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SINGAPORE : Political discourse in Singapore took on vibrancy this year.
Authorities rolled out initiatives to expand political space in the country, from easing of rules governing Singapore's version of London's Hyde Park - where people can demonstrate - to potentially relaxing cyberspace laws.
And so, observers are predicting more openness going into 2009 and for the years ahead.
After witnessing a greater participation of Singaporeans on issues of public interest, political observers said there can only be several more steps forward from here.
From September 1, when rules at the Speakers' Corner were eased to allow for public outdoor demonstration, Hong Lim Park saw what could have been one of the largest gathering of Singaporeans, since it was designated as a site for public speaking in September 2000.
Investors protested against structured products linked to failed US bank Lehman Brothers. There were reports that more than a thousand people turned up one weekend in October alone.
Dr Kenneth Paul Tan, assistant dean, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, said: "There are many Singaporeans who are far from apathetic even before Speakers' Corner was liberalised in this way.
"You can see that Singaporeans are able to organise themselves, Singaporeans are able to discuss matters of public importance in ways that are intelligent, in ways that are articulate and sometimes very creative as well. And a lot of this happens online.
"So I think with the sudden liberalisation of Speakers' Corner, obviously, as with many things which are top-down in Singapore, the initial response is always one of cynicism. But this is very quickly overcome, I think, with a bit of strategic thinking.
"What civil society activists and conscientious citizens have to do is not just to step back and say 'this is just tokenism, this is just concessionary'. What is probably a better strategy is to occupy these spaces, because in a sense, if you do not use it, you do lose it, or if you use it badly or dangerously, you also lose it.
"So the thing is, whatever spaces emerge, whether they be motivated by tokenistic reasons initially, you can still claim these spaces, you can still make use of them.
"Civil society activists have actually embraced these spaces, overcome some of that initial cynicism, in order to make use of these spaces and perhaps from these spaces generate, newer, better quality spaces as well."
It has been a busy past few weeks at the Speakers' Corner, and as of mid-December, there were 108 registrations for activities, of which two in 10 were for demonstrations.
And observers are optimistic that activities at the Speakers' Corner will be sustained, given the desire for political space in Singapore to be further relaxed, by a generation weaned on the internet and new media.
In a sign of times, the Advisory Council on the Impact of New Media on Society (AIMS) looking into the rules governing new media has also, among other things, recommended that the law banning party political films be repealed, in phases.
The government is expected to announce its position on the proposals in mid-January next year.
Choo Zheng Xi, editor, The Online Citizen, said: "I actually expect that they can go further than AIMS. One, because they are the ones who stand to gain if they repeal Section 33 completely and two, there is really nothing to fear. It is actually quite pragmatic if you think about it.
"You see, Section 33, if you repeal it in stages, that is messy legislation. It is going to be difficult to write into law and this is a law that they have admitted cannot be enforced, so looking at the reality of the situation, it actually does make sense for them to repeal in totality. It is cleaner."
And going into 2009 and beyond, observers said the next big step is in authorities delivering the promise of a wider political space, as well as in engaging the cyber community.
Dr Tan said: "I think what needs to happen is for that space to be regarded first of all as authentic, that space to be regarded as beneficial to Singapore's development, in terms of its citizenship and identity, sense of responsibility, that space is just as important as offline activism.
"So to give value to that space and then to step back and remove some of the old economy mode of control which does not apply so well in cyberspace."
Mr Choo agrees. He said: "The default mindset now - and I do not think this is just specific to Singapore - is that we are in progressive times. Change is completely overused now and people have come to expect that.
"Not just my generation, but I think it is a political climate of moving forward instead of moving back. So I think in the years ahead, we will see greater steps forward, especially in political liberalisation.". - CNA/ms
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