Economy and Financial Affairs
- Fri Jan 20 2006
This is a global call for action by Consumers Association of Penang and Friends of the Earth Malaysia to boycott Singapore Airlines in view of the warning issued by the Singapore government that it is prepared to cane or imprison protestors who commit "violent crimes" during the forthcoming Annual Meeting of the World Bank and IMF in September this year which will be held in Singapore.
The warning came as Singapore suggested it might impose restrictions on an agreement with the IMF and the World Bank to allow demonstrations during their meetings in September.
The Singapore Government does not normally allow demonstrations and this warning to cane or imprison "violent" protesters is indeed most disconcerting. It is difficult to fathom how the Government will be able to anticipate and vet those suspected of "violent” acts. The result will likely be an unwarranted screening of particpants to the events related to the official meetings and anyone who enters Singapore during that period. Moreover, how does one ensure that peaceful demonstrations do not turn problematic when they could be all kinds of provocation and unforseen situations that can arise as seen in other recent protests against the Bretton Woods institutions.
Further, imposing restrictions on demonstrations by civil society to express their outrage at the brutal policies of the IMF and World Bank that impoverish societies and destroy the environment, is indeed a restriction on the freedom of expression and the right to dissent against unjust policies of the Bretton Woods institutions.
In order to show our protest against the Singapore Government's approach in this regard, we urge all all citizen groups to do the following:
- immediately boycott Singapore Airlines (the national carrier) for all world travel
- express our protest in front of the Singapore Airlines offices around the world calling on people to boycott the airlines in view of the policy of the Singapore Government
We hope you would make all efforts to ensure that sufficient pressure is put on Singapore Airlines as a symbol of our collective protest against the Singapore Government.
Mr. S. Mohd Idris,
President
Consumers Association of Penang
Friends of the Earth Malaysia
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International grassroots campaign that aims to build moral, political, and financial pressure on the World Bank. Launched in April 2000 by organizations from 35 global South countries and the U.S., the campaign links organizations and social movements in the global South which are challenging harmful World Bank policies with activists and institutional investors in North America, Europe, and East Asia, where the World Bank issues bonds that finance most of its operations.
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