The LGBT community has expressed their dismay over a recent private town hall meeting held to voice and organize opposition against the repeal of Singapore’s gay sex law.
The three-hour meeting, which was attended by at least 1,200, mostly middle-aged Singaporeans, was held at the Singapore Expo convention center on Saturday.
The meeting’s speakers argued that retaining Section 377A of Singapore’s penal code, which criminalizes sexual relations between men, was necessary to protect families, the institution of marriage, children and freedom.
LGBT advocacy group Pink Dot SG today condemned the townhall and its organizers, saying they were impeding Singapore from becoming a progressive nation and arguing that repealing 377a would not affect the rights of those outside the LGBT community.
“It is not right for a group to hold the whole country hostage on social progress, especially when the concessions that they are demanding in return for acceptance of repeal will disadvantage a group that they do not represent,” Pink Dot SG spokesperson Clement Tan said in a statement.
The Protect Singapore Townhall – Safeguarding Our Future event was organized by Jason Wong, founder of the Dads for Life movement and the Yellow Ribbon Project, and Mohamed Khair, the CEO of training and development company SuChi Success Initiatives.
Wong, Khair, current and former members of the LGBT community and other unidentified speakers reportedly spoke during the event.
In a Facebook message posted on Saturday, Wong said their hearts were “full” seeing the “oversubscribed” turnout to the townhall, with hundreds on the waitlist. He called supporters of repealing Section 377A “intolerant” and said he decided to because he believes repealing the law will damage the nation’s values and younger generations.
“Youths, parents, educators, workers, and more decided that it was #timetoactSG to protect family, marriage, our freedom of conscience, and most importantly our children, who are at the heart of these social institutions,” Wong wrote.
The law can be repealed when the government introduces safeguards to “marriages, families, and freedom of conscience,” including protecting heterosexual marriages, Wong added.
Pamphlets passed around during the event said LGBT groups are pushing for “many changes to law, policy and society” like approving same-sex marriages and housing policies.
They also said that children should be protected from LGBT beliefs and shouldn’t be discriminated against for not accepting them.
Another LGBT group, Oogachaga, today said they were more worried about harassment their community might face because of the event. They said they have already been getting hate calls and emails from the public.
“When we advocate for the repeal of 377A, we do so because we know about the very real impact it has on individuals, couples and families in Singapore’s LGBTQ community,” Oogachaga’s executive director Leow Yangfa said.
The Ministry of Home Affairs yesterday said the police had received reports on the gathering but concluded that they didn’t break any laws since it was privately held and everyone is “entitled to their views.”
The ministry also said the event’s organizers had applied for a police permit, which wasn’t required.
Although the government has stated that they would no longer prosecute individuals under Section 377A, they have refused to repeal it as a form of compromise with the country’s conservative values.
Advocates for repealing the law say that its continued existence provides a green light to society that discrimination against the LGBT community and individuals is still acceptable.
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