Interfaith dialogue, also known as interreligious dialogue, refers to cooperative, constructive, and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels.
There is a long history of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender activity in Singapore. Male homosexuality was outlawed under British rule, despite being acknowledged among the local population. Following Japanese occupation during World War II and the country gaining independence, homosexuality and transvestism were visible as a street scene, and from the 1970s were catered for in some nightclubs. In that decade also, Singapore became a centre of gender-reassignment surgery.
A Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) is a member of the Parliament of Singapore who is appointed by the president. They are not affiliated to any political party and do not represent any constituency. There are currently nine NMPs in the Parliament.
The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people in Singapore have evolved over the decades. Same-sex sexual activity is legal for both males and females; for men it was officially legalised in 2022 after being de facto decriminalised since 2007, and for women it was always legal. Prior to 2022, same-sex sexual activity between males was de jure illegal under the British colonial-era Section 377A of the Penal Code. The law had been de facto unenforced for decades. In February 2022, the Court of Appeal in the Supreme Court reaffirmed that 377A cannot be used to prosecute men for having sex with other men, and that it is "unenforceable in its entirety". Transgender rights in the country are also progressive in the region, which included Singapore being the first country in Asia to legalise sex reassignment surgery in 1973.
The National Pledge is an oath of allegiance to the Republic of Singapore. It is commonly recited by Singaporeans in unison at public events, especially in schools, in the Singapore Armed Forces and during the National Day Parade.
The Sedition Act 1948 was a Singaporean statute law which prohibited seditious acts and speech; and the printing, publication, sale, distribution, reproduction and importation of seditious publications. The essential ingredient of any offence under the Act was the finding of a "seditious tendency", and the intention of the offender is irrelevant. The Act also listed several examples of what is not a seditious tendency, and provides defences for accused persons in a limited number of situations.
The 1964 race riots in Singapore involved a series of communal race-based civil disturbances and racially-motivated violence between the Malays and Chinese in Singapore following its merger with Malaysia in 16 September 1963, and were considered to be the "worst and most prolonged in Singapore's postwar history". The term is also used to refer specifically to two riots on 21 July 1964 and 2 September 1964, particularly the former, during which 23 people died and 454 others suffered severe injuries.
The World Congress of Imams and Rabbis for Peace "brings together Imams and Rabbis who formally seek to initiate rapprochement between Judaism and Islam".
Racial Harmony Day is a day in Singapore to promote racial and ethnic harmony within the nation. It is observed on 21 July every year, with most activities organised by schools and grassroot organisations, including religious groups.
An OB marker, short for "out of bounds marker", is used in Singapore to denote what topics are permissible for public discussion. Discussion topics that go beyond the OB marker, are considered to be either societal, cultural or political taboos. The entire phrase "out of bounds marker", however, is rarely used within the political landscape.
The Racial and Religious Harmony Circles, formerly known as Inter-Racial and Religious Confidence Circles (IRCCs), are local-level inter-faith platforms in every constituency, formed to promote racial and religious harmony. The work of the Harmony Circle is instrumental in strengthening social cohesion and supports the SGSecure movement.
The concept of race or ethnicity in contemporary Singapore emerged from the attitudes of the colonial authorities towards race and ethnicity. Before the early 2000s, the four major races in Singapore were the Chinese, Malays, Indians and Eurasians. Today, the Chinese-Malay-Indian-Others (CMIO) model is the dominant organising framework of race in Singapore. Race informs government policies on a variety of issues such as political participation, public housing and education. However, the state's management of race, as well as the relevance of the CMIO model, has been a point of contention amongst some in recent years.
Freedom of religion in Singapore is a guaranteed constitutionally protected right. Article 15 of the Constitution of Singapore states: "Every person has the right to profess and practise his religion and to propagate it." and allows believers the freedom to assemble and worship without limitation or interference.
European Council of Religious Leaders (ECRL) is a European interreligious council for cooperation between senior leaders of religious traditions represented in Europe (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism)). The ECRL is one out of five regional interreligious councils within the global movement, Religions for Peace. The Council held its inaugural meeting in Oslo in 2002.
The Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act 1990 ("MRHA") is a Singapore statute which, according to its long title, provides for the maintenance of religious harmony, for the establishment of a Presidential Council for Religious Harmony ("PCRH"), and for matters connected therewith.
In Singapore, language planning is associated with government planning. In this top-down approach, the government influences the acquisition of languages and their respective functions within the speech community through the education system. Language planning aims to facilitate effective communication within the speech community, which can result in a language shift or language assimilation. The goals of language planning are very much dependent on the political and social forces present in Singapore during two distinct periods: Colonisation by the British and the Post-Independence period after 1965.
Singaporeans are the citizens and nationals of the sovereign island city-state of Singapore. Singapore is home to a people of a variety of ethno-racial-religious origins, with the city-state itself being a multi-racial, multi-cultural, multi-religious, multi-denominational, multi-lingual, and multi-ethnic country. Singaporeans of Chinese, Malay, Indian and Eurasian descent have made up the overwhelming majority of the population since the 19th century. The Singaporean diaspora is also far-reaching worldwide.
Presidential elections were scheduled to be held in Singapore on 13 September 2017. Following amendments to the Constitution of Singapore, which resulted in the elections being reserved for candidates from the Malay community, incumbent president Tony Tan, who had been elected in 2011, was ineligible to seek re-election.
The 2013 Singapore cyberattacks were a series of cyberattacks initiated by the hacktivist organisation Anonymous, conducted partly in response to web censorship regulations in Singapore. A member of Anonymous, known by the online handle "The Messiah", claimed responsibility for spearheading the attacks. On 12 November 2013, James Raj was charged in a Singapore court as the alleged "Messiah".
Alvin Tan Sheng Hui is a Singaporean politician who has been serving as Minister of State for Trade and Industry and Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth concurrently since 2020. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Moulmein–Cairnhill division of Tanjong Pagar GRC since 2020.