Forum: Yes to artistic expression, no to covert marketing
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When I saw the mural of a samsui woman in Chinatown, it immediately reminded me of the old Marlboro Man advertisements that depicted smoking as cool and glamorous.
As a previous chief executive of the Health Promotion Board, I worked with dedicated colleagues from government agencies and public institutions to craft policies, regulations and programmes to improve public health in Singapore.
One such regulation is the ban on the display of tobacco products at retail outlets to reduce the exposure of non-smokers to the advertising effect of tobacco product displays and to reduce impulse purchases of tobacco products by smokers.
Art is a powerful tool to shape public opinion and promote social change.
Singapore, as a First World nation, should certainly encourage artistic freedom, social diversity and public discourse.
However, we must be on the lookout for any covert attempt to promote harmful lifestyles and undesirable behaviour in the name of art and freedom of expression.
There are many better ways to honour the samsui woman without the need to portray her as the Marlboro Lady.
Lam Pin Woon
