TR EMERITUS

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Written by Our Correspondent The former director of Singapore's Internal Security Department from 1971 - 1974 Mr Yoong Siew Wah has spoken out against MM Lee Kuan Yew's continued staying on in power. During a dialogue session with NUS Alumni, Education Minister Dr Ng Eng Hen said in reply to a question on why MM Lee is not stepping down that it is up to voters to vote MM Lee out if they feel he is not adding value to Singapore. Mr Yoong felt that it is a "very diplomatic" answer and that the PAP minister have been "primed" already to give varying replies to this sensitive question: "The PAP leadership has anticipated that the stepping down of MM Lee will be a hot topic, especially among the young electorate who wonder why this old scrooge is still drawing a whopping salary of over $3 million a year doing nothing but "forecasting". So all the ministers are primed to give the stock reply, maybe varying in style in giving it in some cases so as not to give the impression of regimentation." He added that there is "widespread dissensions" among the public including PAP supporters and Lee should be "removed from his position of Minister Mentor". A former Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee has been in government for more than 50 years. He was appointed "Minister Mentor" after his son Lee Hsien Loong became Singapore's Prime Minister in 2003. By his own admission, Lee claimed that he is "not doing much work except forecasting". In fact, Lee has been flying around the world last year at the expense of Singapore taxpayers to lecture other leaders on how to run their countries. Mr Yoong opined that it is unlikely that Lee can be voted out by voters as he still retain considerable support among Singaporeans: "Does the PAP leadership sincerely believe that leaving the constituents at Tanjong Pagar to decide is the right course to resolve this matter. There are so many imponderables, one of which, very crucial, is whether the opposition is able to put up a team of credible candidates to face M M Lee's slate of candidates. Another is MM Lee is in a GRC and it will be impracticable to expect electors to vote against MM Lee without affecting his fellow-candidates. He still has his admirers among the electors, who are either blind to or condone his kinks." Lee will be almost 88 years of age by the time the next election is called. An increasing number of Singaporeans, especially the young are joining the chorus of voices to request him to step down by then. While it is undeniable that Lee has contributed to Singapore during his reign as Prime Minister, he will do more harm than good to the nation by staying on. Not only will his lingering presence prevent capable leaders from emerging from within the ranks of the PAP, he is grossly out of touch with the aspirations of the younger generation who should be allowed free rein to chart their own destinies.  Read More →

By Bhaskaran Kunju In last week’s session of Parliament it was announced that Singaporeans born to parents of different races could exercise the option to include the races of both parents in their Identity Card. The new implementation is of course a significant move in recognising the diversity of Singapore’s racial diaspora. According to the most recent statistics relating to marriage trends of 2008, 14% of non-Muslim marriages were inter-ethnic while it was 31% for Muslim marriages. Of the 14% of non-Muslim marriages, nearly half were between Chinese grooms and brides of ‘Other’ ethnic origins. According to Singapore Department of Statistics, ‘Other’ refers to all ethnic groups excluding Chinese, Indian, Eurasian, Caucasian and Malay. The term is defined ambiguously, but it could possible refer to those of foreign descent or of mixed-race origin. The statistics are similar in the Muslim marriage bracket with Malay grooms marrying brides of ‘Other’ ethnic groups forming the largest proportion. The figures show a rise from the previous year and an even bigger leap from a decade before. It clearly shows that Singapore is fast becoming more ethnically cosmopolitan and new measures such as the double-barrelled race classification in ICs are a step in the right direction. But while these measures are welcoming, they do no necessarily negate the heart of the problem and is more of a cosmetic fix to a complex issue at hand. The more cosmopolitan Singapore becomes the more difficult it should be to implement the rigid classification of racial identities as well as prolong the established racially based policies in governmental projects such as those in housing and education. The IC changes reflect a positive change in recognition for the ethnic diversity of Singaporeans, but it fails to address the real issues and may possibly invoke more issues on its own. For example the most recent surfacing of this issue was in Parliament on August 18 2009. Mr. Christopher de Souza (MP for Holland-Bukit Timah) asked if children born of European-Asian marriages would be allowed to register as Eurasian instead of Others for the purpose of registration into Primary One. Mr. de Souza was given assurance that such provisions are allowed and now the double-barrelled racial classification takes this process one step further. However while the new classification allows for recognition of dual racial identities it also places emphasis on a ‘dominant’ race. Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee clarified, “(The) key reason is that we have ethnic linked policies, for example, HDB's ethnic integration policy.  In Singapore, these are key policies.  So we do need to know which classification to put the child under.  So we need the parents, even though they have a choice now, to still indicate the dominant race” The HDB policy in question is the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP). As explained by Mr. Mah Bow Tan in a Parliamentary session in November 2009,  “The EIP was introduced to achieve a healthy racial mix in HDB estates and prevent the formation of ethnic enclaves, regardless of whether they are citizens or PRs. By providing HDB residents of different races with more opportunities to interact as neighbours, the EIP fosters inter-racial understanding and strengthens social cohesion in Singapore.” The above statement was given in a question raised by Dr Lim Wee Kiak about the number of Permanent Residents (PRs) who own HDB flats and the distribution pattern. Mr. Mah explained that PRs were not exempt from the EIP. Hence the policy of racial classification is far reaching and has deeper repercussions even to non-citizens. In time it may not be feasible to continue such a policy of racial classification however, at least not within the structure that it has been defined in. Apart from inter-ethnic marriages, with the influx of New-Citizens who differ from the traditional CMIO (Chinese Malay Indian and Others) origin, these racial classifications issues would have a bigger impact in public policies. The most obvious deviation will be in the ethnic makeup. Apart from public housing policies and places in educational institutes, there will inevitably be the question of alterations to the traditionally and constitutionally recognised positions of the Chinese, Indian, Malay generic classifications including the official language recognition as well. These are of course larger issues at hand but ultimately unavoidable issues that will or should be dealt with sooner than later as our ethnic makeup changes with immigration as well as inter-ethnic marriages.  But to do away with the racial classification is also not easy and according to Assoc. Prof. Ho it is not feasible as well, “in multi-racial Singapore, we still need the race classification… Unlike other societies, for example, in France, to be politically correct, they do away with recording and reflecting race, but that does not mean that race problems will go away.  So I think our approach is better where we give more choice and flexibility but still continue with the current practice of recording the child's race.” While Assoc. Prof. Ho did not clearly clarify his explanation, the reservation is based on the possibility of two things; 1.clustering of racial enclaves as evident in the basis for EIP and 2. the possibility of disproportionate opportunities for minority races. Either of which would be difficult to monitor without racial classification. But even with double-barrelled classifications, the ethnic demarcations serve as no more than rudimentary indicators without any clear identification of ethnic or cultural attachment, which would in turn make it less than useful for official purposes such as EIP. Apart from that there is also the question of the possible misuse of the new system to benefit oneself in ethnic related policies. For example the racial identity that one officially procures would also help in determining which ethnic self-help group that an individual could relate to. The different ethnic based self-help groups such as SINDA and Mendaki offer different forms of assistance, and one could easily pick an organisation to benefit his or her own needs. In due time it would make sense to look into a complete overhaul of the racial classification system especially given the latest trends in inter-ethnic marriages and especially immigration. The manner in which racial identities are cultivated or classified are changing constantly. There will definitely be a need to redefine how we identify races and consequently race policies as our ethnic landscape evolves with these social changes.   Copyright © The Temasek Review, 2009 Other articles by Bhaskaran Kunju: >> How much immunity for a diplomat >> The saga of (dethroned) beauty queen Ris Low >> Is there room for more foreigners in Singapore? >> Why social cohesion is at the forefront of the Prime Minister’s National Day Rally >> Changes in political system to allow more alternative voices >> The untimely departure of Chip Goodyear >> Should universities be re-politicized?   About Author: Bhaskaran Kunju is a political science undergraduate in a local varsity. He is a regular contributor to the Straits Times Forum and TODAY Voices.  Read More →