Foreign workers to be
housed next to cemetery
Two dormitory blocks for 12,000 workers coming up less
than 20m from Lim Chu Kang cemetery
By Nur Dianah Suhaimi
SELF-CONTAINED, the two Lim Chu
Kang dormitories will have their own gymnasium, reading rooms,
outdoor games courts, mini-mart, canteen and even a barber shop.
There are about 500,000 foreign workers in Singapore and more are
expected here this year to meet the demand in the construction
sector. ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
THEIR neighbour is a sprawling cemetery with thousands of
graves.
Not quite an ideal place to live in, you say?
But in six months' time, about 12,000 foreign workers will have to
live with that reality.
They will be housed in two blocks of dormitories less than 20m from
the Muslim cemetery in Lim Chu Kang. The dormitories will be
managed by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA).
Located at the far end of the cluster of Muslim, Christian and
Chinese cemeteries, the dormitories are isolated. The nearest
housing estate and shops are in Jurong West, at least 5km
away.
At night, the cemetery area is pitch dark as there are no lamps
around. As the last few cemetery visitors leave, the place becomes
eerily quiet, lending it a spooky feel.
When told of the dormitories, one migrants' welfare group described
the location as 'social isolation', while half of some 20 foreign
workers polled by The Sunday Times said they would rather not live
so near a cemetery.
There are currently 30 commercially run dormitories for foreign
workers, with another three under construction, including the two
in Lim Chu Kang.
Many are tucked away in the corners of Singapore and found within
industrial estates in areas like Jurong, Boon Lay and
Woodlands.
Due to the lack of amenities in the area, the two Lim Chu Kang
dormitories, called Murai One and Murai Two, will be
self-contained, said the BCA.
The dormitories will have their own gymnasium, reading rooms,
outdoor games courts, mini-mart, canteen and even a barber
shop.
There are about 500,000 foreign workers in Singapore and more are
due to arrive this year to meet the demands of the construction
boom.
The influx has resulted in complaints from Singaporeans who feel
that their estates are being 'invaded'.
MPs have been fielding complaints from residents that foreign
workers drink, litter and even urinate at the void decks.
The Straits Times Forum page regularly receives similar complaints
from readers.
The Urban Redevelopment Authority and BCA told The Sunday Times
that a key consideration when choosing dormitory sites is their
location.
Said BCA spokesman Leong Ee Leng: 'Residents may not be tolerant of
such facilities being located too near their homes. Generally,
workers' dormitories are located away from existing residential
areas.'
Dormitories are also not built too near polluted industrial areas
which may pose a safety hazard to the foreign workers.
When The Sunday Times asked 20 foreign workers from India,
Bangladesh and China if they would have any qualms about living
beside the cemetery, half were reluctant because of superstitions
associated with such a site.
Said a 27-year-old Bangladeshi construction worker: 'I don't think
I will be able to sleep at night.'
Mr J. Huang, 40, a construction worker from China, said it was bad
luck and spooky to live beside a cemetery.
The other 10 said they would not mind but would rather live
elsewhere if given a choice.
A recent survey by the Singapore Contractors Association generated
different results.
When it got wind of the Murai projects, the association surveyed
1,000 workers of various nationalities to find out if they minded
living near the cemetery. Around 95 per cent said they had no
issues with this.
Said the association's dormitory manager Uonos Mohamed: 'The
workers don't care what is outside as long as the living quarters
are comfortable and transportation to work is available.'
Mr Jolovan Wham, who runs the migrants' welfare group Humanitarian
Organisation for Migration Economics, felt that housing foreign
workers at the cemetery 'is as good as social isolation'.
'Even if the workers are not superstitious, it sends them a clear
signal on where their social position is in our country,' he
said.
Mr John Gee, president of Transient Workers Count Too, an advocacy
group for migrant workers, said foreign workers should not be left
to live 'in the wilderness'.
'They need some place where they can have access to shops nearby
and are free to step out any time.'
Last year, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said that
housing workers on Semakau Island or Pulau Ubin was out of the
question as 'foreign workers need to have easy access to
amenities'.
However, cinema manager Ng Hui Ying felt that even if the foreign
workers are housed in a relatively remote place, they are still too
close for comfort.
Ms Ng, 32, has seen foreign workers littering, sleeping and
urinating at her void deck in Jurong West.
'These workers are mobile and can visit the nearby housing estates
if they want,' she said.
Said a 22-year-old construction worker from India: 'I don't think
Singaporeans like us very much. They need foreign workers to build
their flats but expect us to be invisible.'
<!-- / message -->
