Working together to build trust in society

Leaders of the youth sector,

Distinguished guests,

Good afternoon.

1. It is my pleasure to join you today at the closing of the Singapore Youth Conference 2016. It has been a full day for you, and I would like to thank you for joining us to discuss the topic of diversity.

2. Many of you spoke openly and bravely with one another. In doing so, you have perhaps seen how your peers hold diverse views on issues close to their hearts, and how challenging it can be to find common ground. I will share with you my views on this topic of diversity, and how all of you – as youth leaders – can play a leading role in safeguarding the space for it.

Safeguarding the space for diversity

1. Today's theme is about diversity, because we see that we are increasingly more diverse. Our profile is becoming more mixed; we have more new citizens sinking roots; we are also having more Singaporeans speaking both online and offline, on an expanding variety of issues, from heritage preservation to animal welfare to environmental issues. We are also among the most religiously diverse countries in the world, with most of the world's major religions present here.

2. Therefore we should be reminded that diversity has helped Singapore grow and become a very unique place in the world.

3. But diversity can be a source of vulnerability too. You have seen how in the U.S., protests erupted over police shootings that were allegedly targeted at black individuals. In Europe, there is growing Islamophobia, as well as a sense of distrust of immigrants and refugees from the Middle East. Around the world, conflicts break out over differences in race and religion, and indeed, values and worldviews. There are grave consequences if diversity is not managed properly.

4. Here in Singapore, we pride ourselves on our cohesive and harmonious society. We need to go deeper for a genuine appreciation of each other's strengths in order to harness the power of diversity. Thus today's topic “Diversity: From tolerance to trust”. I think we need to move on from just tolerating the differences to understanding and appreciating. I think this is an important process so that we believe in the value of diversity, that diversity brings us strength. We can do so, provided we can manage the differences. Having a safe space where we can discuss what these differences are, and where the commonalities are, is important. In the earlier session, we talked about creating a safe space where we can have a candid discussion. But to bring this out in a manageable way, it takes a lot of facilitation skills and guidance. This is where I think youth leaders like yourselves can take an interest and draw on the resources that we have in the community.

5. Diversity can also test a nation's resilience. In his National Day Rally speech, PM Lee asked what would happen when a terrorist attack occurs in Singapore. Will we stand united and strong as one people, or retreat into our different communities, spreading fear and blaming one another?

6. There are indeed lines along race, religion and values that can divide us. We have to erase such lines, by creating a wide common space across our diverse communities.

The role of the youth in creating common ground

1. As youth sector leaders, you have grown up in multi-cultural Singapore, benefitting from our social diversity. You will also be the ones to influence our youths on shaping our society and lead Singapore into the future. You have a special responsibility in creating that common ground across our diverse society. Allow me to share some thoughts on how you can fulfil this important responsibility.

2. First of all, seek to engage different communities, understand the values, beliefs and concerns they hold deeply, and factor that within the space for our youths.

3. Make the effort to know the communities and their attitudes well. Appreciate the concerns, the unique identities, the strengths and the differences. Pick out the commonalities, and leverage them to open up neutral spaces for discussion.

4. Ensure that this neutral space is one where people can discuss issues in an open and respectful manner. Through this, we can become more aware of different perspectives; empathise with one another, and build circles of trust among themselves.

5. I would like to mention about a particular initiative that one social enterprise has done. This social enterprise is called Unsaid. They released a video on an experiment they conducted with a few young Singaporeans from different racial, religious and family backgrounds.

6. That experiment is called “Privilege Walk”. Basically, everyone starts off at the same base line, and there are steps along the way that are marked by lines across. Questions that are related to racism were asked in a respectful manner. For instance, “Have you encountered a situation where race has been factored into decisions you have made in your life?” or “Have you been in an environment where a particular language was spoken and ignoring your needs?” If yes, the person would step forward. By asking many questions such as the above over time, the participants realised that different communities do face discrimination in their work, school or other environments. Very often, as a Chinese and a majority race, we may not realise what our minority brothers and sisters have gone through in their daily lives. Through this initiative, it allows that discovery to take place, allowing us to be a lot more mindful. For instance, how we conduct ourselves, how we should relate to our minority brothers and sisters so as to address some of their concerns. So this is one initiative that social enterprise Unsaid has done.

7. Another initiative is the Muslim Society from SMU that carried out a “Roses of Peace” project. 300 youth volunteers from different faiths came together to better understand one another's religion and the role of religion in Singapore. They held a Youth Forum where they established a common goal in bridging gaps between faith groups and strengthening our racial and religious harmony.

8. They then formed teams comprising volunteers of different faiths, and went out to distribute roses with greeting cards to the public. Basically establishing an understanding and a commitment to religious harmony, and then spreading the message to the public. The modality is roses but I can imagine it can be done in any form. This is an interesting model where young people are taking the lead to make a statement for themselves, about their position, about racial and religious harmony in Singapore. I encourage more groups to engage in this sphere.

9. Last month, PM Lee launched SGSecure. By a show of hands, how many of you have heard about SGSecure? It was launched by PM Lee, and we hope more people get to know about it. It is a national movement to secure the future of Singapore. It has three aspects.

10. Firstly, staying vigilant. For instance, watching out for unattended bags, messages online and suspicious characters. Secondly, staying united the day after something happens, and what we do as a nation. How do we respond to an attack and what do we say about each other.  What do we say about rumours that have been passed around on social media about the motivation and purpose of the perpetrators? The third component is staying strong. We have to recover from an attack, but how do we recover? Do we have the necessary skills to handle the aftermath and mass causalities in the community? How do we do evacuations and help the injured? How do we bounce back and become resilient and recover from any of these repercussions? These repercussions could be economic; people and visitors may stop coming to Singapore for a while.

11. These are all the issues that we need to think about as a country under SGSecure. If you have not downloaded SGSecure, I encourage you to do so. It's an app that allows you to call the police easily, and find out where the nearest assistance is. All the resources can be found on that application.

Working together to build trust in our society

1. After going through the session with seventy of you, I realise that indeed the youth landscape is very diverse, uneven, that there are many different causes that are championed and youths like to be treated differently. They like to be given the initiative to start things on their own and to champion the cause that they believe in. It is important for us to gather in one place and share an understanding so that amongst ourselves, we can come up with some understanding of the youth landscape and to share our resources as well. Each one of you has a unique perspective, experience, expertise and set of resources. If we can share this along by extending our network and combining our creativity, we can do a lot more together.

2. I'd just like to extend my appreciation to you again and also to encourage you to continue with us on this journey. As I said to some of you, the future of Singapore is going to be led and created by young people today. We want our young people to be successful and to be given the resources to realise that potential. But if the successful ones are not contributing back to society and not helping the rest come along, then we will not have a successful Singapore.

Conclusion

1. The future of Singapore can be bright if our young have a sense of duty and responsibility to society and the country. How we harness that energy and creativity depends on you who are sitting around here. So I look upon you to be a partner of NYC, as we shape the future of Singapore through the young people of today.

2. Thank you very much for being here.