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Foreign businesses are reminded to be careful with advocacy on issues that can be socially divisive in Singapore, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said on Thursday. Such issues include those surrounding the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.
MHA was responding to media queries in the wake of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's call for the businesses in Singapore to be supportive of the local LGBT community as more American businesses establish offices here.
The ministry said that while foreign businesses are free to promote diversity in their companies, they should be careful about advocating such issues. "These are matters for Singaporeans to discuss and come to a consensus on how to move forward."
Mrs Pelosi, along with six US congressmen, was in Singapore on Monday as part of a visit to the Indo-Pacific region this week.
In a statement on the visit, she said: "We engaged with leaders of the business community and underscored the importance of public-private sector collaboration to foster strong economic growth across the region.
"We asked for their support for the LGBTQ community in Singapore as more American businesses are establishing and adding offices in Singapore."
The statement comes as the Government consults various groups of Singaporeans on Section 377A of the Penal Code as it decides on the next steps.
The law - which criminalises gay sex - is not actively enforced, a position that the authorities have reiterated since it was discussed at length in Parliament in 2007.
Last Saturday, Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam said the Government was considering how best to balance the issue.
He added that while many Singaporeans agree that sex between men should not be a crime, most do not want the current position of marriage being between a man and a woman to be changed.
The minister also called for moderation from both sides - those for as well as against the repeal of Section 377A - and for them "to avoid extreme positions and demands".
The Straits Times
