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Singapore erases its troubled LGBT past

Singapore erases its troubled LGBT past

Singapore erases its troubled LGBT past

Singapore erases its troubled past

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  • Russell Heng indicated the location of the peaceful Esplanade Park in Singapore where he had once been detained by the police solely for being gay.
  • Heng and the other men at Esplanade Park that evening were just given a warning before being released.
  • The decision on gay sex in Singapore starts a fresh conflict.
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Russell Heng indicated the location of the peaceful Esplanade Park in Singapore where he had once been detained by the police solely for being gay.

It resembles any other street corner with trees in the city. But in the 1980s, before the internet and Grindr, it was a well-liked gay men’s gathering place in a nation where homosexuality was essentially criminalized.

According to Mr. Heng, a playwright, and activist, the area was known as the “Feet of Five Trees” because of the tall rain trees that provided privacy and cover.

“We were roaming about that night. And then suddenly, there was a loud voice – a plainclothes policeman – who started shouting at us,” he said.

The policeman severely reprimanded the men as they were made to line up in a row. “You should be ashamed of yourselves,” he replied.

We were simply strolling in the park, he claimed. “You psychologically believed that perhaps you had done something wrong… in essence, it was bullying.”

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The controversial 377A statute, which outlawed intercourse between two men and was a holdover from British control, was upheld by Singapore’s government for many years.

According to the authorities, it reflected Singapore society’s opinion that homosexuality was not acceptable.

But just a few months after leader Lee Hsien Loong made the unexpected declaration that they will lift the prohibition due to shifting attitudes, the country’s parliament this week removed the rule.

The repeal of 377A closes a chapter in Singapore’s troubled past that is now largely forgotten when homosexual males were not only subject to severe societal stigma but were also actively pursued by the government.

Mr. Heng and the other men at Esplanade Park that evening were just given a warning before being released. But not everyone was as fortunate.

The police would carry out alleged “anti-gay” raids on nightclubs that gay men were known to frequent or on cruising areas in parks and beaches for a number of decades.

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This frequently involved the contentious tactic of entrapment, in which police officers would pose as gay men in well-known gathering places and swiftly detain anyone who interacted with them.

Those who are detained are typically accused of soliciting, outraging modesty, or engaging in obscene behavior. Their names, ages, and jobs would be posted in national publications along with information about their arrests.

Most received fines or spent some time in jail. However, in one event in 1993, known as “the Fort Road raid” because of its location, seven men were detained and later given the notoriously severe punishment of caning in Singapore.

The judge later overturned this in an appeal, stating that it was “disquieting” how the men were apprehended and charged.

The raids made it abundantly clear to many gay men that their existence was despised. Even though anti-gay violence was uncommon in tightly regulated Singapore, many members of the community were afraid to come out to their friends, families, and the general public.

“You had to be covert at all times because you were afraid of being observed. Back then, that was a natural part of being gay “explained Mr. Heng, a 71-year-old man.

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The decision on gay sex in Singapore starts a fresh conflict. The British legislation that fostered anti-LGBTQ sentiment throughout Asia

The raids had decreased by the 2000s, and homosexuality, which had previously been a taboo subject, was being discussed more openly.

The Singaporean government then made the promise, in 2007, during a historic parliamentary debate on 377A, that while it would keep the law, it would not enforce it.

These decisions were made as Singaporeans’ tolerance for LGBT individuals gradually increased. While there are still a sizable proportion of people who believe homosexuality is “bad,” recent surveys reveal that there is also growing acceptance for LGBT rights.

The city-state has a booming LGBT community, with an increase in the number of businesses supporting diversity policies and LGBT-friendly businesses.

The largest civil society event in Singapore, where large-scale protests and rallies are still incredibly uncommon, is Pink Dot, an annual LGBT rights rally that draws tens of thousands of participants.

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In contrast to the past, when it was challenging for homosexual rights organizations to even exist, activism has grown in prominence with the emergence of more lobby groups and support communities.

One of the earliest LGBT organizations in Singapore, People Like Us, which was twice denied permission to establish as a society in the 1990s, was founded by Mr. Heng. In the beginning, according to Mr. Heng, they were closely watched by the authorities, with plainclothes police officers attending their public talks and meetings and identifying themselves afterward.

“There are younger people now who were born during a time when Pink Dot was already a fact. They would take it as part of the landscape that gay people are okay. They don’t know about this other time before,” said Mr. Heng.

Some would like to alter that.

On a recent evening, a group of visitors was driven by their tour guide, 34-year-old Isaac Tng, through the city center of Singapore on an unusual excursion.

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