<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" bgcolor="#000000"> <table bgcolor="#000000" border="0" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td class="font12w">No chilli, sir? No problem </td> </tr> <tr><td>English classes for service staff among new moves to integrate new citizens</td> </tr><tr> <td class="font12w"> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr> <td class="font12w">By Ng Tze Yong</td> </tr></tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="font12w"> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td class="font12w" width="">September 18, 2009</td> <td width="30">
</td> <td width="10"> </td> <td width="30">
</td><td width="40"> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="font12w">
</td> </tr></tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" height="0">
</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="rightline" valign="top"> <table border="0" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr><td class="font12" align="left" valign="top"> THE waitress who doesn't speak a word of English may soon be able to understand what you mean when you say 'no chilli'. If she succeeds, it would be the first, most basic step towards getting new citizens and locals to live better together. Encouraging employers to send frontline staff who are new citizens to English classes is among a slew of new Government initiatives to integrate migrants. Existing courses will come under review, with the aim of increasing enrolment. Speaking at a press conference yesterday, National Integration Council (NIC) chairman Dr Vivian Balakrishnan said the council hopes to 'open the doors, hearts and minds' of new citizens and locals towards each other.
Formed in April, the NIC is made up of six Cabinet ministers and leaders from different sectors of society. Little wonder then that the slew of initiatives announced yesterday spanned almost every conceivable social space. In schools, Singaporean children will be encouraged to bring foreign classmates home for meals and vice versa. In the heartlands, community events and festival celebrations will be reinvented to integrate the new kids on the block. A $10 million Community Integration Fund will now pay for up to 80 per cent of social cohesion activities. On TV and the Internet, a remade version of The Singapore Story video, with a more contemporary and compelling storyline, will re-tell its message as documentaries, TV serials and Internet clips. In community centres, citizenship ceremonies will be given a makeover to enhance the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.
A new course - the Naturalisation and Integration Journey - will become part of the orientation for new citizens. Besides educating them on the historical landmarks and institutions of the country, it will also introduce them to their grassroots communities. 'I see (in new citizens) a hunger to belong, to participate...' said Dr Balakrishnan, who is also Community Development, Youth and Sports Minister. But key to the success will be how ordinary people respond. 'Will people on the ground buy into this, will they understand the need for this, will they participate?' asked Dr Balakrishnan.
Measuring success
The NIC will work with the Institute of Policy Studies to come up with suitable indices to measure the success of its initiatives. One way is to see if more PRs make the next move towards citizenship, said Mr Niam Chiang Meng, chairman of the NIC's working group for community. In setting out the objectives, Dr Balakrishnan reiterated points made by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in a speech at Nanyang Technological University on Tuesday night. They were: Citizens come first, Singapore was and will always be an immigrant nation, and the influx of foreigners will be slowed down. 'But I have no illusions (about the success of the initiatives),' said Dr Balakrishnan. 'It is not something we can solve in a day, a week or a year.'
</td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>
</td> </tr></tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" height="0">
Formed in April, the NIC is made up of six Cabinet ministers and leaders from different sectors of society. Little wonder then that the slew of initiatives announced yesterday spanned almost every conceivable social space. In schools, Singaporean children will be encouraged to bring foreign classmates home for meals and vice versa. In the heartlands, community events and festival celebrations will be reinvented to integrate the new kids on the block. A $10 million Community Integration Fund will now pay for up to 80 per cent of social cohesion activities. On TV and the Internet, a remade version of The Singapore Story video, with a more contemporary and compelling storyline, will re-tell its message as documentaries, TV serials and Internet clips. In community centres, citizenship ceremonies will be given a makeover to enhance the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.
A new course - the Naturalisation and Integration Journey - will become part of the orientation for new citizens. Besides educating them on the historical landmarks and institutions of the country, it will also introduce them to their grassroots communities. 'I see (in new citizens) a hunger to belong, to participate...' said Dr Balakrishnan, who is also Community Development, Youth and Sports Minister. But key to the success will be how ordinary people respond. 'Will people on the ground buy into this, will they understand the need for this, will they participate?' asked Dr Balakrishnan.
Measuring success
The NIC will work with the Institute of Policy Studies to come up with suitable indices to measure the success of its initiatives. One way is to see if more PRs make the next move towards citizenship, said Mr Niam Chiang Meng, chairman of the NIC's working group for community. In setting out the objectives, Dr Balakrishnan reiterated points made by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in a speech at Nanyang Technological University on Tuesday night. They were: Citizens come first, Singapore was and will always be an immigrant nation, and the influx of foreigners will be slowed down. 'But I have no illusions (about the success of the initiatives),' said Dr Balakrishnan. 'It is not something we can solve in a day, a week or a year.'
</td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>
