Singapore was just a tiny fishing village in the past but Singapore has transformed into a modern and urbanised “Garden City” city now. Kampongs of closely knitted communities are replaced by corporate buildings and HDB flats. Singaporeans now lead a stressful and fast-paced life in this ever-changing world.
Improvement in technology has resulted in a better standard of living for people living in Singapore. Slums and squatters are now HDB flats or other private housing. Better medical facilities and technology has also resulted in higher life expectancy rates and mortality rates. Singapore’s government has worked hard to remove problems faced in earlier years of independence which includes race and religious riots.
Singapore is a multi-ethnic society but we enjoy racial harmony as a result of mutual understanding and acceptance of the different race cultures and religions present in Singapore. This is also one of the reasons that attracted many foreigners to Singapore. Initially, foreigners (including foreign talents) came due to work, but eventually many settled down and build families here. Every year, the number of people becoming a permanent resident increases and some even became Singapore Citizens. Our forefathers were Eurasians, Chinese, Malays or Indians. We have Koreans, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese and many others who are fellow citizens now.
Although Singapore is small in terms of land area, we are still possible targets of transnational terrorism. This threatens the peace and security people in Singapore enjoy. There were incidents where terrorist attacks happened in other parts of the world but Singaporeans were linked to the organizations. As a result, people start being wary and oversensitive towards particular racial groups. In such times, Singaporeans should be more bonded and not doubt one another. When there is trust and understanding, probability of conflicts arising decreases and peace is maintained.
I believe many years later, Singapore’s racial harmony would still be maintained and we will enjoy learning more from our diversified backgrounds.
link: Wikipedia: Singapore
