Fridae

A group of Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE) members including former committee members and founder members have called for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to consider a vote of no confidence in the new Exco.

Fridae reported on Apr 10 that nine of the 12 Executive Committee positions went to newcomers during the annual general meeting (AGM) on March 28. Over 100 people had turned up to vote and many of these voters had only just joined AWARE and had never participated in any of its programmes.

Dozens of news reports and letters to the forum pages have dominated local headlines in recent weeks.

In her first media interview on Channel News Asia's half-hour Talking Point programme which aired on Sunday night, new president Josie Lau denied that the new Exco's takeover was a planned coup although the local media has revealed that at least five of the new Exco members attend the same church - Church of our Saviour, which is known for it strong and vocal anti-gay stance.

According to a Straits Times report, aside from Lau and her husband Dr Alan Chin Yew Liang who wrote in a letter to the press that a "gay lifestyle" is "very unhealthy", the other members in the new Exco who attend the same 4000-member church are believed to be Charlotte Wong, Irene Yee, Jenica Chua, Maureen Ong and Sally Ang. When queried, they declined to reveal if they knew each other before sweeping the elections almost a month ago.

The paper further earlier highlighted that some members of the new committee and outspoken members from the floor during the AGM have written to The Straits Times Forum Page opposing the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code which criminalises sexual relations between men. AWARE was one of a number of non governmental groups in Singapore which called for both Sections 377 and 377A of the Penal Code to be repealed completely in 2007.

Following Lau's TV interview, the New Paper's Hedy Khoo noted the "10 precious minutes of air-time on national television did little to give any fresh insights into the rife speculation of the new Exco's motives for taking over Aware."

Khoo wrote: "When asked what Aware would do if they find that a woman has been discriminated in a company because of her sexuality, Ms Lau skirted the issue by saying Aware is a secular organisation. She said: 'We are not there to push our personal beliefs or personal religious affiliations.' She added that sexual discrimination is a controversial topic which the Exco will have to discuss."

Prominent social commentator Alex Au noted on his Yawningbread blog: "It's an utterly incompetent reply... Unlike how easy it was for her to mention equality on the grounds of race, religion and male/female gender, she was stunningly incapable of saying the same of sexual orientation, describing it only as a "controversial topic". Please. Gay equality is only problematic if you don't believe in non-discrimination and equality. If you did, it would roll off your tongue as easily as race, religion, etc." (Click on the related link 'Pirates ahoy! Gay netizens and the AWARE hijacking' below.)

Shortly after the announcement that Lau was the new president, her employer DBS bank - where she works as the vice-president for consumer banking group cards and unsecured loans - issued a statement making clear that it had told her not to take that position and that the bank is conducting an internal review as she had breached its staff code of conduct twice. Her department was also responsible for nominating Christian fundamentalist group Focus of the Family (FOTF) last November to receive a S$15,000 donation as part of its Christmas credit card donation drive.

Petition for an EGM to consider a vote of no confidence in the new Exco
160 old and new AWARE members have petitioned for an EGM to consider a motion of no confidence in the executive committee.

On its recently launched Save AWARE web site (we-are-aware.sg), the group listed its grounds for the move:

1. Lack of Transparency
The group has to-date not once communicated its plans and specific goals to its members, despite questions raised by the media. The secrecy of the group is disturbing and gives rise to greater suspicion.

2. Lack of Experience
8 of the 9 new members have been in AWARE for less than 5 months; none of them has served in AWARE committees nor participated in AWARE initiatives as volunteers.

3. Unjustified Termination and Disregard of Experienced Volunteers
The new Exco has terminated all the current heads of the AWARE sub-committees, including the summary dismissal of Braema Mathi, Chairperson of AWARE's CEDAW Committee (CEDAW stands for Convention for the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women). Ms Mathi is Singapore's leading NGO expert on CEDAW. Constance Singam and Claire Nazar have resigned from the new Exco on the grounds that their advice and direction have been totally disregarded by members of the new Exco.

4. Undermining of Fundamental Values
The new Exco have not openly declared their intentions but there is strong evidence of religious ideology that goes against AWARE's values, such as full equality in the home between wife and husband, the right of a woman to choose to have an abortion, and tolerance of homosexuality.

When contacted by Fridae, Margaret Thomas, spokesperson and a founding member of Aware said that members, funding organisations and other supporters owe it to "Aware and to ourselves to do all we can to bring it back into safe hands� to ensure that it stays true to the values and goals with which the organisation was founded nearly 25 years.

"Members who fear that the ideological stance of this new team will lead to a dilution or even a reversal of the values that have defined AWARE all these years have a legitimate way to try to remove them."

When queried about how the new exco can be replaced, Thomas explained that the AWARE constitution does not allow for the new Exco to "act contrary to the expressed wishes of the General Meeting without prior reference to it and always remains subordinate to the General Meetings".

"So if a majority of members at the EGM vote that they have no confidence in the Exco, the next step will be a vote on the resolution to remove the Exco."

The group will have a team ready for election.

While the issue of AWARE's pro-gay stance has dominated the news, other issues that hang in the balance include women's right to sexual and reproductive health, single motherhood, and supporting and conducting comprehensive sexuality education in schools to allow young women to make responsible choices about their sexual health.

The EGM will be held on Saturday, 2 May 2009 from 2 - 5pm at the First Choice Auditorium, 3 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh #01-01 HSR Building. Only AWARE members can attend and vote at the EGM. If you are not yet a member and wish to attend, you should sign up online at the AWARE website or at the door on May 2. Signing up online is a two-step process - register for an account first, then sign up as a member. The membership fees are $40 per annum. Only female Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents are allowed to vote in person. If you are overseas or male, you may support by signing the ONLINE PETITION.