The good news for Singapore's secret army of clandestine chewers: gum is going on sale legally for the first time in 12 years. The bad news: if you want some you will have to register as a gum user and show an identity card every time you buy a packet.
The arch-symbol of the American way of life was outlawed by Singapore's senior minister Lee Kuan Yew in 1992. He took the unique measure -- dreamed of in vain by public cleaning departments throughout the rest of the world -- in outrage at the splats of used gum dotting the country's otherwise pristine streets.
Nineteen "medicinal" brands of gum such as Nicorette (nicotine chewing gum to help quit smoking) will now be available as part of a free-trade agreement with the US, but only on strict and tightly-policed conditions. Anyone found trading illicitly will risk two years in jail and a S$5,000 (US$2,940) fine.
Sale is also limited to pharmacists with some brands at prices designed to deter non-medicinal use.
The relaxation will be welcomed by the US and American visitors to Singapore, who take pride in the global success of chewing gum.
Singapore's cautious move has met considerable mockery, with many locals highlighting the fact that visiting prostitutes are less regulated than buying gum. Prostitution is legal in parts of Singapore.
"It's ridiculous that it's easier for 16-year-olds to visit prostitutes than it is to get chewing gum here," said 22-year old college student Fayen Wong.
"Why would I go through the trouble of getting nicotine gum if I can buy a pack of cigarettes without giving my name?" Wong said. "I don't think the new rules will help smokers to quit."
The partial legalization of gum is "really a non-event," said Koh Beng Liang, 25, a research engineer. "Singaporeans will quickly realize it if the so-called loosening up is for foreign image, and not real change."
The Straits Times gave the only brief report of the new rules which focused on cleaning companies' intense dislike of gum splats.
"Gum is gum, whether it's for smokers or not," Colim Lim, managing director of Tapisteam Cleaning Services told the paper.
"Coffee and other stains are bad enough. Having to remove gum stuck on carpet and floors is an awful task," he said.
PHISHING: The con might appear convincing, as the scam e-mails can coincide with genuine messages from Apple saying you have run out of storage For a while you have been getting messages from Apple saying “your iCloud storage is full.” They say you have exceeded your storage plan, so documents are no longer being backed up, and photos you take are not being uploaded. You have been resisting Apple’s efforts to get you to pay a minimum of ￡0.99 (US$1.33) a month for more storage, but it seems that you cannot keep putting off the inevitable: You have received an e-mail which says your iCloud account has been blocked, and your photos and videos would be deleted very soon. To keep them you need
The Israeli military has demolished entire villages as part of its invasion of south Lebanon, rigging homes with explosives and razing them to the ground in massive remote detonations. The Guardian reviewed three videos posted by the Israeli military and on social media, which showed Israel carrying out mass detonations in the villages of Taybeh, Naqoura and Deir Seryan along the Israel-Lebanon border. Lebanese media has reported more mass detonations in other border villages, but satellite imagery was not readily available to verify these claims. The demolitions came after Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz called for the destruction of
A US YouTuber who caused outrage for filming himself kissing a statue commemorating Korean wartime sex slaves has been sentenced to six months in prison, a court in Seoul said yesterday. Johnny Somali, 25, gained notoriety several years ago for recording himself doing a series of provocative stunts in South Korea and Japan, and streaming them on platforms such as YouTube and Twitch. South Korean authorities indicted Somali — whose real name is Ramsey Khalid Ismael — in 2024 on public order violations and obstruction of business, and banned him from leaving the country. “The court has sentenced him to six months in
The death toll from a shooting in western Afghanistan rose to 11 on Saturday, after gunmen targeted civilians at a picnic spot in Herat, the provincial authority said. Bullet marks were visible on a wall of the Sayed Mohammad Agha Shia shrine, while bloodstains marked a blanket abandoned at the scene. “Eleven people have been recorded dead and eight others wounded from Friday’s incident, with the condition of two of the wounded reported as critical,” Herat’s information office said in a statement. The update raises a toll of seven killed provided on Friday by the Afghan Ministry of Interior Affairs
RSS