Chinese privilege is baseless says Singapore, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong

[ASEAN NOW News]

Chinese Singaporeans should be more aware of minorities’ challenges but Chinese privilege claim ‘entirely baseless’, says PM Lee (Reuters)

 

SINGAPORE — Chinese Singaporeans should try to better understand the concerns and difficulties faced by ethnic minorities, but it is “entirely baseless” to claim that Chinese privilege exists in Singapore, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said yesterday in his Mandarin speech at the National Day Rally. 

 

Stressing that everyone is treated equally here and no group is accorded special privileges, he acknowledged, though, that the country's decades of peace have led people to “gradually take racial harmony for granted” — to the extent that some Chinese Singaporeans are unaware of the feelings and experiences of minorities. 

 

Non-Chinese tenants

 

In particular, he cited the examples of how minorities sometimes face difficulties when looking for a job or home to rent.

 

According to Today Online, some Chinese homeowners tell property agents upfront that they prefer not to have tenants of a particular race, which leads agents to reject any prospective non-Chinese tenants. 

 

“Not all homeowners are like that, but it’s not difficult for us to imagine how hurt these minority tenants feel when they have such encounters,” he added.

 

On the job front, he noted that some jobs require proficiency in the Chinese language, and this is understandable and acceptable.

 

However, it is not a must for some other jobs, and if employers still want Mandarin-speakers as a requirement, the minorities will find this unreasonable and unfair.

 

He noted that it is “human nature” for people to be drawn to those with similar linguistic and cultural backgrounds when they seek friends and life partners, which concern people’s private lives and personal decisions with no great impact on society. 

 

“But that is not the case when employing someone or renting a house,” he added.

 

“If we let the preferences of such employers and homeowners build up over time, they will become prejudiced, and minorities will feel they are discriminated against.” 

 

He then warned: “If left unaddressed, such preferences will gradually deepen the fissures in our society. Therefore, all of us must uphold the principle of racial equality to build a more inclusive society.”

 

Racism

 

Mr Lee’s call during the National Day Rally came after the Finance Minister Lawrence Wong spoke out against racism in June.

 

Mr Wong had urged Singaporeans to be conscious of the needs of minorities, and to recognise that it is harder to be a minority than a majority in a multi-racial society.

 

He warned that if left unaddressed, these preferences will gradually deepen the fissures in society

Still, he said it is baseless to claim that Chinese privilege exists here as the law treats everyone equally