On the evening of 13 August 2009, DPM Wong Kan Seng paid a visit to Block 155. He was hosted by the RC Chairperson Miss Lee Ker Hwa and officers representing the agencies such as HDB, Police, Town Council and the LTA, as well as grassroot leaders.
DPM Wong visited more than 100 households and was warmly invited into several homes of residents. During the visit, residents gave many feedbacks regarding their environment. Many offered their views on the impending Neighbourhood Renewal Program. Do email us at bepap@singnet.com.sg if you have any good proposals or suggestions for this program.
Residents are also grateful for the Lift Upgrading Program which provided much convenience for the elderly residents. Through the block visit, it was also brought to our attention that there are cases whereby contractors posed as HDB contractors trying to defraud residents to sign agreements to change their front grille. Do be on your guard on such incidents. You may contact the HDB Bishan Branch at 1800-2255432 or drop the branch office at the following address if you have any queries.
Blk 512 Bishan St 13 #02-524 Singapore 570512
Here are the photos taken during the block visit.
.. The Bishan East Blog Team ..
14 August, 2009
09 August, 2009
BISHAN EAST NATIONAL DAY 2009 OBSERVANCE CEREMONY
Dear Residents and Friends,
Bishan East celebrates the nation's 44th birthday today. Many residents would have received an email and SMS message from our Member of Parliament for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, DPM Wong Kan Seng, wishing one and all a Happy National Day. DPM Wong has the following message for our residents.
NATIONAL DAY MESSAGE
"Dear Residents
As we celebrate the 44th National Day, let us count our blessings.
Our country is peaceful, and our people live in harmony. No doubt, the economy is not doing well for now.
The Government recognized this early. Swift actions were early this year. The Resilience Package costing $20.5 billion was introduced to help workers stay in their jobs, and businesses continue to survive.
Now the dark clouds are slowly beginning to lift. Singaporeans have overcome many crises together with the Government. I am confident that we will be able to overcome this one too. Let us stay united and prepare ourselves for the challenges ahead.
Wishing all Bishan-Toa Payoh residents a happy National Day."
With warm regards,
Wong Kan Seng
A National Day Observance Ceremony was held at the Bishan Community Club this morning. The event opened with an early walk-athon. Residents enjoyed the carnival through their participation in the various games and exercises plus martial art display and singing. The Guest-of-Honour, DPM Wong also gave away awards to grass root leaders for their dedicated and long years of service. We would like to congratulate two special grassroot leaders, Mr. Mohamed Farook Abdul Wahab (Vice-Chairman, Bishan East, Zone 4 RC) and Mr. Sunny Wong Yoke Seng (Vice-Chairman, Bishan East C2E), on being conferred the Public Service Medal by our President, His Excellency, Mr SR Nathan.
We hope you would enjoy the photos presented below.
..The Bishan East Blog Team..
Bishan East celebrates the nation's 44th birthday today. Many residents would have received an email and SMS message from our Member of Parliament for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, DPM Wong Kan Seng, wishing one and all a Happy National Day. DPM Wong has the following message for our residents.
NATIONAL DAY MESSAGE
"Dear Residents
As we celebrate the 44th National Day, let us count our blessings.
Our country is peaceful, and our people live in harmony. No doubt, the economy is not doing well for now.
The Government recognized this early. Swift actions were early this year. The Resilience Package costing $20.5 billion was introduced to help workers stay in their jobs, and businesses continue to survive.
Now the dark clouds are slowly beginning to lift. Singaporeans have overcome many crises together with the Government. I am confident that we will be able to overcome this one too. Let us stay united and prepare ourselves for the challenges ahead.
Wishing all Bishan-Toa Payoh residents a happy National Day."
With warm regards,
Wong Kan Seng
A National Day Observance Ceremony was held at the Bishan Community Club this morning. The event opened with an early walk-athon. Residents enjoyed the carnival through their participation in the various games and exercises plus martial art display and singing. The Guest-of-Honour, DPM Wong also gave away awards to grass root leaders for their dedicated and long years of service. We would like to congratulate two special grassroot leaders, Mr. Mohamed Farook Abdul Wahab (Vice-Chairman, Bishan East, Zone 4 RC) and Mr. Sunny Wong Yoke Seng (Vice-Chairman, Bishan East C2E), on being conferred the Public Service Medal by our President, His Excellency, Mr SR Nathan.
We hope you would enjoy the photos presented below.
..The Bishan East Blog Team..
02 August, 2009
Our constituency held its 44th National Day Dinner on Saturday evening, 1 August 2009 at the open field next to Block 156, Bishan St 11. Speaking to more than 1,800 guests who attended the dinner, our Member of Parliament Mr Wong Kan Seng, who is also Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs, spoke about the importance of safeguarding Singapore's success by preserving racial and religious harmony.
He cited the recent violence and protests in Xinjiang (China), Punjab (India) and Australia as reminders that we cannot take racial and religious harmony in Singapore for granted. He also shared an example of a scuffle between a Chinese family and a Malay family arising from the misunderstanding over the burning of incence during a wake. The incident was resolved through the actions of the MP, grassroots leaders and members of the the Inter-racial Confidence Circles (IRCCs).
Turning to more Singaporeans drawn to religion and religious practices, DPM Wong said that while there is nothing wrong to be religious, we have to be acutely mindful of the impact on the people around us in our multi-racial and multi-religious society.
The key point of his speech is that social harmony in Singapore depends on people of different races and religion living and working harmoniously together in the common spaces that we have built over the decades. He stressed that this social harmony is a valuable capital which we must preserve to safeguard Singapore’s future success.
Before we go on to the full text of his speech, here are the photos taken at the Bishan East National Day Dinner.
SPEECH BY MR WONG KAN SENG, DPM AND MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS, AND MP FOR BISHAN-TOA PAYOH GRC AT THE 44TH BISHAN EAST NATIONAL DAY DINNER ON 1 AUGUST 2009
Safeguarding Singapore’s Success
Singapore has done well since our Independence 44 years ago. Our living standard is high. We enjoy good quality public housing, education, transport and healthcare. We raise our families and pursue our careers in an environment that is stable, safe and secure.
Many factors account for Singapore’s success. Some of these are not easily “seen” or “measured”. But we will feel the impact when things go wrong. Knowing what they are will help us preserve them, so as to safeguard and ensure Singapore’s continued success.
Factors behind Singapore’s success
The most fundamental factor of our success is strong government leadership. We implement policies to achieve long term growth.
Singaporeans play a vital part in Singapore’s success too. They trust and support the government, and work hard with discipline to forgo short term gratification for long term gains. Every Singaporean actively contributes to and has a stake in Singapore’s success.
Our strong defence capability and successful efforts in diplomacy are key factors as well.
Other than strong government, supportive people, defence and diplomacy, one other factor of our success that I am going to talk more about today is the importance of racial and religious harmony which contributes to our stability. This is something that is closest to us. It relates directly to the safety of our families, and the stability of our society.
Preserving safety and stability
Singapore is stable and peaceful today even though we are a diverse, multi-ethnic and multi-religious society. This is a far cry from 1965 when we became independent or 1959 when we attained self-government. Singapore can remain peaceful and stable only if we stay ahead of threats, whether be it crime, drugs or terrorism. And one of the threats to our stability is racial, religious and social disharmony that we have zealously guard against. Three recent incidents outside Singapore clearly illustrate why.
The first is the inter-ethnic violence in Xinjiang last month. What began as a factory brawl in Guangdong led to hundreds of people dead and many more injured when riots turned violent in Xinjiang. What happened in Xinjiang illustrates how racial bloodshed can be ignited with little provocation.
The second incident happened in May. It was reported that a Sikh preacher was shot dead and several worshippers were wounded at a Sikh temple in Vienna, Austria. The perpetrators were reportedly fundamentalist Sikhs of a higher caste from another temple. Barely hours later, followers of the preacher clashed with other Sikhs in Punjab and riots broke out.
The third incident happened in Australia. A series of racially motivated attacks against Indian students in May and June and the perceived poor response by the police sparked widespread protests. Rallies were held in both Melbourne and Sydney. Mutual suspicions between the Indian immigrants and white Australians remain.
All these incidents are a grim reminder that we cannot take racial and religious harmony for granted. Racial and religious harmony is not something that naturally happens. It has to be nurtured over time. What happened in these countries showed that we need to consistently pay attention to the different groups in our society and to have a sharp sensing of the ground to know whether race and/or religious tensions are brewing. If we are not sensitive to such tensions, misunderstanding and distrust will happen, escalating into riots and chaos when there is provocation.
Can such violence happen in Singapore? It will be a grave mistake to think that it cannot. If we allow racial and religious differences to simmer and accentuate, soon the fissures will become fractures and all we need is a spark to ignite the fire.
Let me share some examples. A Chinese family held a wake at the void deck of a HDB flat. During the wake, there was a misunderstanding between the Chinese family and a Malay family. The Malay family objected to the burning of incense at the grass patch in front of the block. A scuffle broke out and Police was called to intervene.
Grassroots leaders including members of the Inter-Racial Confidence Circle (IRCC) visited the families to talk to them. Both families realised that there was a misunderstanding. The MP subsequently met both families. The parties apologised to each other and the matter was settled amicably. The friction that could have potentially escalated into tensions was swiftly stemmed when grassroots leaders acted and cooler heads prevailed. This is how we deal with such matters the Singapore way.
The Internet has also become a potential source of tension. In 2005, three youths were convicted in court for making inflammatory racist remarks about Muslims and Malays online. In 2006, a 21-year-old was warned by the Police for publishing offensive cartoons of religious nature on his blog. Recently, this year, a Christian couple was sentenced to eight weeks jail under the Sedition Act for distributing anti-Muslim and anti-Catholic publications.
The examples I have cited clearly show why we must continue to take racial and religious harmony seriously.
Preserving social harmony by building our common space
More Singaporeans are reportedly turning to religion. We are carried by the world trend. There is nothing wrong to be religious. But even as we turn towards religion to guide us, we have to be acutely mindful of the impact on the people around us in our multi-racial and multi-religious society.
My ministry received a letter from a member of public last month. The writer received religious literature in his letterbox which he felt was critical of non-believers. And he wrote, “Religious beliefs are deeply personal. Their potential for incendiary contention is well known and they should be best confined to the private sphere.” His reaction was not difficult to understand.
As we seek out religion, we must not do so in a way that leads to closed minds and exclusive groups. Singapore is a dense urban city with people of different races and religions living in close proximity. Our diversity can be both a source of our strength as well as our Achilles heel. The practice of religion should not lead to exclusivity where we only interact with people of the same faith or worse, criticise and exclude people of other faiths. We must not let increased religiosity or religious practices among our people to create fault lines that will disrupt our social stability, especially when race and religion are closely intertwined in Singapore.
The government has managed race and religion matters in our society in a pragmatic and sensible manner. The single most important principle in our approach is to build common spaces in our schools, communities, workplaces and national service. These common spaces must necessarily remain secular.
Our social harmony depends on people of different races and religion living and working harmoniously together in the common spaces that we have built over the decades. This social harmony is a valuable capital on which we can safeguard Singapore’s future success.
Conclusion
As we celebrate Singapore’s 44th birthday today, let us remember that Singapore can keep growing if we are committed to its long term future. Let us remember the reasons behind Singapore’s success and do our part to preserve Singapore’s future and actively contribute to Singapore’s peace, security and communal harmony.
Finally, let me thank the Bishan East grassroots leaders for organising tonight’s dinner. I wish all of you a Happy National Day and an enjoyable evening.
* * * *
He cited the recent violence and protests in Xinjiang (China), Punjab (India) and Australia as reminders that we cannot take racial and religious harmony in Singapore for granted. He also shared an example of a scuffle between a Chinese family and a Malay family arising from the misunderstanding over the burning of incence during a wake. The incident was resolved through the actions of the MP, grassroots leaders and members of the the Inter-racial Confidence Circles (IRCCs).
Turning to more Singaporeans drawn to religion and religious practices, DPM Wong said that while there is nothing wrong to be religious, we have to be acutely mindful of the impact on the people around us in our multi-racial and multi-religious society.
The key point of his speech is that social harmony in Singapore depends on people of different races and religion living and working harmoniously together in the common spaces that we have built over the decades. He stressed that this social harmony is a valuable capital which we must preserve to safeguard Singapore’s future success.
Before we go on to the full text of his speech, here are the photos taken at the Bishan East National Day Dinner.
SPEECH BY MR WONG KAN SENG, DPM AND MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS, AND MP FOR BISHAN-TOA PAYOH GRC AT THE 44TH BISHAN EAST NATIONAL DAY DINNER ON 1 AUGUST 2009
Safeguarding Singapore’s Success
Singapore has done well since our Independence 44 years ago. Our living standard is high. We enjoy good quality public housing, education, transport and healthcare. We raise our families and pursue our careers in an environment that is stable, safe and secure.
Many factors account for Singapore’s success. Some of these are not easily “seen” or “measured”. But we will feel the impact when things go wrong. Knowing what they are will help us preserve them, so as to safeguard and ensure Singapore’s continued success.
Factors behind Singapore’s success
The most fundamental factor of our success is strong government leadership. We implement policies to achieve long term growth.
Singaporeans play a vital part in Singapore’s success too. They trust and support the government, and work hard with discipline to forgo short term gratification for long term gains. Every Singaporean actively contributes to and has a stake in Singapore’s success.
Our strong defence capability and successful efforts in diplomacy are key factors as well.
Other than strong government, supportive people, defence and diplomacy, one other factor of our success that I am going to talk more about today is the importance of racial and religious harmony which contributes to our stability. This is something that is closest to us. It relates directly to the safety of our families, and the stability of our society.
Preserving safety and stability
Singapore is stable and peaceful today even though we are a diverse, multi-ethnic and multi-religious society. This is a far cry from 1965 when we became independent or 1959 when we attained self-government. Singapore can remain peaceful and stable only if we stay ahead of threats, whether be it crime, drugs or terrorism. And one of the threats to our stability is racial, religious and social disharmony that we have zealously guard against. Three recent incidents outside Singapore clearly illustrate why.
The first is the inter-ethnic violence in Xinjiang last month. What began as a factory brawl in Guangdong led to hundreds of people dead and many more injured when riots turned violent in Xinjiang. What happened in Xinjiang illustrates how racial bloodshed can be ignited with little provocation.
The second incident happened in May. It was reported that a Sikh preacher was shot dead and several worshippers were wounded at a Sikh temple in Vienna, Austria. The perpetrators were reportedly fundamentalist Sikhs of a higher caste from another temple. Barely hours later, followers of the preacher clashed with other Sikhs in Punjab and riots broke out.
The third incident happened in Australia. A series of racially motivated attacks against Indian students in May and June and the perceived poor response by the police sparked widespread protests. Rallies were held in both Melbourne and Sydney. Mutual suspicions between the Indian immigrants and white Australians remain.
All these incidents are a grim reminder that we cannot take racial and religious harmony for granted. Racial and religious harmony is not something that naturally happens. It has to be nurtured over time. What happened in these countries showed that we need to consistently pay attention to the different groups in our society and to have a sharp sensing of the ground to know whether race and/or religious tensions are brewing. If we are not sensitive to such tensions, misunderstanding and distrust will happen, escalating into riots and chaos when there is provocation.
Can such violence happen in Singapore? It will be a grave mistake to think that it cannot. If we allow racial and religious differences to simmer and accentuate, soon the fissures will become fractures and all we need is a spark to ignite the fire.
Let me share some examples. A Chinese family held a wake at the void deck of a HDB flat. During the wake, there was a misunderstanding between the Chinese family and a Malay family. The Malay family objected to the burning of incense at the grass patch in front of the block. A scuffle broke out and Police was called to intervene.
Grassroots leaders including members of the Inter-Racial Confidence Circle (IRCC) visited the families to talk to them. Both families realised that there was a misunderstanding. The MP subsequently met both families. The parties apologised to each other and the matter was settled amicably. The friction that could have potentially escalated into tensions was swiftly stemmed when grassroots leaders acted and cooler heads prevailed. This is how we deal with such matters the Singapore way.
The Internet has also become a potential source of tension. In 2005, three youths were convicted in court for making inflammatory racist remarks about Muslims and Malays online. In 2006, a 21-year-old was warned by the Police for publishing offensive cartoons of religious nature on his blog. Recently, this year, a Christian couple was sentenced to eight weeks jail under the Sedition Act for distributing anti-Muslim and anti-Catholic publications.
The examples I have cited clearly show why we must continue to take racial and religious harmony seriously.
Preserving social harmony by building our common space
More Singaporeans are reportedly turning to religion. We are carried by the world trend. There is nothing wrong to be religious. But even as we turn towards religion to guide us, we have to be acutely mindful of the impact on the people around us in our multi-racial and multi-religious society.
My ministry received a letter from a member of public last month. The writer received religious literature in his letterbox which he felt was critical of non-believers. And he wrote, “Religious beliefs are deeply personal. Their potential for incendiary contention is well known and they should be best confined to the private sphere.” His reaction was not difficult to understand.
As we seek out religion, we must not do so in a way that leads to closed minds and exclusive groups. Singapore is a dense urban city with people of different races and religions living in close proximity. Our diversity can be both a source of our strength as well as our Achilles heel. The practice of religion should not lead to exclusivity where we only interact with people of the same faith or worse, criticise and exclude people of other faiths. We must not let increased religiosity or religious practices among our people to create fault lines that will disrupt our social stability, especially when race and religion are closely intertwined in Singapore.
The government has managed race and religion matters in our society in a pragmatic and sensible manner. The single most important principle in our approach is to build common spaces in our schools, communities, workplaces and national service. These common spaces must necessarily remain secular.
Our social harmony depends on people of different races and religion living and working harmoniously together in the common spaces that we have built over the decades. This social harmony is a valuable capital on which we can safeguard Singapore’s future success.
Conclusion
As we celebrate Singapore’s 44th birthday today, let us remember that Singapore can keep growing if we are committed to its long term future. Let us remember the reasons behind Singapore’s success and do our part to preserve Singapore’s future and actively contribute to Singapore’s peace, security and communal harmony.
Finally, let me thank the Bishan East grassroots leaders for organising tonight’s dinner. I wish all of you a Happy National Day and an enjoyable evening.
* * * *
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