Amendment 2020 to the Humanist Society (Singapore) Constitution: An Update

Following approval from the Registry of Societies, the proposed ‘2020 Amendment’ to the Constitution of the Humanist Society (Singapore) has been voted upon and accepted at the Annual General Meeting on 14 March 2020.

Here are the broad changes:

1. Associate Membership.

Associate Membership is now available for our friends, allies, and partners who are religious and subscribe to the values of humanism. A separate Declaration is available for applicants to ratify, in lieu of the Minimum Statement of Humanism. Associate Members enjoy the same fees, requirements, and privileges as our regular, Full Members, but will neither be eligible to vote nor run for office in the Executive Committee.

2. Membership Grace Period.

Previously, members were not eligible to vote at any general meeting unless membership dues had been paid at least one month before the meeting. With this ‘grace period’, members will be eligible to vote as long as all membership fees have been paid before the general meeting.

Members will also be allowed to pay their annual subscription fees during the extended six-month ‘grace period’ to prevent their membership from lapsing.

Supporting frontline staff

As part of our #HumanismAtHome initiative, we encourage you to show your moral support to frontline staff, especially medical staff, who are risking their lives to keep us safe. You may do one of the following:

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Statement on a Facebook post made by NUS Atheist Society

You may have seen the article regarding a recent police investigation involving a post made by an ‘NUS Atheist Society’ Page on Facebook.

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/nus-atheist-society-facebook-post-offensive-shanmugam-police-12560286

The Humanist Society (Singapore) finds this post unhelpful amid the current crisis. We are a community of non-religious people, founded upon values of reason and compassion. The post made by NUS Atheist Society is neither reasoned nor compassionate. NUS has also since stated that the Page is not affiliated with the university.

The evolving Covid-19 situation affects us all, regardless of race or religion. We would like to encourage productive and rational dialogue during this crisis. We should focus on disseminating facts, providing comfort, and promoting public unity amidst the pandemic.

Executive Committee
Humanist Society (Singapore)

Getting “the people thing” right

Seven years is a long time, as long as three of the four MNCs I used to work for in my 26 year career before HSS. I see things like Darwin sees evolution, something that volunteers with a couple of years at a stretch do not and cannot see.

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20|20 VISION Calendar

Based on the series of photographs taken by TattSi (the Society’s current president), the A5-size desktop calendars will be sold at S$30 each, 50% going to Limitless- ZDKF, and 50% to HSS, to help both organizations do good for the community. For Singapore mail orders , there will be a surcharge of $2.50, to cover stationeries , postage and logistics.

How to buy :

(1) Pay to our UOB A/C# 373-302-759-0 , or through PayPal to info@humanist.org.sg

(2) Send an email to services@humanist.org.sg , to inform us of the payment and the way to receive your calendar.

(3) You can also specify if you want the photographer to autograph on it.

Limitless (UEN 201713769M) is a non-profit organisation that helps youths build hope, find worth, and live destiny-driven lives. Through Limitless, the Zen Dylan Koh Fund (ZDKF) was set up to help at-risk youths deal with poverty, mental illness, social inequality and bullying.

Get your 20|20 VISION Calendar now, and begin to help youths who need support !

(20|20 VISION is a personal project, not an HSS merchandise, but benefits both HSS & Limitless-ZDKF)

Reply to Mothership : Religious Refugees

(This open letter was published on 29th September 2019, on HSS Facebook page)

Thanking mothership.sg for its article on Closeted Ex-Muslims

The Humanist Society Singapore (HSS) would like to thank mothership.sg. for bringing up the plight of the invisible class of religious refugees in Singapore, in its 22nd September 2019 online article <Despite rising numbers of atheistic Singaporeans, this ex-Muslim remains closeted >.

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Event summary: Asian Humanism Conference 2019

Introduction

After a gap of four years, the annual Asian Humanism Conference returned to Singapore in 2019. Whereas previous conferences focused on humanism, on the public day of this year’s conference, 6 July 2019, the exploration of relations between communities with different belief systems took a central role.

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HSS’ most viewed Facebook posts

In 2015, we have compiled a list of our most viral posts on Facebook, as part of efforts to understand the humanist community better. Here’s a second round of compilation, based on the number of views per post.

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ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2019

exco 2018 photo after AGM 2017
The Humanist Society (Singapore) invites all our members to our next Annual General Meeting (AGM).
If you want to find out more about HSS and our activities, our past events in 2018 and our future plans for 2019 and beyond, do join us on Saturday 16 March 2019.
We will also be electing several key appointment holders for 2019 (see below) and we would certainly appreciate your support.

Date
16/03/2019 (Saturday)

Time
To Be Confirmed

Location
OnePeople.SG   381 Lorong 1 Toa Payoh S319758

AGENDA
  1.  Introduction by President
  2. Events and Activities in 2017/18
  3. Press and media coverage in 2017/18
  4. Auditor and Treasurer’s report
  5. Election of New committee members
    1. Vice-President (Open to members of the society for a minimum of 1 year and must be a Singaporean citizen / permanent resident)
    2. Secretary (Open to members of the society for a minimum of 1 year and must be a Singaporean citizen / permanent resident)
    3. Assistant Secretary (Open to members of the society for a minimum of 6 months)
    4. Committee Member (Open to members of the society for a minimum of 6 months)

Names for the above offices shall be proposed and seconded in writing and submitted to the Secretary not more than two months (after 15 Jan 2019) and not less than one month before (by 15 Feb 2019) the Annual General Meeting. The term of office of any member of the Committee is two years. (Section 9.1.1  https://humanist.org.sg/about/our-constitution/)

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.

HSS Letter to Singaporeans for Festivus

Do not monopolise December for yourself, NCCS. This letter is in response to the one NCCS sent to STB about the ‘deeper meaning’ of this period in the year.

(Erratum : more appropriate translation of “冬至” , is “the dead of winter”, or “the middle of winter”. We thank our fans for helping correct this.)