SINGAPORE: Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has said that the country will stick to its policy of encouraging traditional families.
He made this point at a television forum hosted by Channel NewsAsia to discuss the country's future on Friday.
The forum, called "A
Conversation With PM Lee", also involved Education Minister Heng Swee
Keat, and Members of Parliament Indranee Rajah and Dr Intan Azura
Mokhtar.
The Singaporeans at the forum were a diverse mix - entrepreneurs, students, housewives and even new citizens.
The
forum was not so much about getting immediate answers from the panel,
but rather it was a chance to air their views and aspirations about
Singapore, in a no-holds barred discussion.
One of those at the
forum, fashion designer Jo Soh, said: "If I can't find a husband that I
want to marry, why can't I have a child as a single woman? Or why can't
de-facto couples be recognised? Why can't de-facto couples have children
and still have the same access to subsidies and rights?"
It was a question that prompted PM Lee to ask for a straw poll on the issue - should non-married couples have children?
The vote was split almost equal - 46 per cent voted "yes" and 54 per cent said "no".
While
it took Mr Lee by surprise, he underlined the fact that Singapore
society has benefited from sticking to a policy of encouraging
traditional families.
He said: "There have been some significant
advantages to our society to aim for that norm because a kid brought up
by a single mother or single father, I think, is at a disadvantaged in
many ways, (in terms of) resources, guidance, stability of the family
background.
"We are not static but society is evolving and I
think the norms will evolve. We can't prevent it from changing but we
also don't want it to just go wherever the latest fashion is."
The panel also stressed though that it was not about penalising single parents.
MP
for Tanjong Pagar GRC Indranee Rajah, said: "There really is nothing
wrong about being a single parent or having diversity. The challenge in
Singapore is we have different people with different viewpoints and how
does the government manage that. So the point is you have to move fairly
carefully on how you signal it.
"What the government does is not
intended to penalise those who are not married but to actually help
those who are married and looking at additional expenses. So hopefully
we can look at it from that viewpoint. It's not meant to be a penalty
but at the same time as society evolves, we can examine how it's going
and how we can move as a society."
The conversation also delved
into Singapore's future and the need to define what the country is
aiming for over the next two to three decades.
Mr Lee said: "We
never arrive, you see. We're always on a journey. If you have arrived,
you fall off the bicycle. We have to keep on moving and aiming for
something which is in front of you, which is worthwhile."
He also acknowledged that consensus building will not be easy, but what is needed is a shared purpose.
Mr
Lee said: "There will be many dreams and many aspirations among
Singaporeans, there has to be a certain shared purpose and identity.
We're all Singaporeans, that is something which distinguishes us, so we
recognise one another, we feel together.
"But we have different
things that we may like to do. You may want to teach, you may want to be
in social enterprise, you may want to be in the arts or in music, or
you feel passionately about building your business.
"I think the
special thing about Singapore is that whichever aspirations you have,
you have a chance of achieving it here. Your child, son and daughter
also ought to have more of a chance of making it over here."
Another question asked during the forum was whether Singaporeans feel that the next generation will have a better future?
70 per cent of the audience responded affirmatively.
Education
Minister Heng Swee Keat, who heads the committee that is facilitating
the national conversation about Singapore's future, felt it was an
encouraging sign.
He said: "I'm actually quite optimistic when I
hear from all of you. When you talk about values, many of you have
expressed aspirations about the Singapore that you want.
"If many
of us speak up about the sort of issues that we have just discussed, I
think our sense of common purpose will come together. I'm hoping that in
the coming weeks and months, we will have a rich and meaningful
conversation among Singaporeans about where we want to go."
The forum was an interactive dialogue which saw Singaporeans expressing their views freely.
This
is just the start of the Singapore Conversation. Many more of such
dialogues will be rolled out over the next few months involving
Singaporeans from all walks of life. Some will be in different
languages, some in smaller settings and some also away from the media
glare, to facilitate a free flow of conversation.
On his Facebook
page, Mr Lee said that the discussion was lively and often intense, and
that participants made many eloquent arguments and useful proposals. He
also said that it was a good start to the national conversation.
The full video of the forum is available on channelnewsasia.com/conversation.
-CNA/ac