Malay-Muslims Have a Role in Remaking Singapore

Race relations and the Iraq war dominated the youth dialogue that DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER LEE HSIEN LOONG held with the Mendaki Club last Saturday. These are excerpts from his remarks when opening the two-hour meeting

THE Iraq war recently was another test of our race relations.

There's a clear difference between Malay-Muslims and other Singaporeans in their views on the war.

Among the non-Muslims, views are I would say about half-half: for and against. Among the Muslims, there is overwhelming opposition to the war.

It's like in other Muslim countries and Muslim societies everywhere. The Muslims were especially concerned with the human suffering of the Iraqi people. They saw this as a humanitarian issue and not just because the Iraqis are primarily a Muslim society.

It is quite understandable but I think it's a reality which we have to acknowledge: that most Malay-Muslims react differently from the rest of Singaporeans on this issue.

And, therefore, the Malay-Muslims were uncomfortable with the Government's stand of supporting the US action on Iraq.

What does the Government do? The Government has to take a national role.

Our responsibility as a government is to adopt a foreign policy which is based on principle and our national interests. This is the way all other countries set their foreign policies too.

What is our foreign policy now? We're a small country, dependent on international security and on the rule of international law. And in Iraq there were several important principles and vital interests at play.

The first principle is to uphold the authority of the United Nations in Iraq. Iraq had flouted successive UN Security Council resolutions over more than 10 years, and it could not be allowed to pass. Without the UN authority, as a small country we're very vulnerable.

VESTED INTEREST

SECONDLY, we had a vested interest to support the international effort against terrorism and against the illegal possession of weapons of mass destruction.

Terrorism is a problem here. Weapons of mass destruction, you can say it's far away.

But in North Korea, there are questions of nuclear weapons and what to do with them, how to manage it. And how Iraq is settled has a clear bearing on how North Korea will act and, therefore, on our security and safety.

And thirdly, we had a vested interest to have the US maintain its credibility and influence globally and especially in our region. With a strong US holding the reins, there's a balance of power in Asia and we are more secure.

Therefore, Singapore participated in what the US calls 'the coalition for the disarmament of Iraq'. At the same time, we contributed to humanitarian efforts to help the Iraqi people and we're helping in the post-war reconstruction of Iraq.

And in doing this, we are not pro-US or anti any country. We are pro-Singapore.

This is not going to be the last time that different communities will respond to the same issue in different ways. It's a reality of our multiracial society.

Realistically, we're not likely to have complete convergence of views for a long time to come.

Acknowledging and managing these different perspectives is going to be an important step towards strengthening our racial and religious harmony.

It's better for us to acknowledge the differences and respect one another's views than for us not to talk about it and pretend that everyone shares the same perspective. So, racial and religious harmony is something which matters a great deal.

The next issue, the next challenge, is social cohesion.

Meritocracy is a critical safeguard that Malay-Muslims in Singapore will not be discriminated against. It's also what has enabled Malay-Muslims to progress as a community through their own efforts.

And you can see the proof in the growing number of successful Malay-Muslim professionals, administrators, businessmen.

You just look at your organisers today: lawyers, teachers, actors, doctors, people in all kinds of professions who have made it through their own efforts, succeeded and equalled their peers of any other race.

There is strong acceptance and conviction among Malay-Muslims that meritocracy is a right approach.

At the same time, while we succeed through meritocracy, as I explained earlier, we also have to pay attention to the less successful Malay-Muslims and continue to tackle the social problems of the community and not allow any Malay-Muslim underclass to emerge.

It's a method which has to be led by the Malay-Muslim leaders with support from the Government, and we have a self-help approach through Mendaki and other organisations: AMP, Jamiyah, Mendaki, Taman Bacaan and so on.

And I think, through these self-help groups, we've proven that this approach works and we've shown this up.

Finally, Malay-Muslims have to be engaged in remaking Singapore.

We've got to work together to bring about the community of excellence which the Malay-Muslim MPs have been talking about and which will mean a better life and a better future for all Malay-Muslims.

Everyone must play his or her part, the Malay-Muslims and also the non-Malay-Muslims and the Government giving full support.

They'll need help from the community, the family, from religious leaders, from Malay-Muslim organisations. All have to join hands to overcome the perennial problems and take the Malay-Muslim community another step forward.

But we're not just talking about one community because if we are going to be one country, then you have to have one national leadership. And within this national leadership, you must have Malay-Muslims who are part of the leadership, who contribute not just to their community's issues but to national issues.

And now we have Malay-Muslim MPs, mayors, others in leadership positions who are part of this national debate.

And if we look at, listen to the debates in Parliament, listen to the contributions of different MPs speaking, you will find that in fact they are participating in one debate.

Another good example was in the rescue of RSS Courageous.

This is the navy ship which had a collision at Pedra Branca in January. After the collision, a police coast guard ship went to the rescue. It was a CPC, a coastal patrol craft called Hammerhead Shark.

And they were the first on the scene. They were the closest to the scene, they took an hour and a half to get there and had a multiracial crew, 20 crew, of whom eight happened to be Malays.

And they rose magnificently to the occasion. They were completely determined to do their best to rescue their fellow Singaporeans in distress and they did.

They went there, they prepared, they got the boat ready, they got their equipment ready, pumps, injectors, tools, people to go over and they went.

They found the boat, they rescued the people, they got more equipment. And they landed, they tried to land the people, they didn't succeed, they transferred the people.

MULTIRACIAL VIRUS

IF YOU haven't read the story, I commend you to read the story. I'm sure it must be on the Ministry of Home Affairs' website because the commander of the ship wrote something. They made Singapore proud, and they did the Malay-Muslim community proud.

It was a dramatic exploit which shows that we were one country.

And in the fight against Sars, again, this is a multiracial virus, it's a multiracial problem.

So we've had Malay-Muslim doctors, nurses, hospital staff working side by side with their colleagues. They have not shied away from the heavy responsibility that they had to bear.

You may have noticed last week that Tan Tock Seng Hospital had a celebration, a small gathering for the health-care workers and those who had been sick with Sars and had recovered, and to remember those who did not survive.

And they had a gathering and several of the health-care workers who had been sick went up and spoke. I don't know if you saw it on TV but I watched it, just a few minutes.

It's a powerful impression. One of the people who spoke was a young spunky Malay nurse, 24 years old. Her name was Ashirdahwani Asmawi. She was warded for three weeks, nearly died, but she recovered, and she described graphically what she went through.

She said: 'I felt as though I was dying... as though I was drowning. I needed oxygen and I realised how precious oxygen was.' But she fought back, she recovered and she stood there and she told her story... So people like that, they will make a difference in Singapore.

So when you talk about young and restless, I think that is the sort of youth and restlessness you're looking for.

It's fine to be restless as long as it drives you, as long as it drives the community forward.

Malay-Muslims have a place in remaking Singapore, just like all the other communities, and must use the opportunities and move ahead.

It's not enough for you to do well individually. You've got to contribute as a community and to the community, strengthen social cohesion because we face common threats and challenges.

And the perennial problems which a community has, they won't go away overnight. But by working together, we can overcome them, we can tackle the threats and gradually we can make progress.

And all of us, whether Muslims, non-Muslims, Malays, non-Malays, Chinese, Indians, we've got to keep Singapore harmonious, in peace.

Then all of us can continue to practise our lifestyles, our faiths in an atmosphere of trust and confidence, and foster together a better future for all.