Response to forum By Wayne

Forum Letter

Jan 25, 2010

AID TO HAITI

Disaster relief - the S'pore way

I REFER to last Saturday's commentary, 'Is Singapore doing too little for Haiti?' by Ms Chua Mui Hoong. She criticised the Singapore Government for not making a bigger contribution to Haiti after the earthquake when we had contributed far more to disaster relief and humanitarian assistance efforts after the 2004 tsunami, the 2005 Pakistan earthquake and the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

As a responsible member of the international community, the Singapore Government has consistently made contributions to international humanitarian assistance and disaster relief efforts in our region and beyond. Singaporeans are familiar with the contributions we have made over the years, especially to the many countries hit by the tsunami in 2004, and after the Sichuan earthquake.

Last year, we provided humanitarian assistance in the form of cash, supplies and equipment after Typhoon Morakot in Taiwan; Cyclone Aila in Bhutan; Typhoon Ketsana in the Philippines, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia; the Padang earthquake in Indonesia; the cyclone in Fiji; the earthquake and tsunami in Samoa and Tonga; as well as for victims of the civil war in Sri Lanka; and food aid for internally displaced people in Pakistan.

As a responsible government, we have to examine the considerations and priorities when deciding how much and what type of assistance Singapore can provide after each disaster. Singapore is not in the league of major donor countries, nor do we aspire to be one. Among other things, we have to consider the nature of our relations with the affected country and whether we can provide aid which will add value to the relief efforts when deciding what to contribute, as we have limited resources and cannot respond to every disaster in the same way.

Hence, we had responded with more significant contributions when Indonesia suffered the devastation of the tsunami and various earthquakes - because it is a neighbour with longstanding and close ties and we were in the position to deploy our military and civil defence assets so that they could carry out effective missions.

The amount or type of humanitarian assistance given by the Singapore Government is not intended to match the scale of a disaster. In the case of massive disasters in countries beyond our own region, our contributions often cannot be more than a show of moral support and a gesture of sympathy to the affected country.

The support from Singapore for Haiti need not be demonstrated just by the Government. Singaporeans who want to make a contribution can do so through the Red Cross and other groups, and indeed many have. The Singaporeans who have gone to Haiti on relief missions amply demonstrate their compassion for the victims of the earthquake.

Sudesh Maniar
Director, Public Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Response

I refer to the letter “Disaster relief—the Singapore way” by Mr. Sudesh Maniar. In this letter, Mr. Sudesh Maniar responded to the criticism on the trivial contribution made by Singapore government. He clearly analyzes the issue and states the reason of the government’s decision with reasonable support.

I do agree with Mr. Sudesh Maniar that the humanitarian assistance be sent out beyond their own region should not be measured by the scale of the disaster. The long distance between two countries will increase the cost of transmission of and thus lower down their efficiency. In addition, I do agree with him that help sent by voluntary Singaporeans is also an integral part of the support from Singapore. To help those victims who suffer from this disaster is not only the duty of a government but also an opportunity for common citizens to extend their compassion and love toward others.

In my opinion, domestic situation and relationship with affected countries should be examined in deciding the scale of assistance Singapore should provide. Firstly, it is not judicious for Singapore to earn reputation by sending large donations after each disaster. Due to the limited resources and economic power, such generous donations will undermine the stability of domestic economy structure and exert negative influence on its development in the long term. Secondly, it is important to consider the nature of relationship with the affected country. The humanitarian help will help strengthen the relationship between two countries. For instance, China has long been regarded as a close friend of Singapore in business. Therefore, in Sichuan earthquake, Singapore offered much help in forms of supplies and cash. This helps reinforce the Sino-Singapore relationship and triggered further cooperation which will benefit Singapore in the long term.