A street in Little India. Photo: Reuters/Ajlazeera Aljazeera quoted TWC2 in its story dated 18 December 2013 on the Little India riot (Singapore soul searching follows migrant riot, by Tom Benner and Satish Cheney). It quoted TWC2 president Russell Heng saying: "We believe that chronic maltreatment and disempowerment can lead to a sense
Ambulance set ablaze. Photo: Straits Times A Chinese-language magazine Life Week carried a feature article (its headline, translated into English: A rare riot exploded in Singapore) about issues surrounding migrant workers in Singapore, in the wake of the riot that occurred on Sunday 8 December 2013. Translated into English, key passages include: "The
Ten days after the riot in Little India, the police and Home Affairs Ministry announced that 28 foreign nationals will be charged and 53 deported. The 28 workers charged so far were "active participants" in the riot who committed violent acts, damaged property, defied police orders or incited others to do so. Although the Attorney-General's
Straits Times Managing Editor Han Fook Kwang penned a longish op-ed in the Sunday Times of 15 December 2013. While written in the wake of the riot that occurred a week earlier in Little India, the essay addresses wider concerns, calling for a more layered understanding of the men and women who come here to
TWC2's 2013 benefit event Lunch with Heart, coinciding with International Migrants Day, began a minute's silence in remembrance of Sakthivel Kumaravelu, the man who was killed in a bus accident last Sunday night (8 Dec 2013). Coincidentally, the event (at Apollo Banana Leaf Restaurant) was held but a stone's throw from where the incident took
Below is the short talk TWC2 vice-president Alex Au (above, 2nd from left) gave at the Human Rights Day seminar organised by the Delegation of the European Union delegation to Singapore, 10 December 2013. The theme of the seminar was 'Contemporary perspectives on economic & social rights'. --- In the matter of employment, we would
Tamil workers enjoying a day off at a field near Race Course Road on a typical Sunday. Not one of them consuming alcohol. In the wake of last Sunday's small riot on Race Course Road at the southeastern corner of Little India, the government imposed a ban on the sale and consumption of
GO TO PART 2 December 2013, Monday Two designated contact persons from the Toh Guan group of ex-Menton staff come to the office to update and discuss the case with social workers Kenneth and Karno. Quite a few things have happened over the weekend. Twenty workers have been paid $1,500 to $2,000 each, received air
The Straits Times invited Transient Workers Count Too to contribute an opinion-editorial on the incident of Sunday night, 8 December 2013. It was published in the newspaper's Tuesday, 10 December edition. --- RIOT IN LITTLE INDIA Learning the right lessons from this episode By Russell Heng For The Straits Times On Sunday night, in Little
We will inundated with press enquiries on Monday, 9 December 2013, following the small riot in Little India the night before. Many reporters asked similar questions. Below are the more common ones and your responses. ---- Q: To what extent can or should the incident be read as indicative of any underlying tensions or frustrations
