Questions on national identity, integration dominate Pre-U Seminar

SINGAPORE: What is a defining characteristic of a Singaporean?

This question was posed to Senior Minister of State for Law and Education, Indranee Rajah at the Pre-University Seminar on Monday.

National identity, integration and unity were some of the broad themes dominating the hour-long discussion about Singapore’s future at the seminar.

Ms Indranee said Singaporeans are defined by their tenacity as she recounted how the country came together to overcome the SARS crisis a decade ago.

She said: “That (SARS) period showed Singaporeans at their best because despite the fact that we had this danger hanging over our heads, firstly, we went about doing our everyday jobs. We went to school where we could, went to work, we did the things that we had to do, but we in practical terms, took every precaution. We mobilised SAF (Singapore Armed Forces), the Police, our grassroots. We did it in a very organised, disciplined and systematic fashion. It is not to say there weren’t mishaps, there were – but we did the Singaporean thing, we planned and then we carried it out.

“To me, the essential quality of a Singaporean is what other people may call it ‘Kiasuism’. I would just call it tenacity. We just hang on in there. We don’t give up and just try. It is that sense that when it comes to a crunch, we will stand together and that despite all the fact that when things are going well, we will complain and we will grumble. When the chips are down, Singaporeans do come together.”

On what could be done to help the disabled become an asset of society, or to improve work-life balance, Ms Indranee candidly said the government does not have all the answers.

“The government can do many things, the government can encourage, the government can set frameworks, the government can give incentives, but when you are trying to achieve something at the national and societal level, everybody has to play their part,” she replied.

A student also asked if the Media Development Authority latest framework for online news sites would affect free speech.

Ms Indranee believes the new framework is not clamping down on free speech.

She explained: “The only thing that the new regulations do is to bring the online sites onto the same programme as the traditional print media and the main restriction or prohibition there is if there is content which is objectionable.”

Ms Indranee said the content that would attract the sanctions or take-down notice will be if it is against public interest, public order, national harmony or if it offends against good taste or decency.

Ms Indranee cited the recent case of a British soldier who was beheaded by two killers as an example that can go against good taste or decency.

She said: “Some people had videotaped that (the beheading). The nature of that is that it can be disseminated very quickly and easily online. If you had that on an online news site, that really wouldn’t quite fit in with ‘good taste’ or ‘decency’ because it would be quite a horrible thing to see somebody being beheaded. And in that instance, I think you would want to ask a news site to take it down.”

Ms Indranee also pointed out that if an online site is almost like or equivalent to a traditional news provider, it should then be subject to the same regulations.

The regulations, she stressed, do not affect bloggers.

“‘It doesn’t affect people who are blogging on their own or those who have their blogs or their own websites unless you reach that kind of site and unless you’re basically becoming like a news provider,” she said.

The opening ceremony of the Pre-U Seminar is just a tip of the iceberg.

The next three days will be filled with even more brainstorming and a further exchange of ideas as students break into groups to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing future Singapore.

These will then be presented to Education Minister Heng Swee Keat on June 6 at the closing ceremony.

Questions on national identity, integration dominate Pre-U Seminar