Low turn-out at anti-immigration protest in Singapore
Group fails to inspire after record rally in May
An anti-immigration rally in Singapore drew just 500 people on Saturday, eight months after a similar protest by the same group generated one of the city state’s largest protests since independence.
The peaceful three-hour rally, held at a park, was the third in a series of protests organised by a civic group after the government in January announced foreigners could account for nearly half of the densely packed island’s population by 2030.
Authorities have since clarified that the forecast is not a population target, and have phased in measures to tighten foreign worker inflows.
“The momentum from the protests earlier this year has gone off, and the anger and emotion among Singaporeans is maybe no longer there,” chief organiser Gilbert Goh said.
Goh estimated the crowd at 1,000 but an AFP reporter on the scene said around 500 people attended the event at Speakers’ Corner, a grassy park close to the central business district where protesters are allowed to address the public.
Speakers, including bloggers and activists, openly attacked the long-ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) for favouring foreigners over citizens, and called on protesters to vote against it in the next general election expected in 2016.