David T E Lim
Singapore
“Our entrepreneurs need to feel that they are heroes and not left-behinds, and be motivated by this feeling to attempt great things. We need a civil and a civic society, where people believe that this is where their heart and home is. Such outcomes are helped by the right economic policies.”
“As the CRC process demonstrates, the views of the public are widely canvassed when developing censorship policies. Likewise, we have many advisory and review and appeal committees. The public inputs are obtained to guide the implementation of censorship rules.”
“With Members' support and working closely with partners from relevant Government agencies and the private sector, MITA will endeavour to develop the design and media industries, and we will endeavour to make the creative industries a cornerstone of our economy.”
“Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed. ADJOURNMENT Resolved, "That Parliament do now adjourn to Monday, 25th November 2002." - [Mr Mah Bow Tan]. Adjourned accordingly at Six minutes past Seven o'clock pm to Monday, 25th November 2002.”
“He receives this amount whether or not he appeals to the Land Acquisition Appeals Board. Once he vacates the premises, he receives the remaining 80%. We have no knowledge of any land owner who has been made a bankrupt by the mortgagee bank because of the compensation amount awarded.”
“Sir, Dr Khor's question is whether we could consider sub-titling. We have said that we would explore this. But sub-titling means that it is no longer signing. It is put into a form that is in a regular language, so to speak.”
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“Our entrepreneurs need to feel that they are heroes and not left-behinds, and be motivated by this feeling to attempt great things. We need a civil and a civic society, where people believe that this is where their heart and home is. Such outcomes are helped by the right economic policies. But we also need to develop our emotions as a nation. We can achieve this by factoring in practical measures to uplift emotions in our policies. These need not necessarily be big, radical policy shifts for now, but rather sensible adjustments to our existing robust frameworks. We could encourage babies, for example, by the Government moving quickly to a five-day workweek, and building more family oriented infrastructure for weekends, so that we can enjoy our children, and our children can be happy and enjoy our company. The most important need we have today as a nation is to nurture the heart of our people. We can do this by using the money and the resources we have set aside in this budget in practical ways that uplift our emotions and human spirit. Sir, I support the Budget.”
“When my children were young, my happiest moment was when I came home from work, they were there, rushing to the door to greet me. Now as they grow up, my greatest joy is to see them mature - to see how they have become kind and sensitive in dealing with people, how they are confident of themselves, how they are able to argue perceptively. Sir, if we see babies as another claim on time, or an addition to costs, or an interference with lifestyles, then we will clamour for more and more incentives, and still they would not be enough. But if we truly believe in the joy of children, then incentives help, but should no longer matter the most. But even if we believe that we should have children because they bring us joy, there is a second consideration. And that is whether we believe that we can give our children joy. If we are honest with ourselves, the answer to this question depends on whether we are ourselves happy with our lives. If we are, then we can believe that our children will also have happy lives. But if we believe that life is getting harder, rather than better, then we would not think that our children's lives could be happier. These are fundamental questions of belief that each person must decide. The measures we are putting in place to restructure our economy are sensible and will make us stronger and more able to compete in the years ahead. We have the skills, and systems and institutions to do many and great things, if we believe in them. But we will achieve far less than our potential if our emotions are not right, and our heart is not in what we do. It is not just about making babies. But it extends to every area of public policy and governance. Our students need to feel that learning is a joy, not a subject to be passed, or a drudgery to be endured.”
“Mr Speaker, if I may, I would like to approach this debate from a slightly different point of view to talk about some of the emotional aspects of policy-making. Sir, in our nation's next phase of development, we will need to harness everyone's economic contributions - from student to entrepreneur, from policy maker to homemaker. To do this, we must make sure that our economic policies are right; and the provisions in this year's budget move us in that right direction. But to overcome the challenges we face, we need more than just the right, rational policies. We also need the emotional buy-in from everyone so that these policies can be effective. Take, for example, a topical subject that has come up several times today and will come up again, that is, about making babies and raising children. Many good ideas have been raised about how to increase the number of babies born each year. But the fundamental and most important question to address is whether young adult Singaporeans want babies. If we want to look for reasons today why young couples do not want babies, there are many. Essentially, they boil down to cost, time and lifestyles. But how do we counter these reasons? Logic will not. Incentives cannot. But emotions can. Incentives can raise birth rates, at least temporarily as our own experience has shown. But at best, incentives can only make it easier for parents to have babies, and lower the cost of raising children. And at worst, more and more incentives may leave young couples with the idea that children are a burden, and not a joy. So I agree with Mr Tan Soo Khoon that the only compelling reason why we should bear with the pain, and the cost, and the inconvenience of having babies is the joy they bring. This is an emotional motive, not an economic rationale.”
“As the CRC process demonstrates, the views of the public are widely canvassed when developing censorship policies. Likewise, we have many advisory and review and appeal committees. The public inputs are obtained to guide the implementation of censorship rules. But in the final analysis, the Government, as elected leaders, must decide what the policies will be, and where the lines, for the time being, will be drawn. Sir, I appreciate the Members' concerns over our censorship rules. MITA will study the CRC Report carefully when it comes out and we will look not only at whether some of the rules should be changed, but also how the process of administering these rules can be improved. I hope Members will continue to support us, give us the feedback, so that together, we can make a better society for our children.”
“Sir, in responding to the CRC report, I will be guided by a number of basic considerations. Firstly, we must develop our own approach. We are a young society, raised on traditional values and seeking to fit into a global world. We are also multi-religious, multi-racial, multi-cultural. We therefore cannot simply follow foreign norms or import ideas from societies that are culturally different from us. It simply would not work. We must develop our own formula and base these on sound and clear principles. Secondly, we must look at the issues from all sides. This is almost axiomatic. But if we do not see or try to see the concerns of others, there is no reason why they should see our concerns. And if any one insists on absolute freedom for himself, then he denies all others any freedom at all. So, if we hope to find workable ways to accommodate our different views and values, we must be prepared for some give and take, and to take progress one step at a time. Thirdly, we should aim to move at a pace that the society, as a whole, can accommodate. We have not dramatically changed our approach to censorship over the last 10 years, and yet anyone who has lived during that period will recognise that we have eased up in many areas. Friends who have come to visit us after a long while feel that it is different now, and yet acceptance of our current censorship norms is still very high. This means that we have managed to find a workable balance, that is, the tension between being too inflexible and changing too quickly, and we should continue to work for such a balance. Finally, Sir, we must recognise that decisions eventually have to be taken and then we have to move on.”
“Mr Loh Meng See mentioned that we should be careful about what we show over the media in the homes. I agree that we should be stricter in our free-to-air programmes because that is what our children have easy access to. But, here again, we have another dilemma. Parents may not always agree on whether a particular programme is suitable for children or not. In such instances, would it not be better to let parents decide where they want to draw the line for their children, and to take responsibility for their decision? This is different from the point that Mr Chia had raised because it is not a matter of shifting the boundaries but rather of providing choice within the broadly accepted moral markers of our society. But, if we move in this direction, then we must ensure that parents have practical tools to help control what their children watch. And, there are tools today. On subscription TV, for example, the remote control allows parents to switch off the programmes or the channels that they do not want their children to watch. Sir, the CRC expects to publish its report in a month or two, and so any comments at this time by me would be inappropriate by way of pre-empting what the CRC may recommend. But I can say that the CRC is considering a wide range of issues including, inter alia, a review of a classification standard for film, video and subscription TV, the licensing and regulation of arts groups, and whether other media, such as publications should also be classified or rated. Whatever the recommendations and changes we decide to make, the challenge is how to meet the opposing demands of allowing for more choices, on the one hand, and protecting our young and our core values, on the other.”
“They have also taken in the views expressed in articles and commentaries carried by the media, and commissioned a survey to obtain direct public feedback on key censorship issues. Members have raised a number of specific changes to our censorship rules and I will pass these on to the CRC for consideration. But, allow me to briefly make some observations. Mr Steve Chia has raised the concept of rating, zoning and belting. This is not new. We do this now in terms of film classifications, as he has indicated, in terms of shifting certain programmes onto late night television or allowing certain types of programmes only on paid television and not free-to-air television, and so forth. But he has hinted at the idea of brown-bagging materials. I am not quite sure what he means. But in America, where I lived for quite some time, brown bagging is only done for pornographic materials. I do not know if Mr Chia is suggesting that we should have pornographic materials on sale in Singapore and, if so, whether he truly believes that this will make Singapore a better society, or whether he is just arguing a choice for choice's sake. If we talk about such materials, the question is not a question of choice. It is a question of boundaries and where we want to draw the line. Most people, I think, could find pornography repulsive, debasing, unacceptable. Some may argue where exactly the line should be drawn between pornography and art for entertainment. Crossing this line would change the moral character of our society. So, in considering this point that Mr Chia advocates, we must ask ourselves this question whether, and to what extent, we want to shift the boundaries on pornography, and why? Or, we should not approach it as a choice for choice's sake.”
“Our censorship rules and policies have been drawn up, finessed over time, and they have served us well. Periodically, we do surveys and consistently they show a high level of acceptance and comfort with the current censorship norms. We will never have 100% of the people agreeing with us. But, if we can get 70-80% of the population saying, "Yes, we are quite comfortable. These are the right standards", I think we are not doing too badly. Because, for the 20-30%, half of them wants us to be more relaxed, and the other half wants us to be stricter. Having said that though, our society is not static and unchanging. We are not insulated from the rest of the world, quite the contrary. If we want to remake ourselves into a global city, we must become even more aware of what is happening elsewhere, what are the trends, what are the fashions, what are their cultures, what are their values, so that we can interact with the rest of the world and do business with. And, as we travel and become more widely exposed, our own people's interests and attitudes and values will also become more diverse. This was why I decided last year to convene the Censorship Review Committee (CRC) to seek their views on what we should do to bring our censorship system up-to-date. Mr Seng Han Thong has asked about the progress of the CRC and its recommendations. The committee has almost completed its work. I will ask him to be patient and it would be out in a month or two. But over the past years, they have held 21 meetings. They have consulted extensively. They have had 15 focus group discussions and talked to more than 300 people and received many more representations from the public at large.”
“If censorship is not relevant because we can get all of these materials anyway on the Internet, then would Mr Chia expect any reaction at all tomorrow when we publish a photo of a nude person on the front page of the newspapers? I think he himself would not think that that was appropriate, even though these materials can be obtained on the Internet. Mdm Halimah has expressed grave concerns that TV programmes such as Temptation Island or The Bachelor can instill the wrong values in our children and youth. I have seen half an episode of Temptation Island. Like you, on a busy day, at the end of the day when we switch on the TV at night for a moment of relaxation, and it comes on only late at night. I have not seen The Bachelor and so I cannot comment on it, but it does sound interesting and I will see if I can catch the next episode - the next time. But it is for the reason of your concern that we have devised a set of measures to guide our media on what can be shown, and at what times, and on which channels. Similarly, we have developed guidelines for the theatres and the arts to address Mr Loh Meng See's concern, that in the area of the arts we should also not have artistic licence degenerate into unacceptable expressions. But, at the same time, I am mindful of the early exhortation when we discussed arts and the creative industry, that we should allow for more freedom in our censorship rules. Miss Penny Low and Dr Tan Boon Wan have raised this. If you want to succeed in creating a livelier and more innovative society, they have argued that we have to be a bit loose and a bit more relaxed. How can we do this and yet address the concerns that Mdm Halimah and Mr Low have raised. And this is the challenge that we face in setting the rules.”
“Sir, I hope this will be my last speech, I hope, before the break. Sir, let me first address the issues that Mr Chandra Mohan has raised. In gist, he is asserting that the Government controls the media in such a way that it does not allow for political views to be heard. Sir, this is not true. You only have to open the newspapers and look at the Forum pages to see that there are all kinds of views expressed about Government policies. I think every conceivable argument on every relevant policy has been raised. And, every time a new issue comes out you get a flood of letters coming in. True, not every letter gets published because there is only so much space available. But I think the editors make an effort to present a representative slate of views and opinions when they pick the letters. Sir, when editors or journalists decide what they are going to write, or articles to publish or what letters they will print in the media, they have to consider whether these articles and letters, will inflame emotions, whether they will harm our social fabric or compromise our national interests, or whether they will break or contravene the laws of the land. A responsible editor will therefore not publish a letter or an article if he thinks that it is potentially defamatory, seditious, likely to cause racial hatred, or otherwise break the law. For an editor to make such a decision, it is responsible journalism. It is not a matter of political censorship. Sir, let me turn to the issue of censorship that the other Members have raised. We do have censorship in Singapore, as they do have in all countries. Is it still relevant, as Mr Steve Chia has asked?”
“In this way, we can give our students, who have a bent for the arts, more career options while at the same time nurturing their artistic talents. MITA will set up a committee to look at this shortly and it will involve and work very closely with the Ministry of Education. Sir, although we have made much progress in the arts, there is still much that needs to be done to grow and support the arts. I will ask NAC to look into the many suggestions that the other Members have raised. Last year was a milestone year for us in the arts, but it was also a sad year with the demise of two of our most outstanding and well-loved artists, Brother Joseph McNally and Kuo Pao Kun. The arts community mourns their passing but, at the same time, we celebrate the foundation that they had laid, the legacy that they had left behind. They have built a very good foundation for many generations of artists to come. On the foundation of all who have laboured to build the arts, and with the support of this House, MITA will endeavour to make Singapore a global city for the arts. I do not know if we will become the London of the East, or the Paris of the East or the New York of the East, because these are all great arts cities. But I think if we all contribute, and we can build up our cultural capital, create a more gracious society and contribute to a more vibrant economy, this will be a city that we will all want to live in.”
“Our goal is to work with the private sector to get them to see where the arts can be of value to them to raise their image to impact their corporate activities and, in some way, to get more value out of the arts for the businesses, and then we will be able to ask the businesses to contribute more to the arts. Last year, private corporations gave $37.1 million to the arts, about the same amount as the year before and, given again the difficult conditions, I think that is good support. Finally, Sir, Mr Loh Meng See, Miss Penny Low and Mr Zainuddin have asked about arts education in our schools, whether MITA intends to start an Arts School. I agree that we should have a stronger emphasis for the arts in our schools, and I am indeed glad to see the various measures that MOE has already taken today. In 2002, NAC's arts education programme, which we do with the support of the schools, reached out to 98% of our schools - practically everyone of them - and involved about 60% of our total student population. So, about 60% of our students had an opportunity to participate in or look at arts programmes. But as interest in the arts grows, it is timely that we look at the feasibility of setting up an Arts School or some other means to provide an enhanced curriculum in the arts, in tandem with an academic programme. I am not sure that the Arts School will follow exactly the model of the Sports School. Our goal is not just to produce artists. Certainly, if we have such a school or arrangement, we would want to prepare some of the students to become professional artists or to take up an arts career. But, at the same time, I think we can also produce students who have a strong foundation in the area of the arts that they enjoy, and then go on to other careers.”
“But we are not short of facilities in Singapore and, as we make use of these facilities, ie, the hardware that we already have, and build up the software, I think we can consider and, at the right time, look to see what other new facilities we need to build. But we have to do it as much as possible in as clever a way as we can to make full use of the limited funds that we have. By co-locating the new Drama Centre at the National Library, we not only make better use of that space - because the library can also use it - but we put it in a district where there are many other arts institutions and, hopefully, that would spark off more synergy. So, this is the approach that we want to take, to try to cluster these activities and groups together. Mr Zainudin wanted to know whether funds would still be available for local arts groups, in view of the limited money we have in our budget. For the artists, money is always not enough. But I am glad to let Mr Zainudin know that MITA will maintain our existing arts schemes to support our local arts groups. But funding arrangements for the Esplanade - which is what some local arts groups have raised as a concern - will not draw on the funds that we have already set aside for these other programmes. But we are in the midst of difficult economic times, and I hope arts groups will understand if we have to tighten our belts a little. We will continue to look for new sources of support. Our private companies have been very supportive of the arts, but our goal really is not just to look for charitable contributions.”
“I do not think we should just set aside one week a year to do this, but we should have programming all throughout the year that is accessible and open to the community at large. Last year, NAC sponsored some 90 community arts programmes, such as Concerts in the Park, and community arts groups, and many community arts groups took part, and we will continue to do so this year. We will also encourage more corporations to follow the excellent example of the LTA to make more provisions for arts to be displayed in corporate buildings and premises. Miss Penny Low suggested that we should simplify our rules for busking and allow buskers to keep more of their earnings. These ideas have also surfaced in the Remaking of Singapore discussions. I agree. Buskers add liveliness to our city and to our neighbourhoods, and I will ask my officials to work with the relevant agencies to make it easier for the buskers to busk, but without causing too much nuisance and disruption to the community. Miss Penny Low also asked whether we have plans to build new performance theatres. I am glad to inform her that the new National Library at Victoria Street, which will be completed by the end of 2005, will house the new Drama Centre. This new centre will comprise a 642-seat theatre for mid-sized productions, and also a 120-seat black box theatre for experimental theatre. If we compare ourselves to other countries, we can say that there are other cities that have more facilities than we have. There are larger, older cities with a stronger tradition in the arts.”
“Demand for RCP funding is strong because of the rapid growing interest in the arts, both by the public at large and also the private sector. So, we are now working on plans for a second RCP project. We should move quickly into this next phase and build on the momentum that the first RCP has created, because other countries in Asia are doing so. They have seen the importance and the benefits of the arts, and they are investing and implementing major arts projects. Hong Kong, for example, has embarked on a 40-hectare West Kowloon Reclamation Project that will house Hong Kong's new cultural belt. Three major art shows have established themselves in Asia - Shanghai, Guangdong, and Kwangju in Korea. Practically overnight, these have become the most important art shows in Asia. Shanghai opened its Shanghai Grand Theatre five years ago and is now developing the Oriental Art Centre at Pudong, which will feature, like we have, a 2,000-seat hall and a 1,800-seat theatre. We must move quickly and with equal speed and confidence, if we are not to lose the standing and goodwill that we have earned from the Esplanade and our RCP programmes. Let me now address some specific issues Members have raised. Dr Teo Ho Pin and Mr Zainudin wanted to know what we would do to promote community arts and culture. I agree with Dr Teo that we must do more to bring the arts to the people and the people to the arts. This way, all Singaporeans can enjoy the arts, not just the well-heeled. We have programmes to do so. The Esplanade, for example, has made an on-going commitment to stage community arts performances that would appeal to a wide spectrum of people.”
“In 2001, two years ago, four of our young artists - Suzzan Victor, Matthew Ngui, Salleh Japar and Chen KeZhan - were invited, again, for the first time ever, to the Venice Biennale, which is the most important visual arts exhibition and show in the world. This year, three more artists, ie, Tan Swie Hian, Francis Ng and Heman Chong, had been invited to the Venice Biennale. I think the world has taken note that we do have some good artists. And, as Miss Penny Low pointed out, Tan Swie Hian was also awarded the prestigious Crystal Award by the World Economic Forum in January this year, the first Singaporean to receive this award. Ong Keng Sen was invited to curate at Berlin arts festival, In Transit, last year in Germany, and the plays of the late Kuo Pao Kun were performed to sell-out audiences at the Biennale Asian Arts Festival in Japan. There are many, many more deserving artists and arts groups that I am unable to acknowledge, for lack of time. But, as Members can see, Singapore artists are making a name for themselves, and they are not the blind pathetic erhu players that Miss Low talked about. MITA will continue to help source new opportunities for our artists to gain international exposure. One example of this is an MOU that we are working with China, which we hope to conclude this year, that will pave the way for our artists to perform there regularly every year. I assure Miss Penny Low and Mr Zainudin that we are very mindful of helping our local artists to grow and excel. We have the talents and, if we continue to nurture them, recognise their talents, take pride in their work, attend their performances, I am sure we will have even more successes to report in the years ahead. But, Sir, we are now entering the fourth year of the Renaissance City Project.”
“Several Members have offered suggestions and asked questions as to what more we can do to promote the arts to support our local artists. Let me take Members back three years. Three years ago, my predecessor, Mr Lee Yoke Suan, presented to this House the Renaissance City Project (RCP) to make Singapore a global city of the arts, and Parliament approved a budget of $50 million to be spent over five years to further promote what some Members have called the software and customer aspects of the arts. Sir, I am glad to report that this project has yielded dividends. Although I will not have time to recount all the successes, I will mention some highlights. Last year, for the first time ever, the figure of ticketed attendance for performing arts crossed the $1 million mark. This was about 5-6% higher than the year before, and very creditable, given the economic conditions. I think it shows that Singaporeans are beginning to take an interest in the arts and beginning to see the value, because these are ticketed performances where they have to come up with hard cash in order to see the performances. I think there are many reasons why there is this greater interest. For one, the NAC has worked very hard to create greater awareness and also to raise the quality and variety of programmes that are available at the different venues. So, there is now something to suit every taste. Another reason - and one that I would want to single out - is the rising quality and fame of our own artists. Our arts companies are making a name for themselves globally. For example, the Singapore Dance Theatre performed to 8,000 people at the Cervantino International Festival in Mexico last year, the first time a Singapore arts group took part in that event.”
“And I think Mr Seng will agree with me, especially if I tell him that the Esplanade has estimated that the publicity that we gained from the articles, the editorials, the testimonials written up on the opening festivals were by themselves worth the equivalent of $18 million of paid advertising, and paid advertising does not have the same credibility as an editorial or a testimonial. The endorsements from world-class performers and international arts critics are immeasurable. And they have now placed the Esplanade and Singapore on a must visit, must see stop on their tours. Benson Puah, the CEO of Esplanade, told me that, in the past, it was hard for Singapore to get world-class orchestras to play here, and even if they were willing to come, they would ask for very high fees. At the Esplanade's opening, not one but two world-class orchestras played - the London Philharmonic and the New York Philharmonic - in addition to our own SSO. Now, Benson tells me, they get enquiries from top artists and troupes asking them when there is a slot available, when can they come and perform at the Esplanade. They still ask for somewhat high fees, but he has got a bargaining chip now and he can haggle with them. The Esplanade has increased the value of Singapore's brand name and it can do for us what the famous Opera House has done for Sydney. This will be an enduring asset, and it will have a tremendous impact, not just on the arts community but on the whole economy. This, again, is reason why we must continue to maintain and support the Esplanade as a world-class facility. But, significant and impactful as the opening of the Esplanade was, it was only one of the many things we have done to promote the arts in Singapore.”
“Sir, I should try to keep you in a good mood. But I think my mood has turned a bit. So no stories to begin with. I thank Mr Seng Han Thong for his joke and shall count it as a joke for this session. The arts, as many Members have noted, plays an important part in increasing our cultural capital and growing our creative industries. That actually is good enough reason. However, we should continue to develop and to support the arts. Let me recount some of the progress and reply to Members' queries and suggestions. Before I do so, I want, at the very outset, to address the point that Miss Penny Low has raised earlier, when we talked about creative industries, and that is whether or not we will continue to promote art for art's sake. Yes, we will. As I told this House last year, the arts plays three important roles in our society. Firstly, it is a foundation for our cultural heritage. Secondly, it is a source of aesthetic inspiration and intellectual stimulation. Thirdly, it is a resource for the creative industries. MITA values each and every one of these roles. So, yes, we will continue to promote art for art's sake, but we will also try to eke as much economic value out of the arts as we can. Mr Seng Han Thong has noted that the opening of the Esplanade was one of the most significant events in the arts calendar last year. More than 1 million people turned up and, now, they are cracking jokes about it. Well, that is good. Even more significant is that the event has made headlines in international press and in arts magazines. Net of ticket sales, we spent about $7 million on the opening. The question has been asked: was it worth the money? I think it was.”
“With Members' support and working closely with partners from relevant Government agencies and the private sector, MITA will endeavour to develop the design and media industries, and we will endeavour to make the creative industries a cornerstone of our economy.”
“It will be completed in three years' time and will have state-of-the-art art studios and production facilities that infocomm, media and arts companies can use to integrate or fuse their ideas together, to generate new products and new business propositions. Sir, these are the first steps that MITA will take to develop the design and media industries. The ERC has identified the creative industries as an important component of Singapore's future economy. Growing these industries is risky, because success depends strongly on whether we can develop and attract talents to work in the industry, and that, in turn, will depend on whether we can develop our cultural capital and make our city attractive, lively and stimulating. Doing this will require new thinking. But we can take encouragement from what others say of us, what they see in our efforts to achieve our ambitions. Just a few weeks back, Motorola's top designer, Mr Iulius Lucaci, in an interview with Streats, said that Singapore has the potential to become a leading industrial design centre. Mr Lucaci should know. He was one of the two designers behind Motorola's revolutionary V70 handphone, whose sales exceeded $500,000 shortly after its launch. If I may quote Mr Lucaci, he said: "Form is now as important as function. Technology has become a commodity, and it is the design that sets a product apart from competitors." Sir, in the end, whether we fail or succeed depends not just on the completeness of our plans. It depends on our spirit and will to see this through.”
“The Media Development Authority (MDA), newly formed to help develop the media industry, has outlined three thrusts to building on these promising trends. The first is to develop "Made-by-Singapore" content, not just "Made-in-Singapore". By this, we mean content that can be created either in Singapore or elsewhere, and not just by Singaporean companies but also through co-production or joint ventures with international partners. But to make content, we need money. Substantial upfront funds are needed to develop TV productions, films and animation projects. MDA is drawing up plans to set up a Content Development Fund that will be invested in media projects in co-funding arrangements with the industry. To seize the opportunities that are available today and so that we do not lose the momentum that we have built, MDA has set aside $20 million of its own funds to seed projects and to launch this new fund. The second thrust is to develop Singapore into a media exchange - a marketplace for the distribution, trading and management of intellectual property, digital rights and other media products. Last year, it organised the Asia Media Festival which comprised six concurrent trade events. That attracted 2,200 industry professionals to Singapore to pitch their products, sell and distribute their creative content. MDA and EDB will work on making this event bigger each year. Thirdly, MDA is collaborating with JTC to build a prototype environment called "Fusionpolis" in One-North. I launched this about a month ago. It will be for people in the media, infocomm and other creative companies to work, live, play and learn.”
“I have said before that developing the film industry is a challenge for us because of our much smaller size. Whether one million or 100 million people watch the movie, the cost to make it is the same. Mr Chiam said it cost more than $250 million to make the Titanic. But if 100 million people pay $5 to watch the movie, then you can get $500 million of revenue. I do not know how much Jack Neo paid to make his movie "I Not Stupid". But then far fewer people paid to watch the movie, and that is why he made a little bit less than what the Titanic made. We face two key challenges. First, we have fewer talents compared to the large countries, simply because of our small size and not because we do not have talented people. Secondly, we are smaller scale in terms of market. Notwithstanding these limitations, we have seen encouraging signs of success. Apart from Jack Neo's "I Not Stupid" movie that Mr Chiam mentioned, the Singapore-France co-production "Song of the Stork" and other movies have won recognition at foreign film festivals, and a few of them have succeeded at the box office in a modest way. Our local production houses are now winning major overseas contracts. They are recognised for their quality and creative abilities. We have built up capabilities in animation, pre- and post-production facilities. Our arts scene is creating buzz, and that is attracting venture capitalists who sense that there are opportunities opening up. But, most of all, our strong IP regime in Singapore is attracting foreign content companies which want to finance, produce or trade their media contents and manage their intellectual properties here under the protection of our laws.”
“We will work with them and also with other companies to increase the scope of such activities here and strengthen our position as a global design and manufacturing centre. Thirdly, we will take a cluster approach to develop the design services in Singapore. This approach allows us to maximise our limited resources and to synergise our creative capabilities. MITA, working with MTI, will set up the Design Singapore Council to spearhead the development of this cluster. This Council will pool together the efforts of Government's institutions and, most importantly, industries to promote Singapore's design culture and design industry. The Council will include many top executives from industry, because do we not only need creativity but we also need business and marketing skills to make the most of our creativity. Mr Edmund Cheng, MD of Wing Tai Holdings and Deputy Chairman of the Singapore Arts Council, will chair this Council. Mr Tham Kai Meng, Co-Chairman of Oglivy and Mather, Asia Pacific, and board member of the National Arts Council will be the Deputy Chairman. The Council will be set up shortly. 1.00 pm Next, let me update Members on what we plan to do in the media industry. I thank Mr Chiam See Tong for his support to develop the film industry in Singapore. Indeed, I agree with him that not only would this create jobs but, by making films that reflect our way of life, it can also contribute a cultural identity. As Mr Chiam has pointed out, the media industry is a huge global industry. In 2001, total worldwide spending in the media industry was US$1 trillion. We shall ride on this growth and work with studios to attract some parts of the value chain, such as digital animation and pre- and post-production work, to Singapore. But let me sound a word of caution.”
“Let me now turn to some immediate steps we can take towards that goal. MITA will take a focused approach and we will concentrate on just two key areas for a start - design and media, both areas where we have some strengths. We pick design because good designs can create a lot of value. I gave examples earlier on but let me cite just one more. Inter Brand, which studies companies' brand values reported in its 2002 survey that Samsung's brand value gained 30%, rising to US$8.3 billion, because it used bold designs to transform itself into a premium seller of consumer products. Essentially, what a good design does is that it allows companies to differentiate their products and services, and to gain a competitive advantage. This allows them to work on the revenue side of the equation to increase revenues, and not just make profits by containing costs. We aim to make Singapore one of Asia's leading hubs for design excellence. To do this, MITA will launch a multi-agency design Singapore initiative, promote design as a strategic capability in Singapore. Design Singapore will do three things in the coming year. Firstly, MITA will work closely with the economic and education and research institutions to develop new capability in design. NTU's recently announced plans to establish a School of Design and Media is one example of how the new capability we like to see develop. This will complement the architecture and industrial design offerings at NUS, polytechnics and arts colleges, like LaSalle-SIA and NAFA. Secondly, MITA will work with EDB to attract and anchor leading industrial design companies from the region and the world to Singapore. Currently, we have MNCs, such as Philips, Motorola and Hewlett-Packard already designing some of their products in Singapore.”
“Taken together, our museums attract half a million visitors a year, a large part of them Singaporeans. We have more facilities and activities now than ever before for Singaporeans to explore and to discover their roots. In the arts, we had record performances last year and a record number of people attending them, despite the downturn in the economy. The opening of the Esplanade has branded Singapore as a city with an ambition for the arts. The NAC will continue to work on that brand to turn ambition into reality by bringing our artists to international events and by continuing to increase the number and quality of art activities in Singapore. Mr Loh Meng See and Miss Penny Low have raised various questions about the arts and arts school, and I will respond to them later in the debate. For our libraries, last year, we saw more than 32,000 visits, an average of 10 visits for every Singaporean, and the numbers are still rising. But now that we have succeeded in making our libraries attractive, we will focus on how we can get borrowers to read more deeply and more widely, and to use our information services to excel in the knowledge economy. These efforts we make to increase our cultural capital will take time to bear fruit. They have a cumulative effect. But, over time, more reading, more awareness of our roots, more exposure to the arts will change us in ways that we cannot exactly describe. And there will be more of us who, like Ms Indranee Rajah, will jump up and be enthused about the arts. If we keep at it, we will become a more gracious society - big hearted, imaginative and we will create such a vibrant and lively city that the creative industries cannot but grow and flourish here. This is our goal. But how do we achieve it?”
“The richer our cultural capital, the more it nourishes us and it gives us that unexpected insight, that perspective or that sudden thought that allows us to break through and come up with winning ideas. Cultural capital is hard to define, because it is in everything that we do. It includes our sense of aesthetics, beauty, identity, our imagination and emotions, how we communicate and relate to each other, how we deal with stress and respond to opportunities. But what we know is that the more we widen and deepen our cultural capital, the better equipped we will be to compete in the creative industry. So this is why I fully support Mr Seng Han Thong, Dr Tan Boon Wan and the others who have called for us to develop our cultural capital. To do this, we need to give our people wider perspectives of life, through literature, history, the arts. This is a big and wide task, but we have the ingredients and the institutions in place to take off. Yesterday and today, my colleagues in the Ministry of Education have talked themselves hoarse, talking about all the different things we will do in our schools, to create the space for our children to become more creative. MITA will also do its part. Through our heritage programmes, promotion of the arts and the development of library systems, I will recount briefly here the progress we have made in these areas. We are reaching out to more people through our heritage programmes and museums. Last week, for example, DPM Dr Tony Tan launched our third Heritage Festival and we expect about 200,000 people at these activities. Two weeks before that, the Prime Minister opened the Asian Civilisations Museum. And three years from now, the expanded Singapore History Museum will be completed.”
“When Mr Kita's design hit the market, Sharp's sale of LCD TVs went up five-fold. The global success stories are endless. What we want to do is to have more of them to be Singapore stories. The creative industry accounts for about 3% of our GDP today - and about 70,000 jobs. But in the UK and the US, they account for 5-8% of GDP. And this means that there is tremendous potential for creative industries to grow and to create tens of thousands of good new jobs. MrsYu-Foo would say this is definitely a "wow" industry. The kinds of jobs we can create are wide-ranging. Mr Seng Han Thong and Mr Arthur Fong have both noted that the Esplanade generated new jobs. It created about 320, both full and part-time, and numerous more in all the shops and arcades that are located at the Esplanade, and for all the artists who perform there. But more than just jobs at the Esplanade, we can create high value jobs in design, media and other areas of arts and entertainment. Some jobs will be glamorous like fashion designers or movie stars. But there will also be other kinds of challenging work, like sound and stage engineers, graphic designers and animation artists. Beyond jobs, the creative industry also has a powerful indirect impact on other industries by adding style, aesthetics and freshness to everything we do, resulting in more exciting products and services. This will add vibrancy to our companies and enhance competitiveness of our industries. But being creative is not something we can order upon on a menu. Sometimes, as Mr Loh Meng See says, we need to be pressed to the wall. At other times, we need quiet and solitude. We are also, sometimes, stimulated by the buzz of a lively city to come up with original thoughts. And this is where cultural capital is so important.”
“One of the girls looked at her and taunted her. She said, "Old lady, where is your pail?" The cleaner looked at her and said, "Ai yah, I don't need a pail. You just watch." So she walked up to one of the toilet bowls, lifted the lid and said, "Ah neh la sam" - so dirty. So she pressed the flush and she looked at it again and said, "Still a bit dirty, but never mind." She took the mop and she stuck it into the toilet bowl, swirled it around, took it out, and started cleaning the mirror. The headmistress did not have a problem after that. Sir, I tell this story, from time to time, when I talk about the creative industry, or when I talk about innovation. Because being creative is not always being high-tech. It is how we think. But the creative industry certainly will be an important part of our future economy. Unlike manufacturing, we cannot easily say what makes up this industry. It ranges from architecture to fashion, from artists to copywriters. But what we do know is that this industry creates a lot of value. A few years back, American architect, Frank Gehry, designed the Guggenheim Museum at Bilbao in Spain. Your first impression of this museum is that it is a tangled mass of metal. There are no straight surfaces, no straight lines. Everything is curved and twisted. But it is an architectural marvel. That building, the Guggenheim Museum at Bilbao, transformed a stagnant steel town into a major tourist draw. The Museum cost about US$200 million to build, but I am told that the tourists' spending within two years more than made up for that amount. Take another example. Japanese designer, Kitoshiyuki Kita, designs TV sets for Sharp. Sharp is a manufacturer of LCD TV screens, a very competitive market. And Sharp needed a more attractive product to gain market share.”
“Since the Minister for Education has left me a little bit more time, I thought I would begin with a little story. It is a story about a principal and her problem. I call it my "Lipstick Story". This headmistress had a problem with her girls, and it was not because of the policy measures introduced yesterday by the Minister for Education. I think those are all very welcomed. Her problem was that every evening, the cleaner would discover that the mirror in the girls' bathroom would be full of lipstick prints. The girls had taken to this little prank and they would put lipstick on, all the different colours and shades, and they would kiss the mirror. Every night, the cleaner would spend the greater part of the night cleaning it up, and the next day it would all come back again. So the principal decided to speak to her girls at the assembly. She told them what an irresponsible act this was. It did not help. The lipstick marks were still there. The next day, she tried a different speech. She told them about how hard a time the poor Ah Soh had cleaning the lipstick marks off the mirror. That did not help. She thought of calling the Ministry of the Environment, but she thought the better of it. So, she called the parents instead. But that only made things worse. After a few days, she decided on a new course of action. One afternoon, she called a few of the girls, the ones that she suspected, but could not prove, were the ringleaders behind this. She called all of them down to that girl's bathroom and she said, "I'd like you to see something. I'd like you to meet someone." And in walked the cleaner. She is a typical cleaner, 50-something, got the job as a cleaner of the school from the Ministry of Manpower's Job Connect programme. She walked in with an old mop.”
“Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed. ADJOURNMENT Resolved, "That Parliament do now adjourn to Monday, 25th November 2002." - [Mr Mah Bow Tan]. Adjourned accordingly at Six minutes past Seven o'clock pm to Monday, 25th November 2002. WRITTEN ANSWER TO QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER NOT ANSWERED BY 2.00 PM NUMBER OF JOBLESS SINGAPOREANS 8. Mr Gan Kim Yong asked the Minister for Manpower if he could give an update on the number of Singaporeans who remain jobless and whether he expects the situation to improve by early next year.”
“Mdm Deputy Speaker, again, my answer is very similar to what I gave to Dr Ngiam. We are conducting a censorship review. This is not germane really to the Bill that is before the House, but if I may just briefly address that. We decided that we will go ahead with this Censorship Review Committee, and I think I want to give them time to consider inputs from the public. We have received many useful suggestions. Arts groups have put together their thoughts and written them down. They have put serious proposals to the Committee. The Committee will consider all of these. We are moving forward in this area. But, as I have said in this House before, it is not whether we are going to become more liberal or more strict. I think the issue really is whether we can keep pace with developments. We cannot choose the world we live in. And if we want to grow and to progress, we have got to be connected to the rest of the world. But that also does not mean we have got to be like everybody else. No two countries are alike. No two societies are alike. Therefore, we should find our own formula. We should have our own voice. We should have our own distinctive identity. And we should not be too eager to copy the standards that other people have set for themselves, because no society is free of the consequences of these choices. Whatever choices we make, there will be positive outcomes and there will be problems that we will have to manage. So, it is a process and, I think, on censorship, let us wait to see what the Review Committee has to say. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House. The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. - [Mr David T. E. Lim].”
“Dr Ngiam raises a very fundamental question about the development of our society. I think he wants a society to be more reflective, to be more mature, to be thinking, to understand that there are trade-offs whatever the issue is. He has developed these perspectives because he sits on some of our boards, and he is put in a position where he has to decide very difficult issues. On the one hand, somebody might come and say, "Why don't you allow this movie to be screened, because as mature adults, surely we can make up our own minds about the contents of this movie?" On the other hand, we have others coming to the appeals board saying, "No, you should not allow this to be screened. It lowers our moral character. This will do great damage to our society." And so, indeed, Singaporeans will have to be more discerning. But I think this is beyond the ability of one agency or one authority to do. I think this is a task for all of us in this House, in all Ministries, in the way we debate, in the way we discuss, in the way we formulate policies, to be more reflective, to consider the pros and cons and to come to our own conclusions. Earlier this afternoon, Members heard suggestions about the Government making decisions on behalf of citizens. Well, we want to try and shift some of these decision-making risks that citizens have got to consider and to evaluate and to come to a conclusion for themselves. This is the process. It is not something that will happen overnight but, certainly, we can all do our part.”
“Again, in conclusion, let me thank them for their support. Let me say that the purpose of bringing these different agencies together is to create focus in the media industry. We see this as a potential area of growth as we move forward. The media, together with applied arts like design, is an important industry, not just in itself but because of its spillover effects to the rest of the economy. I think one of the key elements of our economic strategy to move forward is really to tap into the creative and innovative capability of our people and of our resources here in Singapore, and the Media Development Authority is tasked to do that. Assoc. Prof. Ngiam Tee Liang: Mdm, I would like to get clarification on the functions and duties of the proposed MDA. I can well understand that it is taking a balance between development and regulations. It is true, and I agree with Ms Irene Ng, that it is creating a super statutory regulator. But I do not think the concerns that we have about censorship are as ominous as some Members have put it. Because I am on one of the appeals committee of MITA and I can safely say that we hardly have any appeals. This is an indication that we have not put too heavy a touch on censorship that the organisations would like to come forward and make appeals for us to consider. I may be wrong here but something seems to be missing amongst the functions and duties, ie, as a very important regulator or developmental organisation on knowledge, what kind of functions would MDA see for itself to actively promote Singapore's ability to be discerning about what we see, hear and read, so as to minimise the need for so-called heavy types of censorship here. I would like to implore MDA, even though it is ---”
“For Singapore, we have cabled up the whole country and, for all practical purposes, every residence in Singapore is able to receive cable signals. So, there is really not the same reason for us to use this technology. Ms Irene Ng asked a rather philosophical question - the difference between promoting and managing competition. I think if you created a specific scenario whether we would hold back a company if it was too successful, if Today became the dominant newspaper company, would we be concerned? If MediaWorks became the dominant broadcasting company, would we be concerned? The answer is no. I think we leave the industry to compete. What we want to be sure of is really that the incumbent operator does not put impediments unfairly in the way of a competitor trying to get into the marketplace and trying to compete, and that is what the competition code is for. Ms Ng also talked about the omnibus Competition Act that is being considered and why we have chosen to do sectoral competition codes at this point in time. I think the answer is that we cannot wait, once we have introduced competition into the media industry. Although over the last two years the more aggressive competitive behaviour has quietened down a little bit, I still receive complaints every now and then by one party against another party on anti-competitive behaviour. Really, the only way to deal with this properly and effectively is to have a competition code and that is why we are introducing one now. As to whether it will be consistent with the omnibus Act in future, certainly we will have to make it compatible, and it will be reviewed at the appropriate time. Mdm Deputy Speaker, I think I have addressed the issues that have been raised by Members.”
“If I can address some of the specific issues that Mr Chiam raised on the Public Entertainments and Meetings Act (PEMA), I should just let Mr Chiam know that the Act will not be administered in toto by MITA. MITA will only administer the art entertainment aspects of PEMA. So, if Mr Chiam decides to sing and dance, we can consider giving him a licence. But if he is going to make a speech, he will still need to go back to the Minister in charge. On clause 5, Mr Chiam made a reference to the members of the Board and suggested certain criteria for picking these members of the Board, as did Mr Zainul Abidin. I would take their suggestions into consideration. Certainly, we want to pick people who are able to contribute towards the goals of the MDA and, certainly, their suggestions that they should be people who are critical, who are open minded, who can understand and see the vision of making Singapore into a vibrant global city for media and for the arts these are certainly the kinds of criteria we would apply and we want to try to get a broadbase of people, so that we will get different ideas to drive the Board forward. I think I have addressed Mr Chiam's suggestion that we should do away entirely with censorship. I do not think it is practical and I do not think you can point to any country in the world that has succeeded in doing so. Mr Zainudin also touched on the matter of satellite communications, and suggested that even Iran was considering doing this. I think there is a big difference between Iran and Singapore, and that difference is size. Satellite technology is something that is important and useful to large countries, because it means that you do not have to really lay a lot of cables. Laying cables in large countries is probably not cost effective.”
“I can assure Mr Seng and the other Members who have spoken that the MDA indeed is formed to focus on the development of the media industry, and they are working very hard now to draw up plans on how to do this. One of the issues raised by Mr Zainudin, for example, was the film sector of the media industry, and I thank him for his support for the film sector. This is indeed an area that we would like to see develop. As the Prime Minister said in his National Day Rally - I think he meant it for Jack Neo - "Two No Enough", and he encouraged Jack to produce more movies that we can all enjoy and that can travel. And, indeed, Jack Neo's last hit "I Not Stupid" has done very well, not just in Singapore but it has also travelled, to some extent, in the region, and I think that augurs well. In fact, I received an e-mail recently of a Singapore club in the US which is gathering all the Singapore students and anybody else who is interested to watch "I Not Stupid". So, that is yet another way that it serves the function to hold together Singaporeans who are spread far and wide, away from Singapore. Yes, we will do what we can to develop the film industry. But we have got to recognise that it is not an easy industry to develop. We are a small marketplace and films that have local cache that can resonate with Singaporeans easily may not travel very far. So, the challenge for directors and movie makers is really to find a formula that will appeal both to Singaporeans but will also travel beyond Singapore. Because whether you show the film to 3 million people, 30 million people or 300 million people, it is still the same set of costs of making the film.”
“But as Mr Seng has pointed out, our approach to the different media has been different in the past and will continue to be so as we move forward. For the print media, for example, I think our editors have done a very good job. They have managed to build up the reputation of our newspapers. They are seen to be credible. They are seen to be serious. They are seen to be a voice that deserves to be heard. And I think they understand their role in nation building and have taken this role seriously. I think that is a relationship that has worked well. In the broadcast area, we have programming codes, and that, again, is because we have some peculiarities in broadcast, eg, dialect policy. From time to time, a broadcaster may break that rule and needs to be reminded about that particular policy, and that policy reflects the nature of our society and our other policies - our language policies. To address Mr Seng's concern, let me say that these standards of performance are, firstly, technical. And, secondly, the other standards that may need to be introduced, I would leave it to the MDA to consider what other standards they need to introduce in order to ensure that competition is on an even playing field. Mr Seng made the point that the Bill seems to suggest that the MDA will become more of a regulator than a developer. Just because there are more clauses to deal with competition does not mean that the Board likewise will be so. I do not think we should judge a book by its cover. There are many clauses here to deal with competition. Because, as I said, this is an immediate need, and this is not something that is covered in the other Acts that the MDA will also administer.”
“So censorship is an issue that all countries have got to grapple with. And for Singapore, we have got to find our own standards. I appreciate Mr Zainul Abidin's intervention on this point that Mr Chiam raised that we should not keep saying that this is a "nanny" state and the Government tells the media what to do. Mdm Deputy Speaker, I did not ask Mr Chiam what he was going to say this afternoon when he indicated he wanted to speak on the Bill. Neither do I want to know. I was quite happy for him to raise whatever points he would raise. Likewise, I do not ask the editors of our newspapers on what they are going to write in the headlines tomorrow. Neither do they ask my permission. Neither do I want them to do so. I really do not follow why we continue to prosecute such an image of Singapore. Mdm Deputy Speaker, if I may address, in turn, the different concerns that have been raised by different speakers. Mr Seng Han Thong raised a number of issues about the standards of performance and asked what this meant. He referred to clause 17 on codes of practice. This is a clause under the competition section of the Bill. It deals with standards of performance with regard to competition. For example, if this was a broadcast company, you would expect that you need to have some standards of performance. You might need to regulate, for example, air time, the number of broadcast hours. You might need to ensure that there is no interference of signals between one broadcaster and another broadcaster. There are certain technical standards that need to be achieved. You need to ensure that service is provided and the system does not break down every other day. So there are these technical standards. As I said, there are also other social standards.”
“Mdm Deputy Speaker, first of all, may I thank all the speakers who have spoken, especially those who have spoken in support of the Bill. Let me, first of all, reiterate what I said in my speech, that is, the main function of this Bill is to bring together different agencies and Government bodies that currently administer different parts of the media industry into one statutory body. The purpose of doing this is really to give focus to the media industry. Nothing else has really changed. I think to look ahead and perhaps to speculate that this means that it is a tightening of censorship, for example, is just pure speculation. Indeed, on this issue of censorship and control, this is an issue that cannot be avoided. No country is devoid of controls or censorship rules over their media. If you take a country, perhaps a country as liberal as the United States, you will find that they too have controls over the media. No foreign entity can buy more than 20% of a broadcast company in the United States. And in the United Kingdom, where the regime is more liberal, even the transfer of ownership in the large newspaper companies will require the approval of the Minister. Every country will have to approach this in its own way, sensitive to its own context and to address its own concerns. Mdm Deputy Speaker, indeed when my staff attended a conference recently in Europe which had to do with one aspect of the media, ie, about film classification, they came back and told me that the Europeans were not able to agree on a single film classification standard for Europe. That is because each country had its own concerns about what was important, in terms of classification, standards and cultural norms that were appropriate for that particular country.”
“He receives this amount whether or not he appeals to the Land Acquisition Appeals Board. Once he vacates the premises, he receives the remaining 80%. We have no knowledge of any land owner who has been made a bankrupt by the mortgagee bank because of the compensation amount awarded. Indeed, in cases where owners face hardship arising from the acquisition, Government extends ex-gratia payments to ameliorate their hardship. Over the years, Government has expanded the ex-gratia scheme to allow more affected owners to qualify for ex-gratia payments. SPECIALIST CLINICS IN PUBLIC HOSPITALS AND POLYCLINICS 21. Mr Low Thia Khiang asked the Minister for Health (a) what is the standard of service that patients can expect from specialist clinics in public sector hospitals and polyclinics; and (b) whether doctors at these clinics are overworked.”
“Finally, we will set aside some spaces for food and beverage and shops. The public entrance lobby and porch can house a restaurant with al fresco dining. The previous computer and store spaces will make way for a book-cum-souvenir shop. The ground floor of the Annexe Building will house another restaurant with a good view of the Singapore River. In total, not more than 20% of the total gross floor area is set aside for these ancillary services. These are necessary for visitors' comfort and convenience. COMPULSORY LAND ACQUISITION 17. Mdm Cynthia Phua asked the Minister for Law (a) what is the average timeframe for the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) to settle a compulsory land acquisition case; (b) in cases where an appeal is made against the compensation awarded, whether SLA makes an interim payment to the affected party; and (c) whether any party had been made bankrupt by a mortgagee bank due to the low compensation amount awarded. Prof. S. Jayakumar: The average time-frame to settle a land acquisition case depends on whether the property owner agrees with the compensation offer by the Singapore Land Authority or SLA. If he does, the case is settled quickly and he receives the compensation monies early. In recent years, about 94% of them were settled within two and a half years from the date of gazetting the acquisition. These owners' cases were settled by SLA and were not heard by the Land Acquisition Appeals Board. The remaining 6% which were heard by the Board were mainly settled within 2-3 years from the date of gazetting the acquisition. Within 4 to 6 months of the gazetting of the acquisition, the property owner receives 20% of the compensation offer from the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) when he surrenders his title deeds. This is to help him relocate.”
“The Old Parliament House and its Annexe building were gazetted as national monuments in 1992. It is our intent to preserve as much as possible their physical architecture and historical character. One key objective is to preserve our constitutional history in these symbolic buildings. The National Arts Council (NAC) is spearheading this project, jointly with the National Heritage Board (NHB). The plan is to convert the Old Parliament House into an arts and heritage centre. There will be heritage tours and arts education programmes for students and the general public. Let me highlight the main elements of the plan. First, we will use the walls within the Old Parliament House to display both the history of the building, as well as the constitutional history of Singapore. Second, we will mark several important rooms within the Old Parliament House with informational plaques, to tell visitors of significant events which took place in these rooms. For example, Members may remember the Committee Room of the Legislative Assembly on Level 2, next to the Members' Room. This was where SM met the "Plen" in 1958. We will find a way to tell this important story. Third, we will preserve the Parliament Chamber even as we convert it into a 160-seat performance venue for chamber music, choral singing and small drama productions. There will be minimum changes. For example, we will keep the seats in their original position. They will serve as audience seats. Fourth, we will convert some of the functional rooms into public spaces for the arts and heritage. The Library will be turned into a 120-seat blackbox. Part of the ground floor office space will be converted into a 72-seat film theatrette. We will turn the Committee Room into an art exhibition space.”
“I am sorry, Mr Speaker. I mistook Mr Chiam's wondering for just thinking aloud. The criteria are objective and apply as much to PAP wards as they do to Opposition wards. The PAP wards have been able to meet these criteria, and I would urge Mr Chiam to consider. I have not said "no". I have just said that there are criteria. Others comply with them. Perhaps he should try to. NATIONAL DAY FUNCTION AT THE ISTANA 10. Mr Chiam See Tong asked the Prime Minister whether he will allow opposition Members of Parliament to invite their grassroots leaders to attend the National Day function hosted by the President of Singapore at the Istana.”
“Sir, Mr Chiam is asking for two community children's libraries (CCLs) in Potong Pasir. I have stated the criteria for the National Library Board to consider setting up community children's libraries in this House on 14th May this year. These criteria are that there must be demand for such a facility and sustainable support from a broad-based community organisation to share the building and running costs.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, we have not yet determined that there will be an increase. I think we should first study the numbers to see whether or not there will be one. COMMUNITY CHILDREN'S LIBRARIES AT POTONG PASIR AND TOA PAYOH 9. Mr Chiam See Tong asked the Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts whether he is willing to set up two community children's libraries, one at Potong Pasir Estate and the other at Lorong 8 Toa Payoh both of which are within walking distance of the HDB flats in those two areas.”
“Mr Speaker, SingTel has submitted a proposal to IDA to raise its local telephone rates. In assessing the case for an increase, the key consideration is whether SingTel is incurring a deficit in providing fixed line local call services. IDA is currently auditing the data and information supplied by SingTel. The audit will take some time because there is a need for IDA to clarify the cost modelling and data with SingTel. IDA expects to complete its assessment, and reach a decision by the third quarter of this year.”
“Sir, I am not familiar with which particular method of signing the Malaysians use over their news. But I am sure that there is something to be learnt there. SINGAPORE TELECOMMUNICATIONS (Application to raise local telephone rates) 8. Mr Steve Chia Kiah Hong asked the Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts whether his Ministry plans to approve Singapore Telecommunications' application to raise local telephone rates.”
“Sir, Dr Khor's question is whether we could consider sub-titling. We have said that we would explore this. But sub-titling means that it is no longer signing. It is put into a form that is in a regular language, so to speak. If you are then talking about reading it off the television screen, you might also want to consider, in terms of the cost-effectiveness, whether it is not more practical to read it off the newspapers or the Internet. But notwithstanding that, we would consider whether for important speeches, we can have more sub-titling. Sub-titling can sometimes disturb other viewers. Also, we can only sub-title, at most, in one language, and we have got to decide which language we want to sub-title in. If we want to be able to reach to all the hearing-impaired, and we have got four official languages that we want to sub-title in, then we would see nothing else on the screen.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the costs, at best, are estimates at this point in time. MediaCorp had estimated previously that the cost of setting up a close caption system is about $250,000. But, more importantly, they also estimated that the annual operating cost of a close caption system could be close to $300,000. It is a fairly substantial cost, and it is a question then of costs and benefits. On the question of the shortage of signing personnel, the problem actually is a little bit deeper, and that is because there is not just one signing method. In the schools in Singapore, they teach something which is called "signing exact English", and that is a word for word signing. This is a fairly slow process because if everybody speaks at the rate I do now, one could keep up with word for word signing. But not everybody speaks at a very slow rate. So, this could present a difficulty. Many hearing-impaired people also adopt more of their own simplified signing, which captures the gist of the ideas. So, when we talk about a pool of people to do simultaneous translations, so to speak, into sign, we do not just require a person who can do exact word signing, but we also need somebody who understands the subject matter, is able to think on the spot, and can quickly capture the essence of the message and translate it. That is difficult. We do not have a lot of people that we can call on.”