Live PM Wong at May Day Rally 2025
Good morning readers. Our colleagues Tay Hong Yi and Ng Wei Kai are on the ground reporting this year's May Day rally from the refreshed D'Marquee in Downtown East.
Some 1,600 labour movement leaders and tripartite partners are gathering at the annual rally to celebrate workers' contributions to Singapore's economy and nation-building.
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will deliver the keynote address at 10.15am. You can watch his speech on The Straits Times' YouTube channel, and get the latest from the rally here.
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Straits Times
24 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Maga-style ‘anti-globalist' politics arrives in Japan
Find out what's new on ST website and app. Japan's Sanseito party leader Sohei Kamiya delivers a speech during the party's rally in Tokyo, on July 21, a day after the upper house election. TOKYO - Populist ideals are gaining traction in Japan, spurred by right-wing politicians running rampant elsewhere railing against 'elitism', 'globalism' and immigration. While Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's coalition lost its upper house majority in an election on July 20, the 'Japanese first' Sanseito party, created only five years ago, increased its seats from two to 15. Sanseito's agenda comes straight from the copybook of right-wing movements such as US President Donald Trump's 'Make America Great Again' (Maga) , the Alternative for Germany (AfD) and Nigel Farage's Reform party in Britain. This includes 'stricter rules and limits' on immigration and foreign capital, opposition to 'globalism' and 'radical' gender policies, and a rethink on decarbonisation, vaccines and pesticide-free agriculture. Founded on YouTube, Sanseito will 'bring power back to the people', party leader Sohei Kamiya, a 47-year-old former teacher and supermarket manager, wrote in the Japan Times. Cheap Labour Surveys have put immigration far down the list of voters' concerns, who are much more worried about inflation and the economy. But for Sanseito, the influx of newcomers into Japan is to be blamed for a host of ills from crime to rising property prices to dangerous driving. Japan's level of immigration – which its economy badly needs – is far lower than that of other developed countries. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Singaporeans aged 21 to 59 can claim $600 SG60 vouchers from July 22 Singapore Miscalculation of MOH subsidies and grants led to $7m in overpayments, $2m in shortfalls Singapore Changi Airport handles 17.5 million passengers in Q2 2025 Singapore 2 charged over alleged involvement in posting of bail for man who subsequently absconded Singapore Teen charged after allegedly selling vaporisers, advertising e-cigarettes on WhatsApp Life Having a workout partner could be the secret to sticking to your fitness goals Singapore 2,500 turtles seized in India and sent back to S'pore, put down humanely after salmonella detected Singapore Ports and planes: The 2 Singapore firms helping to keep the world moving 'It's fine if they visit as tourists, but if you take in more and more foreigners, saying they're cheap labour, then Japanese people's wages won't rise,' Mr Kamiya said at a campaign. 'We are not exclusionary. We have never called to drive out foreigners,' he added. Meanwhile online platforms have been flooded with disinformation, some of which Japanese fact-checking groups and the government have debunked. Some posts falsely claimed that foreigners leave almost US $3 billion (S$3.84 billion) of medical bills unpaid a year, or that Chinese residents on welfare doubled in five years. At a Sanseito election rally in front of Tokyo's Shinagawa station, where orange T-shirted party workers handed out 'Stop destroying Japan!' flyers, one voter told AFP she was finally being heard. 'They put into words what I had been thinking about but couldn't put into words for many years,' said the 44-year-old IT worker on a precarious short-term contract. 'When foreigners go to university, the Japanese government provides subsidies to them, but when we were going to university, everyone had huge debts.' Moscow meddling? Russian bot accounts have been responsible for 'large-scale information manipulation', according to a much-read blog post by Ichiro Yamamoto from the Japan Institute of Law and Information Systems think-tank. This has been helped by artificial intelligence enabling better translation of material into Japanese. More understanding towards Russia – something which was long anathema for Japanese right-wingers – is also a theme for Mr Kamiya. 'Russia's military invasion (of Ukraine) was of course bad, but there are forces in the United States that drove Russia into doing that,' Mr Kamiya told AFP, denying he is 'pro-Russia'. He was forced during his campaign to deny receiving support from Moscow – which has been accused of backing similar parties in other countries – after a Sanseito candidate was interviewed by Russian state media. Zero illegals As in other countries, the rise of Sanseito and its success has prompted the government to announce new immigration policies, and other parties to make promises during the election campaign. Mr Ishiba's LDP proclaimed the goal of achieving 'zero illegal foreign nationals' and said the government will strengthen the management system for immigration and residency status. Eight NGOs issued a joint statement last week, since backed by over 1,000 groups, raising the alarm on 'rapidly spreading xenophobia'. 'The argument that 'foreigners are prioritised' is totally unfounded demagoguery,' the statement said. Hidehiro Yamamoto, politics and sociology professor at the University of Tsukuba, said that populism has not caught hold before because the LDP, unlike established parties elsewhere, has remained a 'catch-all party'. 'The LDP has taken care of lower middle-class residents in cities, farmers in the countryside, and small and mid-sized companies,' Mr Yamamoto said. And pointing to the rise and decline of other new parties in Japan in the past, he isn't sure Sanseito will last. 'You can't continue gaining support only with a temporary mood among the public,' Mr Yamamoto said. AFP
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
MAGA-style 'anti-globalist' politics arrives in Japan
Find out what's new on ST website and app. Japan's Sanseito party leader Sohei Kamiya delivers a speech during the party's rally in Tokyo, on July 21, a day after the upper house election. Populist ideals are gaining traction in Japan, spurred by right-wing politicians running rampant elsewhere railing against 'elitism', 'globalism' and immigration. While Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's coalition lost its upper house majority in an election on July 20, the 'Japanese first' Sanseito party, created only five years ago, increased its seats from two to 15. Sanseito's agenda comes straight from the copybook of right-wing movements such as US President Donald Trump's 'Make America Great Again', the Alternative for Germany (AfD) and Nigel Farage's Reform party in Britain. This includes 'stricter rules and limits' on immigration and foreign capital, opposition to 'globalism' and 'radical' gender policies, and a rethink on decarbonisation, vaccines and pesticide-free agriculture. Founded on YouTube, Sanseito will 'bring power back to the people', party leader Sohei Kamiya, a 47-year-old former teacher and supermarket manager, wrote in the Japan Times. Cheap Labour Surveys have put immigration far down the list of voters' concerns, who are much more worried about inflation and the economy. But for Sanseito, the influx of newcomers into Japan is to be blamed for a host of ills from crime to rising property prices to dangerous driving. Japan's level of immigration – which its economy badly needs – is far lower than that of other developed countries. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore S'poreans aged 21 to 59 can claim $600 SG60 vouchers from July 22 Singapore Miscalculation of MOH subsidies and grants led to $7m in overpayments, $2m in shortfalls Singapore Changi Airport handles 17.5 million passengers in Q2 2025 Singapore 2 charged over alleged involvement in posting of bail for man who subsequently absconded Singapore Teen charged after allegedly selling vaporisers, advertising e-cigarettes on WhatsApp Life Having a workout partner could be the secret to sticking to your fitness goals Singapore 2,500 turtles seized in India and sent back to S'pore, put down humanely after salmonella detected Singapore Ports and planes: The 2 Singapore firms helping to keep the world moving 'It's fine if they visit as tourists, but if you take in more and more foreigners, saying they're cheap labour, then Japanese people's wages won't rise,' Mr Kamiya said at a campaign. 'We are not exclusionary. We have never called to drive out foreigners,' he added. Meanwhile online platforms have been flooded with disinformation, some of which Japanese fact-checking groups and the government have debunked. Some posts falsely claimed that foreigners leave almost $3 billion (S$3.84 billion) of medical bills unpaid a year, or that Chinese residents on welfare doubled in five years. At a Sanseito election rally in front of Tokyo's Shinagawa station, where orange T-shirted party workers handed out 'Stop destroying Japan!' flyers, one voter told AFP she was finally being heard. 'They put into words what I had been thinking about but couldn't put into words for many years,' said the 44-year-old IT worker on a precarious short-term contract. 'When foreigners go to university, the Japanese government provides subsidies to them, but when we were going to university, everyone had huge debts.' Moscow meddling? Russian bot accounts have been responsible for 'large-scale information manipulation', according to a much-read blog post by Ichiro Yamamoto from the Japan Institute of Law and Information Systems think-tank. This has been helped by artificial intelligence enabling better translation of material into Japanese. More understanding towards Russia – something which was long anathema for Japanese right-wingers – is also a theme for Mr Kamiya. 'Russia's military invasion (of Ukraine) was of course bad, but there are forces in the United States that drove Russia into doing that,' Mr Kamiya told AFP, denying he is 'pro-Russia'. He was forced during his campaign to deny receiving support from Moscow – which has been accused of backing similar parties in other countries – after a Sanseito candidate was interviewed by Russian state media. Zero illegals As in other countries, the rise of Sanseito and its success has prompted the government to announce new immigration policies, and other parties to make promises during the election campaign. Mr Ishiba's LDP proclaimed the goal of achieving 'zero illegal foreign nationals' and said the government will strengthen the management system for immigration and residency status. Eight NGOs issued a joint statement last week, since backed by over 1,000 groups, raising the alarm on 'rapidly spreading xenophobia'. 'The argument that 'foreigners are prioritised' is totally unfounded demagoguery,' the statement said. Hidehiro Yamamoto, politics and sociology professor at the University of Tsukuba, said that populism has not caught hold before because the LDP, unlike established parties elsewhere, has remained a 'catch-all party'. 'The LDP has taken care of lower middle-class residents in cities, farmers in the countryside, and small and mid-sized companies,' Mr Yamamoto said. And pointing to the rise and decline of other new parties in Japan in the past, he isn't sure Sanseito will last. 'You can't continue gaining support only with a temporary mood among the public,' Mr Yamamoto said. AFP
Straits Times
10 hours ago
- Straits Times
Brazil's Supreme Court threatens Bolsonaro with arrest if interviews published on social media
SAO PAULO - Brazil's Supreme Court said on Monday former President Jair Bolsonaro may be arrested if his press interviews are published on social media, raising questions about whether the right-wing leader is allowed to talk to journalists, as he faces backlash over the 50% tariffs U.S. President Donald Trump imposed on Brazil. In a court order issued on Monday, Brazilian Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversees a criminal case in which Bolsonaro is accused of plotting a coup, said any attempt to circumvent the ruling could result in the former president's arrest. On Friday, Moraes had ordered Bolsonaro to wear an ankle bracelet and banned him from using social media, among other measures, over allegations he courted the interference of Trump, who tied the new levies on Brazil to what he called a "witch hunt" against Bolsonaro. In an interview with Reuters on Friday, Bolsonaro described Moraes' decision to prohibit his social media use as "cowardice," and said he intended to continue engaging with the press to ensure his voice was heard. But Monday's ruling clarified that the restrictive measures also applied to Bolsonaro's use of social media through third parties. Bolsonaro canceled an interview with a local news outlet that would have been broadcast on YouTube on Monday. "Obviously, the broadcasting, rebroadcasting, or dissemination of audio, video, or transcripts of interviews on any third-party social media platforms is prohibited," the judge wrote. It is unclear if the measure amounts to a prohibition of all interviews. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Subsidies and grants for some 20,000 people miscalculated due to processing issue: MOH Asia At least 19 killed as Bangladesh air force plane crashes at college campus Singapore ST Explains: What does it mean for etomidate to be listed under the Misuse of Drugs Act? Business Why Singapore and its businesses stand to lose with US tariffs on the region Singapore NTU to have compulsory cadaver dissection classes for medical students from 2026 World US authorities probing passenger jet's close call with B-52 bomber over North Dakota Singapore Jail for man who conspired with another to bribe MOH agency employee with $18k Paris trip Singapore New research institute will grow S'pore's talent in nuclear energy, safety "The prohibition is that he communicates on social media; it is not a prohibition against third parties speaking about him, whether to praise or criticize," said Ivar Hartmann, a law professor at Sao Paulo business school Insper. He added that, in his view, interviews are permissible, provided they are not intended to circumvent the legal limitations, such as giving an interview to a supporter. But Vera Chemim, a São Paulo-based constitutional lawyer, said she believed the former leader is now on shaky ground, noting that interviews, while not explicitly mentioned in the court order, could still be used to justify Bolsonaro's arrest. "Bolsonaro is now completely silenced," she said. "Any misstep could lead to a preventive arrest." On Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Moraes' court orders a "political witch hunt" that had prompted him to make immediate visa revocations for "Moraes and his allies on the court, as well as their immediate family members." The Supreme Court declined to comment or elaborate on the specifics of the decision. A spokesperson for Bolsonaro also declined to comment, but the former president has always denied any wrongdoing. The court's crackdown on Bolsonaro added to evidence that Trump's tactics are backfiring in Brazil, compounding trouble for his ideological ally and rallying public support behind a defiant leftist government. REUTERS
