total palestinoid death Singaporeans annoyed when Palestinoids prevent actual residents from meeting minister : SingaporeRaw

!nooticers !chuds

https://old.reddit.com/r/singapore/comments/1jaecej/meetthepeople_session_is_not_a_protest_venue_says/

Meet-the-People Session is not a protest venue, says Shanmugam after 2 women cause commotion

SINGAPORE – Two women confronted Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam at his Meet-the-People Session on March 12, causing a commotion outside his Chong Pang branch office that was caught on camera.

In a seven-minute video posted on Facebook by Mr Shanmugam, the two are seen wearing shirts with the word "Press" in front, and the names of journ*lists killed in Gaza on the back. They approach him to talk about the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma).

The video shows them questioning him in a confrontational tone as residents and volunteers look on.

At one point, they show onlookers the middle finger and shout at the minister when he walks away to attend to his duties.

In his Facebook post, the Nee Soon GRC MP said both women, who are sisters, were not residents in his constituency, and belong to a small group that has gone to different PAP Meet-the-People Sessions in the last few months to be "deliberately confrontational, create incidents, try and provoke".

They typically put out their version of events afterwards, painting the MP and his or her team in as negative a light as possible, he said.

The women belong to an activist group called Monday of Palestine Solidarity, said the People's Action Party in a statement.

The group has visited more than 10 Meet-the-People Sessions, including National Development Minister Desmond Lee's in West Coast GRC and Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo's in Jalan Besar GRC.

The PAP said the group would create a ruckus in the waiting area and disrupt the queue system while also filming and raising their voices, affecting residents who were at the sessions to speak to their MPs and volunteers.

The volunteers would also be subject to heckling by members of the activist group.

The PAP said: "It is not right that our volunteers are subject to taunts and accusations about their motives and character."

Mr Shanmugam said Meet-the-People Sessions are not places for protests.

"I understand that people may feel strongly about some issues. But (a Meet-the-People Session) is not a protest venue. It is where residents go to their MPs to seek help. Many have acute concerns – housing, jobs, medical needs, family issues, and would wait patiently, often for hours, to speak with their MP," he wrote.

"Hijacking these sessions is unfair to residents. There are appropriate avenues for advocacy – but disrupting sessions meant to help residents who are struggling with everyday challenges crosses a line."

Describing a Meet-the-People Session as "one of the most direct lines of assistance for many Singaporeans in need", the PAP said it empathised with the frustration and helplessness many feel about Gaza, and that people can turn to their MPs for support.

"Our MPs and volunteers have always taken the time to hear the views of our residents on this issue, which we then relay to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on their behalf," it said.

It added that many Singaporeans who feel strongly about the issue have already raised funds for Gaza through the Rahmatan Lil Alamin Foundation and encouraged more people to step up efforts in donations to help displaced Palestinians.

In the video, Mr Shanmugam is seen explaining to the women that he sees only his residents at Meet-the-People Sessions, after one of them said she lives in Punggol.

She asks for proof that MPs cannot attend to non-residents at Meet-the-People Sessions, to which he responds that he will speak to them after attending to his own residents, if they do not mind waiting.

Initially, the two women agree. However, one woman then states that Mr Shanmugam's explanation is "not true", as other MPs have met non-residents.

In his post, Mr Shanmugam said MPs can exercise discretion in seeing non-residents, even if the branch decides that only residents will be attended to.

Most people understand this and would not accuse the MP of lying, he added.

The minister said the women accused him of lying, more than once, during the night.

"Their accusation, that I was lying, was typical of the way the engagement proceeded, through the night," he noted.

Added Mr Shanmugam: "The antagonistic way in which they spoke, behaved, interrupted, threw accusations of lying, suggested that they wanted to make a scene, get some material to put out, rather than engage in a genuine discussion."

In the video, one woman is seen getting agitated after being told that the conversation is being filmed. She demands that the video be deleted, adding that she did not consent to being filmed.

Mr Shanmugam responds that as it is a public area, his volunteers have a right to record it.

"I told them that, sometimes, my volunteers will follow me on my rounds, including at (Meet-the-People Sessions), video my interactions, take photos," Mr Shanmugam added in his post.

Reiterating that the sessions are for residents, he said he informed the women that he would be happy to discuss Pofma with them, if there is time.

"If there is no time, then they would be given a time for either me or someone else to see them, discuss Pofma," he wrote.

"I also had to step out for a while to join my Malay community leaders to launch a Hari Raya light-up in my constituency. I explained to them that it was a busy night, I had a lot of office work pending as well – so they had to understand if I was not able to see them that night."

In the video, when Mr Shanmugam turns to go back into the branch office, the two women, joined by a man, shout at him and call him a "coward".

Mr Shanmugam said in his post: "I went back to them to tell them off for behaving in this way – I was quite unhappy with the disruption they were causing.

"They can't, as non-residents, come to (Meet-the-People Sessions) and insist that their political discussion take priority over the needs of the waiting residents."

He added that he spoke to the women, along with two others, for 30 to 45 minutes towards the end of the session.

"I told them that we were recording the discussion – because I know what had happened in other Meet-the-People Sessions," he said.

He added that they told him they were not recording their discussion.

Said Mr Shanmugam: "I treat discussions at Meet-the-People Sessions as confidential, so won't go into what was discussed."

In a separate Facebook post, fellow Nee Soon GRC MP Louis Ng stated his view that advocacy is important.

Citing his own experiences in advocating different issues, he said: "But we must remain civil and respectful to get the change we want. That is part of advocacy as well."