The Straits Times recently published an open letter questioning whether Singapore is "ready to accept" the "gay movement" that is "being legalised in many Western countries."
The statement came after Singaporean District Judge Shobha G. Nair commented earlier this month on perceived risks of allowing "single male[s] ... with a different sexual orientation" to adopt boys, but suggested that the courts were "not the forum" for this type of examination.
Tan Pin Ho, the author of the letter—which appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times—argued that gay parents were "choosing" their lifestyle, but children could not make such a "choice" in relation to their parents' sexual orientation.
He suggested that cases involving LGBT parenting, custody, and adoption would continue to come to the forefront, and that it was up to the nation's Parliament to "decide now ... the direction Singapore should proceed."
The debate follows a case from late 2017 in which a gay Singaporean doctor fathered a child through a US-based surrogacy after being denied the opportunity to adopt in his home country with his longterm male partner. While the child—who is an American citizen—can currently live with his father, Judge Nair did not allow for the single-parent adoption to go through, citing Singapore's questionable views on surrogacy, and accusing the doctor of trying to go through "a back door" in the system.
The Straits Times recently published an open letter questioning whether Singapore is "ready to accept" the "gay movement" that is "being legalised in many Western countries."
The statement came after Singaporean District Judge Shobha G. Nair commented earlier this month on perceived risks of allowing "single male[s] ... with a different sexual orientation" to adopt boys, but suggested that the courts were "not the forum" for this type of examination.
Tan Pin Ho, the author of the letter—which appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times—argued that gay parents were "choosing" their lifestyle, but children could not make such a "choice" in relation to their parents' sexual orientation.
He suggested that cases involving LGBT parenting, custody, and adoption would continue to come to the forefront, and that it was up to the nation's Parliament to "decide now ... the direction Singapore should proceed."
The debate follows a case from late 2017 in which a gay Singaporean doctor fathered a child through a US-based surrogacy after being denied the opportunity to adopt in his home country with his longterm male partner. While the child—who is an American citizen—can currently live with his father, Judge Nair did not allow for the single-parent adoption to go through, citing Singapore's questionable views on surrogacy, and accusing the doctor of trying to go through "a back door" in the system.
