| Agence
France Presse April 29, 2002 SINGAPORE Related: PM warns of bleak labour market, change in mindset needed Labour chief tells Singaporeans to prepare for major changes THE opposition Singapore Democractic Party (SDP) on Monday, April 29 vowed to go ahead with a planned rally on Labour Day even though authorities have refused to grant approval for it. SDP secretary general Chee Soon Juan said in a statement the proposed rally to highlight the poverty situation in the wealthy Southeast Asian state would still go ahead. "Despite the police rejection of the application to have the 'People Against Poverty' rally on May 1 outside the Istana (official presidential residence), the event will proceed as planned," Chee said. The police said in a statement the SDP's application for a permit to hold the rally was not granted "as it (the rally) is likely to pose law and order problems." Chee, who is locked in defamation suits filed by leaders of the ruling People's Action Party, said Singaporean workers should not be denied their right to commemorate Labour Day on Wednesday. "Workers all over the world are marking this important occasion. Why should Singapore's workers be an exception especially when they are presently on the receiving end of a debilitating recession?" he said. He said the 'People Against Poverty' rally would ensure that the "real voices of Singaporean workers" were heard. Chee said his planned rally would include protests against a proposed hike in the goods and services tax that "will unfairly affect the lower-income groups and add to already burgeoning problems of the poor in Singapore." The policies are among the reforms expected to be announced during the annual budget to be delivered this week by Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. In the tightly-regulated island where rallies of any sort are rare, permits must first be granted by police for all forms of public speeches and events. Singapore is among the most wealthy Asian economies but its deepest recession since statehood in 1965 saw the island's unemployment rate soar to a 15-year high of 4.7 percent at the end of last year. The economy shrank 2.0 percent last year after nearly 10 percent growth in Prior to the 1997-98 regional crisis, Singaporeans enjoyed virtually full employment due to a booming economy and a domestic labour shortage. |
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