Singapore and Section 377A – a seminar by Dr George Radics (Wed, 17 April 2013)

Speaker: Dr George Radics (Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Southeast Asian Studies, NUS)
Date:
Wednesday, 17 April 2013
Time:
3:00pm – 4:30pm
Venue:
AS3, Level 6, SEAS Seminar Room (06-20)

Synopsis
Last month, the High Court of Singapore heard two cases regarding the constitutionality of Section 377A. Section 377A of Singapore’s Penal Code, a remnant of British colonial rule, criminalizes sex between mutually consenting adult men. It was a derivative of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code of 1860, and can be found in most of Britain’s former colonies. Of Britain’s former colonies, Hong Kong repealed its anti-sodomy laws in 1991, Australia in 1997, and India in 2009.

This presentation analyzes the history and procedure of both cases currently on appeal at the High Court of Singapore and the politics associated with having two similar cases on appeal.

About the speaker
Dr. George Radics received his PhD from the Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore. His graduate work focused on the war in Mindanao and the impact of U.S. colonial influence upon the Philippines. After receiving his PhD, Dr. Radics studied law at the University of Washington, where he obtained his law degree with a concentration in Asian law. Dr. Radics served as a research attorney at the Supreme Court of Guam for two years after graduating from law school. His interests are law and development, sociology of the law, sociology of emotions, postcolonial studies and Southeast Asia.

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