Cat Lim's unpublished Letter to ST Forum on LKY's 'retraction' on Malay integration

[Porfirio Rubirosa]

not sure whether this was posted before...if so my apologies...CL propably hit the nail on the head wif this one going by harry's 'cryptic' reply to charlie rose on this v issue in his latest interview wif rose...

Letter to ST: MM Lee’s ‘apology’ sends mixed, ambiguous signals
On 8 March I wrote the following letter to the Straits Times Forum, on a recent political issue which I had been following with interest and concern. Since it has not been published, I am putting it on my site, to share my personal views with readers
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I refer to the report ‘Malay integration: MM stands corrected,’ (The Straits Times, Tuesday March 8, 2011)

As a long-time observer of the extraordinary impact that MM has on the Singapore political scene, I would like to comment on his change of position with regard to the failure of the Malay community to integrate with the rest of the society.

The shift bears all the marks of a constrained rather than a spontaneous change of mind and heart. Firstly, the terse statement ‘I stand corrected’ is far short of a genuine apology and may even exacerbate rather than assuage hurt feelings. Secondly, the explanation of an oversight of the community’s successful efforts at integration in the last 2 years, is unconvincing, given MM’s sharp, meticulous thinking and observation. Thirdly, the statement, coming so long after the comments (first reported in the Straits Times on 3 January, 2011) and presumably very soon before the coming general elections, smacks of an opportunistic move.

It is tempting to conclude that this reversal of position is a consensus decision of the PAP government, rather than a conviction decision by MM himself.

Singaporeans like myself, who admire MM for the boldness of his convictions even if we disagree with them, would have preferred to see him maintain his unique role of telling hard truths and taking responsibility for them, rather than give the impression of taking a position so at odds with his strong personality and forthright style.

That way, we are not confused by the sending out of mixed signals.

 

[Received_by_Kings]

Re: Cat Lim's unpublished Letter to ST Forum on LKY's 'retraction' on Malay integrati

Catherine talks too much. This old woman should just stick to writing her dumb books that above their nondescript heartland and ordinary everyday spam content she invariantly tries in a painfully-visible do-or-die attempt to pose up to the Oxford dictionary in prose that predictably ends up looking inconspicuously unnatural and ghastly contrived.

If reading is meant to be a pain forget school textbooks and go straight into her works instead.

 

[myo539]

Re: Cat Lim's unpublished Letter to ST Forum on LKY's 'retraction' on Malay integrati

Whatever it is, she still has great admiration for MM Lee, as she professed.

She has made an acute observation, having been a senior civil servant long enough - and a sharp observant of human behaviour. Yes, MM Lee has acquiesced to the younger men in power - so as not to give them a difficult time and lose face in the process. After all, his son has to do all the damage control.

A truth is a truth - whether hard or soft. MM Lee has hit the Ahmads and Minahs right on the head! If they still don't wake up, don't know when they will - when Singapore joins Malaysia again?

Rather than be on the defensive, they should start to reflect and think of integration with the other races rather than think that all the good life they have is an act of GOD, and all the negative things befallen on their race is an act of the Govt and the other races! They should lunch with people who eat char siew mee and bak kut teh, and not only with those who eat tempei and sambal.