it was her first conviction for stealing, she was given a less severe sentence.由于她是初次犯盗窃罪，对她的量刑不是很重。

•He has a long record of previous convictions for similar offences.他有多次类似罪行的犯罪记录。

compulsory [kəmˈpʌlsəri]

If something is compulsory, you must do it because of a rule or law 必须做的；强制性的；必修的

•Swimming was compulsory at my school.在我们学校，游泳是必修课。

•Wearing seat belts in cars is compulsory by law.坐车系安全带是法律强制规定的。

administered [ədˈmɪnɪstər]

to control the operation or arrangement of something; to manage or govern 管理；治理

•The country was administered by the British until very recently.直到不久前，这个国家还由英国人来管辖。

•The economy has been badly administered by the present government.现任政府一直不善处理经济工作。

what so ever

used after a negative phrase to add emphasis to the idea that is being expressed （用于否定句后表强调）无论怎样，丝毫，任何

•He has no respect for authority whatsoever.他对权威一点也不尊重。

•I can honestly say that I have no interest whatsoever in the royal family.我可以坦率地说，我对皇室毫无兴趣。

beyond

outside the range or limits of a subject, quality, or activity

obligation [ˌɑblɪˈɡeɪʃ(ə)n]

something that you must do for legal or moral reasons义务；责任；职责

You have a legal obligation to (= The law says you must) ensure your child receives a proper education.法律规定你有义务确保自己的孩子接受合理的教育。

comply [kəmˈplaɪ]

to act according to an order, set of rules or request 服从；遵守；依从

»They refused to comply with the UN resolution.他们拒绝遵守联合国的决议。

clause [klɔz]

a particular part of a written legal document, for example a law passed by Parliament or a contract (= an agreement) （法律档的）条款

The three protesters were convicted of creating a public nuisance, for disrupting a public event being held in the park. One of them, Han Hui Hui, who ran for parliament as an independent in 2015, was also convicted of organising a public protest without approval (the authorities said she had applied to give a speech rather than a demonstration). The courts ﬁned Ms Han S$3,100 ($2,199). Anyone convicted and ﬁned more than S$2,000 is barred from becoming a member of parliament for ﬁve years—another restriction the authorities must still deem necessary or expedient for the maintenance of something or other.

nuisance [ˈnusəns]

illegal behaviour that is annoying or offensive to other people

The upholding of Ms Han’s conviction comes six months after Singapore’s parliament enacted a laws stiﬀening the penalties for contempt of court, to as much as three years’ imprisonment or a ﬁne of up to S$100,000. The law deﬁnes contempt broadly: any comment that, in the court’s judgment, “poses a risk that public conﬁdence in the administration of justice would be undermined”. If the prime minister wants to encourage criticism of the government, making more of it legal would be a good ﬁrst step.

stiﬀen [ˈstɪf(ə)n]

to make something stronger or more difficult 加强；（使）变得严厉；（使）变得艰难

»These events have stiffened our resolve to succeed.这些事件增强了我们争取成功的决心。

»Penalties for selling illegal drugs have been stiffened.对贩卖毒品的处罚加重了。

penalty [ˈpen(ə)lti]

a punishment for breaking a rule or law

the administration of justice

司法行政

undermined

to make someone less confident, less powerful or less likely to succeed, or to make something weaker, often gradually （常指逐渐地）削弱信心、权威等，损害

»Criticism just undermines their confidence.批评只是削弱了他们的信心。

佳句赏析

1.In no country is the right to free speech absolute. When this right is extended to fake news, defamation or hate speech, society pays a price.

没有任何一个国家有绝对的言论自由。若假新闻、诽谤或仇恨言论不被禁止，社会将会付出代价。

2. Recently, however, the country’s rulers have begun expounding the virtues of thick skins.

然而近来，这个国家的统治者对何谓厚脸皮做出了详细说明。

Free speech in Singapore

佳句赏析

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