<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>22901.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>Oct 18, 2009
EDITORIAL
</TD></TR><TR><TD><!-- headline one : start --></TD></TR><TR><TD>PRs have their place
</TD></TR><TR><TD><!-- headline one : end --></TD></TR><TR><TD><!-- show image if available --></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->She is a Singapore permanent resident. But Zhang Yuan Yuan, 28, drew flak from Singapore netizens after she took part in China's National Day parade recently and on top of that, showed her PR's identity card in a television interview.
Ms Zhang came to Singapore in 2003 after completing diploma studies in China. She worked as a Chinese language teacher at a private school, and became a permanent resident in 2006. In April last year, she returned to Beijing because she wanted to be with her ageing parents. She was also drawn to the growing opportunities in the land of her birth. She works in a property firm there.
Did Ms Zhang 'take advantage' of Singapore? The answer is no. She may be a Singapore PR, but China is still her country. She may or may not return to Singapore eventually, but she had made her contributions, and that is what counts.
A country's permanent residents are those foreigners who choose to live in that country for a length of time, mainly to work or do business. They have not given up their citizenships. They enjoy the benefits of residency, but not those of citizenship of the host country. In Singapore, the distinction is made very clear. They pay taxes, contribute to society economically and often socially as well. Some may become citizens eventually while others may choose to return home or move to another country.
Singapore is not alone in wooing professionals, creative people and those with the desired skills. They are highly mobile and adaptable in a globalised age. Countries compete for them because they add an extra layer of talent to the resident pool. For a nation with a small population like Singapore, that extra layer is critical to its staying ahead. Last year, there were almost 500,000 PRs in a population of 4.8 million.
So let us not begrudge Ms Zhang her residency status.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
EDITORIAL
</TD></TR><TR><TD><!-- headline one : start --></TD></TR><TR><TD>PRs have their place
</TD></TR><TR><TD><!-- headline one : end --></TD></TR><TR><TD><!-- show image if available --></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->She is a Singapore permanent resident. But Zhang Yuan Yuan, 28, drew flak from Singapore netizens after she took part in China's National Day parade recently and on top of that, showed her PR's identity card in a television interview.
Ms Zhang came to Singapore in 2003 after completing diploma studies in China. She worked as a Chinese language teacher at a private school, and became a permanent resident in 2006. In April last year, she returned to Beijing because she wanted to be with her ageing parents. She was also drawn to the growing opportunities in the land of her birth. She works in a property firm there.
Did Ms Zhang 'take advantage' of Singapore? The answer is no. She may be a Singapore PR, but China is still her country. She may or may not return to Singapore eventually, but she had made her contributions, and that is what counts.
A country's permanent residents are those foreigners who choose to live in that country for a length of time, mainly to work or do business. They have not given up their citizenships. They enjoy the benefits of residency, but not those of citizenship of the host country. In Singapore, the distinction is made very clear. They pay taxes, contribute to society economically and often socially as well. Some may become citizens eventually while others may choose to return home or move to another country.
Singapore is not alone in wooing professionals, creative people and those with the desired skills. They are highly mobile and adaptable in a globalised age. Countries compete for them because they add an extra layer of talent to the resident pool. For a nation with a small population like Singapore, that extra layer is critical to its staying ahead. Last year, there were almost 500,000 PRs in a population of 4.8 million.
So let us not begrudge Ms Zhang her residency status.
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