KICK! HIT! GOAL!!!.

'Removing race from IC won't erase biases'
The solution lies in fostering social norms that frown on racial prejudices, says George Yeo
By Keith Lin
REMOVING race from the Singapore identity card (IC) will not see the end of racial stereotypes, said Foreign Minister George Yeo yesterday.

The answer lies in creating social norms that frown on racial prejudices, he told around 200 young Singaporeans at a dialogue.

But at the same time, he acknowledged that as human beings, having prejudices was part of life.

That is when having a sense of humour helps, he said. 'So I listen to (Indian comedian) Kumar cracking jokes about Indians, it gets the whole audience laughing because it relaxes the atmosphere.'

Mr Yeo was responding to a participant who had suggested that race be removed from ICs to downplay racial stereotypes.

Race-related issues and their impact on community ties dominated the two-hour dialogue organised by the Young Sikh Association.

To demonstrate the continual risk of racial tensions, Mr Yeo recounted a recent incident in Aljunied GRC, where he is an MP.

A Muslim girl was accidentally scalded by a Chinese bak kut teh (pork ribs soup) seller. The situation deteriorated when the stall holder was hurt in a scuffle with the girl's angry mother. Grassroots leaders intervened and, with gifts and comforting words, appeased both parties.

The incident, Mr Yeo said, showed that prejudices can feed on one another. 'Suddenly, all the established thinking we're used to evaporates,' he said. 'You can never be sure.'

Income disparities among different races worry junior college teacher Randy Gill, who felt it needed to be monitored closely.

Mr Yeo said it was inevitable because some communities respond more effectively to global opportunities. However, he urged those who have found success to help the less privileged. 'The more we surge ahead, the more we must help those left behind,' he said.

Another participant observed that the issue of international terrorism seems to boil down to one group: the Muslim community.

Agreeing, Mr Yeo said: 'In Chechnya, Palestine, Iraq, where Muslims may have a legitimate right to feel grief...all these things are conflated together so that all the unhappiness is mixed, and becomes a justification for doing bad things to innocent people.

'This is going to be a long drama, a problem specific to the Muslim community today.'

But terrorism can afflict other groups too, Mr Yeo said, recalling Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers trying to recruit Singaporean Tamils in their fight for an independent state.

He reminded his audience to stay clear of political happenings in other countries as they seek out their roots.

'It is difficult, but we must have the conscious discipline to separate the two (politics and religion),' he said.

.][-Splattered my blood on
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