12/10/2012

Watz Online - 12 Oct 2012

Singapore women are sexualized by local media



If a resident of Singapore logged on to see what Singapore women were up to in the country, undoubtedly they would believe women in the city-state were sex-crazed maniacs who hate their spouses and entice businessmen with sex for their own personal gains.

Take the headline on AsiaOne.com today concerning a Durex condemn report on sexual misadventures in Asia. The headline read “S’pore women ’5th most unfaithful in Asia’.” Sure, that could be news, but a quick read of the first paragraph of the story delivers the true story that seemed to have been forgotten and left out. Singapore men are the FIRST most unfaithful in Asia, according to the condemn brand’s report.

Instead of detailing how women might be going outside their relationships after discovering their partners are already finding sexual satisfaction elsewhere, the article delves into the reasons why women cheat. 

read more 

When S'pore women are femme fatales



Singapore women prim and proper?

This perception of local women as submissive and reserved has taken a hit in the light of recent court cases.

In the five sex-related cases, the women are said to play integral roles. In one, a female teacher in a top secondary school is accused of having sex with a student, who was a minor at the time.

In the other four, the women are allegedly involved with men accused of wrongdoing. Two top civil servants – former Central Narcotics Bureau head Ng Boon Gay, 46, and former Singapore Civil Defence Force commissioner Peter Lim Sin Pang, 52 – face corruption charges. 

read more

Singapore women demand men get blame in sex scandals



It was many Singapore women continue to be frustrated over, articles are being published that highlight women’s roles in sex scandals that have rocked the country in recent months. A number of women in the country are angered over the continued blaming of women and are calling for a change in rhetoric.

“This is horrible that they continue to put women at the top in these scandals,” said Ronda Chang, a recent university graduate from the National University of Singapore.

She told Bikyamasr.com that “women seem to always be the headline and even when they are the victim in these cases, the media represents them as the doers and that is disgusting.”

read more

An open letter to Amy Cheong



You must be in Perth right now from all the reports I’ve read.

You’re probably in bed with curtains drawn and pillows covering your face. It must have been mid-afternoon when you were told of your dismissal on 8 October. Your eyes must be red from all that crying while you’re busily tweeting apologies to everyone – from Samad to Aunty Bedah. But there’s this Malay saying that the “rice has become porridge”, you can’t change the latter back to the former state. So, the only thing one can do is to move on. If you still can’t understand that saying, just ask your Malay neighbour, if you have any.

It’s possible that you might wish this did not happen, that it’s all a nightmare. But all that is simply wishful thinking, dear Amy.

Still, your sacking angers me. Not because I was utterly sympathetic to your predicament, although I was, a bit, but because the action by the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) smacked of short-sightedness. What was the objective and message sent here? To deter racists and suppress racism, we need to resort to fear mongering through punitive measures? Indeed, the issue is tricky considering NTUC depends on the support of unions, and due to its close relationship to the ruling party, it has to do some damage control. But what else can NTUC do, give you a spank? Send you to the punishment corner? So, here are your walking papers, it said. By the way, they’ve placed an advert of your job post. How indispensable you are!

read more

Singapore needs over 1,600 healthcare workers in near future

There will be about 1,600-1,700 vacancies in healthcare sector to meet the needs of the 10 new nursing homes which will be set up in Singapore from now till 2016, Gan Kim Yong, the city-state's Health Minister said on Saturday.

Gan said his ministry will step up efforts to fulfill this vacancies, by seeking personnel resources from educational institutions like the institutes of technical education and polytechnics, as well as encouraging the conversion of mid-career healthcare workers to join these nursing homes, local media Channel NewsAsia quoted as saying.

Those retirees who can come back to work part-time are also considered to be one of the areas which can relieve the shortage.

read more

Singapore September Foreign Exchange Reserves $252.1 Billion Vs $246.2 Billion in August

Singapore's foreign exchange reserves stood at $252.1 billion in September, up from $246.2 billion in August, the Monetary Authority of Singapore said on its website Monday.

In Singapore dollars terms, the foreign exchange reserves were at S$309.1 billion, compared with S$307.1 billion in August, the central bank said.

MAS doesn't give reasons for the increase or decrease in its reserves

read more

Is property investing stifling enterprise in Singapore? — Richard Hartung 

Property investment has become so attractive to so many people here it seems that it may actually have reached the point where it is increasing risk and crowding out other investments that could be better for the Singapore economy

In many countries income from investment in residential property is a blip in overall economic indicators and a small percentage of GDP. Deutsche Bank noted in its Real Assets report many private households in other regions “mainly hold residential property for owner-occupation”

While home ownership is high here too residential property investment is so large that it has its own line on GDP data from SingStat called “ownership of dwellings” and individual investors’ returns from those investments account for more than 4 per cent of GDP.

read more

As growth falters, analysts ask has Asia lost its mojo?

First the IMF warned developing Asia to brace for shocks from the West. Then the Asian Development Bank slashed its regional growth forecasts. Now analysts are asking, has Asia lost its mojo?

The European debt crisis and weakness in the United States have long been drags on Asian growth, but throw in China's difficult leadership transition and the outlook is grim.

"It wasn't supposed to turn out like this. Growth in recent months has faltered again, confounding expectations of a gradual recovery," HSBC economists Qu Hongbin and Frederic Neumann wrote in a report released last week.

read more

Singaporean link in gold deals

Several Singaporeans appear to be actively involved in unregulated gold trading schemes in Malaysia, according to sources.

A number of the companies that offer investment schemes, especially in gold, appear to have links with Singaporeans, they claimed.

“As the Singaporean authorities are also raiding companies involved in suspected money laundering activities, we suspect that there is outflow of funds from unsuspecting Malaysian investors to assist them,” said the sources.

read more

Two Chinese banks get full banking licenses in Singapore

Singapore has granted full banking licenses to two Chinese banks, allowing them to have greater access to the Singapore market.

After getting the qualified full bank (QFB) status, the Bank of China and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) can open as many as 25 branches and offer services, including accepting retail deposits in Singapore, the two banks told Xinhua Monday.

The move is part of an agreement, made in July, to enhance banking services cooperation under the existing China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement.

read more

Where Do the Wealthiest Expatriates Live?

Luxury Homes in Singapore










A small island state in Southeast Asia has come out tops in a listing of countries that boast of the richest expatriates.

In an annual survey released by HSBC on Monday — which was conducted across 100 countries and involved more than 5,000 expatriates — Singapore emerged as the most favored expat destination to make money in and accumulate luxuries.

Foreigners, who make up a sizable portion of Singapore’s 5 million-plus population, earn more than those living in any other part of the world. About 54 percent of Singapore-based expats who took part in the poll earn more than $200,000 annually compared to a global average of only 7 percent according to the Expat Explorer 2012 survey.

read more