1. "Live music returns to Thaipusam after 40 years - CNA 24 Jan 2016
Police and volunteer numbers have been increased at this year's Thaipusam procession to ensure the event proceeds smoothly and safely, Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam said.
Mr Shanmugam said that one of the things he found striking about the event was the number of non-Indians involved, carrying kavadis and supporting those who were taking part in the procession.
Kavadis, meaning "sacrifice at every step", are decorated structures that are hooked onto the bodies of participants and are an integral part of Thaipusam festivities."
Well, live music is BACK after an absence of 40 years due, in part, to the voices of the involved community being heard by a government that finally relented after weighing the risks and benefits carefully.
May the event goes peacefully as the devotees 'cleansed' themselves with this ritual that they believe in.
2. "More can be done to avoid overlap of charity, community efforts: Tan Chuan-Jin - CNA 24 Jan 2016
SINGAPORE: More can be done to avoid overlapping efforts between charities and community help groups, said Social and Family Development Minister Tan Chuan-Jin on Saturday (Jan 23).
"We sometimes don't collaborate as much as we should because we like to maintain our own space and independence, and we should retain that," said Mr Tan. "But all I ask is that we converse or meet up - just engage in the simple effort of sitting down to talk to each other so you can say, 'I didn't know you were doing this' or 'let's coordinate so that we don't overlap'".
The event also saw the launch of a one-stop elder care pilot programme that aims to meet the social, physical and mental care needs of seniors.
Called the 'Care in the Community' programme, it comprises social wellness programmes, befriending services for the social care of vulnerable elderly as well as to monitor their chronic disease and mental health conditions, and home care to assist the physically weak with daily living activities.
The aim is to help the elderly stay in the community for as long as possible, delaying and reducing the need for institutionalisation.
Mr Tan said that with better collaboration, such efforts and others across Singapore can make a tremendous difference by 2030, when the Republic and other countries begin to feel the weight of an ageing society."
Each time we give to a monk or someone that looks like in a religious get-up, we tend to do it just because it is GOOD to give a religious person without wanting to know IF that someone REALLY is a religious person. The same with Charity!
Lessons for me are:
1. while we avoid doubting the sincerity of people in the charitable sector, we DO want to be conscious and do our due diligence before donating money to its causes. Devoting time and efforts to help is another story as you will be able to observe close-up o if the people are indeed sincere and working on charitable issues;
2. while some charities work on the usual suspects like: youth at risk, elderly that need care and help, the physically or/& mentally challenged, etc., there are some with VERY specific focus and interest like: cat or dog or animal protection, religious and/or clan-based. In these cases, since there is NO COMMON causes, the opportunities for collaboration may be lesser;
3. hence for those that championed the COMMON CAUSES, there MUST be tons of opportunities for collaboration and create the synergy of '1+1 > 2'. A good place to start would be with the NSSC (National Social Services Council?) with a common database of NGOs/VWOs sorting into 'common causes each championed'. With education and influence of avoiding or eliminating the 'NOT invented here' mind-set, these NGOs/VWOs CAN begin to collaborate and reap out-size benefits vs. going it alone (for ego or whatever reason)!
A GOOD call to ACTION by Minister Tan. Let's see IF someone will respond to this call and ALSO to TRACK the progress on this vision!
Police and volunteer numbers have been increased at this year's Thaipusam procession to ensure the event proceeds smoothly and safely, Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam said.
Mr Shanmugam said that one of the things he found striking about the event was the number of non-Indians involved, carrying kavadis and supporting those who were taking part in the procession.
Kavadis, meaning "sacrifice at every step", are decorated structures that are hooked onto the bodies of participants and are an integral part of Thaipusam festivities."
Well, live music is BACK after an absence of 40 years due, in part, to the voices of the involved community being heard by a government that finally relented after weighing the risks and benefits carefully.
May the event goes peacefully as the devotees 'cleansed' themselves with this ritual that they believe in.
2. "More can be done to avoid overlap of charity, community efforts: Tan Chuan-Jin - CNA 24 Jan 2016
SINGAPORE: More can be done to avoid overlapping efforts between charities and community help groups, said Social and Family Development Minister Tan Chuan-Jin on Saturday (Jan 23).
"We sometimes don't collaborate as much as we should because we like to maintain our own space and independence, and we should retain that," said Mr Tan. "But all I ask is that we converse or meet up - just engage in the simple effort of sitting down to talk to each other so you can say, 'I didn't know you were doing this' or 'let's coordinate so that we don't overlap'".
The event also saw the launch of a one-stop elder care pilot programme that aims to meet the social, physical and mental care needs of seniors.
Called the 'Care in the Community' programme, it comprises social wellness programmes, befriending services for the social care of vulnerable elderly as well as to monitor their chronic disease and mental health conditions, and home care to assist the physically weak with daily living activities.
The aim is to help the elderly stay in the community for as long as possible, delaying and reducing the need for institutionalisation.
Mr Tan said that with better collaboration, such efforts and others across Singapore can make a tremendous difference by 2030, when the Republic and other countries begin to feel the weight of an ageing society."
Each time we give to a monk or someone that looks like in a religious get-up, we tend to do it just because it is GOOD to give a religious person without wanting to know IF that someone REALLY is a religious person. The same with Charity!
Lessons for me are:
1. while we avoid doubting the sincerity of people in the charitable sector, we DO want to be conscious and do our due diligence before donating money to its causes. Devoting time and efforts to help is another story as you will be able to observe close-up o if the people are indeed sincere and working on charitable issues;
2. while some charities work on the usual suspects like: youth at risk, elderly that need care and help, the physically or/& mentally challenged, etc., there are some with VERY specific focus and interest like: cat or dog or animal protection, religious and/or clan-based. In these cases, since there is NO COMMON causes, the opportunities for collaboration may be lesser;
3. hence for those that championed the COMMON CAUSES, there MUST be tons of opportunities for collaboration and create the synergy of '1+1 > 2'. A good place to start would be with the NSSC (National Social Services Council?) with a common database of NGOs/VWOs sorting into 'common causes each championed'. With education and influence of avoiding or eliminating the 'NOT invented here' mind-set, these NGOs/VWOs CAN begin to collaborate and reap out-size benefits vs. going it alone (for ego or whatever reason)!
A GOOD call to ACTION by Minister Tan. Let's see IF someone will respond to this call and ALSO to TRACK the progress on this vision!
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