Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Secretive Communications

The Singapore Police Force (SPF) is busy refuting allegations in a British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) World Service Radio interview concerning Singapore's (lack of) commitment to fighting match-fixing. BBC confirmed it had received a complaint from the SPF, "The BBC strives for balance and impartiality and in line with our editorial guidelines we asked the Singapore Police Force for comment but were not granted an interview. A similar request in March was also declined."

On another international front, the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) on Thursday wrote that SingTel has been facilitating access for the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) in a partnership with British, American and Singaporean intelligence agencies to tap undersea fibre optic telecommunications cables that link Asia, the Middle East and Europe and carry much of Australia's international phone and internet traffic.

The British Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) is also collecting all data transmitted to and from the United Kingdom and Northern Europe via the subsea cable that runs from Japan, via Singapore, Djibouti, Suez and the Straits of Gibraltar to Northern Germany. The SMH emphasised that access was facilitated through SingTel, which is publicly-listed but majority-owned by Temasek Holdings.

SingTel and Singapore's Ministry of Defence (MINDEF), in the manner of the SPF response to BBC investigations, have not responded to queries sent to them. The idiom "No smoke without fire" means that when people suspect something, there is normally good reason for the suspicion, even if there is no concrete evidence. To prefer to wait and then react to "allegations" is a curious choice. Have they learnt nothing from the haze inducing fires from Indonesia?

The news floating around the globe is consistent with The Guardian's newspaper report in June about the GCHQ interception program leaked by Edward Snowden, codenamed Tempora, that involves harvesting all data, emails sent and received, instant messages, calls, passwords and more, entering and exiting Britain via undersea fibre-optic cables. Australian intelligence sources have separately confirmed that their ASD and the highly secretive Security and Intelligence Division (SID) of Singapore's Ministry of Defence also play key roles in intercepting communications traffic through Asia.

Thanks, but no thanks
She didn't need access to the secretive stuff to appreciate what is going on in Singapore. After receiving briefings from the Ministry of Education (MOE) on Singapore's education system, and the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) on anti-corruption policies, Aung San Suu Kyi was sharp enough to conclude, "Myanmar should not seek to recreate S'pore's policies". No country deserves to be cursed with MOE scholars with proclivity for pedophilia, or CPIB officers misappropriating money for casino visitations. Or top civil servants with fetish for oral gratification. She acknowledged that corruption cannot be "rid off entirely", no matter how much the office holders are allowed to pay themselves. Instead, she suggested  Singapore could learn "from us", a more relaxed way of life. "Perhaps, warmer and closer relations," and she wasn't exactly recommending the practice of installing relatives in the Istana.

16 comments:

  1. 5 reasons why Myanmar should not copy Singapore's policies:

    1. Our children go through a very stressful childhood studying for examinations, and have to resort to private tuition to keep up.
    2. After getting their degrees, if they are hardworking, they have to fight with so many pseudo-FTs with fake degrees for a job.
    3. A "subsidised" public housing HDB flat that requires 20-25 years to pay off.
    4. Now they are told not to aspire to own a car.
    5. We, the baby-boomer generation, have reached our golden years but cannot afford to retire after all our years of sacrifice supporting the PAP policies.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That is bloody true. What you see in this city is not for you but super rich foreigners. We are back to colonial days, just as lowly servants to the rich masters.

      Delete
  2. Look like Yacoob forget to remind Aung San Suu Kyi to "say the right thing" as a condition for her visit so that we can "read the right thing" LOL

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your last para certainly shows that The Lady is more formidable than the highly-paid pinkie.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There are approx 100, 000+ Myanmese in SinCity, so I believe lady Aung has been briefed to take note of the nepotism, cronyism, subservient legal system, ultra bias MSM, fake democracy, all perpetuated by a self serving govt. Being a guest in SinCity, lady Aung probably did not want to make it awkward for PMLee by meeting up with LowTK, Sylvia, CSJ, KJ, etc.
      If only she had met up with the oppo members and thereafter declare Myanmar will need people of such calibre.

      Having said, does anyone here think lady Aung is not aware LKY proclaimed he will shoot 200, 000 students to ensure 100 years of stability for China ? ChiaTP in detention longer than N Mandela ?

      Delete
  4. A Third World Lady Politician has plenty of wisdom to teach our First World Talented Politicians.
    And our Talented Female Politicians are nowhere near her calibre.

    I feel bad, sad and shameful myself

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. bro, your statement betray your sinkie attitude even tho I appreciate your point. 3rd world? I always remind meself: "香港人无情、台湾人无耻、新加坡人无知"

      Delete
    2. Me got to use Sinkie Term for Sinkies to understand.
      There is absolutely no intent to look down on anyone or country.
      My apology if my comment makes anyone uncomfortable.
      Me a mere peasant, myself trap in a First World Land. Feeling quite discomfortable to fit in.

      patriot

      Delete
  5. Now that the lady have won (at least to some extent) some freedom for her countrymen and women through grate personal sacrifice our PM had to praise her. Where was he before that? Especially when his DADDY advised her to leave government to those dastardly and corrupt generals and stay in the kitchen where women are expected to be. Disgusting.

    ReplyDelete
  6. /// Or top civil servants with fetish for oral gratification. ///

    What is oral gratification? Shooting your mouth off with unsolicited advice? Yakking non-stop? Or do you mean a Monica Lewinsky?

    Come
    Lewinsky
    I
    Need
    To
    Oral
    Now

    2 lessons ASSK gave to PAP:
    1) Keep your generals in the jungle
    2) Keep your materialism to yourself

    ReplyDelete
  7. Long live Aung San Suu Kyi! You remind us there is selflessness in politics.

    ReplyDelete
  8. way to go, daw!
    tell it like it is.

    if they arrest you for interfering in spore's politics, just quote kuan yew's criticism of other countries and ''advice'' to these places on how they should be run. you've got a huge choice.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Asked what she saw in Singapore that she might like to recreate in Myanmar, Ms Suu Kyi responded: "I don't think 'recreate' is the word, 'learn' yes."

    Well said, Daw Suu!! Who in his right mind wants to recreate COE, PARF, ERP, SMRT, LTA, HDB, ISD, ISA, GRC, GST, etc, etc

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And the lesson to learn from Singapore is never ever implement what they do. You must avoid all the problems and unhappiness among the people which the Spore leaders refuse to admit.

      Delete
  10. Wise person speaks wisely.
    One can learn the good and discard the undesirable.
    Absolutely no reason to recreate a society devoid of feeling and conscience. In simple words, soulless.

    ReplyDelete
  11. It was reported that it took them 20 long years to finally arrest the 'suspect' bookie for match fixing. Which leads one to ask whether there are enough bad hats among them to offer the suspect special immunity from prosecution in return for something else ?

    It is no more a secret that in the past some of them have taken monetary rewards from loan sharks/nightclub operators or even sexual favours from IT vendors, so is there any from bookies ?

    I suppose only God will know if nobody is squealing ?

    ReplyDelete