Singapore must never allow prejudice against any community to become accepted or normalised: PM Wong

"We can and should have robust debates. But we should never use seemingly legitimate arguments as a cover to fuel prejudice against any community or hostility towards foreigners," says Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong at the National Day Rally on Aug 23, 2026, at the ITE College Central in Ang Mo Kio. (File photo: CNA/Syamil Sapari)

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SINGAPORE: Singapore must never allow prejudice against any community to become accepted or normalised, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Sunday (Sep 6).

"We can and should have robust debates. But we should never use seemingly legitimate arguments as a cover to fuel prejudice against any community or hostility towards foreigners," he added.

His remarks came a day after Senior Minister K Shanmugam condemned what he described as "shameful" racist and xenophobic online comments about the Nepal-Tibet disaster and the investment by Singapore Airlines (SIA) in Air India.

In a Facebook post, Mr Wong said that "an uglier side" had emerged in online discussions on the two matters.

CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less Racist comments surfaced online targeting some of the nine Singaporeans missing in the Nepal-Tibet disaster, while questions about SIA's investment in Air India were "accompanied by anti-Indian abuse", he said. While such views do not represent Singapore, they should not be dismissed as "harmless online chatter", he said. "If such behaviour goes unchecked, it can become normalised, deepen mistrust between communities, and pull us apart," Mr Wong said, adding that he had discussed the developments with his Cabinet colleagues and that this was why Mr Shanmugam had spoken about it. "OPEN AND INCLUSIVE" Mr Wong reiterated a point he made during his National Day Rally speech about what it means to be Singaporean, saying that the country's identity must remain “open and inclusive”. "Whatever our background, if we embrace our values and way of life, we are part of this nation," he said. "This is what our National Pledge stands for, and I believe the vast majority of Singaporeans share this view." Mr Wong said that Singapore had encountered similar tensions before, pointing to how anti-foreigner and racial sentiments were stirred up during the COVID-19 pandemic and surfaced during debates over the Singapore-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement, or CECA. Such sentiments were also seen during the 2025 General Election, when he spoke out against attempts to bring race and religion into politics. "There will always be people who seek to exploit our differences," Mr Wong said. While it is impossible to prevent every hateful comment from appearing online, Singaporeans could choose how they respond to them. "We can reject such views, and refuse to give them more space or legitimacy," he said. "Singapore has held together because we have consistently rejected attempts to divide us along racial or religious lines, and chosen instead to recognise one another as fellow Singaporeans."

Racist comments surfaced online targeting some of the nine Singaporeans missing in the Nepal-Tibet disaster, while questions about SIA's investment in Air India were "accompanied by anti-Indian abuse", he said.

While such views do not represent Singapore, they should not be dismissed as "harmless online chatter", he said.

"If such behaviour goes unchecked, it can become normalised, deepen mistrust between communities, and pull us apart," Mr Wong said, adding that he had discussed the developments with his Cabinet colleagues and that this was why Mr Shanmugam had spoken about it.

"OPEN AND INCLUSIVE"

Mr Wong reiterated a point he made during his National Day Rally speech about what it means to be Singaporean, saying that the country's identity must remain “open and inclusive”.

"Whatever our background, if we embrace our values and way of life, we are part of this nation," he said.

"This is what our National Pledge stands for, and I believe the vast majority of Singaporeans share this view."

Mr Wong said that Singapore had encountered similar tensions before, pointing to how anti-foreigner and racial sentiments were stirred up during the COVID-19 pandemic and surfaced during debates over the Singapore-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement, or CECA.

Such sentiments were also seen during the 2025 General Election, when he spoke out against attempts to bring race and religion into politics.

"There will always be people who seek to exploit our differences," Mr Wong said.

While it is impossible to prevent every hateful comment from appearing online, Singaporeans could choose how they respond to them.

"We can reject such views, and refuse to give them more space or legitimacy," he said.

"Singapore has held together because we have consistently rejected attempts to divide us along racial or religious lines, and chosen instead to recognise one another as fellow Singaporeans."

STAND BY ONE ANOTHER, URGES SM LEE

Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Sunday also called on Singaporeans to "stand by one another regardless of race, language or religion".

In a Facebook post, Mr Lee described racist comments directed at the Indian community in Singapore following the recent floods in Nepal as "deeply troubling". He added that it was "equally troubling" when issues such as SIA's investment in Air India were "distorted or exploited to stir vicious racial, anti-Indian resentment".

Expressing his condolences to those affected by the floods, Mr Lee said the tragedy had left many families grieving and that the response should be one of "compassion and solidarity".

He also noted that Mr Shanmugam had "laid out the issues clearly" in his statement on Saturday.

"When incidents like this happen, leaders must speak up with force and conviction, to call out what is happening, condemn the manipulation of base emotions, and call on all Singaporeans to stand together," Mr Lee said.

"It is at times like this that we realise the full meaning of the words of the National Pledge, and how important it is for us to make every effort to live up to these ideals."

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“我们可以也应该进行激烈的辩论。但我们绝不应该利用看似合理的论点作为掩护，煽动对任何群体的偏见或对外国人的敌意，”总理黄循财说。

总理黄循财于 2026 年 8 月 23 日在宏茂桥 ITE 中央学院举行的国庆集会上。 （资料图：CNA/Syamil Sapari）

这段音频是由人工智能工具生成的。

新加坡：新加坡总理黄循财周日（9月6日）表示，新加坡绝不能允许对任何群体的偏见被接受或正常化。

“我们可以也应该进行激烈的辩论。但我们绝不应该利用看似合理的论点作为掩护，煽动对任何群体的偏见或对外国人的敌意，”他补充道。

就在他发表这番言论的前一天，高级部长尚穆根谴责了网上关于尼泊尔-西藏灾难和新加坡航空公司（SIA）对印度航空投资的种族主义和仇外言论，他称之为“可耻的”。

黄先生在脸书上发帖称，在关于这两件事的网上讨论中，“丑陋的一面”已经浮出水面。

CNA游戏 猜词游戏 逐行破解单词 流行词游戏 用给定的字母组成单词 迷你数独 小小的谜题，强大的脑力挑战 迷你填字游戏 小方格，大挑战 单词搜索 尽可能多地找出单词 显示更多 显示更少 他表示，网上出现了针对尼泊尔-西藏空难中失踪的九名新加坡人的种族主义言论，同时，关于新航投资印度航空的质疑也“伴随着反印辱骂”。他指出，虽然这些观点并不代表新加坡，但也不应被视为“无害的网络闲聊”。黄先生说：“如果这种行为不加以制止，它可能会变得正常化，加深社区之间的不信任，并使我们分裂。”他还补充说，他已与内阁同僚讨论了事态发展，这也是尚穆根先生就此发表讲话的原因。“开放包容” 黄先生重申了他在国庆群众大会演讲中关于新加坡人身份认同的观点，称国家的身份必须保持“开放包容”。 “无论我们出身如何，只要我们秉持共同的价值观和生活方式，我们就是这个国家的一份子，”他说道。“这正是我们《国家誓词》所代表的意义，我相信绝大多数新加坡人都认同这一点。”黄先生表示，新加坡此前也曾面临类似的紧张局势，他指出，在新冠疫情期间，反外国人情绪和种族歧视情绪被煽动起来，在新加坡与印度全面经济合作协议（CECA）的辩论中也曾出现过类似的情况。在2025年大选期间，他也曾公开反对将种族和宗教引入政治的企图。“总会有人试图利用我们之间的差异，”黄先生说道。虽然不可能完全阻止网络上出现仇恨言论，但新加坡人可以选择如何回应。“我们可以拒绝接受这些观点，不给它们任何空间或合法性，”他说道。“新加坡之所以能够团结一致，是因为我们始终拒绝以种族或宗教为界限分裂我们的企图，而是选择彼此视为新加坡同胞。”

他说，网上出现了针对尼泊尔-西藏空难中失踪的九名新加坡人的种族主义言论，而有关新加坡航空投资印度航空的问题也“伴随着反印辱骂”。

他表示，虽然这些观点并不代表新加坡，但也不应将其视为“无害的网络闲聊”。

黄先生表示：“如果这种行为不加以制止，它可能会变得正常化，加深社区之间的不信任，并使我们分裂。”他还补充说，他已经与内阁同僚讨论了事态发展，这也是尚穆根先生谈到此事的原因。

“开放包容”

黄先生重申了他在国庆群众大会演讲中提出的观点，即新加坡人的意义在于保持国家“开放和包容”的形象。

他说：“无论我们的背景如何，如果我们拥抱我们的价值观和生活方式，我们就是这个国家的一份子。”

“这就是我们的国家誓词所代表的意义，我相信绝大多数新加坡人都认同这一观点。”

黄先生表示，新加坡以前也遇到过类似的紧张局势，他指出，在新冠疫情期间，反外国人情绪和种族情绪被煽动起来，并在新加坡-印度全面经济合作协议（CECA）的辩论中浮出水面。

在 2025 年大选中，他也表达了类似的观点，当时他公开反对将种族和宗教带入政治的企图。

黄先生说：“总会有人试图利用我们之间的分歧。”

虽然不可能阻止每一条仇恨言论出现在网上，但新加坡人可以选择如何回应这些言论。

他说：“我们可以驳斥这种观点，拒绝给它们更多空间或合法性。”

“新加坡之所以能够保持团结，是因为我们始终拒绝任何试图以种族或宗教界限分裂我们的企图，而是选择彼此承认为新加坡同胞。”

李世明呼吁大家互相支持

李显龙高级部长周日也呼吁新加坡人“不分种族、语言或宗教，互相支持”。

李显龙总理在脸书上发帖称，尼泊尔近期洪灾后，针对新加坡印度社群的种族主义言论“令人深感不安”。他还补充说，当诸如新加坡航空投资印度航空等问题被“歪曲或利用，煽动恶毒的种族主义和反印情绪”时，同样“令人不安”。

李先生对受洪水影响的人们表示慰问，并表示这场悲剧让许多家庭陷入悲痛之中，应对之策应该是“同情和团结”。

他还指出，尚穆根先生在周六的声明中“清楚地阐述了这些问题”。

李显龙先生说：“当此类事件发生时，领导人必须坚定有力地发声，谴责正在发生的事情，谴责对低级情绪的操纵，并呼吁所有新加坡人团结一致。”

“正是在这样的时刻，我们才真正理解了《国家誓词》的全部含义，以及我们尽一切努力践行这些理想是多么重要。”

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