We must not confuse the ideals of a "race-blind" society with "being blind to the genuine differences and contexts across races", said Mohamad Maliki bin Osman, 2nd Minister for Education and Foreign Affairs in Parliament today (September 3).

He added that we should neither ignore or underestimate the "severe and sometimes unintended negative consequences that can easily occur with unrestrained comments on race relations and related issues".

Maliki was delivering his speech during the Debate on the President's Address.

He went on to reiterate several fundamental principles that Singaporeans should continue to agree on.

Differences exist, but must be approached constructively

Firstly, to accept that there exists differences across races including emphasis on priorities and community issues, and approach these differences constructively.

To be inclusive, Maliki said, we need to "recognise, appreciate, understand, and accommodate these differences, and allow this positive sense of racial identity to exist and develop".

Secondly, to know that having a strong racial identity and a strong Singaporean identity are not mutually exclusive.

"To be truly Singaporean does not at all mean that we must forgo or dilute our racial identity, or pretend that we are not of a particular race, or can’t see the race of a fellow Singaporean. On the contrary, to be truly Singaporean is to understand and respect these race differences."

In that respect, said Maliki, having the CMIO (Chinese, Malay, Indian, Others) framework does not make us less Singaporean, and it does not mean we are more Singaporean.

Sylvia Lim on  a "race-blind" society

The term "race-blind" society was recently used by Workers' Party Member of Parliament Sylvia Lim, who discussed issues of race in her own speech on Sep. 1.

Lim said there was "no real quarrel" that a race-blind state was the destination, but certain Singapore policies first needed to be addressed.

This included the CMIO framework, as well as elections along racial lines and the HDB ethnic integration policy.

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Top image via Maliki Osman Facebook.