Theme 3: Conflict and Harmony in Multi-Ethnic Societies

3 sub-topics:

Conflict in Sri Lanka

Conflict in Northern Ireland

Bonding Singapore

Conflict in Sri Lanka

What caused the conflict between the Sinhalese and Tamils in Sri Lanka?

o Citizenship rights o ‘Sinhala only’ language policy o University admission criteria o Resettlement policy

S Citizenship rights were withheld from Sri Lankan Tamils.

D Ceylon Citizenship Act of 1948 passed by the Sri Lankan government

o Grants citizenship only to: People born in Sri Lanka People whose forefathers were born in Sri Lanka.

o Many Indian Tamils became stateless though they had lived in Sri Lanka for many years

They had worked on tea plantations and contributed to Sri Lanka’s economy.

o Tamils lost basic rights such as: Education Jobs Housing Voting

E Loss of rights to education = Lack of resources to become educated for

high level, well-paying job, thus unable to escape poverty.

Loss of rights to jobs = Lack of opportunities for families to make a living and support themselves.

Loss of rights to housing = Lack of shelter with basic amenities for hygiene. No sense of belonging to Sri Lanka.

Loss of voting rights = Inability to seek help from favourable political leaders to represent the Tamils in the government and change policies to improve their standards of living.

D 1964: India made an agreement with Sri Lanka to allow some stateless

Indian Tamils to return to India. o Remaining Indian Tamils in Sri Lanka were to be granted Sri

Lankan citizenship.

Sri Lankan government did not fulfil the agreement due to an outbreak

of ethnic violence.

E Increased frustration for Tamils who desperately sought to be

recognised as a citizen with basic rights to housing, education, jobs, and voting.

o More intense animosity towards Sinhalese in Sri Lanka.

S ‘Sinhala only’ language policy replaced English language as the official language.

D English-educated Tamils used to be able to enter government service and

be promoted at work. o They occupied the most powerful jobs despite being the minority

in Sri Lanka.

Sinhalese could not read and write in English well.

1956: Sinhala only policy declared Sinhala as Sri Lanka’s official language. o Sinhala was used as the language of administration. o Tamils in government service had three years to learn Sinhala.

Otherwise, they get fired. More difficult for Tamils to find jobs and be promoted.

E Tamils could not perform their jobs well in an unfamiliar language, so

they are more likely to be dismissed by their employers.

Sinhalese were favoured for employment as they can communicate well in Sinhala.

Thus, Tamils were upset over the preferential treatment of the Sinhalese.

D Tamils held a peaceful demonstration against the ‘Sinhala only’ language

policy. o Sinhalese disrupted the demonstration and started rioting with

Tamils. Over a hundred deaths resulted.

1957: Sri Lankan government and Tamil leaders agreed to make Tamil the language of a national minority

o It is allowed to be used as language of administration only in Northern and Southern parts of Sri Lanka

Largely occupied by Tamils

E Majority of Sri Lanka still recognised Sinhala as the language of

administration but not the Tamil language.

This means that Tamils are still largely disadvantaged in employment o Because more job opportunities are available for Sinhalese who

have better command of Sinhala.

S Discriminatory university admission criteria

D Before 1970

University admission was based on merit and examinations were in English.

English-educated Tamils benefited more. o Scored higher grades in examinations. o More Tamils were enrolled in universities than the Sinhalese.

After 1970

Sri Lankan government introduced new university admission criteria to benefit the Sinhalese more.

o Tamil students had to score higher marks than the Sinhalese to enter the same courses.

o Fixed number of places in university was reserved for the Sinhalese.

E Number of Tamil students enrolled in universities was reduced.

Fewer opportunities for Tamils to pursue further education to gain higher level of knowledge and skills

o Disadvantage in employment as they face more limitations in getting their desired jobs.

o Unfair advantage for Sinhalese as they are less academically qualified but they were still given more opportunities than the Tamils.

S Resettlement of Sinhalese citizens in Tamil territory

D Sinhalese and Tamil populations were not evenly distributed throughout

Sri Lanka. o Sinhalese population occupied majority of the land in Sri Lanka. o Tamil population occupied minority of the land in Sri Lanka which

consists of highland districts. Resettlement policy of 1950s

Sinhalese peasants were transferred from densely populated South-west and Central areas to Tamil territory.

Buddhist monks and soldiers who comprised mostly Sinhalese also moved in to occupy Tamil territory.

E While the government had intended to move landless Sinhalese peasants

to live in Tamil territory to cultivate padi o they neglected the fact that the Tamil-occupied highland districts

had been traditionally used for tea plantations. o Tamils felt that their rights of belonging were ignored by the Sri

Lankan government.

Tamils also felt that their rights of home ownership were forcefully removed from them.

o Sri Lankan Army drove them out of villages and offered their homes and land to Sinhalese settlers.

o Sinhalese settlers were also armed by the government to guard their new homes.

What are the consequences of the conflict between the Sinhalese and Tamils in Sri Lanka?

o Political consequence o Armed conflict o Foreign intervention

o Economic consequence o Unemployment o Loss of investments from other countries o Fall in tourist arrivals

o Social consequence o Sri Lankan Tamils lost their homeland

S Armed conflict due to unmet demands from Tamils.

D Armed conflict was started by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)

because Tamils were unsuccessful in voicing their unhappiness through peaceful methods.

o At first, Tamils made peaceful demands to stop discrimination. o Demands for Tamil areas to be recognised as a federation were

denied. o Then demands for a separate independent state called Tamil

Eelam were denied.

E Denial of separate and independent Tamil state means that Tamils could

not secure their rights of citizenship.

Angry Tamil youths formed a militant group called the LTTE o Sinhalese had also showed hostility to Tamils through violence

before LTTE began. o Thus, LTTE believed in resorting to violence to obtain rights.

Severe casualties happened as a result o Apart from attacking Sinhalese, they also attacked:

Tamils in police force Tamil members and supporters of ruling party in Sri

Lankan government Tamil politicians who did not support the proposed Tamil

Eelam. o Armed conflict between LTTE and government lasted for more

than 20 years.

S Foreign intervention came from India

D Conflict in Sri Lanka attracted India’s attention who was interested in

rescuing the Tamils. o Tried to be a mediator during July 1983 riots. o Mediate in a dialogue between Sinhalese and Tamils.

E o Dialogue failed as both parties could not reach an agreement to

cease violence.

D 3 June 1987, India sent ships to Jaffna to provide food and petroleum

products to Sri Lankan Tamils. o But they were turned back by Sri Lankan navy o However, they persisted to send supplies by air drop.

E o In doing so, India intruded Sri Lankan airspace. o This could dampen India’s relations with Sri Lanka and affect its

future efforts to try to aid Sri Lankan Tamils.

D July 1987, India pressured Sri Lanka to sign a peace accord.

There must be a ceasefire between LTTE and Sri Lankan army.

LTTE must surrender all weapons to Indian peacekeeping troops.

Tamil-dominated northern provinces must be merged with eastern provinces.

E However, the peace accord was not effective.

o LTTE failed to surrender all weapons to Indian peacekeeping troops

o Frequent armed clashes between LTTE and Indian forces as Indian forces tried to control LTTE by force.

o Peacekeeping force eventually had to be withdrawn from Sri Lanka.

S Unemployment arose due to armed conflict

D Thousands of factory workers, self-employed workers, and tea plantation

workers lost their jobs.

Large number of jobless people were Sinhalese

Tamil-owned businesses and factories were destroyed

E o 150,000 jobs were lost o 90% of these jobs belonged to Sinhalese o Responsible for vandalising, looting and burning their places of

work. o High unemployment rate makes it difficult for Sri Lanka’s economy

to recover from the armed conflict. Immense poverty happens as a result.

S Loss of investment from other countries

D Foreign investments are needed for a country’s economy to grow.

In times of instability, foreign investors will lose confidence in investing in the country.

E Investors fear armed conflict because it will destroy the resources and

infrastructure that they have invested in and cause them to make losses.

High crime rates in Sri Lanka turn investors away because there is perceived a lack of suitable manpower to run high level economy activities.

S Fall in number of tourists

D Tourism was one of the hardest hit industries in Sri Lanka since it is a

major income earner for Sri Lanka. o July 1983 riots caused tourist arrivals to decline steadily.

E o Tourists avoid travelling to Sri Lanka because they fear for their

safety. o Transport infrastructure and hotels in Sri Lanka were also

destroyed so this will hinder tourists’ travel. o Decrease in tourist arrivals resulted in loss of jobs and fall in

tourism earnings. Limited funds to develop amenities and facilities such as

transport and housing.

S Sri Lankan Tamils lost their homeland.

D 1983 riots caused Tamils to flee to Tamil Nadu in South India

o Countless Sri Lankan Tamils have remained as refugees in India for several years.

Early 1990s, Sri Lankan Army set up High Security Zones (HSZ) to keep LTTE away with high levels of restrictions to access.

E Setting up of HSZ led Sri Lankan Army to occupy Tamil-dominated

northern and eastern provinces. o Many Tamils fled these provinces when the Sri Lankan Army went

in to attack the LTTE. o They suffered by living in overcrowded conditions in refugee

camps in India. Prolonged loss of citizenship rights as they remained as

stateless refugees.

Conflict in Northern Ireland

What caused the conflict between the Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland?

o Divided loyalties o Unequal allocation of housing o Unequal employment opportunities o Lack of voting rights o Lack of opportunities for social interaction

o Education system o Separate residential areas

S Divided loyalties among Protestants and Catholics

D Protestants and Catholics had different political beliefs

Protestants saw themselves as British: o Want to be part of the United Kingdom. o Do not want union with Republic of Ireland, a Catholic country. o Fear that a Catholic government will not tolerate their Protestant

beliefs.

Catholics saw themselves as Irish: o Want to be reunited with Republic of Ireland. o Resent the history of English conquest where Catholics were killed

and treated harshly by Protestants.

E Protestants and Catholics became intolerant of each other.

o Protestants attacked Catholics’ beliefs by organising parades to march through Catholic neighbourhoods to celebrate the Battle of Boyne

A mark of Protestant dominance. o Their loyalties to different countries made it difficult for them to

live as one united people. Intolerance gets prolonged as Protestants and Catholics

participated in marches where they waved the British flag and Republic of Ireland flag respectively to proclaim their divided loyalties.

S Unequal allocation of housing for Protestants and Catholics

D Allocation of housing for Catholics by the government was unfair.

o Large Catholic families in more urgent need of housing had to suffer long waiting duration to get houses.

o Protestants with smaller families got houses first despite less urgent need.

o More houses were given to Protestants than Catholics.

E Shortage of houses caused Catholics to wait for many

years before getting their own houses. Provision of public housing was done by city councils

which consisted largely of Protestants and they pay part of the costs of public housing.

City councils are obviously in favour of Protestants and are more willing to contribute money to public housing for them than for Catholics.

S Unequal employment opportunities

D More difficult for Catholics to find jobs, especially government jobs.

Catholics may be as academically qualified as Protestants, but they do not get the same job opportunities.

o They do not get the jobs they want. o Highest ranks that Catholic workers can attain are restricted to

low-level jobs. Example: Official in charge of school meals

E Employers discriminate against Catholics based on religion.

o Most employers are Protestants and would reserve job placements for people of the same religion as them.

Catholics become poorer when they are refused jobs o Cannot get unemployment benefits to cope with living expenses

because the employment policies state so.

S Lack of voting rights for Catholics

D Only people who owned houses and businesses were allowed to vote in

local government elections.

Each household is allowed two votes while companies are allowed more votes depending on their size.

E o Catholics lose opportunities in voting because:

Majority of them do not get to own businesses due to unequal employment opportunities.

Most businesses are owned by rich Protestants who get more votes due to big size of companies.

Majority of them are homeless due to unequal allocation of public housing.

Most public housing is owned by Protestants. o Catholics were unable to vote for their favoured political leaders

to represent them in government and solve their suffering of discrimination.

S Lack of opportunities for social interaction

D Education system

o Protestants and Catholics attend different types of schools. Protestants attend public schools that are fully-funded by

government. Catholics attend private schools that are partly funded by

government. o Before introduction of Northern Ireland Curriculum in 1991,

Protestant and Catholic students learnt different histories, cultures and games from each other.

Protestants learnt British history; played British sports like rugby, hockey, and cricket; and learnt English language and culture.

Catholics learnt Irish history; played Irish sports like hurling; and learnt Irish language and culture.

o Integrated schools for Protestants and Catholics were set up by private individuals, but they only educated 5% of student population in Northern Ireland.

Separate residential areas o Catholics lived in Catholic-dominant areas while Protestants lived

in Protestant-dominant areas. o Walls divided Catholic residential areas from Protestant residential

areas.

E Protestant and Catholics had very little face-to-face interaction with each

other during their years of growing up. o They had very minimal understanding of each other as they learnt

different sets of history and culture. o Easier for misunderstanding to arise between them and spark

more conflicts in future.

The Troubles – From peaceful civil rights march to outbreaks of violence.

Founding of Northern Ireland Civil Rights

Association (NICRA).

Founded by:Well-educated middle-class

Catholics in N.Ireland

People involved:

1. Trade union members

2. Political party members

3. Catholic university students

4. Protestant university students

Purpose: To end discrimination against

Catholics.

Beginning of Troubles in Northern

Ireland.

Due to Civil Rights Movement

organized by NICRA.

Fighting between Catholics, Protestants

and police.

British government sent soldiers in order to

keep order in N. Ireland.

Welcomed by Catholics as protectors

because they were perceived as neutral.

Northern Ireland government introduced

Internment Laws.

Who enforced this?

British Army

Who got affected by this?

Catholics suspected of rebelling against

government/of terrorist activities.

What happened to them?

Arrested, interrogated, detained without

trial.

What happened?

NICRA organized an illegal peaceful civil

rights march.

Where did it happen?

Catholic-dominated Londonderry

Why did it happen?

Protest against internment and ban on

demonstrations.

What was the consequence?

British Army shot protestors, wounding

How were the Irish Catholics affected?

1.Protestant mobs petrol bombed Catholic

homes

2. Catholic families fled

3.Catholic shops burnt and bombed

4.Local police ignored Catholics’ plight

5. British Army raided Catholic homes,

damaged property.

Catholics turned to Irish Republican

Army (IRA) for help.

What did the IRA do in response?

1. Attacked British soldiers

2. Bombed Protestant businesses

3. Caused majority of deaths up to

the year 1993.

What were the impacts of the conflict between the Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland?

o Social segregation o Declining economy o Political reform

S Social segregation in the way Protestants and Catholics live, work and play.

D They lived in separate residential areas.

British troops built the Belfast ‘peace’ wall in 1969 to keep Catholic and Protestant residents from fighting each other. More walls were built by residents to keep their communities separate.

A 1991 census showed that in Belfast, 63% of the population lived in areas that were either mainly Catholic or Protestant.

E This had led to very little interaction between Catholic and Protestants

communities.

Young people in Northern Ireland grow up not meeting someone from the other community.

D The Protestants and Catholics never had opportunities to interact in

school to understand each other better.

Protestants studied in fully-funded public schools whereas the Catholics studied in partially-funded private schools.

In order to encourage social interaction between Catholics and Protestants, integrated schools were set up privately and they are steadily growing in popularity since 2003.

E However, not everyone is supportive of this change. When Catholics and

Protestants try to befriend each other, they may face unfriendly responses not only from the other community, but also from people of their own community who hate such social interaction.

Conflict had bred huge distrust between Catholics and Protestants which leads to the social segregation today.

S Economy declined due to armed conflicts.

D Instability and lack of peace and security had caused domestic and

foreign investments to decline.

An example of investors' loss of confidence is the closing down of foreign-owned factories by various manufacturers.

E Without domestic and foreign investments, unemployment rates

increased as people lose their jobs due to business owners withdrawing their investments from Northern Ireland.

Manufacturers were driven away because the increasing violence and high costs of security had caused their operating costs to increase and they are not making profits.

o They had to minimise their losses by retrenching workers in Northern Ireland.

Workers lose their stable incomes.

Suffer losses in spending power, which means that they spent less on goods and services.

o Since there was spending less on goods and services, Northern Ireland's economy cannot grow.

D Another cause of Northern Ireland's economic decline was the damages

to public property and loss of lives caused during the Troubles.

E British government had to spend massive amounts of money on

maintenance costs for the soldiers who were sent to contain the conflict.

Spend on compensating victims who were injured or whose family members were killed during the Troubles.

S Political reforms took place in Northern Ireland out of the need to resolve the conflict.

D The civil rights marches pressured the Northern Ireland government to

pass anti-discrimination measures.

E Anti-discrimination measures were launched in attempts to resolve social

problems such as unequal employment opportunities, unequal distribution of housing, and lack of voting rights for Irish Catholics.

Unfair voting system was abolished o One vote to be given to every man instead of granting it only to

people who were employed and owned homes.

Government promised to review schemes for public housing to ensure that Catholic families have homes to live in.

D 1973 – 1988: Great difficulty in for Protestants and Catholics to reach

consensus about power sharing in the government.

Finally, in reaching a peace agreement between Catholics and Protestants, it was decided that the government of the Republic of Ireland would be changed to remove their claim over Northern Ireland.

E By removing the Republic of Ireland's claim over Northern Ireland, this

means that a united Ireland could not happen without consent of the people of Northern Ireland.

Bonding Singapore

What are the challenges of a multi-ethnic society?

o Managing perceptions of different racial groups o Managing perceptions of different religious groups o Threats from external forces

Managing perceptions of different racial groups

S Lack of understanding among racial groups can create suspicion and unhappiness among the people, which may lead to outbursts of violence among racial groups.

D 1964 Federal Election in Malaysia

o People’s Action Party (PAP) participated Called for non-communal approach to Malaysian politics Called for equal rights and privileges to be given to

everyone in Malaysia regardless of race.

E This made Malays in United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) feel

threatened o Because they may lose special privileges that put them at an

advantage above other racial groups in Malaysia.

D UMNO organised anti-PAP campaign

o Highlighted poverty of Malays in Singapore. o Portrayed PAP’s resettlement and redevelopment programme as

anti-Malay. Claimed that resettlement projects were intended to

uproot Malays from their homes in traditional Malay areas such as Kallang River and West Coast

E Anti-PAP campaign ignored the fact that Chinese were also affected by

resettlement programme.

Malay newspaper Utusan Melayu claimed 3,000 Malay families were affected.

o In truth, only 200 out of 2,500 families resettled were Malays.

Done to arouse feelings of dissatisfaction among Singapore Malays towards PAP.

Peace and harmony can be easily broken by irresponsible media reporting which spreads distrust and hostility among citizens.

D Singapore government called for meeting with Malay organisations

o To explain government policies o To address unhappiness that Malays had o To assure Malays of improvements in economic and social

positions through education and training.

E However, before the meeting, UMNO had already met Malays to stir up

anger towards PAP.

Hinder PAP’s efforts at reaching out to Malays to dissolve conflict.

D July 1964, celebration of Prophet Muhammad’s birthday

o Clash between Chinese policeman and a group of Malays

E Consequences: Great damage to property and loss of lives.

Goodwill Committees were formed o To strengthen bonds among people from different races and

religions o Went to several houses to spread peace messages of living

harmoniously.

Managing perceptions of different religious groups

S Differences in religious beliefs and practices can spark tension in Singapore.

D How the Maria Hertogh riots in 1950 started:

o 1940s, a Dutch couple was imprisoned by Japanese. Their daughter Maria Hertogh was placed under the care

of Malay lady Aminah. Maria was since raised as a Muslim. At age 13, married a Malay teacher.

o After WWII, Dutch couple demanded return of Maria Hertogh. Court decided to give custody to Hertoghs after

considering that Maria would have a better life with her parents though it may be against her wishes.

Court trial had wide media coverage and enraged Malays.

E Malays felt that British legal system was unfair to Muslims.

The British court annulled Maria’s marriage to the Malay teacher. o They did not fully understand the religious implications of Maria’s

marriage.

Pictures of Maria in a Christian convent were published by the press.

Malays felt that the welfare of Muslims were not considered at all. o Sparked anger towards European and Eurasian communities.

Outbreak of riots resulted.

If religious issues are not handled carefully, hostility and distrust could occur among people and affect relationships among religious groups.

Threats from external forces

S Threats come from external forces such as transnational terrorist organisations.

D Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) – a militant group active in several Southeast Asian

countries. o Want to set up an Islamic state in Asia. o Responsible for bombings of tourist spots in parts of SEA,

including Bali and Jakarta. o Had intended to carry out attacks in Singapore.

Targets in Singapore: US embassy and government buildings.

E Singapore is targeted by terrorists because:

o She is strongly against terrorism. o She is a cosmopolitan city that hosts many foreign establishments

which are against the ideals of the terrorists. o She is a friend of Western nations such as the USA and the UK.

D JI members were arrested to prevent their planned attacks from

happening.

In response, political and religious leaders called for Singaporeans to remain calm and stay committed to living in harmony with other racial and religious groups.

o Muslim leaders condemned JI Emphasized that Malay communities do not support JI.

E However, people still grew distrust of Malays.

Heightened suspicion of the Malay community grew because of the arrests of terrorists.

Need to recognise that JI terrorists do not represent the entire Malay community and learn to reject prejudices against all racial and religious groups in order to preserve unity in the face of terrorist threats.

Can ethnic diversity be managed?

o Build a national identity o Multi-racialism o Common practices for Singaporeans o Bilingualism

o Safeguard interests of minority groups o Minority representation o Self-help groups

o Develop common space o Events and programs organised by grassroots organisations o Opportunities offered by education institutions o Common living space provided by public housing o Inter-racial and religious confidence circles (IRCCs) o Shared experience through National Service

Build a national identity

S Multi-racialism policy

D Equality is promoted among races with no special rights granted to any

particular racial or religious group.

Favouring a certain group of people because of their race or religion is prohibited by the Constitution.

E Everyone has equal opportunities to succeed regardless of background.

Everyone is seen as a valued member of the Singapore society, hence creating a national identity.

S Common practices

D They are actions that Singaporeans carry out together:

o Singing the national anthem o Saying the national pledge o Attending the flag raising ceremony

E Help to foster national identity by inculcating loyalty and national pride

towards Singapore.

Singaporeans see themselves as one people.

S Bilingualism was introduced in schools in 1966

D Students have to learn English and their own Mother Tongue.

E English is used to link the different ethnic groups.

o So that they can understand each other despite different mother tongues.

Mother tongue is used to impart moral values and cultural traditions of each race.

Since English is a non-native language for all ethnic groups, no one has an advantage in using English language over others.

Help to improve communication among Singaporeans.

Safeguarding the interests of minority groups

S Minority representation in government

D Give minority groups a say in governance.

Presidential Council of Minority Rights (PCMR) o Consists of members from minority racial and religious groups. o Ensures that no racial or religious group is disadvantaged as a

result of laws that are passed in Parliament. o Investigate complaints and report issues affecting any racial or

religious community to the government.

Group Representation Constituency (GRC) o Ensures that at least one of the candidates in a team contesting in

the General Election is from the minority racial communities (Malay, Indian or Eurasian).

o There are 27 constituencies in Singapore. Access the following link for a list of all constituencies:

http://www.parliament.gov.sg/list-constituencies

E PCMR helps to ensure that laws are not discriminatory towards any race

or religion.

GRC ensures that minority racial groups are represented in the Parliament

o So that their concerns and needs can be made known to government leaders.

S Self-help groups

D They include:

o Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC) o Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA) o Mendaki o Eurasian Association

Help members of their community who are less fortunate to get aid in studies and training for jobs.

Give moral support to members of their own community in the form of counselling services.

Joint tuition programmes o Students from different ethnic groups attend the same tuition

classes in centres run by CDAC, SINDA, and Mendaki.

E Joint tuition programmes provide opportunities for youths from different

ethnic groups to interact and get along with each other.

By helping the poor in each racial community, Singaporeans can compete with each other for jobs and in education on an equal footing.

Poor members of minority groups will be able to improve their social and economic positions in the society.

o Students from under-privileged and under-achievement backgrounds receive help to improve their academic grades.

o Dropout rates have declined. o More students are pursuing post-secondary education.

Developing common space

S Events and programmes organised by grassroots organisations

D Grassroots organisations such as People’s Association (PA) host a wide

range of programmes and activities to cater to needs and interests of every Singaporean.

o Home visit or home stay opportunities with a host family from another ethnic group.

E Participants learn to live with each other

o Gain better understanding of cultures and customs of other races. o Mutual respect between them helps to foster strong friendship

over time.

S Opportunities offered by educational institutions

D Schools and tertiary institutions (polytechnics, universities) are open to

every Singaporean o Regardless of race or religion. o Students of different races and religious groups study together.

E Daily interaction among students during lessons and school activities

provide opportunities for friendships to be cultivated and strengthened.

Co-curricular activities (CCAs) help to promote closer bonds among youths from all races.

o Students learn to work closely with and understand one another. o Build teamwork among them as they come together to play

games and work on tasks. o Students learn to appreciate each other’s talents. o Learn to respect one another as individuals.

S Common living space provided by public housing

D In 1980s, too many people from the same racial group lived in the same

housing estate.

E This could hinder social bonding among people from different races.

Lack of opportunities for members from different races to interact and bond with each other.

D 1989: Ethnic Integration Policy was introduced

o Limit the proportion of races in every neighbourhood and block.

E Ethnic Integration Policy ensures an even distribution of different races in

all housing estates.

More opportunities for people from different ethnic group to interact.

D 2010: Singapore Permanent Resident (SPR) quota was introduced

Limit proportion of SPRs to 5% in neighbourhoods and 8% in blocks.

Only applicable to non-Malaysian SPRs since Malaysian SPRs already share close historical and cultural similarities with Singaporeans.

E SPR quota ensures that SPR families can live among locals and integrate

into the local community.

Create opportunities for interaction and bonding between locals and non-Malaysian SPRs

o Build friendships between locals and SPRs to minimise conflicts between locals and foreigners.

S Inter-racial and Religious Confidence Circles (IRCCs)

D Comprise of leaders from community-based and religious organisations

from each constituency.

Serve as local level inter-faith platform to promote racial and religious harmony amongst the community through activities such as:

o Inter-faith dialogues o Inter-faith heritage trails o Ethnic and religious celebrations

E Through these activities, different communities gather to forge bonds

and friendships with each other.

Build trust and confidence among various communities o Strengthen social cohesion in Singapore when communities trust

each other.

D Community Engagement Programme (CEP) was launched by PM Lee

Hsien Loong in 2006 o Launched after London bombings were executed by homegrown

terrorists. o Launched in response to threats of extremist terrorism being

indoctrinated in locals. o Created to boost Singapore’s psychological defence against

attacks plotted by homegrown terrorists. o Singapore United website:

Resources for Singaporeans to read about and understand different cultures and customs in Singapore.

o Emergency Preparedness Day Held by each constituency to prepare citizens to cope with

emergencies. Educate citizens to organise a Ready Bag for use in

emergencies.

E The CEP is a long-term effort to ensure that Singapore is better equipped

to: o Maintain social cohesion and harmony o Stay united in a crisis

Build up people’s skills and knowledge in coping with emergencies.

With the help of response plans to deal with potential tensions in communities after a crisis (e.g. terrorist attack).

S Shared experience through National Service

D All able-bodied men must serve in the defence of Singapore.

E Shared experience of military training through National Service

strengthens bonds among men.

NS men from every ethnic group serve together and see themselves as a valuable member of a united armed force that serves in the interest of Singapore’s safety against external and internal threats.

Social cohesion is strengthened as every ethnic group contributes to Singapore’s defence.