The Force is with Singapore
PM Lee delivered his national day rally speech last night and, for those of us who think him stiff, stolid and stern, showed a much friendlier side. His pace was good, his language impeccable, his tone warm and lively. Much in contrast to his father who tended to dictate rather than deliver speeches and much more entertaining than former PM Goh whom I felt always spoke half a beat too slowly.
But, public speaking skills aside, PM Lee showed a genuine desire to change the way this country is run.
The lifting of licensing requirements on indoor talks is a move which signals an important, if small, change in mindset. Freedom of speech has always been a sticky issue here. Some want it, others don’t and yet some others are taking their time to make their minds up about it. We all know what the foreign press thinks. All there is to do now is to wait and see what comes out of this extra bit of freedom.
He would have done well to address the concerns of the gay and lesbian community as well. While the government has allowed openly gay people to join the civil service and permitted a few gay events this year, many view this as merely window dressing. People Like Us, for example, still hasn’t been allowed to be registered as a society. The reason? It is “contrary to the national interest”.
It will be interesting to see if PM Lee continues this liberalisation process beyond these first tentative steps. Conservatism has always been part of the PAP’s style and PM Lee, while showing an understanding of the need to open up, is still ultimately a product of this system. As he told parliament in April, “If you are absolutely up at the leading edge in matters of social change, you are never quite sure whether the leading edge has taken a wrong turn, needs to back-track and make a U-turn.” I suppose we’re in for a little bit more nanny-ing for just awhile yet.
His views on education, however, are encouragingly progressive:
“We've got to teach less to our students so that they will learn more. Grades are important, don't forget to pass your exams but grades are not the only thing in life and there are other things in life which we want to learn in school.
Parents are part of this and they've got to support the efforts of the schools. When the schools are trying new teaching methods or when they are trying to build character or just toughening them up a little. I know some parents have gone to schools to complain, to say, 'The other school has more worksheets.'
Even some kindergarten parents are complaining that their children are not getting worksheets, and kindergarten students are attending remedial classes. No need. Let them grow up in their own time.
It's okay for children to get hurt. They fall down, bruise their knee, knock themselves, a few scrapes, can't be helped, that's part of growing up. If you grow up with no scars anywhere, you've never fallen off a bicycle, I think you are a different sort of person.”
Less emphasis on learning from the book and more on learning from life is the message. I doubt he’ll be able to convince parents to lighten up any time soon but it’s good that the government acknowledges that our papers based system does have its drawbacks.
A whole bunch of goodies were also unveiled. All family-centric but well received nonetheless. An extra 4 weeks paid maternity leave, 2 days childcare leave for parents with children under 7 years old, medical benefits extended to women and, drawing the loudest cheers of all, a 5-day week for the civil service (for a more balanced life i.e. more time for procreation).
With the economy forecasted to grow by up to 9% this year, PM Lee could afford to be cheerful and candid in his first national day rally speech. The chance was taken to give Singaporeans a reassuring pat on the back and hand out some carrots. The usual reminders that we need to constantly improve and not take things for granted were also there but the overall mood was one of celebration and progression. As the Straits Times reported, many sacred cows were slaughtered last night. Whether this is a one-off or if PM Lee will continue to ring the changes, only time will tell. But for now, it’s looking good. As he put it (tongue-in-cheek, I hope), “I think the force is with Singapore.”
But, public speaking skills aside, PM Lee showed a genuine desire to change the way this country is run.
The lifting of licensing requirements on indoor talks is a move which signals an important, if small, change in mindset. Freedom of speech has always been a sticky issue here. Some want it, others don’t and yet some others are taking their time to make their minds up about it. We all know what the foreign press thinks. All there is to do now is to wait and see what comes out of this extra bit of freedom.
He would have done well to address the concerns of the gay and lesbian community as well. While the government has allowed openly gay people to join the civil service and permitted a few gay events this year, many view this as merely window dressing. People Like Us, for example, still hasn’t been allowed to be registered as a society. The reason? It is “contrary to the national interest”.
It will be interesting to see if PM Lee continues this liberalisation process beyond these first tentative steps. Conservatism has always been part of the PAP’s style and PM Lee, while showing an understanding of the need to open up, is still ultimately a product of this system. As he told parliament in April, “If you are absolutely up at the leading edge in matters of social change, you are never quite sure whether the leading edge has taken a wrong turn, needs to back-track and make a U-turn.” I suppose we’re in for a little bit more nanny-ing for just awhile yet.
His views on education, however, are encouragingly progressive:
“We've got to teach less to our students so that they will learn more. Grades are important, don't forget to pass your exams but grades are not the only thing in life and there are other things in life which we want to learn in school.
Parents are part of this and they've got to support the efforts of the schools. When the schools are trying new teaching methods or when they are trying to build character or just toughening them up a little. I know some parents have gone to schools to complain, to say, 'The other school has more worksheets.'
Even some kindergarten parents are complaining that their children are not getting worksheets, and kindergarten students are attending remedial classes. No need. Let them grow up in their own time.
It's okay for children to get hurt. They fall down, bruise their knee, knock themselves, a few scrapes, can't be helped, that's part of growing up. If you grow up with no scars anywhere, you've never fallen off a bicycle, I think you are a different sort of person.”
Less emphasis on learning from the book and more on learning from life is the message. I doubt he’ll be able to convince parents to lighten up any time soon but it’s good that the government acknowledges that our papers based system does have its drawbacks.
A whole bunch of goodies were also unveiled. All family-centric but well received nonetheless. An extra 4 weeks paid maternity leave, 2 days childcare leave for parents with children under 7 years old, medical benefits extended to women and, drawing the loudest cheers of all, a 5-day week for the civil service (for a more balanced life i.e. more time for procreation).
With the economy forecasted to grow by up to 9% this year, PM Lee could afford to be cheerful and candid in his first national day rally speech. The chance was taken to give Singaporeans a reassuring pat on the back and hand out some carrots. The usual reminders that we need to constantly improve and not take things for granted were also there but the overall mood was one of celebration and progression. As the Straits Times reported, many sacred cows were slaughtered last night. Whether this is a one-off or if PM Lee will continue to ring the changes, only time will tell. But for now, it’s looking good. As he put it (tongue-in-cheek, I hope), “I think the force is with Singapore.”
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