... and death penalty for caring drugs, and caning for minor offences, and that chewing gum could be obtained only by doctor prescription, and that you will be followed by secret police if you look suspicious (you have wrong color or whatever), and tons of other stuff.

> caning for minor offences

Which minor offences? I've been under the impression that offences punishable by caning are quite severe: robbery, rape, assault, piracy (in the actual piratical sense of violent robbery at sea) and the like.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penal_Code_(Singapore)

> Which minor offences?

Vandalism, drug abuse, illegal money-lending, 'rioting' as defined by a government that doesn't tolerate assembly..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caning_in_Singapore#Offences_p...

There's also the problematic government support of corporal punishment for children..

These don't look like "minor offences" to me either, except perhaps drug abuse. Big-time illegal money-lending is serious financial crime and not a minor thing. And again, from what I've read, the rioting cases where caning has been ordered by Singapore courts have involved real, actual violence: things like throwing rocks at policemen and rescue workers and setting things to fire, and have gone with prison sentences of years.

The point being, you won't be caned for small things that you could do out of a little negligence or thoughtlessness. You have to understand that you're doing something serious. (At least that has fit the description of all cases that I have read about.)

> There's also the problematic government support of corporal punishment for children..

There might have been implicit government support in the past, but today teachers are not allowed to hand out corporal punishment to children.

People that keep track of this kind of thing disagree. I'm no expert but I'd be curious to hear what you think;

http://www.corpun.com/usscr2c.htm#singapore

graffiti is the most notable one

Again, the cases I've read about have been more than just scribbling a few letters on a wall. They have involved a planned operation to break and enter (breaking doors or cutting fences) in order to vandalize.

I don't say caning is right for that either, but these are not "minor" offences. There's no fear that you could be caned for accidentally doing something like this.

... and no freedom of speech

Well, there's tech to deal with all of the above, but someone, somewhere isn't going to like the solution.

But they look the other way. Singapore has an open gay scene. I suspect it's like many laws in many countries; if the government wants to nail you, then it'll get used.

As an aside, being gay isn't illegal; acts of "gross indecency" between men are illegal.

Actually if I recall correctly, an absurd law was passed that would seem impossible to enforce, and it stated that it was illegal to walk around your own house in the nude. I don't know if that law is still around, but it was active a few years ago when I lived there.

Or the internet is censored