TODAY Online : How about an ethnic integration grant?

How about an ethnic integration grant?

Debate over ethnic quotas does not resolve issue that policy is perceived as a cost

05:55 AM Mar 08, 2010

by Yolanda Chin and Norman Vasu

IMPLEMENTED in 1989, the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) was driven by the desire to facilitate interaction between the different races in Singapore by preventing the formation of racial enclaves.

There has been much debate over the extension of the integration policy to permanent residents (PRs) but, it does not resolve a key issue at the heart of the policy. A fundamental problem of the EIP is that it is perceived to be a cost that has to be paid for racial harmony. Arguably, if the EIP is to continue playing its important role as a tool for racial harmony, it should not be viewed as a burden but should instead be seen in a far more positive light.

The PRICE of Harmony

The bugbear for many Singaporeans regardless of race stems from the problem of selling flats owing to the racial quota.

For the minorities, a common grouse is they have a depressed resale market in a demographically Chinese dominant Singapore. When a member of a minority race cannot sell a flat to a Chinese because of a quota ceiling that has been met, the flat is often sold below market rate.

Chinese who own homes in a traditionally minority dominant area may have to turn down willing minority buyers.

While the EIP's goal of racial harmony is laudable, it is unfortunate that such a policy is perceived to be a burden. Economically penalising Singaporeans seeking to secure their dream home sends a strong signal - a very wrong signal - of the cost of racial harmony on a personal level.

Over the years, the responses aimed at removing the economic sting of the EIP fall into two broad categories.

In the first, the responses have been either to scrap the policy or waive the quota on a case-by-case basis. While well-meaning, these suggestions are moot as the Government has continually maintained the EIP plays too critical a role at fostering racial harmony for it to be either abandoned or fudged.

In the second, the focus has been to alleviate the economic burden of the EIP.

Some have suggested a cost-sharing system that compensates home owners for the loss of their flats' value, a Government grant to compensate minority sellers for losses incurred, or even the buying back of flats by the Government from those who are unable to sell their homes.

Admittedly, the Government has attempted to ease the cost of the EIP over the years. Measures in place, include the deferment of loan repayments or the temporary reduction of repayments.

Unfortunately, the responses in this second category merely offer a patch to a systemic problem rather than a positive alternative. They seek to adapt the stick of the EIP rather than offer an incentive to make integration more enticing.

A third option

A possible way forward is to incorporate both sticks and carrots into achieving the desired outcome of racial harmony.

This could be achieved if the current system of deterring racial enclaves from forming is complemented with one that incentivises Singaporeans to embrace the ideal racial mix in each neighbourhood.

Akin to the HDB Family Grant which encourages Singaporeans to purchase flats near their parents or children in support of strengthening family ties, Singaporeans could be steered towards realising the desired racial complexion in each neighbourhood with what may be termed an "Ethnic Integration Grant".

The mechanics of the Ethnic Integration Grant are simple and complement the EIP.

To ensure that each neighbourhood is truly a representative microcosm of multiracial Singapore, there should not only be a maximum but also a minimum quota of households set for each neighbourhood that reflects the actual racial composition of Singapore.

However, unlike the maximum quota of the EIP which is a safety net against racial clustering, this minimum quota does not need to be mandatory.

HDB could post regular updates to inform potential buyers of the neighbourhoods in which the lower-bound quota for each race is not met. In this way, should they contribute to the attainment of the ideal racial mix in a neighbourhood, they will be rewarded with a housing grant.

To ensure that Singaporeans do not just pay lip service to upholding racial harmony, a pragmatic way of meaningfully internalising the value of racial harmony is to make its gains tangible. With the Ethnic Integration Grant complementing the EIP, Singaporeans could both be rewarded for contributing to the greater good while the EIP remains as the stick wielded as a last resort when the carrot fails to bait.

Yolanda Chin is Associate Research Fellow and

Norman Vasu is Assistant Professor at the

S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University. They are conducting research on issues

pertaining to the social fabric.

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