Multiracialism and Multiculturalism in Singapore

Running head: SOCIOLOGY
SOCIOLOGY
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1SOCIOLOGY
1. The meanings of the concepts “race” and “ethnicity”
Race is essentially a concept that is related to the people’s bodily features. The
appearance of the people, their hair color, skin color, height and everything that is related to the
physical feature of a person can be termed as race. People usually relate to the physical feature of
a person to distinguish their race (Teng & Leong, 2018). The white complexion tall people are
usually considered to be of European Caucasian race where as the yellowish complexioned short
people may be held as of Asian origin, people relate to race as per the physical appearance.
Ethnicity on the other hand is more of a cultural and physical concept and the culture
practices and lifestyle habits that set one group of people from another may be considered as
ethnicity of a person. Many consider ethnicity as “a sense of history, language, religion, and
forms of dress. Ethnic differences are not inherited; they are learned.” Nationalism is a similar
mental concept where people develop the feeling of unity or oneness according to share
geographical locations (Guo, 2016). Both race and ethnicity plays an important role in shaping
one individuals position in the society and how that individual is perceived by others.
2. How the concepts are handled in Singapore
In the speech of the Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong it can be understood that the
country Singapore is very much a promoter of multiculturalism. The country was formed with
the idea that every race every ethnicity can live in this country feeling to be at home. It is
everyone’s country and not anyone’s particular. The majority of the population of Singapore is
Chinese therefore it is expected that the Chinese population will be having more power and mirth
within the country. However the administration of the country is fully careful that these
differences do not take a toll on the communal harmony of the country (Lian, 2016). The country

2SOCIOLOGY
right from the stage of its formation has ensured that the Malay population, the Indian
population, all the religious minorities are given as much importance as the Chinese population.
As the official the country gives maximum importance to multiculturalism, however
often on practical level it is found that the country faces various incidents of racism and cultural
clash. The administration and the police have ensured that nothing of that sort is given
encouragement and the culprits are given due treatment. The country has gone through several
constitutional amendments to ensure that the minority races are given due political recognition.
3. Singapore’s specific brand and management of “multiracialism”; what this now means
amid current societal and national circumstances.
When Singapore was separated from Malaysia the founding fathers of the country namely
“Lee Kuan Yew, Goh Keng Swee, S Rajaratnam, Othman Wok” had 100% faith on the country
being one of the most multicultural nation in the region. The founding father’s belonged to all
race and ethnicity who was a part of the country. However with passing days it was found that
the country is losing its multicultural heritage atleast in the political arena. Most of the political
leaders who were chosen were from the Chinese background. Therefore the administration has
chosen to bring in proper measures in the legislative field to ensure that all the ethnic groups
have their representation in the political field (Lian, 2015).
The Prime Minister chose to take example from the political system of different parts of
the world. “It is necessary in many multiracial countries. They make deliberate arrangements -
either constitutional rules or conventions - but they have some kind of rotation or special
representations for the minorities. Canada's Governor-General alternates between the French-
speaking and English-speaking communities. In New Zealand, they have minorities too. They