Cherian George, assistant professor at the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, has written a timely article on the need to tolerate political diversity in Singapore.
Published on 10 Aug in the Straits Times, his article entitled “Time to tolerate political diversity” starts off by asserting that Singapore has tolerated diversity in the areas of race and religion, differences in individual ability, and even differences in wealth, but Singapore has not tolerated diversity in the political arena. In his own words, “Attitudes towards different political beliefs and practices remain immature and intolerant. Singaporeans seem not to have learnt from the way our society has handled diversity in other realms and become richer for it.”
I would agree that Singapore has tolerated, and even made some limited attempt at celebrating diversity in race and religion, although Constance Singam, President of the Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE), has a very different take on this. And certainly intolerance towards political opposition is still near all-time highs. This intolerance is manifested to the greatest possible degree by the PAP Government, and year and in year out, every attempt is made to filter this intolerance down to the masses through the complaint state-controlled media.
Here are some key quotes from Cherian George’s article:
I would also like to emphasize this message by Cherian George once again: “Theirs is a lonely enough path; they do not need stones thrown at them.“
Published on 10 Aug in the Straits Times, his article entitled “Time to tolerate political diversity” starts off by asserting that Singapore has tolerated diversity in the areas of race and religion, differences in individual ability, and even differences in wealth, but Singapore has not tolerated diversity in the political arena. In his own words, “Attitudes towards different political beliefs and practices remain immature and intolerant. Singaporeans seem not to have learnt from the way our society has handled diversity in other realms and become richer for it.”
I would agree that Singapore has tolerated, and even made some limited attempt at celebrating diversity in race and religion, although Constance Singam, President of the Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE), has a very different take on this. And certainly intolerance towards political opposition is still near all-time highs. This intolerance is manifested to the greatest possible degree by the PAP Government, and year and in year out, every attempt is made to filter this intolerance down to the masses through the complaint state-controlled media.
Here are some key quotes from Cherian George’s article:
- No group is spared this culture of intolerance. In some circles, joining an opposition party brands you as a dangerous element, and about as welcome in Singapore as dengue-bearing mosquitoes and H5N1-infected chickens. But, in other Singaporeans’ eyes, if you enter the ruling party’s ranks you must be a self-serving sell-out, consumed by ambition and craving patronage.
- It seems that the only escape from this careless stereotyping is to retreat entirely from public affairs. Abject apathy is the only ideological stand that is immune to Singaporeans’ political bigotry — even though it is the most anti-social and the most deserving of criticism.
- In dealing with ethnic diversity, Singaporeans are learning that it is wrong to apply racial stereotypes to entire communities. Perhaps, then, it is not too much to ask that we should stop imprisoning individuals of whatever political persuasion inside the cages in our mind.
- The resulting political culture may have hurt the PAP itself. There are many reasons for the chronic difficulty it faces in getting the ablest Singaporeans to serve in politics, but surely one of them is their reluctance to enter an arena that they perceive as lacking in civility.
- If people who are engaged in public affairs from whatever angle sow intolerance instead, they will reap cynicism and apathy from the wider public. Nobody should be surprised when either bully talk by those with power or histrionics by those without leave the broad middle ground turned off.
- Singapore also needs some good people to join the opposition, as a long-term insurance policy for the day it needs an alternative government. Theirs is a lonely enough path; they do not need stones thrown at them.
I would also like to emphasize this message by Cherian George once again: “Theirs is a lonely enough path; they do not need stones thrown at them.“