http://www.temasekreview.com/2011/08/20/nmp-viswa-rebukes-shanmugam-for-warning-singaporeans-not-to-be-xenophobic/
Nominated Member of Parliament Viswa Sadasivan has rebuked
Shanmugam for warning Singaporeans not to be ‘xenophobic’ over the
‘currygate’ saga which has caught the attention of the
international media as well.
The public outcry arises over the shocking decision made by the
Community Mediation Center (CMC) under the Law Ministry to disallow
a Singaporean Indian family to cook curry within the confines of
their HDB flat when their PRC neighbors are at home following a
complaint filed by the latter.
Though CMC has clarified that the idea was proposed by one of the
parties, Singaporeans are still asking why CMC bothered to
entertain such a frivolous complaint in the first place.
Instead of addressing the concerns of Singaporeans, pro-foreigner
Shanmugam lashed out at them for being ‘anti-foreigner’ and
‘xenophobic’ in a verbal tirade during a press conference on
Tuesday.
Shanmugam did not explain why CMC bothered to entertain the PRC
family’s frivolous complaint in the first place and went into a
tirade against “some people” who are ‘reacting to a set of facts
which are wholly inaccurate’ and therefore are allowing emotions to
run high.
“Let’s not turn this into a xenophobic attack on foreigners
in general….This sort of differences exist between Singaporeans,
among foreigners and between foreigners and Singaporeans and not
just in Singapore, but elsewhere as well,”he said.
In his letter to the Straits Times Forum today, NMP Viswa wrote
that “we should be even more concerned about the negative signal
this incident could send out.”
“It threatens to strike at the values upon which our
society is built – tolerance and acceptance. All of us who grew up
in Singapore would have had occasion to be confronted with a
cultural or religious practice that was not palatable. Our evolved
instinct would have been to respect the right of the other party as
a cohabitant of our space, and so tolerate, if not accept
it,” he added.
Such a complaint is hardly heard from native Singaporeans who are
used to living peacefully with one another for the last fifty years
or so till the recent influx of immigrants from China and India. In
other countries, foreigners are expected to conform to the social
norms of their adopted country. It seems to be the other way round
in Singapore.
Viswa defended Singaporeans against the unwarranted criticisms by
Shanmugam by explaining to him the definition of ‘xenophobia’:
“So, yes, in the past few days, there have been emotional
reactions against foreigners who are reluctant to accept and adopt
our way of life, but I see it more as a unified stand against
legitimisation of intolerance. It is not directed at foreigners per
se, but at anyone – even a Singaporean – who is misguided. So,
let’s not miss the wood for the trees. This is not xenophobia, and
it certainly is not about a nation’s love of curry.”
Singaporeans need not be too surprised by the remarks made by
Shanmugam. After all, in his eyes, Singapore is only a ‘city’ and
not a ‘country’.