|
Excellent
Speech! See the result when wise intelligent people rule the
country!
Risks of religious fervour Prime Minister Lee Hsien
Loong spoke about the four challenges facing Singapore in his National Day
Rally speech on Sunday. Here is an edited version.
> Aug 18, 2009
> "To live peacefully together, we need
good sense and tolerance on all sides, and a willingness to give and take.
Otherwise, whatever the rules there will be no end of possible causes of
friction." PM Lee, on how fragile religious and racial harmony is in
Singapore and how crucial it is
to be tolerant
> SO WHAT are these risks? Let me just highlight
three of them.
>
> Aggressive preaching - proselytisation.
You push your own religion on others, you cause nuisance and offence. You
have read in the papers recently about a couple who surreptitiously
distributed Christian tracts which were offensive of other faiths, not
just of non-Christians but even of Catholics. They were charged and
sentenced to jail.
>
> But there are less extreme cases too
which can cause problems. We hear, from time to time, complaints about
groups trying to convert very ill patients in our hospitals, who don't
want to be converted, and who don't want to have the private difficult
moments in their lives intruded upon.
>
> Intolerance is
another problem - not respecting the beliefs of others or not
accommodating others who belong to different religions. You think of this
one group versus another group, but sometimes it happens within the same
family.
>
> Sometimes we have parents from traditional
religions whose children have converted. The parents have asked to be
buried according to traditional rites and their children stay away from
the funeral or the wake. It's very sad. From a traditional point of view,
it's the ultimate unfilial act but it does happen occasionally.
>
> Exclusiveness is a third problem - segregating into separate
exclusive circles, not integrating with other faiths. That means you mix
with your own people. You'll end up as separate communities.
>
> We foresaw these dangers 20 years ago. We passed the Bill,
Maintenance of Religious Harmony, in 1989/1990.
>
> Before
we did that, then PM Lee Kuan Yew and the key ministers met all the
religious leaders. We had a closed-door session at MCYS. We spoke
candidly. We explained our concerns, why we wanted to move this
Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act. The religious leaders spoke up
candidly, they gave us their support. We moved with their support.
>
> We continue to keep in close touch with them, to meet
regularly. I do that personally, exchange views, keep the line warm and
the confidence on both sides so that I know you, you know me. If there is
a problem, we are not dealing with strangers but with somebody we know and
trust.
>
> Once or twice, I've had to meet them over
specific difficult cases. No publicity, relying on mutual trust and the
wisdom of our religious leaders to defuse tensions. I'm very grateful for
their wisdom and for their support. Because of this active work behind the
scenes, we've not needed to invoke the Maintenance of Religious Harmony
Act for 20 years. But it's something which is important to us which we
must keep for a long time.
>
> Four basic rules
>
> WE can never take our racial and religious harmony for granted.
We must observe some basic principles to keep it the way it is.
>
> First, all groups have to exercise tolerance and restraint.
Christians cannot expect this to be a Christian society, Muslims cannot
expect this to be a Muslim society. Ditto the Buddhists, the Hindus and
the other groups.
>
> Many faiths share this island. Each
has different teachings, different practices. Rules which only apply to
one group cannot become laws which are enforced on everyone. So Muslims
don't drink alcohol but alcohol is not banned. Ditto gambling, which many
religions disapprove of, but gambling is not banned. All have to adopt
'live and let live' as our principle.
>
> Secondly, we have
to keep religion separate from politics. Religion in Singapore cannot be the same as religion in
America, or religion in an
Islamic country.
>
> Take Iran, an Islamic country.
Nearly everybody is Shia Muslim. Recently, they had a presidential
election which was fiercely contested between Ahmadinejad and Mousavi, and
the outcome was disputed. Both sides invoked Islam. So Mousavi's
supporters had a battle cry - Allahu Akbar (God is Great).
>
> In Singapore, if one group invokes
religion this way, other groups are bound to say: 'I also need powerful
support. We'll also push back invoking our faith.' One side insists: 'I'm
doing God's work.' The other side says: 'I'm doing my God's work.' Both
sides say: 'I cannot compromise. These are absolute imperatives.' The
result will be a clash between different religious groups which will tear
us apart.
>
> We take this very seriously. The People's
Action Party reminds our candidates, don't bring all the friends from your
own religious group. Don't mobilise your church or your temple or your
mosque to campaign for you. Bring a multi-racial, multi-religious group of
supporters. When you are elected, represent the interest of all your
constituents, not just your religious group in Parliament. Speak for all
your constituents.
>
> Thirdly, the Government has to remain
secular. The Government's authority comes from the people. The laws are
passed by Parliament which is elected by the people. They don't come from
a sacred book. The Government has to be neutral, fair.
>
>
We are not against religion. We uphold sound moral values. We hold the
ring so that all groups can practise their faiths freely without
colliding. That's the way Singapore has to be.
>
> You may ask: Does this mean that religious groups have no views,
cannot have views on national issues? Or that religious individuals cannot
participate in politics? Obviously not.
>
> Religious groups
are free to propagate their teachings on social and moral issues. They
have done so on the IRs, organ transplants, 377A, homosexuality.
>
> And obviously many Christians, Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists
participate in politics. In Parliament, we have people of all faiths. In
the Cabinet too.
>
> People who have a religion will often
have views which are informed by their religious beliefs. It's natural
because it's part of you, it's part of your personality. But you must
accept that other groups may have different views informed by different
beliefs and you have to accept that and respect that.
>
>
The public debate cannot be on whose religion is right and whose religion
is wrong. It has to be on secular, rational considerations of public
interest - what makes sense for Singapore.
>
>
The final requirement for us to live peacefully together is to maintain
our common space that all Singaporeans share. It has to be neutral and
secular because that's the only way all of us can feel at home in
Singapore and at ease.
>
> Common spaces
>
> LET me explain to you with
specific examples.
>
> Sharing meals. We have different food
requirements. Muslims need halal food. Hindus don't eat beef. Buddhists
sometimes are vegetarian. So if we must serve everybody food which is
halal, no beef and vegetarian, I think we will have a problem. We will
never eat meals together. So there will be halal food on one side,
vegetarian food for those who need it, no beef for those who don't eat
beef.
>
> Let's share a meal together, acknowledging that we
are not the same. Don't discourage people from interacting. Don't make it
difficult for us to be one people.
>
> Our schools are
another example of common space where all races and religions interact.
Even in mission schools run by religious groups, the Ministry of Education
has set clear rules, so students of all faiths will feel comfortable.
>
> You might ask: Why not allow mission schools to
introduce prayers or Bible studies as compulsory parts of the school
activity or as part of school assembly?
>
> Why not? Then
why not let those who are not Christian, or don't want a Christian
environment, go to a government school or go to a Buddhist school? Well,
if they do that, we'll have Christians in Christian schools, Buddhists in
Buddhist schools, Muslims in schools with only Muslim children and so on.
I think that is not good for Singapore.
>
>
Therefore, we have rules to keep all our schools secular and the religious
groups understand and accept this.
>
> For example,
St
Joseph's Institution is a Catholic brother school
but it has many non-Catholic students, including quite a number of Malay
students. The Josephian of the Year in 2003 was a Malay student - Salman
Mohamed Khair.
>
> He told Berita Harian that initially his
family was somewhat worried about admitting him to a Catholic school. He
himself was afraid because he didn't know what to expect. But he still
went because of SJI's good record. He said: 'Now I feel fortunate to be in
SJI. Although I was educated in a Catholic environment, religion never
became an issue.'
>
> Indeed that's how it should work. I
know it works because I understand that Malay students in SJI often attend
Friday prayers at Baalwie Mosque nearby, still wearing their school
uniforms. SJI thinks it's fine, the mosque thinks it's fine, the students
think it's fine, and I think it's fine too. That's the way it should be.
>
> Another example of common space - work. The office
environment should be one which all groups feel comfortable with. Staff
have to be confident that they will get equal treatment even if they
belong to a different faith from their managers - especially in government
departments, but in the private sector too.
>
> I think it
can be done because even religious community service organisations often
have people who don't belong to that religion working comfortably and
happily together. This is one very important aspect of our meritocratic
society.
>
> Thus we maintain these principles: exercise
tolerance, keep religion separate from politics, keep a secular
government, maintain our common space. This is the only way all groups can
live in peace and harmony in Singapore.
>
>
Aware and responsible church leaders
>
> THIS is the
background to the way the Government looked at one recent issue: Aware.
>
> We were not concerned about who would control Aware
because it's just one of so many NGOs in Singapore. On homosexuality
policy or sexuality education in schools, there can be strong differences
in view but the Government's position was quite clear.
>
>
But what worried us was that this was an attempt by a religiously
motivated group who shared a strong religious fervour to enter civil
space, take over an NGO it disapproved of, and impose their agenda. It was
bound to provoke a push back from groups that held the opposite view,
which indeed happened vociferously and stridently.
>
> The
media coverage got caught up and I think the amplifier was turned up a bit
high.
>
> This was hardly the way to conduct a mature
discussion of a sensitive matter where views are deeply divided. But most
critically of all, this risked a broader spillover into relations between
different religions.
>
> I know many Singaporeans were
worried about this, including many Christians. They may not have spoken
aloud but they raised one eyebrow.
>
> Therefore, I'm very
grateful for the very responsible stand which was taken by the church
leaders. The National Council of Churches of Singapore issued a statement
that it didn't support churches getting involved. There was also the
statement by the Catholic Archbishop. Had these statements not been made,
we would have had a very serious problem.
>
> The Government
stayed out of this but after the dust had settled, I spoke to the
religious leaders, first the Christians and then the religious leaders of
all faiths, so that everybody understood where we stood and what our
concerns were. So we can continue to work together to strengthen our
racial and religious harmony.
>
> Unusually serious subject
> THIS is an unusually serious and heavy subject for a National Day
Rally. Normally, you talk about babies, hongbaos, bonuses.
>
> No bonuses tonight but a bonus lecture on a serious subject. We
discussed this in Cabinet at length and decided that I should talk about
this. I crafted the points carefully, circulated them many times.
Different presentations in Mandarin, Malay and English, because different
groups have different concerns, but a consistent message so that there's
no misunderstanding.
>
> I also invited the religious
leaders to come and spend the evening with us tonight. They can help us to
help their flocks understand our limitations, to guide them to practise
their faiths, taking into account the context of our society. Please teach
them accommodation, which is what all faiths teach. I look forward to all
the religious groups continuing to do a lot of good work for Singapore for many years to
come.
>
> Finally, let me share with you one true story
which was published recently in an Indian newspaper, The Asian Age, and
picked up by The Straits Times. It was about a young man from Gujarat, a
Muslim, who migrated to Singapore after the Hindu-Muslim riots in
Gujarat in 2002.
>
> A
train carrying Hindu pilgrims was stopped in Ahmadebad and set on fire.
The circumstances were unclear but 50-odd men, women and children burnt to
death, trapped in the train. The Hindus rioted. They had no doubt what the
cause was. One thousand people died, mostly Muslims because Ahmadebad has
a large Muslim community.
>
> So this young Muslim decided
to come to Singapore after the riots. We
call him Mohammed Sheikh. It's not his real name because he still has
family there. The article said: 'During the bloody riots, he watched three
of his family members, including his father, getting butchered. His family
had to pay for being Muslim.
>
> 'Besides losing his family
and home, Mohammed lost confidence and faith in the civil society. He
didn't want to spend the rest of his life cursing his destiny. He wanted
to move on.'
>
> So seven years ago, Mohammed came to
Singapore and got a diploma in
hospitality management. Now he is working in an eatery and he hopes to
open his own business one day. He told the interviewer, had he stayed in
Gujarat, 'I would have been hating all
Hindus and baying for their blood, perhaps.'
>
> Now 'he
loves it when his children bring home Hindu friends and share snacks'. He
told the interviewer proudly, 'My children have Christian, Buddhist, Hindu
friends.'
>
> He even hopes to bring his mother to
Singapore so she can see for
herself that people of different races, different faiths can be friends.
The interviewer asked him what Muslim sect he belonged to and which mosque
he went to in India. He said: 'I don't want
to get into all that. Now I am just a Singaporean. And I am proud of it.'
>
> This story reminds us that while we must not neglect to
strengthen our harmonious society, we are in a good position.
>
> So let us rejoice in our harmony but let us never forget what
being a Singaporean means. It's not just tolerating other groups but
opening our hearts to all our fellow citizens.
>
> OUR
FUTURE
>
> IF WE stay cohesive, then we can overcome our
economic challenges and continue to grow.
>
> This is how
we've transformed Singapore over the last half
century - solving problems together, growing together, improving our
lives.
>
> From the Singapore River to Marina Bay, we've totally transformed Singapore over the last half
century. 1959 was a moment of great change but nobody at the Padang in June 1959 imagined the change in today's
Singapore.
>
> We
will continue to improve our lives, provided we work together and remain a
harmonious and a cohesive society so that in another 50 years, we would
have built another Singapore, which is equally unimaginable today.
>
> The key is to stay united through rain or shine.
|
