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Coffeeshop Chit Chat - Sinkie kena forced to integrate with FTs</TD><TD id=msgunetc noWrap align=right> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=msgtable cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="96%"><TBODY><TR><TD class=msg vAlign=top><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgbfr1 width="1%"> </TD><TD><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR class=msghead vAlign=top><TD class=msgF width="1%" noWrap align=right>From: </TD><TD class=msgFname width="68%" noWrap>kojakbt_89 <NOBR></NOBR> </TD><TD class=msgDate width="30%" noWrap align=right>9:43 pm </TD></TR><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgT height=20 width="1%" noWrap align=right>To: </TD><TD class=msgTname width="68%" noWrap>ALL <NOBR></NOBR></TD><TD class=msgNum noWrap align=right> (1 of 2) </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgleft rowSpan=4 width="1%"> </TD><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>32434.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt>Singaporeans having “integration” forced down their throats by the PAP
April 30th, 2010 |
Author: Your Correspondent
OPINION
http://www.temasekreview.com/2010/04/30/singaporeans-having-integration-forced-down-their-throats-by-the-pap/
The buzzword lately is “integration, integration and integration”. Not a single day pass without the state media harping on the magical word which is spreading like a bug to afflict all aspects of life in Singapore. Even the classroom is not spared.
A few days ago, a Symposium on Integration in Schools was held to study ways of promoting social interaction and integration between Singaporeans and foreign students in Singapore schools.
A week earlier, a “Water Festival” was held by Bukit Batok grassroots organizations to celebrate the New Year of the Burmese, Thai and Cambodian community in Singapore.
PAP MP Grace Fu who was the Guest-of-Honor at the event, said:
“We are a cosmopolitan society, and we celebrate a lot of festivals that do not originate here. I told the grassroots to look at activities that will drive the crowd here because if people all stay in their flats, integration cannot take place.”
Yes, the key word is still “integration”.
Singaporeans are having “integration” forced down their throats literally by the PAP and the state media which continues to churn out “integration” propaganda day after day faithfully.
The question is: how many Singaporeans are genuinely interested in “integration”?
Saved for the grassroots leaders who are coerced to lend their support to such “integration” events, not many Singaporeans appear to be aware of the activities being held in their neighborhood to promote “bonding” between them and the immigrants.
Integration is a natural process which will take time to materialize and cannot be accelerated artificially by such half-hearted superficial attempts.
In the United States for example, it was found that immigrants generally take at least three generations to become fully naturalized U.S. citizens.
It is impossible to expect the newcomers to become Singaporeans overnight, especially when so many of them are allowed into Singapore within a short a period of time.
As there is already a significant number of their compatriots in Singapore, they tend to congregate within their respective communities and have few incentives to reach out to Singaporeans.
Furthermore, some immigrants do not even understand or speak English, the lingua franca which unites the various races in Singapore.
How can one ever integrate into an English-speaking nation without speaking the language in the first place?
The onus is on the new immigrants to integrate into Singapore society and if they do not bother to put in the effort, no amount of money spent on integration by the PAP will help.
Had the PAP got its immigration policy right in the first place, there will be no need to spend so much money to promote “integration” now.
With public disgruntlement rising against the relentless influx of foreigners, the atmosphere is not quite appropriate for the PAP to implement its “integration” policies on the ground.
The state media only selects rare examples to highlight how the immigrants are “integrating” into Singapore society which is not exatly reflective of the reality.
Singaporeans are already suffering from the recklessness of the PAP’s misguided policies. They should not have “integration” forced down their throats down to cover up for the PAP’s ineptitude.
We did not ask for so many foreigners to be brought into Singapore. Why must we “integrate” with them? Shouldn’t the immigrants be the ones to integrate into our society instead?
While Singaporeans are forced to live with the increasing number of foreigners in their country, it is their choice to decide if they want to socialize with them.
If the integration efforts turn out to be an abject failure, the fault lies with the PAP alone for not formulating its policies well and not Singaporeans.
At the end of the day, Singapore belongs to every Singaporean and not just the PAP. Being citizens of this country, we have the right to decide its fate, including the number and type of immigrants we should accept.
</TD></TR><TR><TD> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
OPINION
http://www.temasekreview.com/2010/04/30/singaporeans-having-integration-forced-down-their-throats-by-the-pap/
The buzzword lately is “integration, integration and integration”. Not a single day pass without the state media harping on the magical word which is spreading like a bug to afflict all aspects of life in Singapore. Even the classroom is not spared.
A few days ago, a Symposium on Integration in Schools was held to study ways of promoting social interaction and integration between Singaporeans and foreign students in Singapore schools.
A week earlier, a “Water Festival” was held by Bukit Batok grassroots organizations to celebrate the New Year of the Burmese, Thai and Cambodian community in Singapore.
PAP MP Grace Fu who was the Guest-of-Honor at the event, said:
“We are a cosmopolitan society, and we celebrate a lot of festivals that do not originate here. I told the grassroots to look at activities that will drive the crowd here because if people all stay in their flats, integration cannot take place.”
Yes, the key word is still “integration”.
Singaporeans are having “integration” forced down their throats literally by the PAP and the state media which continues to churn out “integration” propaganda day after day faithfully.
The question is: how many Singaporeans are genuinely interested in “integration”?
Saved for the grassroots leaders who are coerced to lend their support to such “integration” events, not many Singaporeans appear to be aware of the activities being held in their neighborhood to promote “bonding” between them and the immigrants.
Integration is a natural process which will take time to materialize and cannot be accelerated artificially by such half-hearted superficial attempts.
In the United States for example, it was found that immigrants generally take at least three generations to become fully naturalized U.S. citizens.
It is impossible to expect the newcomers to become Singaporeans overnight, especially when so many of them are allowed into Singapore within a short a period of time.
As there is already a significant number of their compatriots in Singapore, they tend to congregate within their respective communities and have few incentives to reach out to Singaporeans.
Furthermore, some immigrants do not even understand or speak English, the lingua franca which unites the various races in Singapore.
How can one ever integrate into an English-speaking nation without speaking the language in the first place?
The onus is on the new immigrants to integrate into Singapore society and if they do not bother to put in the effort, no amount of money spent on integration by the PAP will help.
Had the PAP got its immigration policy right in the first place, there will be no need to spend so much money to promote “integration” now.
With public disgruntlement rising against the relentless influx of foreigners, the atmosphere is not quite appropriate for the PAP to implement its “integration” policies on the ground.
The state media only selects rare examples to highlight how the immigrants are “integrating” into Singapore society which is not exatly reflective of the reality.
Singaporeans are already suffering from the recklessness of the PAP’s misguided policies. They should not have “integration” forced down their throats down to cover up for the PAP’s ineptitude.
We did not ask for so many foreigners to be brought into Singapore. Why must we “integrate” with them? Shouldn’t the immigrants be the ones to integrate into our society instead?
While Singaporeans are forced to live with the increasing number of foreigners in their country, it is their choice to decide if they want to socialize with them.
If the integration efforts turn out to be an abject failure, the fault lies with the PAP alone for not formulating its policies well and not Singaporeans.
At the end of the day, Singapore belongs to every Singaporean and not just the PAP. Being citizens of this country, we have the right to decide its fate, including the number and type of immigrants we should accept.
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