Humanist Society at the 2023 Exemplary Interfaith Award presentation ceremony by Jamiyah Singapore

The society was honored to be invited to and I had the privilege of attending the Exemplary Interfaith Award presentation ceremony on 29 July 2023, organized by the Muslim non-profit organization, Jamiyah Singapore. It was an event that not only celebrated the harmonious coexistence of different faiths but also highlighted the significant contributions of individuals and organizations dedicated to fostering interfaith understanding and cooperation in Singapore.

One of the standout moments of the event was when Darren Mak, the moderator (an excellent one by the way) of the panel of speakers, while on the topic of growing irreligiousity in developed economies such as Singapore, gave a shoutout to the Humanist Society Singapore. (Darren Mak is a Chinese Muslim convert and runs great content at Plan B)

After the panel session, I had the pleasure of catching up with Faheema, the founder of Hash.peace, and fellow committee members. Hash.peace is a remarkable organization that works tirelessly to bridge the gap between different faith communities, fostering understanding, and promoting harmony.

Instagram story sharing Faheema’s post after the event

The most anticipated part of the evening was, of course, the presentation of the Exemplary Interfaith Awards. The Guest of Honor was none other than the then Presidential candidate, and now President, Mr Tharman. It was a moment of pride and celebration as we learned about the exceptional individuals and organizations making a difference in the interfaith landscape of Singapore. Among the award winners were representatives from various faith communities, all of whom have worked tirelessly to promote interfaith understanding and cooperation. Their dedication to fostering dialogue, peace, and harmony in Singapore is truly commendable.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/interfaith-harmony-is-a-concerted-practice-in-singapore-and-part-of-national-identity-tharman

The event was a powerful reminder of the significance of interfaith dialogue and cooperation in our increasingly diverse society. It showcased the importance of recognizing and celebrating the efforts of those who work tirelessly to bridge gaps, build bridges, and foster understanding among different faiths and worldviews. These individuals and organizations serve as beacons of hope and inspiration for a harmonious, inclusive, and accepting society.

As a member of the Humanist Society Singapore, it was heartwarming to witness the enthusiasm and commitment of the attendees, award recipients, and organizers, all united in their dedication to interfaith harmony. We left the Sands Expo and Convention Centre with a renewed sense of purpose and a strengthened commitment to our mission of promoting humanism and secularism in Singapore.

In conclusion, the 2023 Exemplary Interfaith Award presentation ceremony organized by Jamiyah Singapore was a resounding success. It brought together people of different faiths and worldviews, highlighting the common ground we share and the positive impact we can make when we collaborate. As we move forward, we look forward to further strengthening our ties with the interfaith community, working hand in hand to build a more inclusive and harmonious Singapore.

2018 LGBT community letter to PMO

https://oogachaga.com/s/LGBTQ-community-letter-to-PM_1-August-2018-PDF.pdf

HumanistSG celebrates the official launch of hash.peace

[Read more…]

Notes from how to hack a humanist

Hi everyone! 2 weeks ago, I conducted a short workshop/talk for humanists on privacy and cyber security. The audience expressed via a poll that they are reasonably confident in their privacy and security posture – it’s either foolish or expensive to be extremely confident!

A short walk-through of how hackers can overcome protection from firewalls by “getting inside from inside” through phishing emails and malicious attachments or documents. The barrier of conducting such activities has been lowered thanks to the Malware-as-a-service or Ransomware-as-a-service industry in the hacker forums.

An example of a malicious document

It’s emphasized that unless you’re rich or famous, you are very unlikely to be specifically targeted. Instead, these cyber attacks are mass-market, opportunistic, and aims to profit from the small percentage of the population who just happen to fall for the phish.

To reduce the likelihood, one needs to have a simplified understanding of the information lifecycle, information classification, and their risk appetite for their information and security.

Thereafter, apply the 3Rs (amongst many other privacy and security best practices)

  1. Reduce digital footprint
  2. Do not Reuse passwords
  3. Recycle carefully

For further information or consultation, reach me at https://www.linkedin.com/in/danthio/

Minutes of Humanist Society (Singapore) Annual General Meeting 2021

Date : 20 March 2021, 1400 – 1630 Hrs

Venue : Zoom

Attendance:

The Humanist Society (Singapore) (‘HSS’) Annual General Meeting (‘AGM’) was attended by 25 people, 21 of whom were members with voting rights. The voting membership for the year is 82, so the quorum was reached, with one constitutional amendment tabled.

Annual Report

The meeting began officially at 2:10pm with the President’s address. A summary of the past year’s events, programmes, and involvements was presented.

  1. 2020 events including
  • During Circuit Breaker:
    • Skype Parties 1- 4
    • World Humanist Week + Pink Dot
    • Ear-saver distribution
  • Phase 2:
    • ECP Beach cleaning
    • Southern Ridges Hike
    • National Day HumanistSG merchandise Sale and Delivery Run
    • Remembering James Randi
    • Humanism Ask Us Anything
  • Phase 3:
    • New Year Party
    • Virtual Workshop: Applying Humanism to Daily Lives
    • Darwin Day 2021
  1. Groundbreakers
  • A Good Space
  • Interfaith
  • Engaging Students
  • HSS Internship 
  • Formation of Palliative Care Working Group
  1. Press and social outreach

A summary of mentions, letters and engagement with the press and media.

  • Response to posts linking holy texts to toilet paper 
  • Response to Archbishop 1
  • Response to Archbishop 2
  • Interviews with a scientist and a non-scientist (DJ)
  • Interview with Mathia (JY) 
  • DJ’s interview with a A Magazine
  • HSS video cited in Australian religious studies textbook 
  • HSS interviews: Christian Humanist, two scientist on pseudoscience and anti-vaccine sentiments regarding Covid-19
  1. Celebrant services in 2020 under Covid-19  by Tan Tatt Si.
  1. Reorganisation and Expansion of HSS programmes:

Society is planning to restructure services into: Secretariat, Alliances, Peer Support and End-of-life Care. A calendar of events for 2021 was shown, and volunteers called for.

  1. HSS membership report and public reach

Secretary outlined the growth of membership in 2020 despite Covid-19 restrictions, and our current social media outreach channels that promote our organisation and activities.

Date Retiree StandardStudentTotal members 
31 Dec 201714655102
31 Dec 20182533590
31 Dec 20196452071
31 Dec 20208731697 

  1. Financials 2020

Financials were reported by the Treasurer. On 31st Dec 2020, the HSS net current assets was S$ 23,663.26, with a surplus of S$ 208.58 for FY2020. The bulk of income came from Membership Subscription, Members’ Contribution, and Merchandise Sales. The bulk of expenditure comes from Merchandise Costs, Event Costs and Miscellaneous costs inclusive of AGS annual membership fee and HSS internship. More details can be found in our annual financial statements, available to HSS members upon request. 

  1. Minutes of 2020 AGM minutes

Reviewed and approved.

  1. Proposed Constitutional Changes

● Raising the spending limit in clause 9.7

9.7     The Committee has power to authorise the expenditure of a sum not exceeding $1,000 per month from the Society’s funds for the Society’s purposes.

Proposed new spending limit on constitution 

9.7    The Committee has power to authorise the expenditure of a sum not exceeding $2,000 per month from the Society’s funds for the Society’s purposes. Prior approval from a general meeting of members must be sought for any budget plans deviating from this.

  1. Raising money for a permanent venue 

Exco seeks Members’ opinion and official vote to raise funds for the special purpose of funding a permanent home for HSS.

Questions and objections were raised regarding this proposed raising of the monthly spending limit. Several members expressed concern about a possible recurring financial commitment (eg employee or office lease) depleting the Society coffers. Suggestions of annual spending caps, yearly budget reviews and sunset clauses as a check on spending.

The exco explained that raising the monthly cap in the constitution was not a carte blanche for the Exco to spend, but to give it discretionary power to use funds more flexibly. An example was a recent one-time expenditure of $1000 membership fee, which effectively froze all expenses for the month. It was also explained that there were adequate rules and safeguards in place to keep a rogue exco from irresponsible spending.

It was also raised that the early voting ballot appeared to rush members into voting for issues that had not been explained. Exco explained that this was not its intention. The 3pm deadline was for AGM registration and not voting, which could be done up until the end of balloting during the AGM. Exco will improve on refining the procedures for future online AGMs.

The amendments were eventually passed.

  1. Election of 2021 – 2023 executive committee members

Vice President: Tan Ding Jie

Secretary: Norhaiyah Madasamy

Treasurer: Nic Jude Das (The position was brought forward one year to realign with the Society’s schedule of elections with ROS, which were disrupted in earlier years.)

Ordinary Committee Member: Cheng Chee Hoew

All candidates were voted in unopposed.

  1. President’s words of appreciation for outgoing Secretary and Treasurer.
  1. Appointment of honorary auditors Ms Dian Marissa and Mr. Muhamad Alif Bin Ibrahim for FY2021.

Any other business

No other business was raised. HSS AGM 2021 ended at 1630h SGT.

IRO Youth 2020 Year End Catchup

The society participated in a long-await in-person event at the Asian Civilisation Museum organized by the Inter-Religious Organization Youth Wing. A quick 30mins tour was conducted by volunteer tour guides bringing small groups of 5 youths from different religious or irreligious background into the Level 2 gallery “Faith and Belief” and the new exhibit titled “Faith Beauty Love Hope”.

[Read more…]

Watch and Skype Party – Revisiting Carl Sagan

Due to the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak, all physical events were cancelled and the Humanist Society adapted by launching our Humanism At Home initiative, consisting of Skype discussions (‘Skype Party’) and Watch Parties on Facebook.

[Read more…]

On dealing with offended feelings

The dialogue can be viewed in full in the video above.

An abrasive Youtube video, nasty behaviour in public caught on video, a poorly worded tweet. In recent years, these incidents have been causing waves online, mobilising those braying for greater policing of various expressions, and worrying those trying to maintain spaces for sensitive discussions regarding race and religion. [Read more…]

Annual General Meeting 2017

The Humanist Society (Singapore) invites all our members to our Annual General Meeting (AGM).
If you want to find out more about HSS and our activities, our past events in 2016 and our future plans for 2016 and beyond, do join us on 4 March 2017.
We will also be electing several key appointment holders for 2017 (see below) and we would certainly appreciate your support.

Date
04/03/2017

Time
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Location
OnePeople.sg
381 Lorong 1 Toa Payoh S319758
Singapore

AGENDA
  1.  Introduction by President
  2. Events and Activities in 2016/17
  3. Press and media coverage in 2016/17
  4. Auditor and Treasurer’s report
  5. Constitutional ammendments
  6. Election of New committee members
    1. Vice-President
    2. Secretary
    3. Committee Member

To attend the AGM, you must be a member of HumanistSG. You can sign up https://humanist.org.sg/membership-faq/membership/ on the day of the AGM or renew your membership to attend the AGM.

For members who wish to vote for committee members, but are unable to attend the AGM, please e-mail secretary@humanist.org.sg to request to vote by proxy. We will forward details concerning the nominees and further information about proxy voting to you by further e-mail.

Join the Humanist Society! (Video)

Our founding President, Paul Tobin, introduces the Humanist Society (Singapore), a community of humanists, freethinkers, atheists, agnostics and other like-minded people. Since our founding in 2010, we have held many public talks, social networking events and community work activities.

Our thanks and appreciation goes to That Moment Studio for filming and to photographer Ruey Loon for post-production.

Have you watch our short introduction to Humanism?

If you are ready to join us, find out the different ways of supporting the society and the membership here (free for students!).