i told myself i wouldn't come online today but as a resident of Serangoon Gardens i feel like i have to speak up. i refer to both articles on the two blogs here and here, one of which was also published in today's TODAY paper.
in case some do not know about this case yet, here's a little background info. the government's planning to house around 1,500 foreign workers in the abandoned Serangoon Gardens Technical School. the residents have protested and the decision has yet to be confirmed.
then there's these two bloggers who have decided to take up a rather biased view on this case and has labeled us as "bigots", "xenophobic", "prejudiced" and "snobbish".
The article, "Get out of my elite neighbourhood", mentioned this: 'It's good to see how rich Singaporeans are uniting against these dastardly foreign workers.', 'I am dismayed that so many well-to-do, educated professionals in my country can be so blatant about their bigotry against poor people of other ethnic groups and nationalities.' and mentioned the recent LoveSingapore, the nation-wide prayer on mistreatment and prejudice of foreign workers and our invalidation of our confession and commitment to reform.
The other article, "Unwelcome", said this about us: 'Who do they think they are? The heavenly host up there whose peace cannot be disturbed no matter what? That the rest of Singapore, where the minions live, are more suitable for such (dare I say), 'low life'?' and 'We should practice charity, for surely it must begin at home. Otherwise, whatever civility we may have cultivated among ourselves is only skin deep, and that skin is particularly thin for people living in the private houses in Serangoon Gardens.'
i'm not good with my words and many have already expressed views similar to mine on these blogs. but honestly, i don't see why these two bloggers, and those who share their views, can't put themselves in our shoes. true, economically, we will suffer. our property value will drop. there will be congestion on the roads. places like chomp-chomp will be more crowded. but it's more than that. to a mother, the safety of her daughter will now be at risk (this is a point my mom keeps emphasizing to me. haha.). having multiple construction taking place near my place for the past few months has already caused my mom to call me a lot more than usual. and yes, they do disturb me and my maid. haha. and the high population of old here will be at risk too. i'm not saying that foreign workers will definitely commit these crimes. but it has been proven that locations in Singapore with higher number of foreign workers do have cases of rape, molestation and robbery. and even one case is one too many. here in Serangoon Gardens where the population of teens and aged is large, and almost every household has a maid, effects of this decision is sure to be detrimental.
the gates of the school now has three cardboard on it saying: 'SOS' Save Our Serangoon. it's quite cute really. haha. actually whether or not you're a resident of Serangoon Gardens, i'm sure it means something to many. be it late night suppers or get togethers at the cafes or ice cream parlours. so no, it's not just us living in our own selfish world, unwilling to let others in. our URA masterplan states that we're a residential area anw. why change it now?
it's nice to see that about 1,400 of us have responded to this case and are working together to stand firm against it. but i emphasize, we don't discriminate against foreigners. we're not protesting their coming to Singapore to work. we just don't see why this decision has to be made if there are other available choices. if eventually, the decision is made to abort this idea, they still won't be left homeless. and the bulk of the construction sites aren't even near here -.-
you can't blame us for thinking about safety and security. for standing up for what we feel is best for us as a community. as a non-resident of our small neighbourhood, it's easy to judge us and wag your fingers at us, labeling us as the 'ugly Singaporean'. but if you had a family living here, if you've lived your whole life here and care enough about the eventual state of the neighbourhood, thinking about such issues doesn't make you a selfish, snobbish person. it just makes you a caring and concerned parent or passionate resident. so before you generalize us and call us selfish, think twice and put yourself in our position.
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