A sad farewell

where did they post the letter to..? - was it your uk address..??

send it back saying not known at this address...

 

Simply explain to them that it is just too humid in Singapore to be in the army. Further, tell them you are a communist and you are addicted to chewing gum and pornography.

 

1) DON'T PANIC!

2) Don't, I repeat DO NOT go, unless you feel you must. The Singapore govt. are going to say that you must - but as a British citizen I would have thought that they would need you to agree to this. Bear in mind that agreeing to this could lead to further obligations eg active service in the event that Singapore enters military conflict. Furthermore the army isn't the place to be if you are percieved to be an outsider.

3) Get some good independent legal advice, The CAB should be able to point you in the right direction. The FCO might be helpful but that depends on their policy and relationship with the Singapore govt. If you don't like what you hear don't just accept it. Family issues aside, I can't see how you can be legally forced to go, the only issue would seem to be your legal position if you chose to go to Singapore.

Be on the ball about this, don't just ignore it and don't just walk into it blind.

HTH Good luck!

 

They sent my dad the letter and he scanned it in and emailed it to me. I dont think theres anyway of getting out of it and i think 2yrs of service in excahnge of freedom to go back to see my dad and all his side of my family is worth it, even if it is going to be tough. Im gona miss my friends and family over here, and of course my hifi! I will be back with nice lump sum though after 2 years of saving up and not spending, so could splash out on a tasty up2 date system when i get back, hopefully zerogain will still b up and running by then! I will still have access to the net on weekends but will probably steer away from the forum as i will only get depressed knowing i cant own any hifi etc!

My last straw of hope is my dad; he has an appointment with some1 high up in the military over in singapore who is in charge of catching all the men who try to avoid national service, hopefully he can sort something out...fingers crossed

p.s i rang the british embassy and they told me to ring the singapore embassy which i have already done!

 

I strongly, STRONGLY advise you not to go, at least not straight away. If you go now (in 2 weeks time) you will have no choice but to do the service. Take your time and find out what your rights are and don't rush into anything. In many cases like this the "authorities" like to give the impression that you must do what they say or else but usually you have many more options open to you - find out what they are.

It would seem to me to be tragic to potentially throw away a new job, stable relationship etc over some f*cked up military service.

Michael.

 

If it was me and i did not feel i belonged to the country i would not do it.

 

FFS! Do not go, just because some clerk sent you a letter. Wake up! Your British now!!!

 

Do your National Service. It'll probably be a good laugh, and you'll make some friends. You can get a new girlfriend, hi-fi, etc. when you get back.

 

Time do develop and admirable excuse...

what about that old back injury?

aren't you gay?

I'm sure theres a way to get out of it without becoming an outlaw!

 

I understand your situation very well. When I completed my MSc I had to go back to Greece to do my national service otherwise I was going to loose all my rights there. I did 18 months in the air force as an air traffic controller. Unfortunately the national service comes at the wrong time in your life, just gratuaded ready for an exiting career. I was fortunate enough to come back to a very good design position. I am afraid there is no way out of it if you want to go back to Singapore ever again although in the future things may change. As others said get legal advice before you decide. Good luck.

 

I would go for the experience - this is an opportunity not to miss!

The gf will wait.

good luck //lamboy

 

for what it's worth my advice is to do the service. imagine yourself 20 years down the line wanting to see your family there and not being able to.

you might even enjoy it.

 

Well it does kinda suck, but experience would be something else!

What ever you decide, i hope it works out well for you.

Good Luck!

 

"...but I'm afraid me - like most other brits would do whats best for themselves...therefore tell em' where to stick it..."

The problem is that from what I've read about the place Singapore people take collective responsibility a little more seriously than we do.

Bob

 

Can you say you're gay or something?

If you plan on a future in Singapore then go ahead and do what you must. If you arent then two years is a long time if you have your future already planned.

Familys? Pain in the arse more like!

 

Poor girlfriend... thats what I say!

If you don't think the relationship is going anywhere then sure do your national service but if you think she is special and there are not many others like her, then don't. Relationships are the most important things in life. I sure couldn't cope with my girl disappearing for 2 years with only 2 weeks notice! If you go, don't expect to come back to her!

What do your familly think of you not doing it?

 

Surely the fact that he cant speak the lingo is reason enough?? Ive got to say, if I could speak the lingo I could be quite tempted to a spell in the Singapore forces, apparantly they aint half bad and have close links to the British forces. But everyones circumstances are different and in your situation Id say you've more to loose than gain.

 

Christ, a farewell thread with a difference!

Do what you think is best mate. But if I was you, I think I'd be tellin em where to shove it.

 

1. Camp it up like Julian Clary at a Scouts Jamboree.
2. Drop the citizenship. You will still be able to visit on a UK passport. My wife is single citizenship (UK) but holds a UK and a Thai passport, which isn't in theory possible - but they never tie up the two.
3. If all else fails and you go there, keep a very sharp eye out for suspicious numbers of Japanese men on bicycles. Historically, this has been a Bad Sign.

 

Wow. This really illustrate how different are the different approaches between UK and Singapore regarding immigration policy. One seeks out and grab whatever they think are suitable young-fit-well-qualified people back to the country with any means whether by force or persuade with extremely generous terms. On the other hand the other only tries to kick out any young-fit-irrespective of qualifications people that already have forsake everything to come here. For what is worth form my observation as to what happen to my Singaporean friends back in university at least they are consistent.