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Multiculturalism in Singapore

Multiculturalism refers to the co-existence of many cultures within a specific setting. Singapore practices multiculturalism by accepting and embracing cultural differences between the different ethnic groups that exist in Singapore. In Singapore, multiculturalism is often referred to as multiracialism. Being a nation that is made up of immigrants, the government felt that it needed to create a sense of national identity through the celebration of the different cultures that exist in Singapore. In Singapore culture is also closely related to religion as well. As such, Singapore endorses multiracialism as a national ideal by promoting racial and religious harmony through the implementation of various policies.

Singapore fosters the ideal of multiculturalism among its citizens by using ethnicity as a form of social identification. One is required to indicate their race in forms and other official records. Although maintaining these categories emphasises the differences between the various ethnic groups, in Singapore, these very differences are used to highlight that each culture is unique and is an important part of the nation. Therefore, multiculturalism in Singapore is maintained by acknowledging the cultural diversity and celebrating the differences between the different cultures. The government has practices and policies in place that work to ensure that all ethnic groups have equal opportunities. Singapore achieves this through its educational, housing and other social policies.

Population demographics

Ethnic Composition

The ethnic composition of Singapore is 74.3% Chinese, 13.4% Malays, 9.1% Indians and 3.2% of other ethnic groups

Religious Affiliations

The religious affiliations of Singaporeans are as follows: 33.9% Buddhist, Muslim 14.3%, Taoist 11.3%, Catholic 7.1%, Hindu 5.2%, other Christian 11%, other 0.7%, none 16.4%. However, ethnicity is closely related to religion in Singapore as majority of Chinese are Buddhists, majority of Malays are Muslims and majority of Indians are Hindus.

History

Singapore was founded in 1299 by Sang Nila Utama.

The Malays were the original people of Singapore. After it became a British colony in 1824, immigrants from China and India eventually settled down in Singapore, contributing to the multicultural society that it is today. However, Singapore did face some challenges that has shaped the way Singapore practices multiculturalism today . One of which is the racial riots of 1964.

Racial Riots

The racial riot of 1964 is considered to be the worst riot in the history of Singapore to this date. The riot left 22 people dead and 454 people injured. It took place at a time when Singapore was still part of Malaysia. At that time, the Chinese were the predominant ethnic group in Singapore while the Malays were the predominant ethnic group in Malaysia. The ruling party of Singapore, the ‘People’s Action Party’ (PAP) wanted to promote equality among Singaporeans through the practice of meritocracy. Tensions began during the Singapore general elections in 1963 where the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) and the Malaysian Prime Minister attempted to get the support of the Malays in Singapore. The PAP considered this as an intrusion. When things reached a breaking point on 21 July 1964, the riots finally broke out between the Chinese and the Malays in Singapore. The riot was also considered to be religious in nature as the riot broke out on the birthday of Prophet Mohammed, an important figure in the Islamic faith.

Nevertheless, the riot was one of the main events that spurred the government to make a conscious effort to promote multiculturalism as a national ideal. It was also an antecedent to Singapore gaining its independence in August 1965. Although, the riot was an indication of the disharmony between the ethnic groups, it prompted the government to take actions to maintain equality between the different ethnic groups.

Holidays & Festivities

Racial Harmony Day

Multiculturalism is also promoted by teaching children to embrace the diversity of cultures from a young age. Every year, in all schools in Singapore, ranging from kindergartens to pre-university, “racial harmony day” is celebrated. Racial harmony day not only celebrates the harmony between the different ethnic groups in Singapore but also commemorates the racial riots of 1964. Racial Harmony Day falls on 21 July of every year and it has been celebrated since 1997. On this day, all students are encouraged to turn up to school in ethnic costumes. They are encouraged to wear any ethnic costume of their choice. Furthermore, cultural programs and activities are conducted in schools to educate students about other cultures. Students are also provided with the opportunity to try the ethnic foods of other ethnic groups. That way not only do students learn about other cultures but they also learn to value them.

International Friendship Day

International friendship day is another occasion that promotes multiculturalism in Singapore. In 1997, September 21 was declared as international friendship day as this was the day Singapore joined the United Nations. Like racial harmony day, international friendship day is celebrated in all schools. On this day, students are encouraged to wear ethnic costumes and participate in cultural activities like playing the traditional games of other cultures. Nonetheless, this day serves to encourage the appreciation of other cultures and teaches students to foster friendly relations with members of other ethnicities and nationalities

Policies

Language Policies

The language policies in Singapore are one of the main ways through which multiculturalism is preserved. As a former British colony, Singapore retained the British education system and declared English as the first and official language of the country. The reason for this was the fact that when Singapore gained independence, it saw the importance of English in attaining economic success. As such, it became the language of commerce and the medium of education. Consequently, English became the common language that unites Singaporeans of different ethnic groups.

Nonetheless, the main ethnic groups in Singapore, still had their own heritage languages which the government wanted them to stay in touch with. Therefore, the government also declared, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil, the languages spoken by majority of Singaporeans as official languages of Singapore. Since Singapore, adopted this language policy, street signs have been made to reflect all four languages. Even when public announcements are made, they are made in all four languages.

Additionally, the education system also integrates the teaching of mother-tongue as a subject in schools. This ensures that students do not lose their cultural roots. Therefore, Chinese and Malays students learn Mandarin and Malay in schools respectively. Most Indians take Tamil in school as majority of Indians in Singapore speak Tamil. For non-Tamil speaking Indian students, other Indian languages like Hindi and Punjabi are also offered in schools. Thus, the cultures of the different groups are retained through language as all students that go through the Singaporean education system emerge as bilinguals. Since language is an important aspect of culture, the maintenance of the diverse variety of languages spoken in Singapore conserves its multiculturalism.

The Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act (MRHA)

In Singapore ethnicity and religion are closely tied. Majority of Malays are Muslims; majority of Indians are Hindus and most Chinese people are Buddhists or Doaists. Therefore, religion is a central part of ethnic culture and identity. The Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act (MRHA), also called the White Paper took effect from March 1992. It was implemented to prevent violent acts by religious groups and to maintain harmony between them. Under this act, the government has the power to take action against individuals who may use their religion to engage in activities that could threaten the religious harmony of Singapore. Other goals of the MRHA are as follows: 1. To recognize the multiracial and multi religious nature of the society and be aware of the sensitivities. 2. Emphasise the moral value of all faiths 3. Respect each individual’s right to practice a certain faith 4. For members of a religious group to not allow fellow members or followers from disrespecting other religions 5. Members of religious groups are not to encourage violence against other religious or non-religious groups. A close watch is kept on these religious groups by the government but the state does not intervene as long as the religious groups follow the guidelines of the act. Otherwise, all the religious groups are given the freedom to practice their religion. The main objective of the act is to allow all religious groups to practice their faith in a peaceful manner. As such, religious harmony is maintained and so is the harmony between members of various ethnic groups.

To ensure that the voices of all members of all religious groups are heard, the Presidential Council for Religious council was set up in August 1992. The council consists of representatives from the different religious groups : Buddists, Muslims,Hindus, Sikhs, Roman Catholics and Christian Protestants. This council acts as a bridge between the state and the people. It gives the people more freedom such that the responsibility of maintaining religious harmony is left to the people. Since religious harmony is intricately intertwined with culture and racial harmony in Singapore, each of the ethnic and religious groups have their own religious holidays which maintains religious and racial equality. Every year, religious occasions of the different religious groups are declared as public holidays. During Chinese New Year, the entire nation gets two days of holidays. Hari Raya Haji and Hari Raya Puasa are religious occasions for Muslims. They are largely celebrated by the Malay community and some Indians. There are also public holidays allocated for Deepavali, celebrated by Hindu Indians and Vesak Day, celebrated by Buddhists who are usually Chinese or Indian. There are also Christmas and Good Friday which are religious holidays for Christians. This way, there is an average of two religious holidays for the members of each of the three ethnic groups. During the festive seasons, prior to the occasions, roads in certain parts of Singapore are also decorated in preparation for the religious festivals. On each of these occasions, the since entire nation enjoys a public holiday, members of different ethnic groups also invite their friends of other ethnicities to their homes to join in their celebration. As such, multiculturalism is celebrated through commemorating religious holidays.

Housing policy

The housing policy in Singapore also contributes to the maintenance of multiculturalism by ensuring that each neighbourhood has a mixture of members from the different ethnic groups. 87% of Singaporeans live in government owned housing known as public houses. The ethnic composition of each neighbourhood, corresponds to the population demographics of the country. The housing policy was implemented in the 1970s which was preceded by the Housing Development Board (HDB). The HDB allocates public housing to Singaporeans based on a quota system where a certain number of housing units are reserved for members of each ethnic group in every neighbourhood. As such, ethnic make-up of each neighbourhood are as follows; 74% to 88 % Chinese, 3% to 7 % Indians, 2% to 16% Malays and 1% to 3% others. These policies were implemented to prevent the formation of ethnic enclaves as the government saw this as a potential threat to the social fabric of the society. Considering the racial riots of 1964, the government wanted to create more opportunities for interaction between different ethnic groups to create a more tolerant society. Before the ethnic quota was put in place, the various ethnic groups were mostly segregated by the presence of ethnic enclaves. A large proportion of Malays were living in the Geylang Serai. Many Chinese people were living in Chinatown. Indians were largely concentrated in the Serangoon road area. Hence the housing policy helped to spread out the population more evenly across the neighbourhoods and allowed for ethnic mixing. Ultimately the housing policy did achieve what it set out to do. In a survey done in 1998 by the HDB, it was found that on average, families who had stayed at a particular area for a minimum of two years knew at least seven families. The longer the duration of stay of a family in an area, the greater the number of families they knew. It was also found that many residents regularly visited their neighbours. Practices like the exchange of gifts and helping one’s neighbour keep watch while they were away from their home were also commonly cited by the participants of the survey. Consequently, the policy has managed to help foster good relationships between members of different ethnic groups.

Criticism

Even though several attempts have been made to maintain multiculturalism through the promotion of equality, there are still fundamental socioeconomic differences that exist between the members of different cultures. The socioeconomic statuses of the various ethnic groups still differ. The Chinese who are the majority ethnic group have the highest financial statuses and educational levels. The Malays occupy the lowest ranges of the socioeconomic ladder while the Indians straddle in the middle in terms of their socioeconomic statuses and educational levels.

Nonetheless, it is still important to consider that Singapore is still a young nation. The ministers of Singapore still consider it as a nation in transition . Given that the policies that were discussed previously are still in effect today, conscious efforts are still being made to promote multiculturalism. Besides, the educational attainment and socioeconomic statuses of Indians and Malays have been showing improvement over the years. Therefore, as a young nation, what Singapore has achieved so far is commendable.

See Also

Singapore

Language Planning and Policy

Public holidays in Singapore