Conclusion

People, places and memories are not distinct entities and cannot be discussed separately from each other - especially in the context of racial harmony in Singapore. The common thread that binds people to familiar places and the memories we cherish are the stories we tell of ourselves, our actions and the places we live in. What makes us a racially cohesive Singapore is our tolerance, our respect for one another, and our national identity. Measures must be taken to prevent the racial harmony in Singapore, and it must be protected by the very same people who live in this island we call home. After all, we are one Singapore.

Introduction and main theme

Main Theme: What makes a racially cohesive society?

Overall Issue: Singapore is a multi racial and multi religious country where peace between different racial and religious groups exist however they do not come by easily and just a minor issue like a little comment on the other racial group could lead to unhappiness between two races and might lead to race riots. There are several things which we can do to preserve the racial harmony we are enjoying now such as by having friends from other races and interact with them more often, gaining a deeper understanding of the traditions and beliefs of other races.

Be Careful of what you say

Article Summary: This article is about two teenagers who made unpleasant comment of different races in Singapore. The first incident is about a Chinese scholar who blogs about unpleasant encounters and comments that there are more “dogs than humans in Singapore.” The second incident is about a NYP (nanyang polytechnic) student who makes racially offensive remarks about Indians on the social network. Both of their comments have led to unhappiness among racial groups and they were punished as a result of their comment.

Comment on article: In my opinion, we must be very careful about our speeches in a multi-racial country like Singapore. If we are careless, our actions and words could have led to racial riots. Foreign investors invest In Singapore and provide jobs for Singaporeans. This is because they are confident that their investments are safe in Singapore due to lack of racial and religious tension here.  As a country whose economy depended heavily on trade, foreign investments and tourism, Singapore economy would be seriously impacted if a racial riot breaks out. 

  Singapore is unlike other country which is racially homogenous where people could causally pass racially offensive remarks. An unintentional remark could have led to discontentment between two racial groups laying the foundations for racial riots. For example the NYP’s student comment have made a person of the other race furious and made a police report about her.

  In order to maintain racial harmony in Singapore, we must tolerate each other differences in beliefs and practices. We must respect people of the other race and not discriminate against them. In order to understand each other more, we could make friends with people of other races and invite them to take part in our traditional celebrations. During school hours, we could also work together as a team, thus strengthening our friendship bonds.

  When people fail to understand and appreciate other people’s racial sensitivities, trouble will break out and everyone in that society will suffer the consequences. Singapore is a multi-racial and multi- religious country and thus there is a great need to understand and promote tolerance, understanding and harmony. It is also very important for all Singaporeans to have a national identity and this must be consciously built. Singapore faces threats to its harmony and so the people must stay alert and ensure that harmony does not break down and social bonds remain strong.

  This article is relevant as it shows that racial harmony in Singapore is not easy and we must do our best to preserve it. It also brings out that we must be very careful with our words. A careless comment could lead to discontentment between two racial groups. Singapore is a live and bring up families and life is peaceful and secure because of racial and religious harmony in Singapore. 

Singapore National Games ( Yang Shihao)

Summary:

This article talks about the closing ceremony of the inaugural Singapore National Games at Bishan Stadium. After nine exciting game days, Singapore National Games (SNG) came to the end. President Tony Tan Keng Yam was present. And he emphasized the friendships had been built between players and communities during the inaugural SNG. The relevant officers and organizations have affirmed the great success that SNG has achieved. With the hard working from the volunteers of the Game, SNG retained the high quality so that provided a good opportunity to all Singaporeans joining together and having fun. The SNG aims to bridge communities in Singapore, where people of all ages, races and estates can participate and bond through competitive sports.

Commentary 

I felt very pleasant that I have joined the ceremony as a performer. I was surprised that how wonderful the Games were. The whole stadium was full of people. Nearly everyone was in red which is the national color. Everyone was required to wear the same red T-shirt which let people feel they are the same. This strengthened the national identity from each other. They also had a watchword as “SNG, Community” which suggested that the SNG was opened to all the communities and all the communities formed the SNG. In other words, all the communities were very important and they could not break out or it would become uncompleted. They formed the one – Singapore.

As we all know that the games are good for the national bonding, especially the National Games. Players, audiences, volunteers and staff members from all over the country will join together. The people of all ages, races and estates can participate. This is a common space for all Singaporeans. This common space provides opportunities for all Singaporeans to interact. Through this interaction, understanding among Singaporeans can be deepened. This allow people come together just like a party, allow people to communicate and gain a better understanding of cultures and customs of different races and estates. With the respect, strong friendship can be built over time and the bonding between Singaporeans has been strengthened.

Informal social networks to bond Singapore (Choo Min Yi)

Home    The Sunday Times July 22, 2012

‘No substitute for a

listener in bad times’

Summary of article

Space for volunteers, charities to build informal social networks: Tharman

 By Andrea Ong

The government will “leave space” for volunteers, charities and other groups to build networks with residents, in line with a national push to build an inclusive society in which the authorities work together with individuals and organisations to strengthen the social compact As at March, he noted, grassroots organisations have engaged one in three Indian residents, or about 110,000 of them. He expressed confidence they would meet the People’s Association’s goal of engaging one in two Indian residents by 2015. DPM Tharman said the IAECs, which had built ties with residents and were trusted, were well-placed to achieve these goals. Mr C. Manoharan, who chairs Yew Tee CC’s IAEC, agreed that informal networks – such as with grassroots volunteers and social work professionals – were needed to identify and reach needy families, some of whom may not come forward because of pride. His IAEC teams up with other grassroots groups and organisations like temples to look out for such families, to help them get education grants for their children or to send volunteers to spring-clean their homes during the festive season. 

Commentary

I feel that Mr Tharman is correct in this case. The government must take a step back and allow the community to bond and reach out to one another sometimes, as the numerous interference by the government may cause some people to shy away from this social networks, as they may feel that their privacy is being infringed upon if the government steps in all the time. Other community networks, such as the IAEC, is sufficient to help the community bond as they are closer to the Indian community, and may understand their needs better than the government, who may be better of doing other things for the people. As the Indian community is brought closer to form a tight-knit, cohesive community, I feel that one thing that the government can do to help in this case is to bring the different communities of different races together, and let the executive communities bond their respective communities. This way, the members of each  race will not feel that the government in interfering in their racial affairs, and instead open up to the executive communities which are in charge of their affairs, especially for needy families who do not wish to rely on the government due to pride or other reasons. This will lessen the government’s burden as they know that there are efficient and trusted executive communities to take care of their people’s needs.

The National Games ( Wei Zihang)

Summary of article
SINGAPORE: Singapore’s newest community—bonding sports initiative — the National Games 2012 — was launched on Saturday.

The plan of the Singapore National Games is to mound society into one cohesive team through sports.

National athletes and non—citizens like permanent residents and those with work passes can also take part, but they will be capped at 20 percent of team members.

Dragon boating, football, bowling and athletics are among 10 events featured in the Games.

The aim is to bring competition into the heart of the community.

People Assocation’s (PA) deputy chairman Mr Lim Swee Say said: "There’s a saying that a family that eat together, stay together. And for us, in organising the Singapore National Games, we believe that Singaporeans who work together, live together, play together, will stay as one people, as one nation."

Allowing non—citizens into the Games — meant to bond Singaporeans — is perhaps an acknowledgement that sports needs to be more inclusive.

Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Mr Chan Chun Sing, said: "For anybody that has a role to play in the community and that stays in the community, we welcome them. Of course the majority of it will be Singaporeans. But then there are also other people living in our community that we want to embrace as well."

The Singapore National Games will be held once every two years.

Commentary

I also read another article which is entitled ‘National Games to bond Singaporeans’. This article mainly talks about the effect of the Singapore National Games to bond Singaporeans which was held recently. National athletes can take part and non-citizen like permanent residents, those with work passes also can do so. Dragon boating, football, bowling and athletics are among 10 events featured in the Games. The article mentions that the Singapore National Games will be held once every two years from now on and organizers want people of all ages and backgrounds to join. This year, the National Games has already finished and took place from 1-9 September.

Bonding is very important to countries, especially in multi-ethnic countries like Singapore. If bonding does not occur, the country does not have the potential to develop itself. In my opinion, the Singapore government is very successful in bonding Singapore by holding this National Games. The plan of the Singapore National Games is to mound society into one cohesive team through sports. Non-citizen like permanent residents and those with work passes can also take part as the government wants people from different races and religions to compete together so as to be more familiar with  each other. This is perhaps an acknowledgement that sports needs to be more inclusive. For anybody that has a role to play in the community and that stays in the community, the Games and the government welcomes them. Of course the majority of it will be Singaporeans, but then there are also other people living in our community that the government wants to embrace as well. There are also some events with ethnic characteristics in the Games, such as dragon boating. This event is from the culture of Chinese, so this can make people from other races to know more about the tradition of the Chinese and to understand the Chinese.  The People Association’s (PA) deputy chairman Mr. Lim Swee Say said: "There’s a saying that a family that eat together, stay together. And for us, in organizing the Singapore National Games, we believe that Singaporeans, who work together, live together, play together, and will stay as one people, as one nation." Since the National Games is so meaningful, I agree that Singapore government bonds its nation quite successfully.