2 Excellent Essays on Amy Cheong inicdent - worth airing and discussion.

[scroobal]

These 2 have approached together with VW in a well thought of way and it worth airing and further discussion.




PTADER

What Singapore Needs - A Good Dose of Racial Riots
Minority in Malaysia. Whinge about racism. Can't find job. Can't get promoted. Can't get this. Can't get that. All because of big, bad Bumiputra policy.

Minority in Australia. Whinge about racism. Can't find job. Can't get promoted. Can't get this. Can't get that. All because of big, bad White racism.

What to do? Turns up in Singapore after Uni and suddenly, she is part of the majority. Can get job. Can even get promoted. Better still, can even fuck minorities with impunity now that she is no longer a minority but is part of the majority.

After 10 years of HDB dwelling and absorbing the constant refrain about race, being bombarded with the subliminal plus not so subliminal messages about the superiority of the Chinese race, Chinese culture, Chinese educational prowess, Chinese diligence, Chinese annual Chang Huayi campaigns, etc, all that this little Amy Cheong is doing is merely regurgitating and parroting that which she had absorbed from Lee Kuan Yew, his little son, his litter of awe-stricken ministers and his vast harem of personal cocksuckers in various arms of his government.

Her "KNS" summation is telling. This little bitch has been thoroughly Singaporeanised. After 10 years, she is simply behaving like a Singaporean, a young Singaporean who has never experience the unbridled joys of a violent racial riot and hence, feels unrestrained in spouting whatever toxic rubbish she thinks she is entitled to.

To paraphrase my personal superhero, Lee Kuan Yew, what Singapore needs is a good dose of racial riots.

The last occurred 43 years ago when the likes of this silly, little bitch and some of the young, half-brained punks in this forum like that Jah chap and his ilk were still swimming in their father's testicles or whose fathers were still swimming in their grandfather's testicles.

These young, half-brains have not experience the joys and pleasures of a good, old racial riot. The violence, killings, bloodshed, burning, simmering tension, ethnic hatred, etc.

I am sure when they do - and I have absolute confidence that it is just a matter of time before the next one comes along - these little half-brained heroes will then be a little bit more respectful and a little more careful with all the racial vilification, noxious rubbish they heroically post, day in day out, in forums such as these.

 

[scroobal]

Porfirio Rubirosa

Re: What Singapore Needs - A Good Dose of Racial Riots
The problem of a racialised mind
by Mohamed Imran Mohamed Talib04:45 AM Oct 11, 2012

Now that the dust is settling and the online anger has abated somewhat on the matter of Amy Cheong's Facebook rant, it is necessary to take a step back and ask: What went wrong?

For this was not an isolated incident - as has been observed, in recent years there have been other instances of online comments made of a racist nature. Indeed, in September 2005, the situation was deemed serious enough that the Sedition Act was used for the first time in recent history to prosecute two men over online postings deemed insulting to the Malays and their religion.

These incidences might lead one to think that there is something wrong with our nation-building process. We could point a finger at the emergence of social media and sound a warning, but this does not address the root of the matter. Social media is not the problem to be managed - signs point to a racialised thought process that is in need of urgent attention.

Much of the problem stems from our denial that racism exists in an everyday context. Thus, while xenophobia has gotten a lot of attention in public discourse lately, racism is still a taboo subject we avoid discussing openly. It is a very rare occasion when someone like Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Law, openly discusses, as he did in a Facebook post in August, an elderly resident's "disturbing" complaints against his Indian neighbours.

Perhaps this reluctance to talk about racism has got to do with a narrative we have been ingrained with: Steer clear of contentious debate on race and religion, or risk a repeat of the racial riots of 1964. Inconveniently, racism challenges the core of the Singapore Story as a successful model for multiculturalism.



MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE



But not wanting to discuss racism does not make the problem disappear. In fact, it generates two consequent effects.

First, it causes sentiments to simmer, only to emerge in an ugly form, given a trigger. Second, when it does emerge, we might not know how to deal with it in a rational and intelligent manner.

Perhaps it is necessary to ask why our racial identity has hardened over the years and why some of us come to view our surroundings through a racial lens.

For instance, Ms Cheong may have a reasonable gripe over excessive noise from a wedding held in a void deck. The problem is not so much her intolerance of noise; it is about taking a racial perspective of the issue, which then manifested as vitriol against the Malays.

Why didn't she simply see it as a problem of space in a housing estate? Perhaps she could have made a constructive suggestion to the HDB to build more covered multi-purpose halls so that residents can hold weddings and funerals without causing too much inconvenience to others. She might even have found support from other Malays living on lower floors who face the same problem.



PRESENTING THE DATA



It is this racialised mind that ought to concern us. And many of us are equally guilty of this. No doubt, the "Chinese, Malay, Indian, Others" model on which our multicultural policies rest contributes to this. There is hardly a moment when we are not conscious of our race.

Being part of a minority, I constantly face this. If you are successful, it is in spite of your race and proof of the functioning meritocracy in Singapore. If you are a failure, most likely it will be accounted for in racial terms. Either way, to quote the postcolonial theorist Frantz Fanon, you are "trapped in your racial category".

Much of this also has got to do with how data is being presented along racial categories. Ms Cheong's linking of a high divorce rate to the cultural elements within the Malay community is symptomatic of how racialised data on divorce leads to racial reasoning.

Such racial reasoning is surprisingly prevalent. In health issues, for instance, because data on illnesses is categorised by race, there is a tendency to correlate health conditions to culture. Thus, obesity is viewed as a "Malay problem" and the cause of it is to be sought in, for example, the high coconut-milk content in popular Malay dishes such as nasi lemak.

Therefore, the solution sought is always cultural, such as the need for the Malays to change their "mindset" on dietary practices. The significance of obesity as a reflection of a typical advanced economy rife with fast-food joints and sedentary lifestyles - not unlike the situation in America - does not feature in the imagination of a racialised mind.



RELOOK SOCIAL POLICIES



Interestingly, a Malay can be as susceptible to racialised thinking as a non-Malay. The irony is that the vitriol spewed by a Malay against his own community is seen as being "self-critical", whereas the same remark by a non-Malay will invariably draw the charge of racism. Both, in fact, are equally racist - only that the former is an internalised form of racism.

How, then, do we undo this situation? Firstly, it would be necessary for us, as a society, to acknowledge that racism does exist as a result of the racialisation of the mind. Mr Shanmugam, in a recent Facebook post, appealed for Singaporeans to "look deep into our hearts and ask what the attitude of non-Malays are towards our Malay brothers and sisters".

But it is equally important to note that racism is not primordial to our nature, and to recognise that the "deep fault lines" are probably the result of historical circumstances and social policies - both of which can be recalibrated by questioning the basic assumptions in our nation-building process, and by reforming our social institutions to address issues not along racial lines but through the prism of equal citizenship, rights, opportunities and access to national resources.

The underachievement of the Malays in education, for example, is not a result of a deficit in the Malay culture or "mindset", but is more likely a reflection of the socioeconomic status of Malay families in general. They may not have the same access to an early start in childhood education nor expensive tuition.

More importantly, the problems faced by Malay students are invariably the same as those faced by Chinese and Indian families with lower socioeconomic status. In other words, let us view a problem through the lens of inequality and socioeconomic class, rather than race. This will mitigate the tendency to constantly racialise a social phenomenon.



AVOIDING CONFLICT VS BUILDING PEACE



Secondly, there is a need to constantly highlight positive accounts of spontaneous inter-ethnic cooperation. For example, the dominant narrative of the 1964 racial riots is always about the perpetrators, which then ends with a didactic preaching of the importance of racial and religious harmony.

What is absent are the stories of Malay families sheltering Chinese families, and vice versa, in times of crises. By highlighting the conflict and ignoring the altruistic components of inter-ethnic neighbourliness, the narration of the 1964 riots has the opposite, unintended effect of generating more fear and suspicion.

Mr Farid Hamid, founder of the Explorations in Ethnicity programme aimed at promoting inter-ethnic dialogue, once noted that upon seeing a video of the 1964 riot, a Primary 5 student commented that "we ought to be nice to others so that they don't attack us".

Perhaps our national education agenda has been predicated too much on the Hobbesian model that focuses on conflict-prevention, in contrast to the peace-building model. The former aims to minimise contact to avoid conflict; the latter promotes greater interactions and builds on positive resources that will have more lasting effects on inter-communal relations.



NEED TO CALIBRATE RESPONSE



Thirdly, there is a need to rethink the punitive approach to dealing with the issue of spontaneous everyday racism.

While laws such as the Sedition Act and the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act are in place to deal with serious cases of intentional and malicious attempts to sow discord, the judicious use of such legal instruments is necessary to allow the growth of a mature public capable of defeating bad ideas with good ideas - and the ability to tell the difference between the two.

NTUC may have its reasons for why it was necessary to terminate Ms Cheong's employment over her remarks. But consider the effect this would have on those who already harbour prejudicial views. For one, it would not persuade them to reconsider their views, but merely make them more "careful" in voicing their views publicly. Proper rational discussion that aims to educate, persuade and reform the mind cannot occur.

This is what is most unfortunate in Ms Cheong's dismissal. While there are some online who will claim a righteous victory over her sacking, one must remember that her kind of prejudicial viewpoint will survive long after people have forgotten who Amy Cheong is. This is the more arduous task before us: To live up to the pledge of "regardless of race, language or religion".



Mohamed Imran Mohamed Taib is a social activist and a postgraduate student at the Department of Malay Studies, National University of Singapore.

 

[TracyTan866]

Excellent. Thanks

 

[scroobal]

Couple of points on both these essays and themes that have emerged.

Migrants having a sense of superiority over the locals over time. Especially those who are of similar ethnic origins who come from societies where they have little voice and a smaller profile and assuming that Singapore is theirs for the taking. I think we have seen Indians from India throwing their weight around on the basis that they are of one of 4 mains races and therefor have immediate right to lord over. If we are not careful, the PRC would have enough of a superiority of numbers and influence to run the Singapore Chinese component their own way. The Malays and the Eurasians have lost their position. Note how Pernakans which is distinct culture have lost their profile.

The Amy Cheong is not the issue. The incident is a symptom of an underlying cancer. That cancer needs to be acknowledged and treated and not swept under the carpet. A theme put forward by the 2 authors plus VW. A riot or a revolution might be the answer and I sense that it has merit. How else would that you treat a cancer but with painful treatment.

Malay underachievement in the field of education as seen by Imran is a reflection of socioeconmic issues whoch limits their access to an early education lift and is similar to other races. He also states that it is not due to culture and mindset.

I tend to disagree on this. Having seen some parts of the world I would put it down to mindset that influences culture. I call it the "native conundrum". The sense of belonging and right to the land and the resources and role of the interlopers. I have seen it other countries where natives are dragged in by few of the elders and find excuses in not participating as part of the community. In Singapore, the racialised policies of the PAP has compounded this where nearly everything is written along racial lines. NS further drove the stake thru with no Malays in armour thinking etc.

The Malay intelligentsia have to take a major share of the blame over the Mendaki issue. They played poker with the PAP in 1991 and lost big time. They thought they could keep step with the devil and did the foxtrot while the PAP danced to the rumba. Honestly in 1991 who in his right mind would think that Musa Alami would become the President of MUIS.

Frankly did anyone behind the 1991 event think or even consider that the PAP would start Sinda and immediately follow-up with CDAC. It was truly a royal flush and it was Malays that got flushed down the toilet built by the PAP with the lever pulled by People behind AMP, the Association of Muslim Professional. AMP played a round of golf with GCT without a handicap and lost.

On 17 August 2011, in the course of Presidential Election, Dr Tan Cheng Bock called for the merger of Mendaki, Sinda and CDAC. It was not a Malay or an Indian that suggested it but a Chinese and an ex PAP MP. You can't build a country and a nation with people running their own agendas. The fact that a well respected intellectual JY Pillay had managed to get wool over his eyes over Sinda was quite startling. Did he not realise that common sense would dictate that a Chinese Self Help Group is being planned. The only consolation is that JY Pillay is not Chief of the SAF. If he was, I do hope AMP is not part of the Officers' cadre corp.

 

[kingrant]

Here's a third angle seen from a Malay.. http://wherebearsroamfree.blogspot.sg/2012/10/is-amy-cheongs-ignorance-failure-in-our.html

Wednesday, 10 October 2012
Is Amy Cheong's ignorance a failure in our system?
at 9:06:00 AM by Barrie
What this article is about -

This article takes a look Amy's ignorance about another's culture that led her to make not so nice comments on her Facebook account. It also takes a look at our system, which actually feeds ignorance into our population.

It is probably her ignorance about what other races do (in this case Malay weddings) that has resulted in this sad state. If she had simply complained about the noise level, that would have been a different issue. After all, many others have complained about other noise levels, be it Chinese funerals, getai shows etc. What makes this case different is the vitriol and expletives, as well as some derogatory remarks on a culture of a people.


My argument to back up my case -

Here is a screenshot of a sample of what Amy Cheong posted. Let's put aside the expletives and derogatory remarks. Let's just take a look at the ignorance part.

Click on screen to enlarge.

"Void weddings should be banned. If u cant afford a proper wedding then you shouldnt be getting married. Full stop."

There's the ignorance part I was referring to. But having void deck wedding is a proper wedding! It is a practice that has evolved from Malay tradition. I explained that here - Amy Cheong, Malay weddings at HDB void deck is an extension of tradition, nothing to do with affordability


Judging cultures of others by the only standard you know, ie your own culture -

To Amy, she knows only one kind of wedding. The lavish one celebrated in hotels or posh restaurants. Any kind of celebration that does not conform to that standard she knows, doesn't fit and does not deserve to be called a wedding. This is the ignorance I am referring to.

Many a time, it is this kind of ignorance that is the beginning of a much more sinister trait - intolerance. It is the same kind of ignorance and intolerance that makes people judge other cultures. From here, all kinds of racist remarks would follow, if not checked.


But our system is a hotbed for ignorance to flourish -

Here are some examples of our system where ignorance can flourish.

1. SAP Schools - I have argued this before. In a SAP school, only Chinese is offered as Mother Tongue. No need to tell you that if you're a SAPper, you would hardly have any non-Chinese friends. And if you're in a SAP since P1, that could well mean you have had no non-Chinese classmates or schoolmates for as long as 10 to 12 years of your school life. How would you appreciate what non-Chinese do, practice, worship etc?


2. SAF's Malayphobia - Till today, there is an unwritten policy that Malays are not fit to hold certain sensitive jobs. Not only that, they are not even allowed to be in certain areas. All this Malayphobia adds to the ignorance and intolerance that may already exist.


3. Stereotyping Malays as lazy - I find it amazing that after so many decades, this stereotype still exists. An example here. I have written quite in detail about this concept of "Malay being lazy" is actually a result of a govt policy which affected the Malays for generations. Excerpt below.

Minorities need to speak up for their rights
Effect of "exemption" from NS for Malays in the 1960s and 70s -

First of all, let's clear up some misconception. The Malays were NEVER exempted. They were just not called up. But legally, they were still liable. That means they could be called up at any time even in their twenties. In the 60s and 70s, while other races had completed their legal obligation by age 20 or 21, Malay youths were left dangling in limbo on their NS status even in their mid to late 20s. The term "exemption" is a misnomer.

This non-calling up had (and still has to some degree till today) a very heavy economic-social impact on Malay families.

The 1960s and the 1970s were the industrial boom years. Jobs were aplenty. To top it up, assets like HDB flats and cars were dirt cheap. I recall my uncle got married in 1972 and got a 3 room flat in Toa Payoh for just a dirt cheap $3000!

But to enjoy those economic goodies then, you need to have a job. The non-calling up of NS for Malays was stonewalling their economic progress. For an employer to hire you, what they want from you is "employability". The last thing they want is to have you working for them and three months later, you get called up for NS.

Those who have served NS found that they got jobs easily. There were plenty for the picking. Those who have not served NS, will be left in the lurch wondering when they will be called up. This is the scenario for the Malay youth in the 1960s and 1970s.

Scenario 1

Boss: Have you served your NS?

Malay job applicant: No.

Boss: When will you be called up?

Malay job applicant: I don't know.

Boss: Thank you. We will contact you when we find you suitable for the job.


Scenario 2

Boss: Have you served your NS?

Non-Malay job applicant: Yes.

Boss: When can you start work?

Non-Malay job applicant: Immediately.

Boss: Good. Come back tomorrow at 8 and I will get my secretary to prepare you a letter of offer.

Non-Malay applicant: Thank you, Sir!

Now folks, tell me, even if you have the best of the boom in the 1960s and 1970s, with jobs aplenty, with things so cheap that you can afford to stack your assets sky high, how the heck are you going to enjoy all that if you cannot even get a st*nk*ng job?

To add insult to injury, when these young Malays in the 1960s and 1970s could not find jobs and loafed around the streets, they were called "lazy".


Social Impact of "exemption" of NS for Malays on the generations after -

The saddest part for Malay Community about this totally unjustified non-calling up of NS by the racist PAPpy govt is that it did not just affect the Malay youth of the 1960s and 1970s. The effect carried down the generations thereafter.

By the time Malay youths were getting called up in the 1980s, the biggest and juiciest part of the economic boom was over. We had the first economic crisis in 1985. We had another in the 1990s - and another more crippling one the last decade, which we are still trying to get out from.

Things were more expensive in the 1980s than in the 1970s. Even without COEs I remembered that in the 1980s, every quarter, the HDB prices for NEW flats rose by about $30,000!

For those who have secured cars and houses in the 1970s, their assets have also risen. Those who have not, and those who tried to "catch up" in the 1980s, have less assets to offset the new higher prices.

The Malays, as you can see, have been lagging behind because they missed out the 1960s and 1970s boom years. That means that they could only afford smaller flats and smaller cars, or no cars.

Those who have flats and cars earlier in the 1970s, could easily upgrade. They also have higher CPF savings due to the very cheap HDB houses.


Stock Boom Years -

That wasn't all. The CPF was released to buy stocks and insurance in the 1990s. The Malays who only started to have real jobs in the 1980s could not match the savings in their CPF with the non-Malays who had accumulated sky high assets since from the 1960s and 1970s era. No need to be a genius to conclude that many CPF approved stock holders were non-Malays.

Then when the stock boomed through the 1990s, these CPF stock holders boomed even more, leaving the Malays behind even further!

This is not even talking about the fact that CPF was released for private housing and again, who else but those who had saved since 1960s and 1970s were able to afford that? This pushed the private property up, which meant HDB flat prices were also pushed up - including the 3 and 4 roomers!

And mind you, this was in the 1990s!

Alas, again when the Malays thought they have "caught up", the prices rose out of their reach - all because of the discriminatory practice of not calling up Malays for NS in the 1960s and 1970s!

Isn't this social injustice a cruel economic hit against the Malays through no fault of theirs, caused by the racist PAPpies?


My final words on the Malay Community today -

It is true that the Malay community have come a long way since the 1960s. Many Malay families now have decent houses and cars. But it must be remembered that because of one single mad policy from the mad PAPpies in the 1960s and 1970s, these Malays had to fight a long battle to be where they are today.

So before any of you crack that racist joke that Malays are lazy or not hardworking, please know that they have gone through a lot of discrimination from the govt in the 1960s and 1970s. And that discriminatory practice still has its effect till today on later generations.


4. Harping on "race riots" of the 1960s - The Sg govt keeps harping the race riots of the 60s, implicitly blaming the Malay community. However, I have discussed this topic before as well. If one were to study the history of our riots, there were more Chinese based riots against the govt of the day instigated by Chinese than race riots. Why then this harping of race riots instigated by Malays? History of Riots in Singapore - LKY's racist version has to be stopped


The above are four examples of how the govt has created an environment which allows ignorance (in this case, against the Malays) to flourish.


Conclusion -

In all probability, Amy's tirade began with her ignorance about another's culture. But that is half the story. The other half is that we are in a society that actually allows such ignorance to flourish.

So is Amy Cheong's ignorance a sign that our system to integrate races and culture has failed?

Perhaps it is time the higher ups did something about the system and not just sacking people from their jobs as a damage control measure.

 

[scroobal]

Excellent conclusion.

Clearly these are well argued positions. Surely the PAP leadership and their MPs cannot be all that dumb and ignorant all at the same time.

Does it then point to a few biased Nd bigoted individuals that are leading the rest of the party by the nose of the the rest of merely looking after themselves. Are racial factions within the PAP are so ingrained that it is a lost cause. The minority MPs have to take a hard look at themselves and ask if are doing any good to their own race or even help perpetuate the racial stereotypes. And do they sincerely believe that they cannot be elected in a single ward seat.

Here's a third angle seen from a Malay.. http://wherebearsroamfree.blogspot.sg/2012/10/is-amy-cheongs-ignorance-failure-in-our.html

Conclusion -

In all probability, Amy's tirade began with her ignorance about another's culture. But that is half the story. The other half is that we are in a society that actually allows such ignorance to flourish.

So is Amy Cheong's ignorance a sign that our system to integrate races and culture has failed?

Perhaps it is time the higher ups did something about the system and not just sacking people from their jobs as a damage control measure.

 

[zeddy]

The main mastermind of all this racist PAP Policies is still alive and kicking in his Oxley Rd bungalow..

I blame all these discriminations towards the Malays solely on that Old Scum Bastard..

This country will remain divided as long as there are people who will still fall for the PAP's divide and conquer tactics..

 

[yaosiu]

Tommorrow when Parliament starts, you will know the answer.

 

[kingrant]

My apologies..the blogger in wherebearsroamfree is a Chinese Muslim, not a Malay.

 

[scroobal]

What I could not understand is that old man commented about religion causing their detachment from the wider society but did not realise that religion is a security blanket for a marginalised race. He caused it. NS is a terrible smear on them. Employers wonder if a chap is a security threat when he is not called up for NS. The fact that they formed a construction brigade full of malays, the police NS full of malays etc damaged them and marginalised them.

40 years later he blames it on fundamentalism when the country ignored them.

The main mastermind of all this racist PAP Policies is still alive and kicking in his Oxley Rd bungalow..

I blame all these discriminations towards the Malays solely on that Old Scum Bastard..

This country will remain divided as long as there are people who will still fall for the PAP's divide and conquer tactics..

 

[chinchow]

imo, such comments and thinking shows the lack of understanding of the culture btw the diffenrent races in spore..spore's society and education system is too slanted towards the west, young people nowadays are more interested in whats happening in the west and are not interested/bothered abt learning more abt this region and the local culture, this is probably more obvious amongs the chinese..the younger generation probably know more about western culture/habits etc in the us then the culture of the different races in spore..

 

[coolguy]

Now that old scum living in Oxley Rd bungalow is discriminating the local born singaporeans
and favouring FTs.
Slowly but surely, the plight of these singaporeans will be the same as the Malays in the 70's and 80's.
Severly marginalised and downgraded to become jobless aplenty.
All due to this old scum personal philosophy that foreigners are more hardworking and ambitious than the locals,
he is now thinking of ways to make his philosophy came true.

 

[neddy]

Excellent thread!

About Malays and Racism in Amy

Malaysia-borned Amy's parents probably left Malaysia because her race is not welcomed in her country of birth. I remember how Chinese in Malaysia are always second class and still marginalise as an troublesome overstayed race. Chinese Singaporeans will have difficulties relating to the kind of treatment Malaysian Chinese endured from the Malays.

She would have faced racism studying in Perth, at the time when Aussies had not come to terms with the post-White multicultural policies.

Racism was regularly expressed outwardly around her her whole life.

Noisy Malay weddings blew her fuse.

 

[scroobal]

You are right. Now the locals are feeling marginalised. We are no longer talented, we do not contribute to the birthrate, pur education system is generating enough quality people. Yet we bring in doctors from 3 rd world countries.

Now that old scum living in Oxley Rd bungalow is discriminating the local born singaporeans
and favouring FTs.
Slowly but surely, the plight of these singaporeans will be the same as the Malays in the 70's and 80's.
Severly marginalised and downgraded to become jobless aplenty.
All due to this old scum personal philosophy that foreigners are more hardworking and ambitious than the locals,
he is now thinking of ways to make his philosophy came true.

 

[scroobal]

I grew up hearing Malay used a lingua franca in markets and shops. All the races could do it with ease including the emotions, the body language, the bantering etc. i grew up with Malay classmates from primary 1 and knew of them and their cultures. We also knew them as person rather than as a separate community. How many SAP student can make their claim.

imo, such comments and thinking shows the lack of understanding of the culture btw the diffenrent races in spore..spore's society and education system is too slanted towards the west, young people nowadays are more interested in whats happening in the west and are not interested/bothered abt learning more abt this region and the local culture, this is probably more obvious amongs the chinese..the younger generation probably know more about western culture/habits etc in the us then the culture of the different races in spore..

 

[lee6100]

You are right. Now the locals are feeling marginalised. We are no longer talented, we do not contribute to the birthrate, pur education system is generating enough quality people. Yet we bring in doctors from 3 rd world countries.

Every year, many good kids go abroad to study medicine because they are not given a place here. Places are capped, and one stupid reason given is that more doctors will create unnecessary demand. Inbreeding in the system, has resulted in the use of zero common sense in policy making.

 

[Batok Seri]

I grew up hearing Malay used a lingua franca in markets and shops. All the races could do it with ease including the emotions, the body language, the bantering etc. i grew up with Malay classmates from primary 1 and knew of them and their cultures. We also knew them as person rather than as a separate community. How many SAP student can make their claim.

Well I grew up in a chap lau flat. Most of my neighbours were Cheena families who were relocated from deepest swamp or swa and don't speak a word of Malay. They tell their spawns not to play or sit near Huanna/Mengkali kids for fear of headlice. These hicks form a substantial majority compared to educated Chinese or Peranakan in Singapore that LKY rode this demographic to get into power.

 

[kingrant]

There is an excellent book by Michael Barr (wth another author). The book is titled:

"Constructing Singapore: Elitism, Ethnicity, and the Nation-building project".

Actually indicted Old Man's idealogy of meritocracy and multi-culturalism. The latter meaning more like divide and rule, than our notion of diversity tolerance.

 

[Television]

Well I grew up in a chap lau flat. Most of my neighbours were Cheena families who were relocated from deepest swamp or swa and don't speak a word of Malay. They tell their spawns not to play or sit near Huanna/Mengkali kids for fear of headlice. These hicks form a substantial majority compared to educated Chinese or Peranakan in Singapore that LKY rode this demographic to get into power.

Today the educated ones are as bigoted as the "Hicks" of yester-year(Since most are descenders of this "Hicks"). Racism spawns either through discrimination, being pushed against the wall or by growing up in a narrow minded/self contained environment.
For an example, Bigots from the minority races usually develop strong racial views by being discriminated and/or by being racially abused(Verbally and/or Psychically), they will eventually come on harder and more crudely.

 

[Television]

Written by: Andrew Pereira

Racists Stereotypes were perpetuated in 1980s textbooks in Singapore!

According to the authors of the book Constructing Singapore: Elitism, Ethnicity and the National Building Project by Michael Barr and Zlatko Skrbis, stated that English textbooks in the 80s transmitted and reinforced racial stereotypes.



Below are some quotes from this book

The textbooks “went to considerable lengths to portray the life and work of Mohammed the Malay hotel porter, Cik Alimah the Malay domestic worker, Ahmad the Malay street sweeper, Encik Samad, another Malay street sweeper, and by contrast, Mrs Li and Miss Li the Chinese school teachers” (165)
“It also taught children to expect that Malays and Indians would work predominately in relatively menial jobs. Thus we see the Sikh policeman (Mr Singh), the Indian hawker stall holder, and the Indian and the Malay zookeepers (Muthu, Maniam and Hassan). On the other hand we see rather more uplifting images of Chinese characters, such as the civic-minded Chinese leader on the housing estate (Mr. Lin) and the Chinese doctor” (165).

This is true also for the New English Series for Primary Education (NESPE) series of textbooks.

“It is difficult to believe that this consistent stereotyping across three sets of textbooks written by three sets of authors was not deliberate, but bearing in mind that the three writing committees contained no Malays and only two Indians between them, it is just possible that this was an unconscious, rather than a deliberate reproduction of stereotypes” (167)

“This practice lends itself to perpetuating racial stereotypes, and indeed recent sociological research suggests that this has been the result. In 2002 Angline Khoo and Lim Kam Ming questioned 348 trainee teachers (who would almost all have studied English using the New Course English, PEP or the NESPE textbooks as children) and found evidence of strong racial stereotyping. To take just one aspect of their results, the Chinese trainee teachers viewed other Chinese as ‘industrious, practical, ambitious and superstitious; but they thought of Malays as being ‘happy-go lucky, lazy and kind’, Indians were regarded as being ‘loud, argumentative and talkative’. Whit teachers carrying such stereotypes into the classroom, it is insufficient to merely avoid reproducing them in the textbooks; they need to be actively counteracted” (170)

“Another study has revealed that the overwhelming majority (up to 80 per cent in some samples) of Singaporeans school children socialized exclusively with members of their own race. The same study also found that skin colour was a major racial identifier, with dark skin being a particularly strong and negative racial indicator. Being dark skinned in a Singapore playground is to invite derisive nicknames like ‘black coffee’ and ‘blackie’, together with racist remarks about the alleged personal characteristics of Indians or Malays as the case may be”

Source
Barr, M. D., & Skrbis̆, Z. (2008). Constructing Singapore: Elitism, Ethnicity and the Nation-Building Project: NIAS.