"We have friends who are unable to be at Hong Lim Park on 1st July, and being one of the sponsors for Pink Dot, we decided to have a livestream for our friends," said Mira Mekeh, founder of Ladies District, an LGBTQ-friendly bar near Rochor, in the heart of the city. SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore's annual Pink Dot gay pride rally drew thousands of people on Saturday, despite new restrictions aimed at keeping foreigners out of domestic politics and barricades put up around the rally site. But those taking party in this year's rally, which promotes 'freedom to love', had to show identity cards to prove they were citizens or permanent residents before being allowed into a barricaded zone. They would not disclose the turnout or what the maximum capacity was on Saturday, but participants said the number was below the 28,000 who took part last year. Multinationals like Facebook, Google and Goldman Sachs had funded previous editions as part of their equal- opportunity initiatives. Under a law dating back to British colonial rule, sex between men is technically still a criminal act in Singapore but the statute is not being actively enforced.
Singapore implements a new law that bans foreigners from taking part in protests.