SECOND, Article 15 of the Singapore Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion and the right to propagate one's religion.
The Court of Appeal has held that it is not illegal for a Singapore citizen to be a Jehovah's Witness, a proscribed group. He is, however, not exempted from being called up to serve his national service.
In another case, the same court held that a citizen working in an educational institution is not exempted from singing the National Anthem or reciting the National Pledge on account of his religious beliefs. In other words, in Singapore, a citizen's right to religious freedom is subordinated to the public good.
Free speech and religious harmony
THIRD, in Singapore, the right to free speech is not an absolute right.
The Penal Code makes it an offence to utter words which deliberately wound the religious feelings of others. The Sedition Act makes it an offence to promote feelings of ill will or hostility between different races or classes of the population. In 2005, three bloggers were convicted under the Sedition Act for posting Web-blog comments that were anti-Muslim. In Singapore, unlike Denmark and France, cartoons which depict Prophet Muhammad would be deemed to be offensive, punishable under both the Penal Code and Sedition Act and not protected by the freedom of speech.
More - fakt777.ru . http://www.straitstimes.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment