Branson, you see, has been blogging about Singapore’s drug laws.
Fast forward to the 21st century. Once again, there is an Asian government, Singapore, enacting tough laws against traffickers, including the death penalty, to protect its own population. Once more, an Englishman, Richard Branson, objects to an Asian country's laws because they don't conform to his principles,
Mr Tan wrote.
This story, however, pans out differently from the opium war in history.

Branson's reasons don't make sense
Branson’s reason that a televised debate would be limited in time is but a feeble excuse.
Branson also said that the debate would be limited in scope.
“It’s funny that Branson says that. For the longest time, Singaporeans have been saying the same thing to him. We’ve been telling Branson that he’s not a stakeholder, and he’s not a local voice.
But it’s never stopped Branson from telling Singaporeans what to do. He kept having blogs published under his name, telling Singapore what to do.
It was only when Singapore invited Branson to debate that he suddenly changed his tune. Now, Branson feels that Singaporean stakeholders and local voices should matter more and that foreigners (like him) should not talk.”