An American Expat in Southeast Asia

Hu is watching Yu

"In the ramifications of party doctrine she had not the faintest interest. Whenever he began to talk of the principles of Ingsoc, doublethink, the mutability of the past, and the denial of objective reality, and to use Newspeak words, she became bored and confused and said that she never paid any attention to that kind of thing. One knew that it was all rubbish, so why let oneself be worried by it? She knew when to cheer and when to boo, and that was all one needed."

George Orwell: 1984 ~ Part 2 - Chapter 5

All in the interest of "Letting the Winds of a Civilized Internet Blow", it could be said that perhaps the Chinese in China and Singapore must really enjoy getting it up the yingyang considering that the majority would not resist their government's efforts inducing them to spy on each other.

While this might be something we have come to expect from China where one might have to forfeit a kidney for listening to the wrong radio station, it is something that many of us thought Singapore was starting to rise above. In Singapore you get to keep your kidney and just forfeit your wallet instead.

The leadership of Singapore like to refer to their form of government by using the the euphemism "asian-style democracy". However, the idea of a government restricting freedom of speech and inducing or promoting it's citizens to spy on each other is not representative of a free democratic society respectful of human rights, rather it is the staple of an authoritative and at times totalitarian regime who is unwilling to embrace the principles of freedom or liberty.

Having failed to make the transition to a free democracy, the nation-state of Singapore it would seem has become nothing more than the epitome of the Kafkaesque nightmare.

And so as Hu watches Yu and Singapore continues to clamp down on freedom, we're left to ask ourselves whatever happened to "letting one thousand flowers bloom"?

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