Promote inter-racial and inter-religious understanding among communities

Mr Delane Lim, Organising Chairman & Group CEO, Agape Group Holdings

Master Chung Kwang Tong, Co-Chairman & Secretary-General Taoist Youth Federation

Mr Chua Seng Lee, Chairman for Character & Leadership Academy

Members of the Inter-Religious Organisation

Principals, Teachers & Youth Campers

Ladies and Gentlemen,

1. Good evening, everyone! Thank you for inviting me to join you tonight.
   

2. Through the camp activities over the past two days, I hope you have gained a better appreciation of Singapore’s different religions and cultures. I know it’s difficult for you to imagine Singapore in 1964 when we experienced racial riots. But we must come together and protect the peace, harmony and stability as a multi-racial, multi-cultural society. We must not take this for granted.

3. In 1964, we had two bouts of racial riots, in July and September. Lives were lost, people were injured and properties were damaged. The social fabric of our society was scarred. It took a long time for our religious leaders, community leaders and pioneers, to regain that trust and strengthen our community bonds.

4. By participating in this camp, you have already taken an important step in this lifelong journey of promoting inter-faith understanding. We’re counting on each and every one of you to create a multiplier effect. If you read the papers, you will come across reports of strife and conflicts all over the world. We have seen the rise of ISIS in the Middle East, as well as the gunnings in Europe. That is why it is important for all of us, no matter how young we are, to take up the responsibility of dealing with extremist threats that could shake the foundations of harmony and stability our forefathers have worked so hard to build.

5. I would like to thank all of you for being here; you could be spending this short March holiday with your family and friends, but you chose to attend this inter-faith camp. As you return to your homes, your friends and families, we hope you can continue to be leaders in your communities and strengthen community bonds. This will go a long way to ensure that the 1964 racial riots will not recur in Singapore. Later on, we’ll come together to pray for continued peace and stability in Singapore. I hope you can also pray for the swift recovery of Mr Lee Kuan Yew. He has been in ICU since early February; unfortunately, his condition worsened today. We really hope he can recover in time to join us and celebrate SG50.

6. There are about 200 of us here today; we practise different faiths and come from all walks of life. But we also share common value systems based on tolerance, respect and mutual understanding. Let us be united in our commitment to promote inter-faith understanding. On this note, I want to wish all of you good health, happiness and success in everything that you do. Thank you very much!