- B E R I T A _ H A R I _ I N I _ 2 0 0 8 -

fatz

April 24, 2008         
MediaCorp fined for airing show featuring gay couple

THE Media Development Authority (MDA) on Thursday fined MediaCorp TV Channel 5 S$15,000 for airing a show that depicted a gay couple and their baby in a way that 'promotes a gay lifestyle', MDA said in a statement on its website.

The station aired an episode of a home and decor series called Find and Design that featured a gay couple wanting to transform their game room into a new nursery for their adopted baby.

MDA said the episode contained scenes of the gay couple with their baby and the presenter's congratulations and acknowledgment of them as a family unit 'in a way which normalises their gay lifestyle and unconventional family setup'.

The episode was in breach of rules on free-to-air television programming, which disallows content that promotes, justifies or glamourises gay lifestyles, the statement said.

Earlier this month, MDA fined StarHub Cable Vision S$10,000, for airing a commercial that showed two lesbians kissing. -- AP

fatz

Singapura : 25 April 2008         

BUKU PANDUAN SEKS, SEKSUALITI KELUARGA

Bantu ibu bapa tangani isu anak remaja

Oleh
Nazri Hadi Saparin

DARIPADA mengesan jika anak remaja aktif melakukan hubungan seks kepada menjelaskan kepada anak anda bagaimana bayi dilahirkan, semua ini terkandung dalam buku panduan mengenai isu-isu seks dan seksualiti bagi ibu bapa yang bakal dilancar lusa.

Diterbitkan Lembaga Penggalak Kesihatan (HPB), buku dalam bahasa Melayu bertajuk Apa Ibu Bapa Perlu Tahu dan Lakukan - Seksualiti Remaja itu dihasilkan syarikat Suchi Success Initiatives Pte Ltd.

Pemiliknya, Encik Mohamed Khair Mohamed Noor, menjelaskan kandungan buku setebal kira-kira 50 halaman itu berdasarkan pengalaman beliau mengendalikan program-program seksualiti bagi remaja dan ibu bapa sejak dua tahun lalu.

Encik Khair berkata panduan yang disampaikan bukan bersifat teori, malah praktikal yang beliau praktikkan dalam program-programnya.

Menurutnya, masih ramai ibu bapa yang berasa kurang selesa berbual mengenai topik seks dengan anak mereka.

Yang membincangkan isu seks pula tidak melakukannya dengan terbuka, lantas menyampaikan mesej yang salah.

Memberi contoh daripada program kendalian beliau, Encik Khair berkata ramai ibu bapa yang kurang bersedia menerangkan kepada anak perempuan mereka isu mudah seperti kedatangan haid.

Mengenai seks remaja pula, beliau berkata ramai mengesyaki anak remaja mereka aktif melakukan hubungan seks tetapi tidak tahu cara untuk bersemuka dengan anak mereka itu.

'Mereka ini bukan hanya daripada keluarga pincang atau berpendapatan rendah. Ramai juga daripada keluarga berpendapatan sederhana dan tinggi yang berpendidikan,' ujarnya.

Encik Khair berharap buku panduan itu dapat membantu ibu bapa menangani isu-isu seks anak remaja mereka, sekali gus mengatasi masalah Jangkitan Menerusi Seks (STI) yang kini meruncing.

Jumlah remaja yang terkena STI dijangka mencapai paras tertinggi tahun ini.

Dalam sembilan bulan pertama tahun lalu sahaja, seramai 657 remaja mengalami STI berbanding 238 bagi keseluruhan 2002.

Buku panduan itu akan dilancar di onepeople.sg di Lorong 1 Toa Payoh sempena satu seminar percuma bagi ibu bapa anjuran HPB.

SweetCandy

Dlm Newpaper tdy(25.04.2008).. Family Day will be declare as Public Holiday this 24 May 2008.. yippee!!

The purpose for us to spend quality time with families.. yahoodabadoo.

fatz2

Over 300 counterfeit copies of Microsoft software seized
By Heather Tan, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 25 April 2008 1833 hrs



SINGAPORE: Police have seized more than 300 high-end counterfeit copies of Microsoft software worth about S$65,000 from three retail outlets in Sim Lim Square. The software included Microsoft Windows XP Professional and Windows Vista.

The counterfeit copies were identical to the originals, making it almost impossible to tell the difference.

More than 50 copies of infringing 慍ertificates of Authority

fatz2

April 25, 2008         
33 caregivers had to call these two containers home
Manpower Ministry investigates Econ Nursing Home, which housed its employees in cramped conditions
By Sujin Thomas & Melissa Kok


LIVING OUT OF A BOX: These two 20-foot containers had housed the 33 caregivers from Econ Nursing Home, a few of whom had lived in them for about 10 years.


TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT: The cramped living quarters for the staff left them with little space to store their belongings.

BY DAY, they cared for 160 elderly people at the Econ Nursing Home services at Bukit Timah Avenue.

When their shift ended, the 33 women - nursing aides and health-care attendants from the Philippines, Myanmar and Sri Lanka - retired to their rooms - two 20-foot containers and a makeshift pre-fabricated room stacked on them.

The temporary quarters, similar to those found at construction sites, had been home for the women, most of whom have been here for two to six years, with a few living in them for about 10 years.

That ended two weeks ago. When alerted to their plight by The Straits Times, Ministry of Manpower (MOM) officers visited the grounds and told the Econ management that the workers had to be moved.

An MOM spokesman said: 'Apart from overcrowding, the living quarters do not meet the standards imposed on employers of foreign workers.'

The workers' living quarters were cramped with about 20 double-decker beds placed close to one another, leaving the workers little space to store their belongings.

Staff also had to share toilets and bathrooms with the residents.

The women in their 20s, who bathe, feed and care for the 160 elderly patients at the home, earn about $300 to $410 monthly, after about $300 is deducted to pay for their food and lodging.

Asked why they had lived in those conditions for years, some said their complaints to management were not acted on.

They also alleged that they are subject to a daily 10pm curfew, and had been denied days off and not been properly fed on some occasions.

MOM said it has warned Econ about the living conditions at Bukit Timah and is investigating the other complaints. It will also check on other homes run by the company.

The Bukit Timah Avenue home - which has been operating since 1990 - is one of seven run by the listed China Healthcare Group, formerly known as Econ Healthcare Group.

When contacted by The Straits Times, a company spokesman said it regretted the incident, the first in its 21-year history here, and had carried out remedial action immediately.

The workers have been moved into the main building and the containers are now used as staff rest areas.

On why staff needed to live on-site, the spokesman explained that housing them elsewhere would lead to higher operating costs.

Also, for the safety of the elderly residents it was good to have the staff on site to help in any emergency evacuation.

He added that the problem was largely linked to the lease for the land, which is renewed on a monthly basis.

A permanent solution would be a longer lease to make upgrading an economically viable option, which was the company's intention from Day 1.

Yesterday, the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) said a longer tenure for the premises could not be given as the site was under study for development.

These plans have since been finalised, and SLA as well as other public agencies are working with Econ to help move the residents out.

Added the SLA: 'Our focus is to ensure that alternative arrangements can be made for all the existing residents and sufficient time is given for the transition.'

[email protected]

[email protected]

fatz2

61-year-old Madam Chan Yoke Chan (above), who survived breast cancer, was killed in a road accident on Saturday morning, and her husband was so distraught he tried to end his life.-- ST PHOTO: EDDIE ONG

April 27, 2008         
Cancer survivor fatally hit by cab; hubby tries to end life
By Aw Cheng Wei


1 Madam Chan dies after being hit by a taxi while crossing Sims Avenue after a dragon boat training session. She was walking to Kallang MRT station. -- ST PHOTOS: WONG KWAI CHOW



A woman who survived breast cancer was killed in a road accident yesterday morning, and her husband was so distraught he tried to end his life.

For more than 20 minutes, he hit his head against the road and tried to bite off his tongue. He was finally restrained by paramedics.

The tragedy unfolded at about 10.15am.

Madam Chan Yoke Chan, 61, a member of Paddlers In The Pink, a dragon boat team comprising breast cancer survivors, had just finished training at Marina Reservoir in Kallang.

She was crossing Sims Avenue towards Kallang MRT station when she was knocked down by a taxi. She was about 50m from a pedestrian crossing when she was hit.

Eyewitness Sun Ai Cheng, 29, who was waiting for a bus on the opposite side of the road, said in Mandarin: 'I heard a loud bang and when I turned around, the woman was tumbling from the taxi. She was thrown 6 to 7m from the taxi.'

The other members of the dragon boat team were changing in the toilets at Marina Reservoir when the accident happened.

A passer-by recognised Madam Chan's pink shoes and her paddle - trademarks of the team - and informed them about it. They rushed to the scene.

At 11.05am, Madam Chan's husband, Mr Chan Gee Kan, 65, and their 26-year-old daughter arrived. He looked for witnesses to the accident before the reality of his wife's death hit him.

He started banging his head on the road and had to be held back by passers-by, including The Sunday Times team who was there, and family members.

He then tried to bite his own tongue and stab himself with his keys, and asked a police officer to hand him a gun to end his life.

'I have no choice, I want to accompany her. She will be so lonely,' he cried.

Four men had to pull him back and he was later strapped down to a stretcher-wheelchair by paramedics to calm him down.

Paddlers In The Pink members were shocked by the death.

Mrs Angelina Ong, 53, its team manager, said of Madam Chan: 'She was so dear to us, like a family member. She was the most wonderful person you could have as a friend.'

The team would usually have lunch together after their Saturday morning training but Madam Chan had left earlier saying she had to meet her daughter.

The 63-year-old taxi driver was in a state of shock.

He apologised profusely to Madam Chan's husband before the latter's breakdown, and the two men finally shook hands.

Police said the taxi driver has been arrested for causing death by a negligent act.

[email protected]

fatz2

April 27, 2008         
Charity charges volunteers $20 fee
The sum helps to cover the cost of T-shirts, food and cleaning supplies, says Habitat for Humanity
By Shuli Sudderuddin


The $20 fee did not deter volunteer Irene Pashapa, 49, from signing up for Operation Homeworks, a project to clean the homes of needy old folk. -- ST PHOTO: LIM CHIN PING

Should one have to pay to do charity? At least one organisation thinks so.

The Singapore outfit of global charity group Habitat for Humanity (HFH) has a project called Operation Homeworks. It involves cleaning the homes of elderly folk about once a month.

Those who volunteer for it have to pay a $20 'participation fee'. This month's event took place at Redhill yesterday. HFH said the event is 'oversubscribed' and people had to be turned away.

One volunteer, programmer Yap Hui Fang, 25, said: 'This is a charity and money is needed for cleaning supplies so it should come from the people. I'm okay with paying.'

But one regular volunteer with other charities, consultant Tan Ni Er, 39, found the scheme strange.

He received an e-mail recently from HFH asking for volunteers for Operation Homeworks and was perturbed enough to post about it on online community sgForums. He said volunteers 'already spend time for a cause and pay for things like transport'.

In response, Mr Yong Teck Meng, national director for HFH, which is based in Geylang, said the $20 covered the cost of a T-shirt allowing volunteers to be easily identified, lunch, refreshments and cleaning equipment, which is left behind for the elderly.

Part of the money is also used to offset such costs as furniture replacement and fumigation. HFH also has corporate sponsors and non-volunteer donors.

Mr Yong added: 'People think effort is sufficient but volunteerism also involves donations and fund-raising. Our approach calls for deeper involvement and volunteers typically understand. We are able to account for how we utilise donors' money and we explain our approach and leave it to the volunteers to respond.'

The needy elderly at Redhill were happy with the clean-up. Madam Tan Kim Neo, 67, whose house had been bedbug-ridden, said: 'My legs are weak and I cannot shop for cleaning supplies, so I'm happy the volunteers leave some for me.'

A check with other charities found divided views. Ms Irene Jung, assistant secretary of the Thong Keng Welfare Services Society, said: 'It's strange to charge volunteers because they already provide us with services. We have even given our volunteers free T-shirts and dinner.'

But Mr Desmond Koh, executive director of the Boys' Brigade, Singapore, said charging volunteers was fair if they were aware of it. Mrs Tan Chee Koon, chief executive of the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre, agreed: 'If a programme is well thought-out and beneficial, it's acceptable to ask volunteers to contribute a fraction of the costs if the agency is upfront about it and transparent about what the money is being used for.'

[email protected]

fatz2

NTUC chief says retrenchments in 2008 could be higher than last year
By S.Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 26 April 2008 1813 hrs

SINGAPORE: Despite efforts to create more new jobs, retrenchment numbers this year could be higher than last year, as companies are continuing to relocate elsewhere.

Still, Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), Mr Lim Swee Say, said that Singapore's unemployment rate is among the lowest in the world.

He added that this is due to the efforts of the tripartite partners' in the last five to ten years to minimise the mismatch between jobs and skills.

The NTUC chief said that Singapore is among the top ten countries in the world that enjoys full employment today. Last year, some 234,900 jobs were created and unemployment stood at 2.1 per cent. This was a 10-year low.

However, Mr Lim warned against sliding into complacency because the pace of restructuring among companies is expected to pick up this year.

He said: "In the process of economic restructuring, jobs may be relocated to lower cost locations. And yet at the same time, as we create new jobs and better paying jobs, we would be able to help existing workers take on new paying jobs through a process of what we call redeployment.

"The job employment opportunities in Singapore is like a ladder. On this ladder, different persons will join the ladder at different points. But once you are on this ladder, we want to create the space for everyone to move up."

Under the process of redeployment, a worker retrenched from one company is trained under the Job Recreation Programme and then redeployed to another company. This could be for the same type of job he was doing before or an entirely different job.

The Labour chief said that one way forward is for the workforce to remain productive, especially when there is no way Singapore can resist global challenges.

The labour unions' vision is for the Singapore workforce to always remain the best in the world. And in order to achieve that, Mr Lim feels that workers must not lose sight of the importance of training and re-training to upgrade their skills.

In fact during previous downturns, plans like the Skills Redevelopment Programme and the Job Re-creation Programme have played a big role in ensuring that today's workers remain employable.

Mr Lim's vision for Singapore is to go for the triple achievement of full employment, higher growth rate and one of the highest employment rates for all ages and both sexes.

While this will not be easy, he believes Singapore has a better chance of succeeding because of its unique strength in tripartism. - CNA/vm

fatz2

April 28, 2008         
Student hit teacher who stopped him from leaving classroom[Size=1
By Elena Chong, Court Correspondent

A 15-YEAR-OLD student assaulted a teacher who tried to stop him from leaving the classroom without permission.

The juvenile, who cannot be named, pleaded guilty to punching, pushing and holding onto the neck of the 34-year-old teacher at a school in the eastern part of Singapore on Feb 1.

The Juvenile Court heard that at about 11am that day, the juvenile assaulted the teacher who tried to stop him from leaving.

The student used his shoulder to hit the victim's chest, and punched him a few times on the chest.

When the teacher tried to break free, the boy held onto the victim's neck and pushed him to the wall, causing him to fall.

The teacher lodged a police report after seeking treatment in hospital.

The court called for a probation report on May 27. Bail of $8,000 was offered.

fatz2

Singapura : 28 April 2008        
         
KERETA HADIAH KEMPEN JIMAT ELEKTRIK

SATU pertandingan bagi menggalak keluarga setempat mengurangkan bil elektrik mereka sebanyak 10 peratus dilancarkan semalam.

Keluarga yang berjaya mengurangkan penggunaan elektrik sebanyak 10 peratus antara Mei dengan Ogos ini, berbanding empat bulan pertama tahun ini, berpeluang menyertai satu cabutan bertuah.

Hadiah pertama cabutan bertuah itu ialah sebuah kereta jenis hybrid. Sembilan hadian lain, termasuk set hawa dingin, peti sejuk dan televisyen, turut disediakan.

Borang penyertaannya terdapat di laman E2 NEA di www.e2Singapore.gov.sg dan dalam satu kit maklumat mengenai panduan menjimatkan elektrik yang akan diedarkan Agensi Sekitaran Kebangsaan (NEA) kepada 1.12 juta rumah bulan depan.

Ketika melancarkan Cabaran Tenaga 10 Peratus itu, Menteri Sekitaran dan Sumber Air, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, berkata kempen itu turut menyarankan kepada pengguna cara lebih bijak dalam menggunakan elektrik, yang boleh membantu mengurangkan bil elektrik mereka.

Ini lebih penting sekarang memandangkan harga barangan telah naik, kata beliau.

Orang ramai boleh juga belajar tentang cara berjimat tenaga daripada pelbagai aktiviti dan kegiatan masyarakat yang bakal dianjurkan NEA.

'Bergantung pada saiz keluarga dan gaya hidup, keluarga boleh menjimatkan lebih 50 peratus penggunaan elektrik mereka jika mereka mengamalkan panduan yang disaran,' kata Dr Yaacob.

Menurut beliau lagi, NEA akan juga melancarkan Program Pejuang Sekitaran Masyarakat bagi para relawan mempelajari mengenai topik sekitaran demi menggalak gaya hidup mesra alam di tempat tinggal mereka.

NEA berkata program itu akan dilancar bulan depan, namum 150 relawan daripada kumpulan 6,500 relawannya sekarang mahir dalam topik mengenai cara berjimat elektrik dan kitar semula.

fatz2

April 29, 2008         
House of horrors
For 24 years, Dad kept daughter locked in basement which he entered via secret door


MONSTER'S LAIR: Fritzl kept his daughter in underground rooms equipped for cooking, sleeping (above) and washing. Only he could access the prison. -- PHOTOS: REUTERS



AMSTETTEN (AUSTRIA) - THE horror story that shocked Austria first came to light when Josef Fritzl was forced to take seriously ill Kerstin out of the basement to seek treatment at the local hospital on April 19.

He told doctors that the 19-year-old had been dumped on his doorstep by his long-lost daughter Elisabeth, who left a note asking for help.

As the doctors could not determine the cause of the teenager's illness, they asked for her mother to come forward to provide a medical history.

That was when Fritzl allowed his daughter and her two other children aged 18 and five to leave their underground home for the first time.

He made up a story that his missing daughter had finally chosen to return home.

According to ORF, Austria's state-run news agency, a DNA test later revealed that Fritzl was not just Kerstin's grandfather but also her father.

On April 26, police, acting on a tip-off from an unidentified person, detained Fritzl and Elisabeth near the hospital for questioning.

Police yesterday said that the 73-year-old had confessed to holding his daughter captive for 24 years and fathering seven children by her.

To his neighbours in the industrial town of Amstetten with a population of 22,000, Fritzl was a likeable and polite man who was always ready to help others.

No one could begin to imagine that he was in fact leading a horrific double life.

'He managed to create a legend, one which everyone believed,' said Interior Minister Guenther Platter.

Apart from Elisabeth, now 42, Fritzl and his wife Rosemarie have six other children.

During questioning and assured by the police that she would have no further contact with her father, Elisabeth gave details of her ordeal which began in 1984 when she was 18.

That was when, she said, her father lured her into the basement of the block where they lived and drugged and handcuffed her before imprisoning her.

She told police she had been raped repeatedly by her father from the age of 11.

To cover up his daughter's disappearance, Fritzl told his wife that she had run away to join a cult and did not want to be found.

During her captivity, Elisabeth gave birth to seven children. One of them, a twin baby born in 1996, died a few days later. Her father took it away and burned it.

The two oldest children - Kerstin and Stefan, 18 - and five-year-old Felix had been locked up since birth and had never seen sunlight.

As for the other children - Lisa, 16, Monika, 14, and Alexander, 12 - Fritzl raised them after telling his unsuspecting wife that Elisabeth had abandoned them.

Each time, he forced his daughter to write a letter, such as the one in 1993: 'The baby is nine months old. She will have a better life with grandma and grandpa than with me.'

Investigators described the basement prison as a sophisticated network of chambers with facilities for sleeping, cooking and washing. An electrical engineering technician by training, Fritzl entered the basement through a hidden door operated by a secret code, police said.

'There was a shelf with plenty of cans and containers, and behind the shelf was a door made of reinforced concrete, secured electronically and running on steel rails, and only the suspect knew the code,' said local official Heinz Lenze.

Newspaper headlines called the case the 'crime of a monster' and stories questioned the authorities and residents of Amstetten for failing to notice 'the martyrdom in the horror house'.

The children and Elisabeth, who is described as frail and deeply disturbed, are receiving psychological counselling.

The case is all the more shocking because it reminded many people of one involving another Austrian girl. Natascha Kampusch was 10 when she was abducted by by Wolfgang Priklopil in 1998 and locked up in a cell for eight years before escaping in August 2006.

'The community of Amstetten, including its population, should drown in shame...just like in Strasshofen with Priklopil,' the Oesterreich newspaper wrote in an editorial.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

fatz2

Singaporeans to receive first Growth Dividends on Wednesday
Posted: 30 April 2008 0056 hrs

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans will receive their first Growth Dividends on Wednesday.

This is the first of two payments, with the second to be distributed on October 1.

The handout, announced in this year's Budget, is part of the Government's move to share its surpluses with Singaporeans.

All Singaporeans, aged 21 and above, will receive the Growth Dividends.

Lower and middle-income groups, senior citizens and NSmen can expect more. The amounts range between $100 and $400.

The amount of Growth Dividends you receive depends on the following:

- The Annual Value of your home in 2007 as assessed by IRAS
- Your Assessable Income for the Year of Assessment 2007 and your age as of 31 December 2008; and
- Your NS status in 2008.

To receive the Growth Dividends, you must be a Singapore citizen, aged 21 or above in 2008 and have signed up to receive your GST Credits.

For 27-year-old Norazlina Ahmad Bohaiki, a housewife, she has been unemployed for over a year now and needs to stay home to care for her two-year-old son.

Supported by her in-laws, they all live in a four-room flat.

Ms Norazlina will receive $150 in the first payout of the Growth Dividends.

She said she would use the money to pay for her son's expenses, as well as her own.

Ms Norazlina said it was good that the Growth Dividends are handed out in stages as it allows her to save some of the money.

Ms Norazlina will get $500 in total this year - $300 from the Growth Dividends and $200 in GST Credits.

The second round of GST credits and Senior Citizens' Bonus, to be distributed on July 1 is meant to help Singaporeans cope with the impact of the GST increase from 5 percent to 7 percent last year.

All adult Singaporeans will receive GST Credits over four years.

The last payment is due in 2010.

Those who earn less or live in smaller homes will receive more GST Credits.

The amounts range from $100 to $250 a year, depending on the income earned and housing type.

Ms Norazlina's mother-in-law will get a total of $850 from the various payouts over five months.

Madam Hawa Sulaiman, Shipping Brokerage Officer, said: "It does help, more or less, although not much, but it does help."

The 62-year-old works part-time and is feeling the pinch because the entire household income is just $2,000.

Many say the Growth Dividends cash is timely with a higher cost of living today.

Mr Zainudin Nordin, MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC and Mayor of Central Singapore CDC, said: "Whatever little amount we can distribute to our citizens I think it will help them to meet some of these challenges and cope with their daily living and rising costs at the moment.

"If we look at the whole spectrum of help that the government has given out to our residents, I think it is balanced. We want to see how we can give out whenever we have more, and at the same time we want to be more focused to people who need it more, especially to the lower income and needy families."

Aside from monetary help from the government, the disadvantaged are also getting aid from the community.

Mr Seng Han Thong, MP for Yio Chu Kang, said: "We're also having group supporters, well-wishers, in fact they have donated bags of rice, coffee powder and other daily necessities and we home deliver to those who receive public assistance."

The Government will hand out $865 million in Growth Dividends, benefiting some 2.4 million Singaporeans. - CNA/de

apa daaa...semalam org dah q kat atm...

chicsee

Kalau dah ajal eh....pergi tetap pergi....

fatz2

yer...tak mati kerana sakit, mati jugak kerana eksiden....

********************************


Yap Soon Soon, 29, who was working with the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) in September 2005, claimed he was doing a pelvic floor examination after the patient complained of stress incontinence. The woman accused him of molesting her, saying that she had neither made that complaint nor agreed to the procedure. -- PHOTO: THE NEW PAPER

April 30, 2008         
Former physiotherapist convicted of molesting patient

WHAT began as a consultation for back pain turned into a case of outrage of modesty after physiotherapist touched a patient's private parts.

Yap Soon Soon, 29, who was working with the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) in September 2005, claimed he was doing a pelvic floor examination after the patient complained of stress incontinence.

The woman accused him of molesting her, saying that she had neither made that complaint nor agreed to the procedure, reported The New Paper on Wednesday.

After a 20-day trial on Tuesday, District Judge Ong Chin Rhu found Yap, who has a diploma and a degree in physiotherapy, guilty of outrage of modesty.

TNP said the woman was referred by her doctor, Dr Karen Ong, to the SGH's physiotherapy department with a lower back problem.

At about 2 pm on Sept 9 2005, Yap attended to the married woman at a curtained cubicle. He then taught her to do exercises on the chair and on the bed to strengthen her muscles.

When Yap asked her if she had 'sex problems,' she said she seldom had sex because of her back pain, according to the TNP report.

He then got a towel and asked her if she would mind if she put his gloved fingers 'inside' to check her 'muscles.'

According to TNP, he asked her to lower her jeans and covered her abdomen with a towel.

The woman told the court that she suddenly felt his finger in her private parts and was asked to contract her muscles.

She said she was shocked as she had thought 'inside' meant in her jeans, to check her back muscles.

With his finger still in her private parts, he told her to practise the movement at home to strengthen the 'contraction muscle.'

The woman told the court that she did not stop Yap as she was 'confused' and was unsure that confronting him would be the right thing to do.

She later told her husband and a woman colleague who urged her to ask her doctor, said TNP.

She saw Dr Karen Ong who called Yap's superior, the then-head of the physiotherapy department.

The woman said she waited till Sept 13 to make a police report as she did not want to wrongly accuse Yap. Meanwhile, Yap was hauled up before an inquiry board at SGH and was given a written warning for violating procedures.

In his defence, Yap said he did the examination without any intention of molest. He will be sentenced on May 13.

fatz2

April 30, 2008         
Man attacked wife, maid and jumped to his death

A MAN leapt to his death after he tried to attack his estranged wife and hit her maid with a hammer in their Eunos Crescent flat on Tuesday morning.

The family drama began when Mr Chen Xiang Li, 41, who had a personal protection order (PPO) taken out against him by his wife, went to her flat at Block 36, Eunos Crescent, at about 5am.

According to a report in The New Paper on Wednesday, his wife and seven-year-old daughter were in the master bedroom while the maid was asleep in the living room then.

Mrs Chen, a hairdresser in her 30s, who later recounted the incident to a next door neighbour when she went to her place to use her bathroom, said her husband had cut open the padlock on the metal grilled and opened the wooden door which was normally left unlocked.

He then tied up the maid with a rope and dragged her into the master bedroom, where his wife and daughter were.

He tried to tie his wife too but she managed to fend him off and escaped with her daughter to a nearby 7-Eleven store.

TNP said the couple's marriage was on the rocks late last year and Mrs Chen later obtained a PPO.

The neighbour, who wanted to be known only as Madam Lim, told TNP: 'Mrs Chen told me that her husband was often drunk and had hurled vulgarities at her.

'She also said that her husband once tried to strangle her.'

Madam Lim said she spoke to Mr Chen a few days before the incident and he had appeared depressed by his failed marriage.

The family moved into the flat about two years ago. The couple were from China but had become Singapore citizens.

Mr Chen was a gas cylinder delivery man and had lived here for about 20 years. He jumped from a window in the flat after his wife and daughter left the room. He was rushed to Changi General Hospital where he died at 7.45am.

The maid, who suffered head and facial injuries, was also sent to CGH, and is now in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit. Her condition is said to be stable.

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Underpass linking City Hall MRT to Suntec City Mall opens to public
By Lynlee Foo, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 30 April 2008 1755 hrs


Suntec City

SINGAPORE: An underground public walkway connecting One Raffles Link to Suntec City Mall is now open once again.

And from now till 4 May, Suntec City Mall is giving away free coffee, chocolates and sweets to pedestrians to mark the reopening of the underpass.

The public can also look forward to music and line dancing performances every weekend in the month of May.

The underpass, which is part of the CityLink Mall, had been closed since 2003 to facilitate the construction of the Circle Line MRT system. During that period, pedestrians used a temporary overhead bridge to get to the Suntec City Mall and the Convention Centre.

Come 2010, the underpass will also serve commuters using the Esplanade MRT station, which is situated along the Circle Line. - CNA/vm

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April 30, 2008         
Teacher wins appeal against conviction for molest


William Ding was cleared of six other similar charges after the court found they had not been proven beyond reasonable doubt. -- ST PHOTO: WONG KWAI CHOW

FORMER teacher William Ding Chun Fong, 36, on Wednesday won his appeal against conviction for molesting two schoolboys.

Four secondary school students accused Ding of molesting them in separate incidents between 2001 and 2005.

Ding denied the accusations and fought the case in an 80-day trial that spanned nine months.

He was found guilty in March last year by District Judge Jasbendar Kaur on three charges involving two boys and sentenced to a year's jail. Ding was acquitted of six other charges involving the other two boys.

Ding choked back tears as an appeal judge on Wednesday acquitted him of molesting two schoolboys.

On hearing that he had won his appeal against his conviction last year by a lower court, he first appeared stunned.

In the public gallery, his mother and more than 50 of his supporters who packed the public gallery broke out into claps.

The clapping stopped when a court orderly gestured to the crowd, but resumed as soon as court was adjourned.

His face flush with emotion as he walked out of the dock, Ding was hugged by his lawyers, family members, friends and well-wishers.

Later, speaking to reporters outside the courtroom, Mr Ding said: 'I'm thankful that I'm vindicated officially after three long years. It has been a long journey, a lot of pain for me and those around me.'

Ding's lawyer, Senior Counsel Engelin Teh, argued that he had been 'unjustly convicted' on flimsy and uncorroborated evidence. She attacked the boys' credibility and the district judge's handling of the trial.

Ms Teh argued that Ding's only 'crime' was being too strict with the students and the accusers cooked up the allegations because they had an axe to grind with him.

Ms Teh took issue with how the trial judge 'took it upon herself' to play prosecutor in trying to extract an answer from one boy.

The trial judge posed 84 questions to him, and based on the answers, amended a charge and found Ding guilty of it.

Ms Teh argued that while Ding's career and reputation have been ruined forever, the two boys seemed to have emerged 'remarkably well' from the trauma.

They were photographed at a rave party in Sentosa on Sept 1, 2006 - while the trial against Ding was still going on.

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April 30, 2008         
Malay teen helpline gets 1,327 calls, SMSes from troubled youths
By Melissa Sim

MALAY teen helpline NURteensLINE has received 1,327 calls and SMSes since its launch in December 2005.

MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh Zainudin Nordin, said on Wednesday that these initial results were 'quite encouraging'.

He added that about 63 per cent of the cases were resolved during the call to the helpline, while the rest were referred to the NUR drop-in-centres or other agencies.

Last year, the success rate on the 343 cases attended to by the centres was 58 per cent.

NUR is run by some nine Malay/Muslim organisations and helps troubled youth under 21.

The issues addressed include parent-teen relationships, peer pressure, and school problems.

Mr Zainudin on Wednesday presented prizes to the winners of the NURteenLINE design competition, which helped raise awareness of the helpline.

Roadshows are also being held to publicise the helpline. Last year the roadshows reached out to over 4,000 students. The aim is to reach out to another 3,000 this year.

The NURteensLINE is 9777 7687

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April 30, 2008         
Brunei Navy chief visits S'pore


Commander of the Royal Brunei Navy Colonel Joharie Bin Haji Matussin (left) on Wednesday called on Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean. -- PHOTO: MINDEF

COMMANDER of the Royal Brunei Navy Colonel (COL) Joharie Bin Haji Matussin on Wednesday called on Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean, as part of his four-day visit to Singapore from Tuesday.

Col Joharie also called on Chief of Navy Rear Admiral Chew Men Leong.

His visit underscores the longstanding and excellent defence relations between the Singapore Armed Forces and the Royal Brunei Armed Forces; as well as the close ties between the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) and the Royal Brunei Navy (RBN), said a Mindef statement on Wednesday.

Col Joharie was conferred the Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Tentera), or Meritorious Service Medal (Military), in August 2005 for his contributions in building strong ties between the two navies.

The two navies interact frequently through professional exchanges and bilateral exercises like Exercise Pelican, which has been conducted since 1979.

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April 30, 2008         
Doctor charged with molest
By Khushwant Singh

A DOCTOR was charged on Wednesday with outraging the modesty of a 33-year-old woman patient while examining her in a clinic in November 2006.

Dr Yong Voon Pin, 48, is believed to have committed the offence at 11.40am on Nov 12 at the Healthline Women's Clinic in Rivervale Drive in Sengkang.

He is accused of caressing her breasts, and touching her abdomen and right thigh while examining her.

He is out on $10,000 bail and will return to court on June 2 again.

Calls to the clinic went unanswered and a woman in his house said that she was not sure if the clinic is still open.

On Tuesday, a former physiotherapist at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) was found guilty of outraging the modesty of a patient by touching her private parts in September 2005.

The woman had been referred to SGH for back pain but Yap Soon Soon, 29, had also asked her to contract her vaginal muscles with his finger in her.

During the 20-day trial, his lawyer said that this was a recognised method of treatment for patients suffering from lower back pain and stress incontinence.

Yap, who is no longer with SGH, will be sentenced on May 13.

He could be jailed for up to three years and fined or caned.