THIS issue cropped up after a Swedish human rights activist met a former nominated member of parliament (NMP).
MS MATHI: NGOs should be savvy enough to see strings attached to funding. --PICTURES: FILE
It set netizens talking.
Allegations flew online that the Swede may have offered funding, a claim both men denied. Eventually, ex-NMP Siew Kum Hong made a police report.
Why the online fuss?
Local political parties are banned from receiving foreign donations, but civil society organisations (CSOs) are not. (See report, top of facing page.)
The NMP is not a member of any political party.
So, should CSOs be considered political entities and be subject to the same rules, as some actively work to influence policies?
Civil activists here say CSOs struggle to find local funding and so may have to consider foreign donors.
However, they agree that CSOs also need to be transparent about their source of funding and be savvy enough to question the agenda of the donors.
So what was the agenda of the Swedish activist, Mr Johan Skarendal?
He is a member of the Swedish International Liberal Centre (Silc), whose avowed goal, as stated on its website, is 'to strengthen organisations and support individuals who develop and promote democracy and human rights'.
Mr Skarendal, 29, is in charge of Silc activities in Singapore and the group is affiliated to the Liberal Party, one of the four political parties in the Swedish government since 2006.
The group has extensive reach globally and funds acitivities which promote its goals.
However, in May, Mr Skarendal denied he was on a funding trip here. He described his visit in April as 'fact-finding'. He declined comment for this report.
He said then: 'I wanted to learn about how prominent Singaporeans involved in civil society viewed the human rights issues in Singapore.'
Former NMP Braema Mathi said it would be good for civil society organisations and non-government organisations (NGOs) to be savvy enough to see the strings attached before deciding to take the cash.
Ms Mathi is the chairman of a local human rights organisation called Maruah (Malay for dignity). Members of Maruah were approached by Mr Skarendal too.
Ms Mathi said not all local groups may be savvy enough.
'You have every right to reject the donor. Yes, there can be conditions, but you also have to look around and see if you are keen on those conditions,' she said.
'If those conditions don't align with what you do, then you have to reject the donor.'
She pointed out that she once declined a partnership with a local group when she found out the funds came with a religious agenda.
The key thing is to be transparent about the funds, said Ms Mathi.
The rules for foreign funding of local political parties here are clear. The Political Donations Act bans political parties and organisations from receiving foreign donations.
But could foreign groups influence politics through non-political donations using civil societies as a front?
After all, NGOs have shown they can spark change here.
Said Dr Gillian Koh, a public policy expert at the Institute of Policy Studies: 'Civil society is very much part of the political landscape in Singapore, as it is elsewhere.'
She raised the examples of the Nature Society's robust and ultimately successful campaign to save Pulau Ubin's Chek Jawa and Unifem's advocacy for tougher laws against sex crimes against children.
But she pointed that the potential influence of overseas groups on groups here may be overplayed.
'They may be inspired by certain ideals, but it's not as though they are so easily swayed by foreigners - as if our civil society is ready to be colonised by civil society somewhere else,' she said.
Singapore Management University law lecturer Eugene Tan said no CSO would be breaking the law by virtue of receiving foreign funding as long as they are not recognised as a political organisation.
Duty to reveal
But he said they have an 'ethical duty' to say who funds them so people who give donations can make an informed opinion about the group's motives.
He said there are many groups coming from the West that promote so-called democratic agendas, that may be at odds with the local context.
Mr Skarendal's Silc, for example, has a declared liberal democratic focus.
'It doesn't mean that just because (a CSO) receives foreign funding, it would do the funding agency's bidding,' Prof Tan said.
He added: 'But with perceptions, you cannot blame people if they were to take the view that this group is supporting a particular cause partly or doing something because of the foreign funder.
'It doesn't matter if it's foreign or local, but when it comes to foreign sources of funding, that would raise a potential red flag, because a foreign funding agency may have motives that may not go well with local interests.'
Ms Mathi said finding funds is tough for an advocacy-based group like hers (as opposed to a direct-service volunteer welfare organisation like a charity).
While in other countries, an advocacy group can survive purely working on research and advocacy, it's hard here, she said.
Local groups including foundations, tend to be wary of supporting advocacy groups since these groups are primarily asking for change - often change to government's policies, she said.
The potential donors see it as a risky investnment because they may not know how far a CSO will push the line, and it may return to haunt the donor.
She also pointed out that international organisations and foundations find it hard to build a case to give aid to a CSO in Singapore, as they see us as a developed country.
One group currently looking for funds is socio-political blog The Online Citizen, which put up a page asking for donations on 13 Jul. TOC managing editor Andrew Loh declined to comment.
Gay rights activist Alex Au, who is also a member of Maruah, however, didn't think there was any issue with foreign funding.
'Politics in a global world is globalised. To some extent, Singapore politics cannot be totally restricted to Singaporeans - that's a fact of life,' he said.
In this interconnected world, Mr Au said that human beings have responsibility for other human beings.
But he agreed that funding sources should be as open as possible.
'Any organisation that takes a public profile should act in a way that is in the interest of accountability, to a reasonable extent,' he said.
See Below for Part 2
MS MATHI: NGOs should be savvy enough to see strings attached to funding. --PICTURES: FILE
It set netizens talking.
Allegations flew online that the Swede may have offered funding, a claim both men denied. Eventually, ex-NMP Siew Kum Hong made a police report.
Why the online fuss?
Local political parties are banned from receiving foreign donations, but civil society organisations (CSOs) are not. (See report, top of facing page.)
The NMP is not a member of any political party.
So, should CSOs be considered political entities and be subject to the same rules, as some actively work to influence policies?
Civil activists here say CSOs struggle to find local funding and so may have to consider foreign donors.
However, they agree that CSOs also need to be transparent about their source of funding and be savvy enough to question the agenda of the donors.
So what was the agenda of the Swedish activist, Mr Johan Skarendal?
He is a member of the Swedish International Liberal Centre (Silc), whose avowed goal, as stated on its website, is 'to strengthen organisations and support individuals who develop and promote democracy and human rights'.
Mr Skarendal, 29, is in charge of Silc activities in Singapore and the group is affiliated to the Liberal Party, one of the four political parties in the Swedish government since 2006.
The group has extensive reach globally and funds acitivities which promote its goals.
However, in May, Mr Skarendal denied he was on a funding trip here. He described his visit in April as 'fact-finding'. He declined comment for this report.
He said then: 'I wanted to learn about how prominent Singaporeans involved in civil society viewed the human rights issues in Singapore.'
Former NMP Braema Mathi said it would be good for civil society organisations and non-government organisations (NGOs) to be savvy enough to see the strings attached before deciding to take the cash.
Ms Mathi is the chairman of a local human rights organisation called Maruah (Malay for dignity). Members of Maruah were approached by Mr Skarendal too.
Ms Mathi said not all local groups may be savvy enough.
'You have every right to reject the donor. Yes, there can be conditions, but you also have to look around and see if you are keen on those conditions,' she said.
'If those conditions don't align with what you do, then you have to reject the donor.'
She pointed out that she once declined a partnership with a local group when she found out the funds came with a religious agenda.
The key thing is to be transparent about the funds, said Ms Mathi.
The rules for foreign funding of local political parties here are clear. The Political Donations Act bans political parties and organisations from receiving foreign donations.
But could foreign groups influence politics through non-political donations using civil societies as a front?
After all, NGOs have shown they can spark change here.
Said Dr Gillian Koh, a public policy expert at the Institute of Policy Studies: 'Civil society is very much part of the political landscape in Singapore, as it is elsewhere.'
She raised the examples of the Nature Society's robust and ultimately successful campaign to save Pulau Ubin's Chek Jawa and Unifem's advocacy for tougher laws against sex crimes against children.
But she pointed that the potential influence of overseas groups on groups here may be overplayed.
'They may be inspired by certain ideals, but it's not as though they are so easily swayed by foreigners - as if our civil society is ready to be colonised by civil society somewhere else,' she said.
Singapore Management University law lecturer Eugene Tan said no CSO would be breaking the law by virtue of receiving foreign funding as long as they are not recognised as a political organisation.
Duty to reveal
But he said they have an 'ethical duty' to say who funds them so people who give donations can make an informed opinion about the group's motives.
He said there are many groups coming from the West that promote so-called democratic agendas, that may be at odds with the local context.
Mr Skarendal's Silc, for example, has a declared liberal democratic focus.
'It doesn't mean that just because (a CSO) receives foreign funding, it would do the funding agency's bidding,' Prof Tan said.
He added: 'But with perceptions, you cannot blame people if they were to take the view that this group is supporting a particular cause partly or doing something because of the foreign funder.
'It doesn't matter if it's foreign or local, but when it comes to foreign sources of funding, that would raise a potential red flag, because a foreign funding agency may have motives that may not go well with local interests.'
Ms Mathi said finding funds is tough for an advocacy-based group like hers (as opposed to a direct-service volunteer welfare organisation like a charity).
While in other countries, an advocacy group can survive purely working on research and advocacy, it's hard here, she said.
Local groups including foundations, tend to be wary of supporting advocacy groups since these groups are primarily asking for change - often change to government's policies, she said.
The potential donors see it as a risky investnment because they may not know how far a CSO will push the line, and it may return to haunt the donor.
She also pointed out that international organisations and foundations find it hard to build a case to give aid to a CSO in Singapore, as they see us as a developed country.
One group currently looking for funds is socio-political blog The Online Citizen, which put up a page asking for donations on 13 Jul. TOC managing editor Andrew Loh declined to comment.
Gay rights activist Alex Au, who is also a member of Maruah, however, didn't think there was any issue with foreign funding.
'Politics in a global world is globalised. To some extent, Singapore politics cannot be totally restricted to Singaporeans - that's a fact of life,' he said.
In this interconnected world, Mr Au said that human beings have responsibility for other human beings.
But he agreed that funding sources should be as open as possible.
'Any organisation that takes a public profile should act in a way that is in the interest of accountability, to a reasonable extent,' he said.
See Below for Part 2
