Unpublished ST letter: Why I joined Aware this week

April 21, 2009 by admin
Filed under: Voices of the People 

This unpublished ST letter, written by Ms Lucy Davis, was originally posted on her Facebook notes page and is reproduced here with her permission.

By Ms Lucy Davis
18 April 2009

Although I belong to several civil society organizations and have much respect for previous Aware leaders such as Braema Mathi, Dana Lam, Constance Singham among others, I have not until now become an Aware member.

I supported the foundational, progressive values of Aware, but I had faith that Aware was doing the work it needed to, and I devoted my civil society energies to other causes.

I have however, had occasion to refer several, desperate women to Aware for legal and psychological counseling. I would like to highlight two cases of relevance to current speculation over the new Exco’s values:

The one woman, a breadline income-earner (and defacto single parent), wanted to divorce a man who provided no child support, but who had beaten her up repeatedly over the years, kicking her in the stomach while she was pregnant, for example. He had now returned to India with no trace.

Another woman was a tertiary student who had become pregnant due to unprotected sex. She did not dare tell her friends, her family or her church. She was ashamed, had considered suicide and was in the process of ordering medication online to induce an abortion. I counseled her very strongly not to do this and advised she contact both Aware and a medical doctor.

I joined Aware for the following reasons:

  1. I am concerned that behind the gloss of the new Excos “pro-family” policies are positions that would not permit the first battered wife to be counseled objectively on Singapore divorce laws.
  2. I am concerned that a feared, pro-abstinence stand in sex education would leave the student above with less control over her body and in more desperate circumstances.
  3. I am concerned that Aware’s previous stance on sexuality as choice is in danger. I am concerned for gay members of Aware and members of society that they be pressured, through religious prejudice into ridiculous counseling/conversion schemes.
  4. I am concerned for the previous, secular values of the organization, now seemingly-dominated by persons from extreme denominations of Christianity.
  5. The closeted tactics taken by the new Exco and their refusal to come clean on their agenda are abhorrent.
  6. This move is not just about Aware but is about protecting spaces in civil society as a whole against the non-democratic forces of religious exclusivity and sexual prejudice.

Lucy Davis

AWARE EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING

AWARE is a secular organization that embraces diversity of race, age, religion, culture and sexuality. For 24 years, it has worked towards removing discrimination, and empowering women to achieve their highest potential.

For a list of AWARE’s achievements go here.

The new Exco, or at least, a majority, appear to hold conservative views. The new President (Josie Lau) was in charge of the DBS campaign to support Focus on the Family, an evangelical Christian organization which campaigns against gay rights.

We are concerned that the new Exco will subvert the ideals of AWARE and use it as a platform to promote their own values that are contrary to what AWARE has always stood for.

Concerned members have requisitioned for an Extraordinary General meeting (EGM) to pass a vote of no confidence in the new Exco. The details for the meeting are:

Date: Saturday 2 May 2009
Time: 2-5pm
Venue: First Choice Auditorium,
3 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh
#01-01 HSR Building
Singapore 319378

If you support AWARE and what it stands for, please attend the EGM and cast your vote.

If you’re not an existing member (or if your membership has lapsed), sign up here.

Membership costs $40 ($5 if you are a full time student). You can pay via credit card or PayPal. You have voting rights if you are:

  • Singaporean or PR
  • 18 and above
  • female

Please print the two e-receipts (one from Pay Pal and the other from AWARE) and bring them to the EGM as proof of membership.

Please let me know if you have signed up as a member, and whether you will attend the EGM.

Do feel free to forward this note to friends who you think will be interested, and, very importantly, ask them to inform me if they have signed up.

Tags:

Comments

3 Comments on Unpublished ST letter: Why I joined Aware this week

  1. Oh Tham Eng on Tue, 21st Apr 2009 2:41 pm

    2. A GAY HAS CONFIRMED THE VALIDITY OF MS JOSIE’S WORRY: THAT AWARE IS LOSING ITS FOCUS

    Hi “Robert”!

    Thanks for confirming the legitimacy of what Ms Lau and her team’s are worried about. You said, “…the old AWARE’s stand of inclusiveness and their advocacy on [gays'] behalf, even though homosexuality is not even their core area of interest.” (#70).

    As this is so, and as a concerned member of the public, I need to report to MCYS Dr Balakrishnan that the intention of the new AWARE’s committee to rectify the situation is the right one, as fundings from taxpayers must be properly accounted for, and not allow their scare resources to be used for areas outside the purview of AWARE’s mission, such as for problem areas created by gayism or lesbianism.

    If AWARE’s old guards and their network insist, they must push for a constitutional change in the mission of AWARE. Better still, they may want to form their own gay-lesbian charity group, instead of remaining in AWARE to create troubles and to try destroying AWARE, and fomenting religious hatred to destabilise our harmonious Singapore society, as they are blatantly trying to do so currently.

    But if you insist, “Robert”, why don’t you take it upon yourself to canvass for personal donations from Mdm Singam and her girlie team, or from her children or grandchildren, so that the scarse resources of AWARE can be spared for their proper use. Stipulate to Ms Josie as such, and I am very sure Ms Josie and team will be more than happy to oblige.

    Many will be grateful to you for your understanding then, as to what AWARE can do and cannot do, and of your gallant attempt to help your gay community then. I believe gays and lesbians can be helped as individuals in legitimate ways (as God loves them too), without being misconstrued or being manipulated by them as an endorsement of their alternative lifestyle.

    Many like me can sympathise with you for your travails in life. It is unfortunate that the Church of My Saviour (where Ms Josie and many of her team also hail from) had not been able to help you in your confusion over your sexuality, though it has been able to do so for others. I have to wait until I go to the other side of heaven for the reason for your disappointment; and also why Jesus was able to heal some but not all people in His time. I also doubt any MP can help you to resolve your sexuality, maybe not now.

    But do keep your faith in God, as He still cares for you. Remember that Jesus died for the ungodly and cares just as much for those who stray away from Him. God won’t be killing you for being a gay, as He did for the sodomites. In fact, God didn’t even want to kill them/gays. But they were too aggressive and unreasonable. Lot wanted to sacrifice his two daughters to those sex-depraved gays, and earnestly pleaded with them not to molest the visiting angels. They refused Lot’s daughters, and demanded that they must have sex with those angels. As a result, those gays were struck blind.(Genesis 19:5-11).

    Well, as far as many Christian fundamentalists like me are concerned, it’s okay if you opt to be a gay; just that you need to be reasonable and practise good hygiene (which normal people need to do too). And don’t be evangelical and too aggressive about your lifestyle (like those sodomites)—to demand your rights to do those gay things, even in broad daylihgt (like what those gays are defiantly doing in USA—kissing and fondling while in passionate embrace for all to see!). As you have not convinced me or anyone that gay or lesbian lifestyle is good for Singapore and for our future as a strong, cohesive and caring nation, I can’t be supporting gayism or lesbianism though I love helping them (if I could) as God loves them too. I hope you can understand that.

    Sad to say, I do find gays to be generally a self-centred, opinionated and haughty lot. May it fall on you to show to Singapore and the world that gays are intelligent as well as polite, helpful, sensible, hardworking, caring and sharing people too, instead of being such a complaining lot—endlessly complaining and grumbling over every real or perceived “persecution” by others.

  2. The Singapore Daily » Blog Archive » Daily SG: 22 Apr 2009 on Wed, 22nd Apr 2009 11:14 am

    3. [...] – The Wayang Party: Who are the real winners and losers of the AWARE fiasco? – Sgpolitics: Unpublished ST letter: Why I joined Aware this week – Sam’s Thoughts: We are Aware, are you? – Sgpolitics: Ms Angela Thiang has also written to [...]

  3. The Singapore Daily » Blog Archive » Weekly Roundup: Week 17 on Sat, 25th Apr 2009 12:44 pm

    4. [...] – The Wayang Party: Who are the real winners and losers of the AWARE fiasco? – Sgpolitics: Unpublished ST letter: Why I joined Aware this week – Sam’s Thoughts: We are Aware, are you? – Sgpolitics: Ms Angela Thiang has also written to [...]

Tell me what you're thinking...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!