Professional Documents
Culture Documents
The history of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women
('the Convention/CEDAW ') shows that it draws upon the UN Charter as a source of inspiration,
the Charter being the first international instrument to encourage respect for human rights and
1
fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to sex. The Preamble of the CEDAW
acknowledges that culture and tradition in the form of stereotypes, customs and norms have a
2
significant bearing on the ability of women to enjoy their fundamental rights.
Gender stereotypes have been defined to mean “a generalised view or preconception about
attributes or characteristics that are or ought to be possessed by members of a particular social
3
group or the roles
that are or should be performed by, members of a particular social group.”
These attributes, characteristics or roles can be ascribed to women as well as men by the sole
4
reason of their membership in the social group of women or men.
These stereotypes, customs, and norms permeate and are reflected in legal, political, and
economic spheres of society.
This section of the report will primarily deal with Gender Stereotypes and Harmful Practices by
addressing their manifestation in the three key areas of sex education, violence by law
enforcement officials, and forced sterilisation, and how these contribute to creating and
perpetuating Gender Stereotypes and Harmful Practices which impede the ability of women to
exercise their fundamental human rights.
1
Short History of CEDAW Convention. UN News Center. UN. Web. 16 Sept. 2015.
<http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/history.htm>.
2
Text of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Retrieved
September 16, 2015, from http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/cedaw.htm
3
Gender stereotypes and Stereotyping and women’s rights. Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Women/WRGS/OnePagers/Gender_stereotyping.pdf
4
Id.
1.
Sex Education in Singapore
The CEDAW calls on Member States to provide compulsory sexual education in a systematic
5
manner throughout all educational institutions.
Sex education in Singapore has been known to favour abstinence, discountenance to premarital
6 7
sex and is accused of being sexist and promoting Gender Stereotypes.
Sex education in Singapore is avowedly heteronormative, exclusionary, and stigmatises other
gender expressions or alternative sexualities. This was expressed by the country’s Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong in a Parliamentary speech where in the context of the Penal Code
(Amendment) Bill he stated that "The family is the basic building block of our society. It has
been so and, by policy, we have reinforced this and we want to keep it so. And by "family" in
Singapore, we mean one man one woman, marrying, having children and bringing up children
8
within that framework of a stable family unit." He further admitted that "a heterosexual stable
9
family is a social norm. It is what we teach in schools." In the same speech PM Lee went on to
favourably cite the case of a teacher at Raffles Institution (one of the country’s oldest and most
prestigious schools) who is gay and who was forced to take down his blog which, ‘'described his
10
own sexual inclinations, and explained how he was gay’'.
Singapore also espouses upholding the family as the basic building block of society as one of its
'national ideologies'/‘shared values’ and discourages ‘alternative lifestyles’, relying on these for
5
Youth and Comprehensive Sexuality Education. (n.d.). Retrieved October 6, 2015, from
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/documents/youth/factsheets/youthsexualityeducation.pdf
6
Ministry of Education, Singapore: Programmes, Social and Emotional Learning Sexuality Education.
Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/programmes/socialemotionallearning/sexualityeducation/framework/
7
Former HCI students want school to suspend sexuality education workshop. (2014, October 8).
Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/education/formerhcistudentswantschooltosuspendsexualitye
ducationworkshop
8
Penal Code (Amendment) Bill. (2007, October 23). Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://160.96.186.104/search/topic.jsp?currentTopicID=00072427ZZ¤tPubID=00075232ZZ&topicKey=
00075232ZZ.00072427ZZ_1++
9
Id.
10
Id.
11
its ‘national survival.’ It was decided at the time of drawing up these values and ideologies that
12
the most feasible way to promote and inculcate them is through schools.
The Ministry of Education’s ( MOE ) 2014 Syllabus for Character and Citizenship Education for
13 14
Primary and Secondary School students as a part of its Sexuality Education emphasises filial
responsibility. The MOE also forbids the programmes of external sex education providers from
15
‘touching on any sensitivities related to any ethnicity, gender or religion’
The Sexuality Education guideline expounded by the Ministry of Education purports to ‘teach
students what homosexuality is, and the current legal provisions concerning homosexual acts in
16
Singapore'. The legal provision refers to section 377A of the Singapore Penal Code which
17
criminalises any acts of 'gross indecency' between consenting male adults.
This approach to sex education in Singapore’s schools excludes SOGI minorities including
young LBTQI women. Issues relating to their sexual orientation and gender identity/ expression
are neglected, not discussed at all, or are referred to in schools in the context of criminality. The
cumulative effect of this is that it contributes to the creation of negative stereotypes about
LBTQI women and justifying a culture of violence against them. For example, the ‘Ah Boys to
Bullies’ campaign by Project X highlighted the issue of a schoolyard ritual among local
secondary school boys who head down to places frequented by transgender sex workers and
18
verbally and physically abuse them in a bid to “scold” or “educate” them.
11
Shared Values. Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_542_20041218.html
12
Id.
13
2014 Syllabus Character and Citizenship Education (Primary). Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/syllabuses/charactercitizenshipeducation/files/2014charactercitizens
hipeducationeng.pdf
14
2014 Syllabus Character and Citizenship Education (Secondary). Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/syllabuses/charactercitizenshipeducation/files/2014charactercitizens
hipeducationsecondary.pdf
15
http://moe.gov.sg/education/programmes/socialemotionallearning/sexualityeducation/engagementof
externalproviders/criteria/
16
Ministry of Education, Singapore: Programmes, Social and Emotional Learning Sexuality Education.
Retrieved September 13, 2015, from
http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/programmes/socialemotionallearning/sexualityeducation/framework/
17
Singapore Statutes Online – Chapter 224 Penal Code. Retrieved September 13, 2015 from
http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/aol/search/display/view.w3p;page=0;query=Id%3A%221107d768db70488f9f
bbf5a12c9da49e%22%20Status%3Ainforce;rec=0
18
Ah Boys to Bullies: Part 1. (2015). Retrieved May 15, 2016, from
http://theprojectx.org/2015/08/26/ahboystobullies/
and Ah Boys to Bullies: Part 2 – Voices from the
This syllabi, based on stereotypical attributes and roles of men and women, is diametrically
opposed to Art 5 of the Convention and also Art 10 of the Convention which enjoins States
Parties to eliminate ''any stereotyped concept of the roles of men and women at all levels and in
all forms of education ….. and, in particular, by the revision of textbooks and school
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programmes and the adaptation of teaching methods. '' It is also worth noting that this approach
to sex education is counter productive and regressive given the current rights based approach to
sexuality education adopted by organisations such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organisation which while acknowledging the need for cultural relevance and local
adaptations by involving local custodians for culture emphasises, much like the CEDAW, the
need to “ change social norms and harmful practices that are not in line with human rights and
20
increase vulnerability and risk, especially for girls and young women. . ”.
This is consonant with the CEDAW’s call to State Parties to proactively modify discriminatory
21
patterns and norms, facilitating a top down change of attitudes. The convention brooks no
excuse of majoritarian norms or 'local culture and context' such as the ones frequently posited by
22
various ministries of the Singapore government. In its General Recommendation no. 3 (sixth
session, 1987) made by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
States Parties, in the context of stereotyped conceptions of women, States Parties are urged to
“effectively adopt education and public information programmes, which will help eliminate
prejudices and current practices that hinder the full operation of the principle of the social
23
equality of women ”.
The Gay, Lesbian Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in the United States has found that
55.5% of LGBT students felt unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation, and 37.8%
because of their gender expression and 55.5% of LGBT students experience LGBTrelated
Sisters. (2015). Retrieved May 15, 2016, from
http://theprojectx.org/2015/09/08/ahboysbulliespart2voicessisters/
19
Text of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. (Retrieved
September 18, 2015, from http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/cedaw.htm
20
International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education. (2009). Retrieved October 6, 2015, from
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0018/001832/183281e.pdf This document was the product of a global
consultation involving experts from 13 countries and also the UNAIDS, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF
and the WHO.
21
Id. Art 5
22
Foreign firms in S'pore must respect cultural norms: Chan Chun Sing. Retrieved September 18, 2015,
from
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/foreignfirmssporemustrespectculturalnormschanchunsing
23
Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women. (n.d.). Retrieved September 18,
2015, from http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CEDAW/Pages/Recommendations.aspx
24
discriminatory policies or practices at school. The GLSEN therefore, like the American
Psychological Association also cites a hostile school environment as one of the primary reasons
25
for drop out among LGBT youth. Similar statistics for Singapore are unavailable however even
without students dropping out, bullying still remains a civil rights issue as it interferes with the
students’ right to education.
The Committee must therefore, in its recommendations to Singapore include the following:
1. That Singapore comply with recommendation no. 24 (t) of General Recommendation No.
19 (llth session, 1992) which asks States parties to take all legal and other measures that
are necessary to provide effective protection of women against genderbased violence,
including, inter alia preventive measures, including public information and education
26
programmes to change attitudes concerning the roles and status of men and women.
2. That Singapore comply with recommendation no. 24 (u) of General Recommendation
No. 19 (llth session, 1992) which requires States parties report on all forms of
27
genderbased violence , and that such reports include all available data on the incidence
of each form of violence and on the effects of such violence on young LBTQI women
who are victims, inter alia, of a hostile school environment .
3. That, in line with the CEDAW’s recommendations, Singapore in its report, should
identify the nature and extent of attitudes, customs and practices that perpetuate violence
against women including LBTQI women and the consequent violence. It should report on
the measures that they have undertaken to overcome violence and the effect of those
28
measures.
4. In view of Gen Recommendation No.12 which while making a reference to Art 5 creates
an important link between stereotyped notions of women and violence, that the periodic
24
2013 National School Climate Survey. (n.d.). Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://www.glsen.org/article/2013nationalschoolclimatesurvey
25
Facing the School Dropout Dilemma. Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://www.apa.org/pi/families/resources/schooldropoutprevention.pdf
General recommendations made by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against
26
Women. (n.d.). Retrieved September 18, 2015, from
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/recommendations/recomm.htm
27
Id.
28
Id.
reports of Singapore include information on the actions taken by it to eradicate violence
29
on every area of social life including legislation and support services.
5. That Singapore should introduce education and public information programmes to help
30
eliminate prejudices that hinder women's equality (recommendation No. 3, 1987).
6. That Sex Education in Singapore across all levels, be brought in line with and take into
consideration international standards including the (i)CEDAW committee’s General
31
Recommendation No. 15 (ninth session, 1990) , (ii)UNFPA’s 2014 Operational
32
Guidance for Comprehensive Sexuality Education and (iii) UNESCO’s International
33
Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education. Further NGOs representing women,
including LBTQI women should be actively involved in disseminating sex education.
Such NGOs must be permitted to discuss issues relating to SOGI minorities.
2. Violence by Law Enforcement Officials
In June 2011, the Human Rights Council adopted resolution 17/19 – the first United Nations
34
resolution on human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI). This paved the way
for the first official UN report on the subject on human rights and SOGI which documented the
systematic violence and discrimination faced by LGBTs. Soon thereafter, in 2012 UN Office of
the High Commissioner for Human Rights set out to document the obligations of States in
International law toward SOGIs. It stated that the legal obligations of States to safeguard the
rights of SOGIs are founded upon the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international
35
human rights law.
One of the recommendations of the booklet calls upon States to investigate all acts of
mistreatment by State agents, bring those responsible to justice and also provide appropriate
training to law enforcement officers. It also cites the Committee Against Torture and the Special
29
Id.
30
Id.
31
Id.
32
UNFPA Operational Guidance for Comprehensive Sexuality Education: A Focus on Human Rights and
Gender. (2014). Retrieved October 6, 2015, from
http://countryoffice.unfpa.org/gcc/drive/UNFPAOperationalGuidanceforCSEFinalWEBVersion.pdf
33
International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education. (2009). Retrieved October 6, 2015, from
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0018/001832/183281e.pdf
34
United Nations General Assembly: Human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity. (2011, June
15). Retrieved September 29, 2015, from
http://daccessddsny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/LTD/G11/141/94/PDF/G1114194.pdf?OpenElement
35
Booklet Born Free and Equal. (n.d.). Retrieved September 29, 2015, from
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Discrimination/Pages/BornFreeEqualBooklet.aspx
Rapporteur on torture who have documented abuse of LGBT individuals by police, prison
guards and other law enforcement officers. Under international law, the Committee Against
Torture has pointed out, States have the obligation to prohibit, prevent and provide redress for
torture and illtreatment in all contexts of State custody or control” and further prevent and
36
recurrences of illtreatment. In the context of Costa Rica, the Committee against Torture
recommended training and awareness programmes for police officers,to prevent abuse of people
37
“on the grounds of their sexual orientation and/or transsexual identity.”
The booklet goes on to conclude that a State must thoroughly investigate and bring to justice all
cases of brutality by law enforcement officials and other agents of the State and also that those
responsible should be brought to justice further stating that “
States should provide a procedure
whereby victims of such acts can seek remedies, including compensation. States are also under
an obligation to take preventive measures, such as training of law enforcement officers and
monitoring of places of detention.”
36
Id.
37
Concluding observations of the Committee against Torture on Costa Rica (CAT/C/CRI/CO/2), at para.
11, 18
Violence against sex workers:
38
In 2015, Abuser alert responses received by the Singapore based activist organisation Project X
documented the gender basedviolence and abuse faced by transgender sex workers at the hands
of,among others, law enforcement officials. The data revealed that out of all the complaints of
violence and abuse received by Project X, 29% of these related to violence by law enforcement
officials, exceeding the percentage that related to violence from other sources (clients24%,
39
family/partners15%, general public 28% and teenagers4%). This abuse and dehumanising
behaviour often took the form of profiling, intimidation, entrapment, confiscation of condoms as
40
evidence of sex work, a practice which has also been decried by Human Rights Watch , misuse
41
of authority and profiling even when the workers are not soliciting.
Singapore’s policy towards sex work Institutionalising violence
The Singapore government policy towards sex work stigmatises sex work, perpetuates
stereotypes and, as a result, violence, discrimination and humiliation against sex workers. This
has lead to the creation a virulent environment of hostility against sex workers which trickles
down to its agents. It can be said that the violence against sex workers is condoned and even
encouraged by the State. This is particularly worrying given the clear correlation between
42
stereotyping and violence.
Although sex work is criminalised under various laws including the Miscellaneous Offences Act,
the Womens’ Charter and various other provisions of the Singapore Penal Code, sex work itself
is not and, since the colonial period, has not, been an offence. Singapore has adopted a
pragmatic approach of containment, as reflected in the Singapore government’s parliamentary
43
debates. This, primarily because it is impossible to completely eradicate prostitution and run
the risk of driving it underground. However, this policy of (law) enforcement without eradication
has meant that routine raids on brothels and other places suspected of functioning as brothels are
44
encouraged . Various mainstream newspapers often publish news reports about sex workers
38
A scheme that enables sex workers to report crimes against them to Project X and alert them to potential abusers
as reported by others.
39
Id.
40
U
S: Police Practices Fuel HIV Epidemic. (2012, July 19). Retrieved September 29, 2015, from
https://www.hrw.org/news/2012/07/19/uspolicepracticesfuelhivepidemic
41
Abuser Alert reports.
42
Gender stereotypes and Stereotyping and women’s rights. (2014, September 1). Retrieved October 8, 2015, from
http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Women/WRGS/OnePagers/Gender_stereotyping.pdf
43
Singapore Parliament Reports Policy on Prostitution. (1999, May 5). Retrieved October 20, 2015, from
http://sprs.parl.gov.sg/search/topic.jsp?currentTopicID=00066883ZZ.
44
MP pledges to clean up sleazy Woodlands park. (2015, October 10).
which perpetuate stereotypical and prejudiced views about sex work, which also culminate in a
45
call for crackdowns or stepping up efforts to ‘clean up’ areas frequented by sex workers.
Here, the concern with the health and well being of sex workers remains a marginal concern with
the primary goal being to avoid dispersing sex work to other areas and losing control over the
46
problem that a complete crackdown would inevitably entail.
Frequent raids means that sex workers are vulnerable to violence and harassment at the hands of
law enforcement officials. The discriminatory attitudes of law enforcement officials hinder the
sex workers access to their legal rights which makes lodging complaints against such violence
nearly impossible and therefore creates a climate of impunity for State agents. This was
confirmed by Project X’s pilot Abuser Alert program in 2014 which received 40 complaints and
out of which four cases were reported to the police who, on another three occasions refused to
take the reports.
Based upon the above, the CEDAW committee is requested to call upon the state of Singapore
to:
1.investigate all instances of police brutality and mistreatment;
2. provide redress for illtreatment and further prevent and recurrences of illtreatment of sex
workers and
3. train all law enforcement officers and conduct sensitisation programs to change the
discriminatory attitudes of law enforcement officials as called for by the UN Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights, Committee Against Torture and the Special Rapporteur on
torture among other agencies.
3. Forced Sterilisation
Forced sterilisation or sterilisation without full, free, and informed consent, also refereed to as
bottom surgery, inevitably entails medical procedures that irreversibly impair reproductive
organs resulting in infertility. Such procedures, expressly forbidden by the Yogyakarta Principles
47
and criticised by several UN bodies are deemed a prerequisite by the law in many countries
45
The Straits Times
Cheong, D., & Wei, A. (2015, October 11). Sisters Peddle Sex in Cars at Park. . Retrieved
October 12, 2015, from http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/sisterspeddlesexincarsatpark and MP pledges to
clean up sleazy Woodlands park. (2015, October 10). Retrieved October 20, 2015, from
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/mppledgestocleanupsleazywoodlandspark
46
Singapore Parliament Reports Policy on Prostitution. (1999, May 5)
47
World Health Organisation. (2014). Eliminating forced, coercive and otherwise involuntary sterilization: An
interagency statement, OHCHR, UN Women, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF and WHO. Retrieved February
including Singapore, to acquiring official legal gender recognition documents (i.e. documents
under the sex or gender that conforms with a transperson’s gender identity). Absence of or
inability to acquire such documents for various reasons including a desire to not subject
themselves to the conditions of coercive castration (of perfectly functioning organs) or the
prohibitive costs of such procedures often results in inhibiting their access to vital services such
as insurance, employment, housing and adoption and exposing them to homelessness,
48
unemployment, discrimination, and violence.
The Women’s Charter, a legislative act passed in 1961 and that governs matters relating to
marriage, divorce, sex work, sex trafficking, and the rights of the child, prohibits marriages
between persons of the same sex. However, such marriages, vis a vis transpeople, are permissible
only when such a person has undergone a sex reassignment procedure (‘SRS’) and who is then
49
identified as being of the sex to which the person has been reassigned.
Although this law is seemingly progressive, several members of the trans community have
expressed reservations about undergoing SRS 81% of the respondents in a survey, conducted by
Project X and Darius Zheng for a study published in the LGBTQ Policy Journal at the Harvard
50
Kennedy School, said that they have no plans to go through SRS. They also found that it is
important for transgender and gender nonconforming individuals to be able to selfidentify on
51
their documents.
But SRS remains out of reach for many individuals as documented by the study. Some of the
52
limitations documented by the study were as under :
i. Financial considerations were topmost concern when deciding to go for SRS.
ii. SRS being a long term goal for many, a large number of trans people are forced to go through
many years of their lives with no legal verification of their gender identity.
10, 2016, from http://www2.unwomen.org/~/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/news/stories/forced
sterilization document pdf.ashx?v=1&d=20141013T121449
48
Open Society Foundations. (2016). A Legal Gender Recognition Issue Brief: Forced Sterilisation.
Retrieved May 17, 2016, from
https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/sites/default/files/lgrforcedsterilization20151120.pdf
49
Singapore Statutes Online – Part III Section 12 (3) (b). Women’s Charter. Retrieved September 13,
2015 from
http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/aol/search/display/view.w3p;ident=486ef23d5eb1438895f4b55f28cde6c1;pa
ge=0;query=DocId%3A%22f0897dd71f3a45a9b1e7ba30fef2dbba%22%20Status%3Ainforce%20Dep
th%3A0;rec=0#pr12he.
50
SherQueShaa, S., Ho, V., & Zheng, D. (2016). The Forced Sterilization of Transgender and Gender
Nonconforming People in Singapore. LGBTQ Policy Journal at the Harvard Kennedy School,
VI.
51
Id.
52
Id.
iii. It is a norm in Singapore for members of the family to be economically dependent on older
members. Going against the wishes of such family members poses a risk of being rendered
homeless, given the exorbitant room rental rates.
iv. Singapore’s social security savings plan known as Medisave cannot be used to pay for Sex
Reassignment Surgeries.
v. The full range of resources required for an SRS are not readily available in Singapore since the
only SRSspecific facility in one of the local hospitals in Singapore was shut down in 2001
vi.Other issues documented by the study involve threat of violence from friends, risking
unemployment and even prosecution in the case where the transperson is in the public service
sector and fears relating to the surgery itself.
53
The CEDAW committee is therefore requested to call upon the state of Singapore to
:
i. Provide legal guarantee for full, free and informed decision making and elimination of coercive
sterilisation and review, amend and develop laws and policies in this regard along with a
comprehensive plan for professional standards prohibiting discrimination on all grounds in
connection with sterilisation,
ii. Ensure that sterilisation, or procedures resulting in infertility, is not a prerequisite for legal
recognition of preferred sex/gender.
iii. Review, revise and amend laws to ensure that sterilisation and SRS is accessible, affordable
and of good quality for all individuals who desire the procedure. Subsidise voluntary sterilisation
services for individuals and ensure that laws and policies do not impose rigid conditions for
sterilisation.
iv. That all health services in this regard meet clinical health standards and prioritise and respect
the dignity, autonomy and human rights of the individual and ensure that their consent is full,
free,informed and given without the influence of inappropriate incentives or misinformation.
Consent to any SRS procedure must\ not made a condition for access to medical care or for any
other benefit (such as recognition of identity, medical insurance, social assistance, employment
or release from an institution).
53
These recommendations are drawn from the Interagency statement of the OHCHR, UN Women, UNAIDS,
UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF and WHO, Eliminating forced, coercive and otherwise involuntary sterilisation.
v. Provide training to healthcare providers and policymakers to ensure they do not hold
discriminatory views towards SOGI minorities and treat such patients with respect. Train them
with regard to voluntary sterilisation, with special attention to full, free and informed consent.
vi. Work in tandem and in partnership with local LGBTQI activist groups to document cases of
forced sterilisation and provide adequate support and redress to affected individuals.