memories of mattemma

Recently in Singapore, there has been a furore among Serangoon Garden residents.
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For those who do not live in Singapore, Serangoon Gardens is an upclass estate, where residents are usually white-collared workers, or expats. Most Singaporeans live in government housing, also known as HDB (housing development board) flats, but all of the residents in Serangoon Gardens live in landed property, a luxury (and to an extent a status symbol) which a large portion of Singaporeans simply can’t afford.

Topics i want to talk about today (lest i forget while writing this) :

supposed “elitism”, the “brightest” minds of the nation, racial discrimination
and one other topic that has a larger-than-life significance (to me at least)

dreams. (where i’ll be probably comparing Singaporeans with Americans)
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The reason for the complaints is due to the proposal of the government, to change a vacant technical school into residential premises for foreign workers.

The announcement has caused an uproar among citizens of that area, citing an increase in crime rate, disrupting tranquility, maintaining cleanliness, decreasing safety levels and the workers befriending domestic helpers (maids) as the some of the problems of having the worker’s hostel there. Other issues raised also include the drop in value of their houses and estate in general.

It took me a few days to put my thoughts into words, and for my considerations to mature slowly. Although i’m not in a position to comment on those who were against the idea, because ultimately, i’m just an onlooker, i feel that the residents should perhaps look at the bigger picture, contemplate about things further ahead, and rethink our past, or rather, our forefather’s past.

There are currently 500,000 foreign workers in Singapore, yes, i didn’t quote an incorrect figure, just refer to Sunday Times, 7th September edition. To put that number into perspective, Singapore currently has a population of 4.3 million people. That’s close to 13% percent our population, in other words, about 1 in 10 people you find on the street is a foreign worker. This means that as much as some of us might not like them, they are here to stay, and without them, Singapore’s infrastructure would tumble, as there’s no one else who would fill in the job vacancies left by them when they leave. Given the current situation, that construction sites dominate many areas in Singapore, they are an indispensable force of modernism for us.

Most of them tell a story extremely familiar to those told by our grandparents. They are here to work, earn money, and send the money back to their countries, where their families are still struggling to survive there. If they have children, the task becomes even harder as education would remove a hefty sum his salary. They work all day, getting little rests, and have to deployed whenever they are told to do so. The going is tough, but they have little choice, unlike us. Their meals, from my observations, consists only of rice and gravy most of the time, with the occasional bits of meat when they are lucky. Of course, they are not perfect. Who is? Several of them do drink alcohol under flats, and create a nuisance of themselves, but don’t some Singaporeans do so as well? (i’ve seen many young teenagers doing so) They are humans too, they should be given equal rights, why is it that we are treated “more fairly” than them? Why the double standards? Just because they come from “third-world”/undeveloped countries, and have bad habits like littering/spitting? Yet again, many Singaporeans spit AND litter. So, why the double standard, especially those who talk about their ills, but commit them themselves. Expats have no problem living here, amongst us, but “foreign” workers do.

Isn’t this nothing but racial discrimination, and elitism?
I have no qualms about being an elite, or having the pride of being at the top. Elitism is based on the survival of the fittest, and a target that others might want to achieve. It is a very natural tendency for people to divide, and group people into suitable categories. The most elite warriors of a tribe fight at the frontlines of war. However, the elites should never lose footing from the group, because the ones who hoist them to where they are, are the people below, who hope that these “elites” could be honest, and hopefully represent them and their needs on a higher level.

But isn’t it rather disconcerting and worrying, that these white-collared workers, who represent the cream of the crop of the Singaporean society, are thinking at such superficial levels, and not going to delve deeper, and more critically about their choices and thoughts? It is true that these smarty-pants have no heart for the common man? That all they really care about is their own wealth, and issues? I agree that some of their concerns are rooted in their care for their families, but they are jumping into conclusions too fast, and overlooking many other larger issues while indulging in their supposed self-centredness.

This cold attitude to foreign workers is destroying all their hopes, especially when some of them would really want their entire family to live here, and eventually become Singaporeans.

This reminds me of the American Dream, which still has many instances of occurrence in present day USA. Sure, the States isn’t a perfect nation, but at least, it has room for dreams, and it IS a society where dreams are achievable via hardwork, and sincerity, for ANYONE.

A great example is Lopez Lomong, who was born in Sudan. His story can be read from many sites, just google the name. As a child, he lived in fear, and often was brought close to the brink of death. However, he was lucky to have been adopted by American foster parents, and was the flag-bearer for USA during the Beijing Olympics 2008, when he has only been announced a citizen for a year.

Would the Singaporean society ever allow such dreams to happen?

I should really consider what i think about whenever i see foreign workers from now onwards.

-matt