AN UNCARING ELITE IN SINGAPORE?

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SINGAPORE 000108 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/11/2017 TAGS: ECON ELAB SOCI PGOV SN SUBJECT: AN UNCARING ELITE IN SINGAPORE? Classified By: E/P Counselor Ike Reed. Reasons 1.4(b)(d) ¶1. (SBU) Summary: A vituperative internet posting by the daughter of a ruling party MP helped spark a recent public discussion on the role of Singapore's bureaucratic elite and its relations with the rest of society. There is a growing concern among average Singaporeans and even within the elite that certain educational policies are creating a more isolated and detached elite. In addition, growing income inequality and concern about the influx of "foreign talent" have added to the general population's unease with the elite. However, over the last several months, the GOS has announced measures to reduce income inequality and the fear of foreign workers that could generate discontent among the average Singaporean with the elite's handling of the economy. End Summary. Get Out of My Elite Uncaring Face -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Over more than four decades in power, Singapore's People's Action Party (PAP) has built an enviable record of delivering economic prosperity and a high quality of life in the island state. It attributes a good deal of its success to its assiduous cultivation of a bureaucratic elite to run the government ministries and government-linked corporations (GLCs). Potential high fliers are identified early on and encouraged to join government service and are rewarded with overseas scholarships, generous compensation, and fast track promotions. With the PAP's dominance over parliament and the mainstream media, the bureaucratic elite faces few external checks on its policies, but its track record of success has earned it grudging popular acceptance. ¶3. (SBU) Occasionally, however, grumbling about the elite and its high-handed style can flash into the open. Over the last couple of months, a vituperative exchange of internet blog postings sparked a public discussion on the role of Singapore's elite and its relations with the rest of society. It started when Derek Wee, a 35-year old, commented on a blog about the economic insecurity many Singaporeans feel and the "pressure cooker" nature of society. In response, Wee Shu Min, an 18-year old scholarship student at the prestigious Raffles Junior College and daughter of PAP MP Wee Siew Kim, blasted him and his concerns. She called him ONE of Singapore's many "wretched, under-motivated, over-assuming leeches" and told him to "get out of my elite uncaring face." The mainstream media eventually picked up the story and MP Wee Siew Kim only added fuel to the fire when he issued a non-apology for his daughter's comments saying "if you cut through the insensitivity of the language, her basic point is reasonable." The Clone Factory -------------- ¶4. (SBU) There has always been a gap between the bureaucratic elite and the general population, commented National University of Singapore sociology Professor Alexius Pereira. The government has developed an efficient "clone factory" to turn out civil servants with the specific skills and personality it needs. Pereira characterized the GOS's ideal civil servant as calculating, rational, thoroughly unsentimental, and willing to do what he or she thinks is in the national interest. If that means ripping out a cemetery to make way for public housing (which has happened),so be it. ¶5. (C) In the past, the gap was tempered by the sense that the members of the elite could (and did) come from anywhere in society. However, some trends indicate that social mobility is slowing down, leading to concerns that the elite may be becoming more detached and isolated from the rest of society. For example, the Public Service Commission has noted that in the last five years one-third of its scholarships have gone to students whose family incomes (USD 6500 per month or more) are in the top 13 percent. Only seven percent of scholarships went to students whose family incomes (USD 1300 per month or less) are in the bottom 17 percent. PAP MP Cedric Foo, who attended university in the United States on a government scholarship, believes the GOS should modify the public scholarship program to direct more funds to students from lower income families. Some have also criticized Special Assistance Plan (SAP) schools, which almost exclusively cater to gifted students who also excel in Mandarin. PAP MP Inderjit Singh told us the SAP schools were a bad idea since they isolated students from the rest of society and resulted in increased racial separation. Both the scholarships and the SAP schools are seen as important stepping stones to the upper reaches of the civil service. Not All Boats Are Lifted -------------- SINGAPORE 00000108 002 OF 002 ¶6. (SBU) Growing income inequality and concern about the influx of "foreign talent" have also generated some unease among ordinary Singaporeans with the elite. While the Singapore economy has enjoyed strong growth the last few years, there has also been rising income inequality as the incomes of the poorest households have fallen in real terms. From 2000-2005, the gini coefficient (a measure of income inequality where a higher percentage corresponds to greater inequality),always on the high side, steadily increased from .490 to .522 while the ratio of per capita income in the top 20 percent of households compared to the bottom 20 percent increased from 20.9 to 31.9. ¶7. (SBU) To address concerns over a low birth rate and shortage of talent, the GOS has meanwhile been encouraging highly-educated foreigners to take up Singaporean citizenship, with some success. In 2005, it granted citizenship to 12,900 foreigners, up from 7,600 in 2004. This has generated predictable resentment, particularly among low and middle income Singaporeans concerned about competition for jobs and the implications for their upward mobility. Since most foreign workers in fact take menial jobs that Singaporeans will not or can not do, the competition may be more perceived than real, noted Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) researcher Terrence Chong. But many working and middle class Singaporeans still bridle at the government's perceived favoritism toward foreign talent. For example, a public opinion poll published by the Straits Times indicated that 43 percent of respondents thought the government cared more about highly-educated foreigners than Singaporeans and 65 percent thought these foreigners were able to enjoy all the privileges of living in Singapore without any of the responsibilities. Nip It in the Bud -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Notwithstanding a tendency toward political tone deafness, the GOS recognizes the need to defuse resentment. It has announced over the last several months a number of measures to alleviate both income inequality and the fear of foreign workers that could generate discontent with the elite's handling of the economy. For example, the government is instituting a "Workfare Bonus" to dispense money to people in the lower-income households, provided they work. The GOS doesn't want to create a system of welfare entitlements, noted MP Foo, but wants to direct more resources to the working poor. Meanwhile, the GOS is cutting HEALTH care subsidies and raising the cost of school tuition for foreigners. This is expected to give Singaporeans a sense that they are being treated better than foreigners, noted ISEAS's Chong. In addition, it will give foreigners a greater incentive to become Singaporean citizens, observed MP Foo. Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) Popular resentment against the elite is nothing new in Singapore. However, it has long been part of the implicit social contract that the PAP and elite civil servants tell people what to do in exchange for policies that deliver peace, prosperity and the good life. At times, the elite demonstrates astonishing arrogance and political insensitivity (e.g., MP Wee Siew Kim),which in other places might lead to real political problems. But the Wee Shu Min incident and the government's subsequent policy adjustments also highlight how adroitly the PAP manages the domestic situation and why it has been successful for so long. The government rarely if ever acknowledges a mistake. But once it has made one, it moves quickly and quietly to defuse and deflate grievances that might lead to wider discontent. HERBOLD