The Karyawan — January 2023 Issue

FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

COVER STORY

Ageing in Singapore

by Normala Manap

The Seniors: What can Budget 2023 do for them?

by Dr Ameen Talib

Sacred Cows and Forward Singapore by

Yusof Sulaiman

Using Cash Waqf to Combat Donor Fatigue and Blockchain to Improve Accountability

by Dr Hazik Mohamed

Racial Colour-Blindness: A Counterproductive Ideology to Racism

by Shantini Rajasingam

Effective Advocacy on Social Media by

Mizi Wahid

Beyond ‘Pink Brain, Blue Brain’: Gender Differences in Neurodiversity & Their Consequences by

Santriani Bohari Jaon

He is Different But Never Less by Julianawarti

Jumali

Staying Sane in an Insane World: Performance and Academics by Syed

Imad Alatas

Exploring the World Beyond with Syahrom Rahmad by Nur

Diyana Jalil

Book Review: Islam in a Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Shariah by Sheikh

Mohamad Farouq Abdul Fareez

EDITORIAL BOARD

SUPERVISING EDITOR

Dr Md Badrun Nafis Saion

EDITOR

Mohksin Mohd Rashid

EDITORIAL TEAM

Nailul Farah Mohd Masbur

Nur Diyana Jalil

Ruzaidah Md Rasid

Sheikh Mohamad Farouq Abdul Fareez Winda Guntor

We welcome letters, comments and suggestions on the issues that appear in the magazine. Please address your correspondence to:

Editor, The Karyawan AMP Singapore

1 Pasir Ris Drive 4 #05-11

Singapore 519457

T +65 6416 3966 | F +65 6583 8028 E corporate@amp.org.sg

Humanity Beyond the Labels by

Nailul Farah Mohd Masbur

Quiet Quitting: The Beginning of a Revolution for Better Workplace Boundaries by

Sinchita Valalan-Rajendran

The Karyawan is a publication of AMP Singapore. It is published in association with our research subsidiary, the Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs.

The views expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect those of AMP and its subsidiaries nor its directors and The Karyawan editorial board.

© AMP Singapore. 2023. All rights reserved. Permission is required for reproduction.

FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

One in four Singaporeans will turn 65 years and older in less than a decade, illustrating a looming silver tsunami. This demographic shift reflects the need to ensure our infrastructure, social policies and eldercare ecosystem are ready to support the holistic needs of our seniors.

Recent research conducted for AMP’s 4th National Convention has also uncovered important insights into the needs of our Singapore Muslim seniors. Among them include the need for cultural sensitivity in the operations of eldercare services, as well as in catering to the spiritual development of our seniors.

How can our community better prepare ourselves to meet the needs of our seniors? In her commentary on Page 14, active ageing advocate, Normala Manap, unpacks why there is a need to address ageing-related issues within the Muslim community.

I hope that this will offer some insights on how we can make Singapore a liveable home for our elder generation – one where they can spend their golden years with dignity and purpose, and continue being an active contributor to our society.

Here’s wishing you a meaningful 2023 ahead!

DR MD BADRUN NAFIS SAION SUPERVISING EDITOR

The Seniors: What can Budget 2023 do for them?

BY DR AMEEN TALIB

Population issues have been a concern for a long time. One of the earliest theories surrounding this was the Malthusian Growth Model of predicting an unsustainable increase in population back in the 1700s. Singapore's population is moving towards one quarter of the population being made up of seniors. The current Old-Age Support ratio is 4:1. The support ratio is the ratio of people who can offer support against seniors who require others to support them.

As we see in the chart below (Chart 1), it is reducing. The ratio is generally calculated as the number of people aged 20 to 64 years old (representing the working population) against those over the retirement age of 65.

After World War II, there was a boom in childbirth between 1946 and 1964. After this baby boom, the world went into panic mode, thinking they were overpopulated. Birth control measures were put in place in many parts of the world. China had the one-child policy. India was the first country in the world to introduce a national family planning programme in the mid-1970s when it launched a mass campaign to sterilise men1. Singapore’s family planning policy was ‘Stop at two’.

The global fertility rates took a nosedive, especially in Singapore.

At the same time, medical advancements meant people were living longer lives. The global median age has increased from 23.6 in 1950 to 31.0 in 20202 . Singapore has the 6 th highest median age at 53.4 projected for 2050 3 . Across the globe, humans are having longer lifespans. International life-expectancy went up from 47 years in the 1950s to over 73 years, and 84 for Singapore4

There is no doubt that the old-age support ratio is affected. The baby boomers are ageing and the working population is low due to low fertility during the birth control era.

One way to resolve this issue is by increasing the population that is providing the support. Obviously, it's very difficult to increase the working population speedily, except by inward migration. We can increase our working population by getting a lot of people to migrate to our country and start being productive. This is indeed what Singapore has been doing since the early 1990s. There are essentially two methods of

increasing the working population via inward migration. The first method is promoting inward migration for the long term. The immigrants (foreign talents) are granted citizenship or permanent residency status. One issue with this method is that eventually these new citizens/residents would become seniors needing societal support as well. Another issue is the social discomfort and divisive rift between the ‘new’ citizens and the rest. The other method is through transient workers. They would increase the nation’s productivity without creating the need to care for them when they get old.

The reality is the population needs to be somewhat evenly distributed. Hence, the best way of handling it is to increase both the current working population by inward migration and to increase the future working population by increasing the fertility rate among residents and citizens. Singapore has been trying to do that but (maybe) a bit unsuccessfully. According to the latest data from the Department of Statistics Singapore, our current fertility rate is 1.12. The required Replacement-Level fertility rate is 2.1. A fertility rate below 2.1 would actually

SOURCE

mean the population could decline without inward international immigration. The chart (Chart 2) displays the decline in Singapore’s fertility rate.

Another possible way to manage the old-age support ratio is to reduce the number of people that need support. How can we do that? One way is by increasing the retirement age. Another way is helping your elders to not be dependent on others, maybe by encouraging savings and encouraging them to be active in the mainstream economy. For instance, encouraging seniors to become entrepreneurs or encouraging active employment post-retirement.

A beneficial way to look at the ageing population is not as a burden but as an opportunity. If we believe that seniors make a homogeneous group of people, then it will be a perfect market having over 20% of the population as a homogeneous set of people with homogeneous needs and wants. The ageing market is, however, not a homogenous group. Their needs vary, but great opportunities exist. Hence, we have geron-entrepreneurship.

Gerontology is the scientific study of old age, the process of ageing, and the unique issues faced by the elderly. Geron-preneurship is the study of gerontology and entrepreneurship.

There is a tendency to think that the ageing market is focused on healthcare and eldercare. This is far from the truth. Most seniors have a self-perceived age much lower than their actual age. Studies have shown that many seniors do not like being referred to as frail or old. Baby boomers regard themselves as dynamic and energetic. It would be better to reach out to the seniors’ self-perceived age rather than their real age. Today's seniors live longer and desire to live independently; therefore entrepreneurs should be looking at solutions to help the seniors live independently.

Entrepreneurs should be clear about which category of the ageing population is targeted to understand their needs and the marketing techniques and tools to adopt to meet such needs. Generic marketing tools could also be used for marketing to seniors. It is how the message is transmitted to the seniors that matters. For example, a popular

marketing technique is creating a sense of urgency to rush consumers to make a decision. Such a technique might not go well with seniors.

We suggest segmenting the seniors into the following four broad groups:

1. Young-old (55 to 75 years old) with perceived age below 50 This group could be keen on more active holidays and travel options, products to make them look and feel younger, and health supplements. This group is a reflection of healthy living. This group today does not feel old. They still want to enjoy life and pamper themselves and their loved ones.

A possible special segment is the single young-old. The ones who never married, widow(er)s or divorcees with no children are customers in the silver market who do not need to provide for children or grandchildren. They have money to spend and are not concerned about leaving a legacy. They would have drawn a will and probably have a lasting power of attorney (LPA) arrangement in place.

SOURCE: DEPARTMENT OF STATISTICS SINGAPORE

One possibility is experiencing loneliness and the need for companionship. This has given rise to many opportunities like senior dating sites. They would also desire to be part of a community, creating opportunities for senior housing condominiums and estates.

2. Old (75-85 years old)

This is the group that starts feeling old and starts looking at eldercare and health products.

3. Frail-old (over 85 years old)

This group needs special medical care. There is increased demand for homes for the aged. There is a need for training specialists in palliative care for this group.

The ageing society has indeed led policymakers to tweak policies. An ageing society creates a large pool of citizenry who are consumers but not producers. The costs of upkeeping these non-productive seniors have to be borne by someone. Ideally, the cost is borne by the seniors themselves through their savings/investments/retirement funds. This would require policymakers to relook at the Central Provident Fund (CPF) and the retirement accounts. One policy has been the continuous increases in the minimum sum held back in the retirement account and the delayed age for withdrawals. The retirement age has also been extended and is likely to be extended further in the near future. This prolongs the earning power of the seniors.

Seniors who lack the funds to support themselves would become a financial ‘burden’ to society unless their family members take care of them. Policymakers applied nudging techniques by promoting family values and being filial. This was reinforced by the Maintenance of Parents Act (Cap 167B).

Policymakers should consider exempting post-retirement age seniors from paying income tax on employment income but not total income tax exemption. The exemption should only apply to earned income. We already have a precedent in lower CPF rates for those aged over 55.

This could encourage senior citizens to stay longer in employment. The continued employment of seniors would make them feel engaged and could prove useful for their mental well-being. To exempt business income could lead to abuse by businesses being registered in the seniors’ names.

The exemption of seniors’ employment income from income tax could prove to be the appropriate nudge for continued employment of seniors post-retirement. This would allow seniors to be financially independent. The seniors will not be a burden on society but an integral part of it. In fact, the employment could be advantageous for the seniors’ mental well-being and their sense of pride, creating a community of seniors that are ageing actively and meaningfully.

Dr Ameen Talib is Head of Applied Projects at the School of Business, Singapore University of Social Sciences.

Policymakers should consider exempting post-retirement age seniors from paying income tax on employment income but not total income tax exemption. The exemption should only apply to earned income. We already have a precedent in lower CPF rates for those aged over 55. This could encourage senior citizens to stay longer in employment.

The continued employment of seniors would make them feel engaged and could prove useful for their mental well-being.

SACRED COWS AND FORWARD SINGAPORE

The Political Dictionary defines a ‘sacred cow’ as “any programme, policy, or person that is regarded as being beyond attack or untouchable”. Sacred cows in nationbuilding can take the form of policies, social norms and institutions. Singapore has her fair share of sacred cows covering existential themes such as multiracialism, meritocracy, equality and so on.

From time to time, these underlying premises or foundations of the state are challenged especially in the context of domestic shifts in socio-economic status, changes in societal aspirations and new secular (and non-secular) trends. At times, changes in the external environment can also impact the country’s fundamentals in nation-building.

Occasionally, a black swan event such as COVID-19 appears and can unravel deep-seated practices and policies of a country. In the case of Singapore, the pandemic inadvertently exposed significant wage disparity amongst its workers and brought to the forefront deep socio-economic divides in the society. This led to intense discussions on policies impacting wage distribution and livelihood of low-income and transient workers.

BY YUSOF SULAIMAN

In quite a number of situations, such wide-ranging engagements in Singapore do lead to changes or enhancements in policies where they are warranted. On the economic and employment front, for example, special grants and work schemes were established to assist low-income workers and their families. In education, there was a shift from an entrenched streaming system in schools to a Subject-Based Banding (SBB) one designed to allow students to customise their education and encourage a growth mindset. So, changes can be more than incremental in some cases.

Ongoing reviews of policies and practices that for some had morphed into sacred cows in nation-building in Singapore are discussed in this article, in the context of Forward Singapore (SG), a new national exercise to renew the social compact of the country.

Mr Lawrence Wong, Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Minister for Finance, and his 4G team launched the Forward SG dialogue in June 2022 to gather the views of Singaporeans to shape the nation’s future and refresh its social contract. Forward SG is intended to foster trust and seek consensus with Singaporeans on issues such as health and social support, Singapore identity, and environmental and fiscal sustainability, to name a few under the six pillars or themes identified for the dialogue1

Like other previous national conversations, an invitation to dialogue is perceived by some as an opportunity not to be missed especially for its potential for the citizenry and the new 4G leadership to collaboratively forge a vision of the future for Singapore. While covering familiar grounds, the hope and expectation in such an exercise is to venture into more difficult issues on nation-building in prevailing and challenging circumstances in order to achieve a broad consensus for the future and perhaps co-creation of optimal solutions.

Of course, there is also the concern that the new Forward SG exercise will be "more of the same" as previous national engagements. There are typical reservations such as how inclusive and wide-reaching the consultation process is, and how receptive the Government is to bold and contrarian views. If there is a sovereign case, is there an appetite to re-visit assumptions and premises to policies deeply entrenched in our governance model in the context of greater complexity and uncertainty? Do we have the political will to consider and implement changes leading to shifts in policy or other policy options that emerged in the engagements, recognising the trade-offs in policymaking?

SINGAPORE IS SMALL, FRAGILE AND VULNERABLE

There are many facets to a social compact – this can range from economic progress and well-being to good social relations and a strong national identity. Singapore has made a significant mark in the

economic front despite its size –leapfrogging from third world to first in three decades since its independence, GDP per capita spiraled 13 times from US$5,597 in 1981 to US$72,794 in 20212 and among other things, global recognition as a financial/commercial and transportation hub serving the world. Singaporeans enjoy a high standard of living, and the Government continues to enhance other aspects of the social compact, for example, by creating an environment that promotes good social relations and nurtures a resilient national identity.

Many attributed Singapore’s success to its visionary leadership starting with our first-generation leaders and forwardlooking and innovative policies that serve as a foundation for its world-class institutions. The ability to galvanise its citizens towards a raft of national development initiatives has been pivotal to get to where we are today.

The rallying call since independence that Singapore is ‘small, fragile and vulnerable’ has been met with full cognition of the high stakes involved to survive and we as a country have more than delivered. This needs to continue, so say our leaders. This notion of acute vulnerability and putting us up to the challenge has served us well to the extent that it has become part of the Singaporean psyche.

In an Our Singapore Conversation session, which was part of an earlier national dialogue organised by the Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao in June 2019, participants spoke on some aspects of our nationbuilding narrative. They expressed concern that the repeated refrain that Singapore is small, fragile and vulnerable has become the stuff of "nation-building myth" and this so-called sacred cow needs a rethink 3 . The general view is that harping on it would restrain Singaporeans' innovativeness and ability to scale up to become global players.

Although Singapore’s outstanding achievements over the years have proven otherwise, overplaying this vulnerability narrative can have negative overtones. We are well-regarded for our prudence

and vigilance in the manner we develop and implement our policies. However, we tend to veer towards a governance model premised on a kind of ‘survival anxiety’ that some perceived as being excessively cautious and risk averse. This may have repercussions on a wide range of hot button issues such as social care and support, talent development and sourcing and handling of geopolitical issues vis-à-vis Singapore society.

Furthermore, given our overachievements in many areas, our position in the global order and how we have developed as a society, this refrain is becoming less credible especially to younger Singaporeans.

Take the case of the handling of geopolitical issues or politics, especially international relations, as influenced by geographical factors. Our conception of Singapore as a small country in the centre of the Malay Archipelago surrounded by much bigger neighbours of largely Malay stock has formed a basis of how we manage foreign and regional affairs and to some extent, our internal matters.

A pertinent point is the issue of Malays in the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) where Malays in Singapore are perceived as a ‘security risk’, especially in the context of unlikely but potential incursions in the region. This has been a bugbear for the Malays since independence although there have been improvements since the subject and the associated issue of loyalty of the Malays were publicly raised by AMP in its convention in 1990. Dr Ng Eng Hen, our current Defence Minister in a speech in Parliament in May 2014, noted that “there are now Malays in all services, whether as Air Force pilots, commandos, combat engineers, artillery men in the Army, and in the Navy ” 4 . He stressed that Malays have made great strides in the SAF without publicity or fanfare over the years. This is in response to a query that Malays are not deployed in sensitive vocations in the SAF due to the so-called ‘security risk’ posed by them.

This is heartening, and the news of Malays being promoted to very senior

positions in the SAF on their own merit has been encouraging. Mr Zaqy Mohamad’s appointment as a Senior Minister of State for Defence (in addition to the Manpower Ministry) in July 2020 was also a positive development. All said, the changes are well-received by the Malay community and quite importantly, the larger Singapore society, as we view these developments in line with our meritocratic vision.

The geopolitical landscape in the region has evolved – it is more collaborative in its posturing – for example in international trade, bilateral/multilateral agreements are well-established and, in the defence front, joint military exercises are a regular affair. However, there are shifts in big power rivalries, especially between the United States and China, seeking influence and support for their geopolitical assertions in the region. In his Mandarin speech at the National Day Rally on Aug 2021, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong reminded Singaporeans to be vigilant with messages on geopolitical issues and not be swayed to take sides and to trust the Government on such matter s 5 . This is a reminder that loyalties can be tested and no groups in Singapore are spared from exposure to such risks.

On the issue of the loyalty of the Malays, Dr Lai Ah Eng, a prominent anthropologist and scholar in multiculturalism in Singapore asserted that “the doubt on Malays’ loyalty to Singapore is a ghost from the past that must be put to rest immediately ” 6 – something that we should all ponder upon.

The important question is how we should progress from here, recognising that there is still a lingering perception that Malays are generally excluded from sensitive military units and that more opportunities should be given to them on merit. While the government's modus operandi on sensitive issues affecting ethnicity is to handle them with care and ‘behind closed doors’, should they provide more clarity and direction on the way forward? In fact, they can offer better assurance by providing more information on

deployment for example, and more importantly, establish the relevance and need for such an approach. This should be cognisant of the changing geopolitical landscape without compromising the need to stay vigilant and focus on strengthening our society’s inner core which can only enhance nation-building and national identity.

SELF-RELIANCE AND SOCIAL MOBILITY

The World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Social Mobility Index 2020 ranked Singapore 20 th out of 82 economies overall. Singapore did well in health and education but was below average for social protection (61st) and fair wage distribution (51st). Areas highlighted were social protection spending, social safety net protection and the significant gap between low- and high-income earners7

To some extent, this reflects the fundamentals of Singapore’s system of social security – emphasising selfreliance, supported by strong family ties and social networks. Our aversion towards welfarism is well-known, and it has been a deliberate policy since Singapore’s independence not to take this path as it promotes overdependency on the state leading to a ‘crutch mentality’. Social assistance then was based on short-term aid for the unemployed, the old and ill, and those with disabilities.

While core values such as self-reliance still remain, Singapore’s policies encompassing social care and support have evolved extensively over the last decades. Social assistance programmes now cover a wide spectrum of beneficiaries targeting vulnerable groups and are designed holistically, taking a whole-ofsociety approach complemented with ‘many helping hands’ provided, for example, by community-based groups. Social expenditure in the government’s budget – which covers healthcare, education and social and family development, among others – surged to about $37.8 billion in 2019 from $12.6 billion in 2002 8 , indicating the vast resources allocated to social development.

In fact, some scholars agree that there has been a shift to the left in Singapore’s social policies – in terms of wealth redistribution and social protection –over the years.

A number of initiatives have been put in place – for example, the Wage Credit Scheme (WCS) and Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) – to assist low-income wage earners and more recently, the extension of the Progressive Wage Model (PWM) to a wider group of low-income workers. A string of packages and grants have been rolled out that ran into billions of dollars supporting needy households and vulnerable groups for their utilities, higher cost of living expenses due to inflation and the impact of COVID-19, compensation for GST increases, etc.

While the approach in social assistance is now more multi-faceted and targeted, the underlying premise to achieve selfreliance, more specifically via employment, prevails. This in itself is not a bad thing, but individual effort and self-reliance alone for our families especially those in the lowest 10 to 20% in socio-economic status (SES) might no longer be enough to ensure a decent living in a rapidly changing economic landscape. Furthermore, this underlying objective of self-reliance sometimes manifests itself too early in our social upliftment process and can be quite overpowering –impacting across our programmes and initiatives and on the approach of our social workers.

For example, there are very strict rules to qualify for permanent Public Assistance (PA) – one has to prove that employment is permanently impossible and that one cannot rely on one’s family. In addition, to assess suitability for childcare subsidies or temporary assistance, social workers need to determine whether potential recipients are employed or trying to find employment.

Dr Teo You Yenn, an established and perceptive sociologist posited that “self-reliance via employment is a precondition to social membership in

9

contemporary Singapore” 9. This has implications on how poor and unemployed people are perceived and how they see themselves and others. This sacred cow of self-reliance needs to be moderated through greater flexibility in our social policies to meet the shifting demands of this group and taking an even more empathic approach to social care and support.

The stringent criteria for the PA scheme should be constantly reviewed, and more state-initiated research on the elderly poor and on social issues such as intergenerational poverty, where data is lacking, would be necessary to enhance social upliftment initiatives 10 . There is also a need to appreciate the importance of other roles that people play, their contributions other than work and those that do not necessarily lead to significant outcomes in incomes.

In a speech to social service practitioners on 10 Oct 2022, DPM Lawrence Wong lamented the paradox that “the more we lift people out of poverty and hardship, the more challenges we will face with relative inequalities in our society ” 11 Singapore’s Gini coefficient, which is a measure of income inequality, after taking into account Government transfers and taxes, was 0.386 in 2021 which is higher than the figure of 0.375 in 2020 12 . As our economy grew rapidly and with globalisation, wage disparity and the ensuing social stratification have been a key pain point for the Government. This increasing inequality has an impact on social mobility especially those in the lowest SES strata as these families or individuals become entrenched in their social orbit and cannot extract themselves from it. Hence, their ability to attain sufficient sustenance and live meaningful lives like all other Singaporeans can be an ongoing intergenerational struggle.

Social mobility is an important pillar that underpins Singapore’s social development model. There is a clear focus to address this and the associated

by Loh K. S. et. al. Ethos Book. 2017

structural inequality and arrest the slide towards further social stratification as pointed out by DPM Lawrence Wong in his speech.

It appears that we have come a long way in mobilising all our resources – expertise and infrastructure, including policy enhancements – to tackle this issue of social upliftment which transcends ethnicity, religion and background.

This is also an opportune time to answer persistent calls to rethink some of our sacred cows in the face of rapid change and progress in Singapore’s development. In Forward SG, perhaps a new overarching narrative would emerge that embraces the national development agenda and aspirations of the citizenry and all groups can have their pride of place in Singapore.

Yusof Sulaiman is an Associate Lecturer with Singapore University of Social Sciences and PSB Academy. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA). The views shared in this article are his own.

10 Tan, T. Fewer Singaporeans on long-term financial aid. The Straits Times. 2022, November 5. Retrieved from: https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/fewer-singaporeans-on-long-term-financial-aid

11 Wong, L. The journey towards a fairer and more inclusive Singapore. The Straits Times. 2022, October 12. Retrieved from: https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/the-journey-towards-a-fairer-and-more-inclusive-singapore

12 Tan, S. A. Household incomes rose in 2021 to above pre-Covid levels as Singapore economy recovered. The Straits Times. 2022, February 15. Retrieved from: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/household-incomes-grew-in-2021-as-singapore-economy-recovered-from-covid-19

It appears that we have come a long way in mobilising all our resources –expertise and infrastructure, including policy enhancements –to tackle this issue of social upliftment which transcends ethnicity, religion and background.

This is also an opportune time to answer persistent calls to rethink some of our sacred cows in the face of rapid change and progress in Singapore’s development.

Teo Y. Y. Poor People Don’t Like Oats Either: How Myths about Poverty and Wealth Matter. in Living with Myths in Singapore, edited

Using Cash Waqf to Combat Donor Fatigue and Blockchain to Improve Accountability

BY DR HAZIK MOHAMED

Donating to a multitude of charitable causes can get tiresome after a while. For working-class people who are financially burdened with their own daily needs and monthly expenses, there is also a limited amount that may be set aside, and the constant giving could weigh them down.

Additionally, a great deal of money is donated to fund charitable causes, but it

is hard to observe how efficient or effective these efforts are, or whether they reach the intended beneficiaries, in some cases. The performance of such organisations is hardly monitored and barely assessed, since good actions are considered blessings, and profits are assumed to be managed as promised. When any foul play or misappropriation is uncovered, it is normally only after most, if not all, of the funds have been pilfered.

These issues can be overcome by a cash waqf (endowment) concept and then utilising the blockchain to fortify the accountability in collections, administration, and distribution.

WAQF INSTITUTIONS AND MODERNISATION

Waqf has historically been an important instrument used for the socio-economic welfare of Islamic communities and

jurisdictions. Islamic states, dynasties and empires heavily rely on this instrument to launch a wide range of projects including educational institutions, medical facilities such as hospitals, lodging amenities, and food security programmes. Waqf became an important economic tool for Islamic states to advance socio-economic development and many humanitarian projects have been supported through the various types of awqaf (endowments).

The waqf institution can essentially be divided into three sections, namely the waqf procurement section, the waqf utilisation section, and the income distribution section. It is therefore imperative that waqf institutions recruit highly qualified personnel not only in the management arena, but also in the field of Islamic finance. A waqf institution should be managed by experienced professionals who possess deep investment knowledge and skills to ensure that the assets are well-managed and generate income.

With the increase in data volume used in administration for many industries, digitisation of data constitutes a paradigm shift in transforming workflows and business models. Many legal technologies have emerged, enabling digitisation and automation of these and other legal-work activities. It is possible to automate frequently used contracts into smart contracts so as to facilitate the transfer of ownership and codify the preferences and conditions established by waqf founders for future administrative purposes that must continue in perpetuity.

DISTINCTION OF CASH WAQF FROM OTHER WAQF MODELS

As far as the creation and evolution of the cash waqf is concerned, it dates back to the time of Prophet Muhammad ( peace be upon him), when one of his wives, Hafsah (may Allah be pleased with her), bought a piece of jewellery for 20,000 dirhams and set it aside for the women of the Khattam family. Though there was no cash involved, the concept of movable waqf can be derived from the narration.

During the early 15th century within the Ottoman Empire, the concept of cash waqf became very popular throughout Anatolia and spread rapidly to European provinces. Its usefulness makes the cash waqf distinct from other types of awqaf 1. The following table summarises these characteristics.

FEATURE

Liquid Fund as Corpus Immediate Usufruct

GENERAL WAQF

In a traditional waqf, the corpus is usually an immovable, illiquid asset.

CASH WAQF

In a cash waqf, the main corpus is a ‘cash capital’ which is liquid and able to buy assets or fund services as required.

Affordability and Convenience

An immovable property such as a piece of land may be worth millions but unless it is developed into an incomegenerating project, it is unable to give any consistent benefit.

Not all are able to afford or are privileged to own property, land, or such assets.

Even a small amount of cash waqf may start generating income through investment right from its inception.

The aggregation of cash contributions creates opportunities to many Muslims, who wish to contribute to the society through waqf but do not own land or real estate, etc.

Mobility of Cash Waqf

The traditional forms of waqf typically have low mobility and a lot more effort is required to achieve the benefits they set out to accomplish.

The core objective of creating a waqf is more easily achieved via a cash waqf due to its flexibility and mobility.

Benefits from Cash

The inflexibility of traditional waqf can make them suffer from underutilisation or not produce regular harvests and/or earn a steady income etc., due to seasonal weather conditions.

Cash waqf has the flexibility to fund various activities from education to feeding the needy (including refugees and displaced persons), social programmes and other religious obligations. When such pliable corpus is invested to grow, a regular usufruct can be earned and be spent for almost any welfare purposes.

TABLE 1: DISTINGUISHING FEATURES OF CASH WAQF

As a cash waqf, people from all classes and backgrounds are able to participate in helping others in need, even those with small contributions. Cash waqf has become a popular instrument in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Turkey because of its potential benefits where they have been utilised for a number of schemes in these countries. Traditionally, waqf systems have faced major challenges due to poor management of waqf assets and resulting incomes (or lack thereof), clumsy processes, and cumbersome mechanisms. It is necessary to update and innovate the current models and waqf systems to keep pace with the passage of time. In every age and place, such changes and innovations ensure the continuity of practical social models to serve their purpose, albeit with the aid of various tools, such as digital technology, for enhancement and efficiency. Blockchain can be used to secure cash movements in the traditional waqf collection and distribution. The following section describes the Cash Waqf System first before we move on to using blockchain technology to enhance accountability.

CASH WAQF SYSTEM

Cash waqf is a form of waqf (perpetual endowment) where the income generated from the money collected is to be spent, while protecting the principal amount (Figure 1). In cash waqf for charitable purposes:

etc.)

Roads, bridges, wells, etc.

Refugee Reliefs (food, shelter, housing, etc.)

Other Social Causes

• Initial cash waqf is used as an investment to generate earnings and reduces the need for further donations.

• The principal amount collected is run like a fund with experienced fund managers to generate the most possible return.

• The returns are what will be spent on charitable causes.

• The cash waqf fund collects its principal capital from socially-motivated high net worth individuals (HNWIs) and later, the public through donations.

• The principal capital is invested, and the profits made will be disbursed to the beneficiaries.

• The waqf fund will be run as a professionally-managed fund to give the best possible returns.

It is necessary to update and innovate the current models and waqf systems to keep pace with the passage of time. In every age and place, such changes and innovations ensure the continuity of practical social models to serve their purpose, albeit with the aid of various tools, such as digital technology, for enhancement and efficiency. Blockchain can be used to secure cash movements in the traditional waqf collection and distribution.

FIGURE 1: CASH WAQF SYSTEM Schools (facilities, equipment,

The cash waqf fund will have independent committees (Figure 2) to ensure proper governance and should be structured as follows:

Approves which investments INVESTMENT COMMITTEE FUND MANAGER

Approves which beneficiaries

• Investment Committee: approves where capital should be invested on recommendation from Fund Manager

• Fund Manager (Mutawalli ): manages the funds and ensures best returns

• Approval Committee: approves where the proceeds are allocated, i.e. which beneficiaries, projects, feasibility, etc.

Waqf in cash terms offers much flexibility and liquidity for fulfilling both structural requirements and services for its beneficiaries.

USING BLOCKCHAIN TO STRENGTHEN ACCOUNTABILITY

Through the application of blockchain, the traditional processes of waqf will be improved and more efficient, in comparison to existing cumbersome processes that are prone to moral hazards, agency problems, and leakages. Thus, a blockchained transaction is accessible to the public and safeguards sensitive data against unauthorised access and manipulation. Through greater transparency, a waqf centre is able to track and monitor transactions related to waqf assets and cash endowments collected in the real world, thus building trust with donors, the people it serves (Figure 3). This will improve future collections, and their reputation as a credible mediator and administrator. Automated collection, tracking, and processing eliminates the need for laborious audits and monetary leakage monitoring between collection and disbursement.

As part of the cash waqf collection process (Figure 3), the waqf centre must appoint officials to oversee the transactions according to the requirements that must be assessed by the waqf assessor. Thus, blockchain may be beneficial for preserving waqf transactions in a trustworthy way. Using older methods, it is difficult to obtain a record of a transaction, which can be improved by using the blockchain that can record every transaction without any data loss. Furthermore, the regulators or state authorities may be granted permission to audit the waqf assets when needed, to verify the previous ownership of the waqf assets, or the stated wishes of the waqf founder, if necessary.

New technologies such as blockchain technology can operationalise the transparency and accountability required of important social institutions, such as those that govern the dispensation of endowments and donations, and its management and distribution in order to establish proper provision, distribute wealth, and facilitate small, as well as large scale projects for social and economic development, while sharing prosperity for a more equitable and harmonious social system.

This article is an excerpt rewritten from one of the three new chapters of the second edition of “Blockchain, Fintech and Islamic Finance – Building the Future of the New Islamic Digital Economy”, published by De Gruyter, which is available at all major online and offline bookstores.

PRIVATE SOCIAL IMPACT INVESTORS

PUBLIC DONATIONS BOCKCHAINED TRACEABILITY

Need-to-basis permissioned access (e.g. regulators, state authorities)

Dr Hazik Mohamed is a multi-skilled professional, whose focus is on business growth strategies for start-ups, tech-related research, and various consulting projects. His past corporate clients include the ASEAN Secretariat, national finance offices, and the United Nations Capital Development Fund. He is also the author of three internationally published books: Belief and Rule-Compliance (Academic Press, 2018), Blockchain, Fintech and Islamic Finance (De Gruyter, 2019) and Beyond Fintech (World Scientific, 2021).

FIGURE 3: BLOCKCHAINED CASH WAQF OPERATIONS

FIGURE 2: CASH WAQF FUND ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

Ageing in Singapore

BY NORMALA MANAP

It is a well-known fact now that the world is ageing and Singapore is among the fastest ageing countries in the world. The proportion of seniors 65 years and above in Singapore stands at 18.4% and it is projected that this percentage will grow to be 33.3% which is 1/3 of the population in 2050. Ageing has been on the agenda of Singapore’s national planning for a number of years now. Despite this, as a country, we are still ‘playing catch-up’ in that development of ageing infrastructure and services still lag behind the needs of the growing elder population. Hence, there are gaps in various areas, including key infrastructural support such as housing and transport provision as well as service provision. This is especially the case for the frailer segment of the elder population. The quality of services that are available is another area that requires greater focus if we want to ensure that older Singaporeans can age in ways that are productive, engaged and dignified. We have however excelled in the area of lifelong learning. With the launch of the National Seniors Academy in 2016, learning opportunities for seniors had taken a monumental leap forward with all the Institutes of Higher Learning in the country opening their doors to elders.

MUSLIM ELDERS

The situation of our Muslim elders however is an even bigger concern. Ageing, as an area of focus, and by virtue of this, our Muslim elders have for the most part largely been neglected by Muslim organisations as a whole. Consequently, the development of senior services for Muslims substantially lags behind those for children, youth as well as the family. There are probably many reasons for this including resource constraints, but I would posit the main reason for this is something that is more problematic. Something which plagues societies across the world, with Muslims here not excepted – it is ageism.

Elders worldwide, due to society’s ageist attitudes, end up being neglected and side lined on many fronts. Their needs are often considered less important and hence, almost always not as prioritised as those of younger persons. Like racism and

sexism when someone is discriminated against on the grounds of their race or gender, ageism is discrimination against a person on account of their age.

As an age care professional for over three decades, I am acutely cognisant of how ageism is manifested in the Muslim community. A clear example of this is the many myths held by both the leadership, as well as members of the Muslim community, about how Muslim elders are doing. The majority among us hold a firm belief that Muslim elders are doing well, and they are well taken care of by their families. The data on Muslim elders, however, paints a different picture. Muslim elders are, in fact, not doing so well when compared to their counterparts from other religious/ ethnic groups.

DATA ON MUSLIM SENIORS

The data below is from a nationally representative survey conducted in 2019 by the Centre for Ageing Research and Education, Duke-NUS Medical School. As with most national surveys, data was collected based on participants’ ethnic rather than their religious backgrounds. As such, the figures below reflect those of the Malay community rather than the Muslim community per se. Nonetheless, these form good estimates of the situation with the Muslim community as the large majority of Muslims in Singapore are Malays.

Status of Physical Health

• 52.9% of Malays have 3 or more chronic conditions as compared to 59.4% of Indians and 43.5% of Chinese.

• 11.3% of Malays face 3 or more Activities of Daily Living (ADL) difficulties, which is the highest among the ethnic groups. In comparison, 6.7% of Indians and 7% of Chinese face 3 or more ADL difficulties. (ADL is defined as taking a shower; dressing; eating; sitting and getting up from chair; walking around the house; using the toilet seat.)

• 14.7% of Malays face difficulties in Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL), compared to 9% of Indians and

It is a well-known fact now that the world is ageing and Singapore is among the fastest ageing countries in the world. The proportion of seniors 65 years and above in Singapore stands at 18.4% and it is projected that this percentage will grow to be 33.3% which is 1/3 of the population in 2050. Ageing has been on the agenda of Singapore’s national planning for a number of years now. Despite this, as a country, we are still ‘playing catch-up’ in that development of ageing infrastructure and services still lag behind the needs of the growing elder population.

8.7% of Chinese. (IADL is defined as preparing own meals; leaving the home to purchase necessary items or medication; taking care of financial matters e.g. paying utilities (electricity, water); using the phone; dusting, cleaning up and other light housework; taking public transport to leave home; taking medication.)

Health Behaviours

Another area that is tracked when observing older persons’ health and well-being is their health behaviours primarily because of its clear links with health status. An individual suffering from poor health can significantly improve their chances of survival if they engage in positive health behaviours such as looking after their diet, exercising regularly, as well as regular screening to avoid catastrophic impacts of diseases. Our Muslim elders, unfortunately, do not seem to pay enough attention to what they need to do to better look after their health. As such, we found the following in the same survey:

• Number of Malay elders 62 years old and above who smoke: 15.5% (Indians 9.7%; Chinese 8.6%)

• Number of Malay elders who do not meet World Health Organization’s recommendation of physical activity for older persons: 50.6% (Indians 31%; Chinese 39%)

• Number of Malay elders who never went for cancer screenings:

- Colorectal: Malay elders 57.3% (Indians 42%; Chinese 40%)

- Pap smear: Malay elders: 49.5% (Indians 44%; Chinese 42%)

- Mammogram: Malay elders: 49% (Indians 38%; Chinese 32.3%)

Healthcare Utilisation

Data on healthcare use can also reveal an individual’s health behaviours and ultimately their well-being. High rates of hospital, as well as Accident and Emergency (A&E) Department admissions, are often indications that

individuals are not doing enough to look after their health conditions. Essentially, they are not taking care of these conditions through the required regular primary or specialist consultation, resulting in more serious or catastrophic outcomes, hence the A&E visits and hospital admissions. The data on these admissions for Malay elders are as follows:

• A&E Admissions of Malay elders: 11.9% (Indians 11.5%; Chinese 9.4%)

• Hospital admissions of Malay elders: 19% (Indians 14.6%; Chinese 17.7%)

Status of Mental Health

Another myth that I often hear about the well-being of Muslim elders is that even though they might not be doing well physically, they have good mental health. The data, however, indicates that things are not well either on this front with 14.4% of our elders having clinically relevant depressive symptoms.

Possible reasons for the less-than-ideal health and well-being of Muslim elders

There are many factors that probably can account for the less-than-ideal state of affairs with Muslim elders’ health and well-being, one of which is definitely the community’s relative socio-economic disadvantage. The evidence on the link between poor socio-economic status and poor health and well-being is well-documented.

What I want to highlight and discuss in this article is the reason that I highlighted

earlier – ageism – which accounts for the community’s neglect of our elders.

For a start, this is the reason why we know very little about how our elders are doing despite their rising numbers compared to how much we know about our youth and their families. A major consequent of this neglect is the dire lack of services for Muslim elders as evident from the table below (Table 1) which captures all the aged care programmes run by Muslim agencies currently. Not only the number of places is short but there is a huge gap in terms of the range of services available.

This neglect is also short-sighted for another important reason. The reality is that a large cohort of Muslim elders, whether full or part-time, are in fact carers of their grandchildren. As such it is important to invest in Muslim elders’ well-being as it is tightly linked to the well-being of the young under their care.

The effects of ageism at the individual level are just as negative. Based on my encounters with Muslim elders over the decades, more often than not, I have found them to be rather fatalistic and with a passive view of their own ageing. At a drop of a hat, the words “dah tua kan (old already)” will be uttered even among those who are in their 40s, let alone those who are older. Many also tended to accept their poor health as a product of their age rather than other factors such as lifestyles and choices they make. It is more often than not seen as something outside of their control.

SERVICES/PROGRAMMES

TABLE 1: AGED CARE PROGRAMMES RUN BY MUSLIM AGENCIES

Muslim elders also tend to not prioritise themselves in the context of familial needs. While this self-sacrificing stance might be seen as kind and benevolent, it can also stem from the feeling that they are not worthy of attention because they are old. The consequence of such a perception, however, is detrimental as we saw through the data. Where the elders are caregivers, the effects of such self-neglect would also impact negatively on those they are caring.

POSSIBLE REDRESS

What then needs to be done to address ageing-related issues within the Muslim community?

I think the first thing that needs to happen is for the leadership of the Muslim community to remove the blinkers that they have about the elders in our community. Elders’ needs, goals and aspirations must be recognised as much as those of the younger cohorts. In the age of longevity, it is blindingly short-sighted to focus only on the younger segments of the population.

There is much to be done given that we are already behind in terms of the necessary preparation to ensure that Muslim elders can age well and with dignity. The community as a whole needs a concerted and consolidated plan because the breadth of what is required is expansive. An integral part of the plan of action is the close collaboration with others outside the community given the multifaceted nature of factors that impact ageing. At the personal level, there are issues pertaining to the individual’s physical, psychological, and cognitive health. These, however, as we know, are also affected by factors at the wider community and societal levels. Hence provisions, as well as opportunities, for elders to be financially secure, socially well supported, undertake lifelong learning as well as engaged in work and other productive pursuits are critical as these have an impact on an individual’s well-being.

Strategically, these are some recommendations for an ageing action plan for the Muslim community:

1) Development of a good understanding of Muslim elders through research such that it is possible to segment the cohorts in terms of their challenges, needs, as well as potential and contributions.

2) Development of a targeted plan of action based on the evidence gathered. The plan should comprise actions at the macro level of awareness raising through to interventions at specific levels to meet the needs of all segments of the elder population from those who are still active to those who are frail and in need of care support. The plan should comprise strategies of working with mainstream agencies to collaborate, as well as advocate, for more culturally appropriate programmes to meet the needs of Muslim elders.

3) Obtain feedback from elders themselves on the proposed action plan.

4) Develop monitoring and evaluation framework for the implementation of the plan.

CONCLUSION

To conclude, the needs and concerns of Muslim elders have been neglected for far too long. Ageism is at the crux of this neglect. With the rapid ageing of the population, we can ill afford the huge amount of resources needed to meet the needs of a population of elders who become frail or dependent before their time. We would also waste the contributions that elders can make to their community and society.

Normala Manap is Director of Age Matters, a consultancy and training agency on ageing. Prior to this, she was the Senior Associate Director of the Centre for Ageing Research and Education, Duke-NUS Medical School. Her three decades of involvement in social development work has given her an in-depth experience of the health and aged care industries at all levels. She has worked across countries and cultures at different levels of programme and policy development from building innovative start-ups and managing operations to developing frameworks for national development.

The effects of ageism at the individual level are just as negative. Based on my encounters with Muslim elders over the decades, more often than not, I have found them to be rather fatalistic and with a passive view of their own ageing. At a drop of a hat, the words “dah tua kan (old already)” will be uttered even among those who are in their 40s, let alone those who are older.

Racial Colour-Blindness: A Counterproductive Ideology to Racism

BY SHANTINI RAJASINGAM

COLOUR-BLINDNESS AND ITS IMPLICATIONS

Towards the end of his I Have a Dream speech in 1963, where Martin Luther King Jr. called for full civil and economic rights for African Americans and an end to racism in the United States (US), he said,

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character ” 1. This particular segment of his speech has since been cited as advocating for racial colour-blindness,

which is “rooted in the belief that racial group membership and race-based differences should not be taken into account when decisions are made, impressions are formed, and behaviours are enacted” 2 . The underlying logic of colour-blindness and how it can prevent

racial prejudice and discrimination is this: if individuals or institutions do not even notice race, then they are unable to behave in racially biased ways. As a result, it seems to promise equal opportunities for all, with race no longer impacting one’s access to opportunities and lived experiences. However, despite being seemingly well-intentioned in nature and perhaps sound in theory, it risks unintended consequences when applied in reality, especially when practised in a still-racist world like ours.

Although racial colour-blindness assumes that racism will cease to exist so long as we are blind, or rather, choose not to see race, problematically, when it is embraced, it also involves a refusal to see the persistent racial discrimination and inequities, history of violence, as well as the current trauma that is perpetuated within a still-racist society. As sociologist Eduardo Bonilla-Silva warns, colourblindness merely functions as an ideology that legitimises specific practices that maintain racial inequalities, including, but not limited to, police brutality, housing discrimination, and voter disenfranchisement, amongst other s 3 Though thought about in the context of the US, similar arguments could be made on the persistence of racial inequalities in many other contexts. Rather than resulting in less racism as it promises, this very ideology more likely perpetuates ‘colour-blind racism’, which is arguably more insidious than overt forms of racism 4 . Those who enjoy relative privileges on the basis of their race can minimise or deny the extent of racial inequality and discrimination by insisting they ‘do not see race’, and rather, explain such inequalities as resulting from factors unrelated to race. In this way, adopting such an ideology undeniably threatens to conceal racial inequalities, dismiss the lived experiences of people of colour, and inhibit conversations surrounding race and racism entirely 5

The negative repercussions of colourblindness can be best expressed by the emergence of the All Lives Matter (ALM) movement, which arose as a response to, and criticism of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement in the US. Supporters of ALM claim that their position is far more inclusive than BLM, which they took to mean ‘Only Black Lives Matter’. In a similar vein, criticising BLM for being ‘divisive’ and ‘racist’ in nature, former US President Donald Trump and other high-level Republican representatives too have articulated a clear preference for ALM instead. Similar sentiments have also been echoed by high-profile Democrats, including former Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in her call for greater inclusivit y 6 . The slogan ‘All Lives Matter ’ outwardly proclaims that all lives are equal because we are all human beings. This very articulation is a colour-blind one, endorsing the belief that rather than race, what matters is our shared humanit y 7 While it is indeed true that all lives matter, its usage misunderstands and deflects attention away from the true problem. As plainly put by Judith Butler, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, “It is true that all lives matter, but it is equally true that not all lives are understood to matter which is precisely why it is most important to name the lives that have not mattered and are struggling to matter in the way they deserve” 8 . In a world where Blacks continue to be stigmatised, marginalised, and discriminated against, BLM demands recognition for the value of their lives as well. Hence, contrary to what advocates of ALM might think, the utterance of ‘Black Lives Matter ’ is not to say that only Black lives matter, but rather that Black lives matter too. Therefore, when ‘All Lives Matter ’ is used in response to ‘Black Lives Matter ’, it essentially derails the specific conversation about racism against Blacks.

3 Wingfield, A.H. Color Blindness Is Counterproductive. The Atlantic. 2015, September 13. Retrieved from: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/09/color-blindness-is-counterproductive/405037/

4 Sijpenhof, M. L. A transformation of racist discourse? Colour-blind racism and biological racism in Dutch secondary schooling (1968–2017). Paedagogica Historica, 56(1-2), 2020. pp. 51-69. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1080/00309230.2019.1616787

5 Atkins, A. Black Lives Matter or All Lives Matter? Color-blindness and Epistemic Injustice. Social Epistemology, 33(1), 2019. pp. 1-22. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1080/02691728.2018.1483879

6 West, K., Greenland, K., and van Laar, C. Implicit racism, colour blindness, and narrow definitions of discrimination: Why some White people prefer ‘All Lives Matter’ to ‘Black Lives Matter’. British Journal of Social Psychology, 60(4), 2021. Pp. 1136-1153. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1111/bjso.12458

7 Atkins, A. Black Lives Matter or All Lives Matter? Color-blindness and Epistemic Injustice. Social Epistemology, 33(1), 2019. pp. 1-22. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1080/02691728.2018.1483879

8 Rappeport, A. Hillary Clinton’s ‘All Lives Matter’ Remark Stirs Backlash. The New York Times. 2015, June 24. Retrieved from: https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2015/06/24/hillary-clintons-all-lives-matter-remark-stirs-backlash/

Those who enjoy relative privileges on the basis of their race can minimise or deny the extent of racial inequality and discrimination by insisting they ‘do not see race’, and rather, explain such inequalities as resulting from factors unrelated to race. In this way, adopting such an ideology undeniably threatens to conceal racial inequalities, dismiss the lived experiences of people of colour, and inhibit conversations surrounding race and racism entirely .

Because colour-blindness tends to individualise the inequalities as experienced by people of colour, those who are unlikely to experience disadvantages due to their race can effectively ignore or downplay racism, justify the current social order, and feel more comfortable with their relatively privileged standing in society. Though embracing racial colour-blindness is perceived by some as a dawn of a ‘post-racial’ society, research suggests otherwise, for colour-blindness may actually perpetuate existing racial inequities, with embracing a colour-blind ideology leading to more racial bias, rather than less 9. While advocates of colour-blindness tend to claim that emphasising Whites’ group identity as Whites (rather than as individuals) is counterproductive as they would then cling to, rather than critique the privileges which ‘whiteness’ affords, scholarly evidence directly contradicts this argument. Similarly, with regard to support for ALM, research has shown that the more an individual articulated support for ALM, the more they displayed high levels of implicit racism against Blacks and defined racism in very narrow terms, which made them unlikely to see racism except in the most outstanding situation s 10 . As a result, even though supporters of ALM may claim to be more inclusive than BLM, they are essentially weaponising colour-blindness to deny anti-Black racism and maintain the current racialised social order that privileges and protects the superiority of 'whiteness’ over others. In contrast, moving away from colour-blindness has actually been shown to serve as a pathway toward anti-racism. In many of these studies, as Whites came to understand themselves as members of a racial group that enjoyed unearned privileges and benefits, they were compelled to forge a different sense of White identity built on anti-racism rather than simply supporting the status quo.

CURRENT SITUATION IN SINGAPORE

While much has been written about this topic in the context of the US, we could also think about its relevance to Singapore. In 2020, Sylvia Lim, chairman of Workers’ Party, called for a nationwide review on how Singapore’s progress towards becoming a ‘race-blind society’ could be quickened, with this aim having been articulated in a report created by the Constitutional Commission to review the elected presidency in 2016. She also called for an open review of race-based policies, including the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) and race-based self-help groups; while such policies have been beneficial, their existence has also arguably reinforced racial consciousness which could be detrimental to true harmony 11 While the goal of a race-blind society, where racial prejudice no longer exists, is ideal, I argue that a hastening of this process without due attention paid to pre-existing racial inequalities, as well as prejudice, may be detrimental.

According to the most recent data from the 2021 Channel NewsAsia-Institute of Policy Studies Survey on Race Relations, which polled more than 2,000 Singapore residents aged 21 and above, more Singaporeans (56 percent) now perceive racism to be an important problem, as compared to 46 percent in 2016 12 . While this does not necessarily suggest that racism has increased in Singapore, it does however indicate a greater awareness of how racial bias and prejudice may manifest in our everyday lives. This heightened awareness may be, in part, informed by the slew of high-profile racist incidents that happened in the past year, including the incident of the former lecturer who made racist remarks to an interracial couple and the man who had hurled racial slurs and assaulted a 55-year-old Indian woman for not wearing her mask even though she was engaging in strenuous exercise 13

Strikingly, approximately half, or 53.9 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that being of the majority race is an advantage in Singapore society, with sentiments about majority privilege differing by race 14 . While minority race respondents were more likely to agree or strongly agree that this was the case (67.9 percent of Malay respondents and 63.3 percent of Indian respondents), Chinese respondents were evenly divided on the issue. Additionally, while most Malay (66.9 percent) and Indian (60.6 percent) respondents agreed or strongly agreed that members of the majority race generally have more resources and opportunities than other races, only 42.6 percent of Chinese respondents felt similarly. Contrastingly, while most Chinese respondents (71.8 percent) felt that racial minorities have the same resources and opportunities as the majority race, only 37.7 percent of Malays and 46.4 percent of Indians felt that they did. The survey also found that roughly one-fifth of Malay and Indian respondents felt they had unfairly lost out on a job due to their race at least once – for instance, by mandating Mandarin speakers when it was unclear if this was a genuinely necessary requirement for the job –compared to just 5 percent of Chinese respondents 15. Elsewhere, more individuals from the minority races have also come forward to share instances of casual racism, which include, but are not restricted to name-calling, racist jokes, use of vulgarities, contact avoidance, expressions of irritation, and differential treatment 16 . From these examples alone, individuals of colour have evidently been, or at least, perceived to have been treated differently based on their race. Within such a context, simply adopting a colourblind policy may only serve to gloss over such experiences than provide avenues for productive conversations surrounding race, discrimination, and prejudice in Singapore to occur.

Retrieved from: https://mothership.sg/2020/09/sylvia-lim-race-blind-society/

12 Lim, V. Growing number of people in Singapore feel racism is an important problem: CNA-IPS study. Channel NewsAsia. 2022, April 2. Retrieved from: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/racism-discrimination-singapore-survey-ips-2601276

13 Awang, N., Ng, J. S., and Naheswari, SM. The Big Read: High time to talk about racism, but Singapore society ill-equipped after decades of treating it as taboo. Channel NewsAsia. 2021, June 19. Retrieved from: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/the-big-read-racism-singapore-society-race-interracial-1955501

14 Mathews, M., Teo, K. K., and Nah, S. Attitudes, Actions and Aspirations: Key Findings from the CNA-IPA Survey on Race Relations 2021. Institute of Policy Studies. April 2022. Retrieved from: https://lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/docs/default-source/ips/ips-exchange-series-22.pdf

15 Institute of Policy Studies. Commentary: Here’s how far Singapore has come in making 'regardless of race' a lived reality for all. 2022, April 3. Retrieved from: https://lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/ips/publications/details/commentary-heres-how-far-singapore-has-come-in-making-regardless-of-race-a-lived-reality-for-all

16 Velayutham, S. Races without Racism?: everyday race relations in Singapore. Identities, Global Studies in Culture and Power, 24(4), 2017. pp. 455-473. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1080/1070289X.2016.1200050

LOOKING FORWARD

Evidently, despite being well-meaning in nature, adopting colour-blindness as a mode of fostering greater harmony in a still-racist world is not only impossible but also unhelpful. Simply choosing to ignore one’s race or ethnicity to focus on human similarities rather than differences without paying adequate attention to the unequal power dynamics embedded within racial hierarchies in societies is extremely problematic. Though it is construed to promote racial harmony, colour-blindness undeniably allows people from non-disadvantaged backgrounds to see themselves as non-prejudiced and utilise colourblindness to defend racial hierarchies instead. Not only does this deny the lived experiences of people of colour, but it also prevents those who enjoy racial privilege from being cognisant of this privilege and work towards a more equitable society. The goal of anti-racist work is not to make race invisible but rather to shed light on existing systems of inequity based on race so that they can be dismantled.

Interestingly, a popular alternative to racial colour-blindness is that of multiculturalism 17. As one of our own national policies, it ostensibly calls for all races to be treated equally, with diversity strengthening the social fabric of Singapore through exchanges of different customs and practices across the various racial groups. Rather than refusing to look at race, as colour-blindness posits, multiculturalism blatantly does. Although it does facilitate appreciation of differences rather than a mere silencing of them, it is not without its drawbacks too. Particularly, the hyper-visibility of race in various aspects of our social life has also meant that race is very much a part of the everyday consciousness of Singaporeans who have, in turn, come to view themselves and those around them in very racialised ways, which may result in greater racial stereotyping or

discrimination. Against such a backdrop, the way forward is to therefore allow for more productive conversations about race to occur, giving equal weight to all racial groups to shed light on issues specific to them, taking these concerns seriously, and more importantly, not shying away from difficult conversations.

Shantini Rajasingam is currently pursuing her Master of Arts in Sociology at Nanyang Technological University.

From these examples alone, individuals of colour have evidently been, or at least, perceived to have been treated differently based on their race. Within such a context, simply adopting a colour-blind policy may only serve to gloss over such experiences than provide avenues for productive conversations surrounding race, discrimination, and prejudice in Singapore to occur.

Effective Advocacy on Social Media

BY MIZI WAHID

The recently-concluded FIFA World Cup 2022 tournament in Qatar was truly an eye-opener for its many visitors and viewers from around the globe. Qatar, the host country for this prestigious footballing event, had used this significant occasion to effectively share with people more about Islam, especially on the parts of it that many are still unaware of.

Murals comprising the hadiths of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) on mercy, charity, and good deeds were seen everywhere. They spread words of motivation that encourage people to do good to others. This is an example of how advocacy is done in a somewhat subtle and indirect way.

DA’WAH AND ADVOCACY

Da’wah is an Arabic word derived from the root da’a which means “to summon”, “to call” or to “invite” someone to something, and the word da’wah is especially used as an invitation to the Islamic faith, or in doing the noble deeds relating to it.

And the same goes in terms of advocacy. It means “to champion” or “to promote” a cause that brings value to the community.

As Muslims, we are the ambassadors of our faith. We have a default responsibility to convey important messages and enjoin others towards acts of piety and goodness.

Back in the times of our Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), he used a number of different types of medium to convey his message. The early days of da’wah was a real struggle for our Prophet (pbuh). The work that he did was initially done discreetly among close friends and family before it went public. An ‘advocate’ is a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy.

But going public has its repercussions. Thus, making advocacy work unappealing for many. It would be easier for you to find someone who is a silent supporter of a cause you are advocating for, than one who proclaims it comfortably in the public sphere.

A lot of awful things were done to put an end to the Prophet’s efforts. People mocked him, threatened his loved ones, and even went as far as physically assaulting him

too. But his steadfastness kept him going, as he held on strongly to his main mission and purpose.

NOW OR NEVER

In a hadith by Al-Bukhari, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said: “Convey (my teachings) to the people even if it were a single sentence” [Narrated by Imam Bukhari]

The Prophet’s teachings are not limited to the subjects that we normally would think of, such as, prayer and fasting, but his teachings extend well beyond that. If you feel strongly about a movement because of the nobility of its cause and wish to become an advocate for it, chances are, it is a cause that aligns with our faith’s teachings. So, for anyone who is on the fence about joining an advocacy group, you can be more assured moving forward.

For example, if you wish to advocate for better environmental care, or for policies to be tighter on child protection against abusive family members – know that these causes line up nicely to the values of our tradition.

Da’wah and advocacy come in many different forms. And today, the adoption and use of social media is widespread in every part of our lives and can be utilised as one of the tools to get the job done.

SOCIAL MEDIA; THE SOCIAL DILEMMA

In today’s world, the use of social media has become a norm in our daily lives. It plays an important role in society as it is one of the main sources for users to access and share information with friends and followers.

Although it brings convenience and has many advantages, anyone who wishes to partake in advocacy work will need to be aware that there are also challenges and threats that come along with these platforms. Social media is interactive and allows for the creation, sharing, and exchange of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks.

These virtual networks present a huge opportunity for us to reach out and engage people who may not know about the causes that we believe to be important.

One of the downsides to it is that it leads to the problem of people having an influx of information. The excessiveness of information may trigger confusion amongst users and cause them to not be able to discriminate between right and wrong. The algorithm on these platforms may also lead to confirmation bias, as you will be fed more of the same content that you have viewed or liked before.

Think of social media as a platform that amplifies our voice in order for our message to have extensive reach beyond our smaller circles. Platforms like this offer the ease of creating content, posting it, sharing it, and getting immediate input, feedback, and results.

Advocacy work done through simply flexing our fingertips does have its pros and cons. As we know, one of the superpowers of social media is that it has the ability to accelerate the spread of information rapidly. And this is helped by the “share” button. A post that has gone viral, may have gotten there because of overwhelming love and compassion, or due to widespread hate and anger.

One of the downsides to it is that it leads to the problem of people having an influx of information. The excessiveness of information may trigger confusion amongst users and cause them to not be able to discriminate between right and wrong. The algorithm on these platforms may also lead to confirmation bias, as you will be fed more of the same content that you have viewed or liked before.

THE BEST PRACTICES

1. Always be courteous and respectful Islam teaches and educates us with the most virtuous principles and always reminds us to avoid any immoral conduct. In fact, our Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was sent to us through his saying; “I was sent to complete the best of morals” [al-Muwatta’] One of the values to have in life is to remain courteous and respectful in all our interactions. It does not matter how noble the cause you are promoting is, if you are forceful and unkind in your approach to invite others.

2. Speak with truth and honesty

One of the names of Allah swt is al-Haqq, The Truth. Knowing and speaking the truth is not easy. Today, there are websites and software developed with the sole purpose of fact-checking information that is posted online. Why? Because sometimes in our desperation to get more support for the organisations we are advocating for, we may exaggerate numbers and statistics to gain more attention and sympathy. Such tactics are unethical and wrong, and every Muslim advocate must abstain from doing so.

3. Be humble

The media today lauds heroes of volunteerism and community advocates extensively. They often make the front page of every local newspaper, and get shared by our local leaders rather broadly too on social media and during key nationallevel speeches. While it is good to acknowledge a person’s hard work and effort, it may cause the person under the spotlight to lose track of the main reason why he or she started on the journey. This will be a continuous test on an individual’s true intentions.

CONCLUSION

Advocacy work is a dignified endeavour. More often however, one’s efforts may not be properly recognised or appreciated. Nevertheless, it can be deeply rewarding on a personal level. Additionally, to become one who enjoins others to do good, is a beloved act in Islam. Our Prophet (pbuh) once said: “Whoever leads to good, he is like the one who does it.” [Tirmizi]

So, for those who wish to continue pursuing this noble path, be prepared for the harsh terrain, and unpleasant road ahead, if that is indeed what it takes to stand a chance for a better future for our community.

Mizi Wahid is an accomplished speaker, author and a businessman with more than 10 years of experience in the Islamic ecosystem. Besides juggling solemnisation duties on the weekend, he takes pride in providing the best coaching services to people seeking advice regarding life, marriage and business. He is also the founder of several Islamic-centric organisations namely Safinah Holdings Pte Ltd, YOUM Pte Ltd, and Shariff Holdings Pte Ltd, as well as the director of Mizium Pte Ltd, a digital marketing agency.

Humanity Beyond the Labels

BY NAILUL FARAH MOHD MASBUR

Despite the whispers that the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code may happen, Singaporeans were still caught by surprise when Prime Minister Lee Hsien Long made the official announcement during his 2022 National Day Rally speech. The response was expectedly diverse and divided. From the euphoric, to the pragmatic, and then to the opposing spectrum of enraged and devastated.

What of the Muslim community? At the onset, by and large, many were shocked, upset, and also angry about this development. Then came the question, how do we respond to this? There was almost an overnight scramble where the community came abuzz with the discussion of how do we, as a community, respond to this?

As an advocate on this issue, it came as no surprise, and my first reaction was, ‘ah… it has finally happened’. However, as the situation unfolded, I slowly came to realise that this is a blessing. This is a blessing to Muslims in Singapore. It is an opportunity to directly confront a situation that for many years, the community has been hesitant to openly discuss. The community is now intellectually, spiritually, and emotionally building its capacities.

Sadly, this development also came with an outpouring of hateful and abusive language across all social media platforms. From those celebrating and those fighting against the repeal. This was personally very upsetting to witness. Especially when the behaviour was coming from Muslims, not towards a circumstance, behaviour, or incident, but rather towards fellow human beings. It made me realise that humans easily demonise the other. Once a label, filled with otherness and disdain is attached to a fellow human, the labeller forgets there is a human being standing behind that label.

Personally, as a Muslim, I feel the best way forward is to start with going back to our deen. Let’s start by going back to Islam and self-reflect. What does Islam teach us? At its core, it is to stand firm on our principles and embody excellence in character.

I do not believe in affirming same-sex attraction and gender dysphoria. After critically engaging with Islam’s legal perspective on these issues, and analysing

the Quranic revisionism arguments, I am convinced with the stance reflected in the irsyad (religious statement and guidance) released by Singapore’s Office of the Mufti on 22 August 2022 (in summation):

Islam prohibits same-sex romantic relationships and the redefinition of unions and ‘marriages’ that excludes the possibility of procreation between couples. Islam also prohibits the redefinition of gender identity that contradicts the biological gender we have been born with. This includes the prohibition of crossdressing and medically changing our biological gender.

Our Creator has given us, His servants, guidance through the Quran and the Prophet’s sunnah (prophetic traditions) and seerah (life of the prophet). My faith in Him as the Most Wise, the Most Merciful, and the Most Compassionate, means I believe this guidance will bring ultimate good to all of mankind. How then do I live by these principles and facilitate this goodness? Do I force them on those around me? Even those who disagree? No. I will not do that. Because that will go against the principle of being wise, merciful, and compassionate.

So, in my effort to facilitate this good, I stand by the following verse from the Quran 16:125:

(O Prophet), call to the way of your Lord with wisdom and goodly exhortation, and reason with them in the best manner possible. Surely your Lord knows best who has strayed away from His path, and He also knows well those who are guided to the Right Way.

For me, da’wah, or Islamic advocacy, has to always stand upon wisdom. And wisdom can only be realised through seeing, acknowledging, and addressing the lived reality of humans. And that begins with listening and empathising. Who are our brothers and sisters who experience same-sex attraction? Who are our brothers and sisters who experience gender dysphoria? Have we taken the time to hear their voices? To understand them? To acknowledge their lived experiences? How can we wisely speak of their reality without first extending our hands and our hearts to understand their reality?

It made me realise that humans easily demonise the other.

Once a label, filled with otherness and disdain is attached to a fellow human, the labeller forgets there is a human being standing behind that label.

I invite all of you to consider this. Does standing on our principles not also mean exemplifying mercy, empathy, compassion, and enduring kindness? Is embodying these values not wisdom? Is it not just? We need to firmly hold on to our convictions but we do so with these values. Values which are etched in our Prophet’s (peace be upon him) da’wah (Islamic advocacy).

In the spirit of living by these principles, I strive to listen to individuals who either lived this reality, or have walked with those who lived this reality. I did my best to listen before I speak, and when I do, I am careful to be emotive and not aggressive. I extend my friendship, my ears, and my heart. And when words or actions are unwise, I extend to them my du’as (supplications), in my heart and in my prayers. I’ve shed tears, in private, rather than in public, for those who have been so rejected and unheard that they’ve chosen to no longer hear.

I speak, and I advocate for my principles, because I stand by the goodness within them, but I do while also trying my best to ponder on stories such as these (names have been changed in accordance to Chatham House Rules):

“It’s hard, it’s lonely. I’ve never asked for help and I’m terrified of publicly sharing my story for fear of the rejection I may face. I choose to fight this alone. I know what Islam teaches, I believe in it. But it’s hard and I don’t always do well sticking to it. Especially on very lonely and quiet nights, it’s so hard not to act on these feelings. But I’m trying my best, I’ll keep trying my best”. – S, a Muslimah experiencing same-sex attraction

“I know what Islam teaches. I’ve been fighting this feeling for very long. I’ve never acted on it. But it’s been very lonely, very difficult. But I’ve come to the conclusion that Allah created me this way for a reason. And I’ve found my purpose. My purpose is to help other Muslims who are also struggling like me.” – Reworded quote from a story shared about Q, a Muslim experiencing same-sex attraction

“Adam is a trans man who has left Islam because he doesn’t feel accepted in the faith for wanting to be who he is, among other reasons. Sonia is a trans femme, who has found greater conviction in Islam since she

started transitioning. Danial is a gay man who still identifies and (religiously) practices the Islamic faith. He has a partner who left Christianity for similar reasons as Adam and cannot fathom why Danial would want to remain in a faith that condemns him. Danial has to live with the label that he is one of the ‘condemned’. He may joke about it but I can only guess what that label can do to a person’s mental health. Sue is a lesbian who was traumatised from the ‘spiritual healing’ which was meant to ‘exorcise her lesbianism’ and as part of ‘praying the gay away’. She shared how she was held down and touched without her consent, and how she still relives that trauma to this day.” – Shahrany Hassan, founder and director of The Whitehatters

“I had an encounter with a transgender. Since young, he found himself interested in all the girl activities. As he grew older, he began to be attracted to men. Friends shunned him and sometimes he got bullied. Because of constant bullying and shaming, he quit school at 15 years. He started doing his own research and came across the transgender community. That was his first encounter to affirm his ‘being’ as a woman.” – Rahayu Mohamad, former president of PPIS.

What can I do to help our brothers and sisters in Islam who are striving to overcome their same-sex attraction? Or who are struggling to live with the gender Allah has bestowed upon them? What are their rights over me as their sister in Islam? How can I help make their journey easier and less lonely? What happened to our brothers and sisters who left Islam? Who and what have driven them away from our beautiful faith? What should we do about the trauma, pain, and injustice that have been committed against them? What led them to making the choices they have made? How do we stand on our principles and ensure we show compassion to their struggles? And how do we reconcile with standing firm on these principles, while also respecting the choices they have made for themselves?

These are not simple questions with simple answers. They are complex and deserve a nuanced response. This is the human experience. It is not easy, but always, I’ve learned, it’s better to pause, ponder, and say, ‘I don’t know, let me

think and learn more about this first’, than to be hasty, and give reactionary responses filled with short-sightedness and frustration, causing hurt and undue damage.

In my own journey, among the most challenging opportunity was to speak at an event hosted by The Whitehatters. It was called ‘Let’s Talk about LGBTQ: From Non-Affirming Faith Inclusive Perspectives’. The Whitehatters is a centrist non-governmental organisation (NGO) established in 2014. It is an organisation committed to creating safe spaces for people to see each other as humans first and are committed to building a socially cohesive society that transcends religious, racial and social barriers.

This initiative, compared to other advocacy opportunities, was particularly challenging because I had to speak about my principles and perspectives in a roomful of people who held wildly contrasting perspectives on same-sex attraction and gender dysphoria. Hence, it demanded I exercise utmost wisdom and sensitivity, while not being apologetic and hesitant about my principles. Among the advocates in attendance were Ms Shahrany Hassan, the founder and director of The Whitehatters, and Ustaz Dr Firdaus Yahya, one of Singapore’s prominent Islamic scholars. I asked them two questions, and these were their responses:

Q: How do you think the Muslim community should interact with Muslims who have same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria?

Ms Shahrany Hassan: With more empathy, and without judgement. Showing compassion and mercy, simply being kind and friendly, does not mean that you compromise your values and beliefs. So be kind, always.

Ustaz Dr Firdaus Yahya: There are three ways:

1. Abstain from any condemnation and degrading names.

2. Try to understand their position, emotions, and condition.

3. Befriend them so that they have someone reliable to look up to if they have problems later.

Q: What are your hopes for the Muslim community with regard to matters on same-sex attraction and gender dysphoria, and its relationship with Muslims who experience them?

Ms Shahrany Hassan: Everyone wants to belong and feel accepted. We need to establish support groups, led by mental health professionals, for those who are struggling with their identity – a safe space for individuals to talk through their issues. And to respect whatever decisions they come to, even if we do not agree. Quintessentially, we need to recognise and value the sanctity of life. By helping support persons in difficult moments, we develop the potential for communities and society to pull through challenges together. In good faith, we seek to aid, soothe, develop, and improve both ourselves as well as those around us. Even when it is uncomfortable, or inconvenient, we ought to aspire towards this ideal.

Ustaz Dr Firdaus Yahya: My hope is that the community does not ostracise them. Instead, try to open up opportunities for them to learn more about Islam and to be aware that it is not their same-sex attraction that they should feel stressed or depressed about, rather, what they should focus on is avoiding the following forbidden actions in Islam: indulging in anal intercourse, engaging in sexual petting, cross-dressing and changing genders.

The wisdom, which each of them carefully shared with me, I hope could be used to bring us closer to becoming a Muslim community that truly lives by Islam. To inspire us to understand and with conviction, stand on our principles, then see and engage humanity the way our Prophet (pbuh) did. He observed, listened, and understood who he was speaking to. And with wisdom and immense patience, he artfully responded.

I pray we continue to strive to act upon the guidance and teachings of our Creator, and ease others’ path towards following this guidance. I pray we always see the human and their humanity, humble our egos, and through empathy and enduring compassion, be the reason others see the beauty of Islam and choose to submit themselves to Allah, our Merciful Creator.

Nailul Farah Mohd Masbur is a Research Analyst at the Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA). She holds a Master’s degree in Political Science. Her area of interest includes Islamic political thought, public and foreign policies, and ethics.

“Everyone wants to belong and feel accepted. We need to establish support groups, led by mental health professionals, for those who are struggling with their identity – a safe space for individuals to talk through their issues. And to respect whatever decisions they come to, even if we do not agree. Quintessentially, we need to recognise and value the sanctity of life. By helping support persons in difficult moments, we develop the potential for communities and society to pull through challenges together.”

QUIET QUITTING: The Beginning of a Revolution for Better Workplace Boundaries

BY SINCHITA VALALAN-RAJENDRAN

‘Quiet quitting’ has become the latest online buzzword that has set the internet ablaze. A quick Google search of the term will open a sprawling list of articles, but where did it originate?

The term started from a Tiktok video posted in early 2022 by career coach and YouTuber Brian Creely. Summarising an Insider article written by senior

correspondent Aki Ito with the headline, “My Company is Not My Family”, Creely stated that employees are taking greater control over their working schedules to find a healthy balance between their careers and personal lives. While Creely’s post gained much traction online, it was a video by TikToker @zkchillin that viralised the term and succinctly described the term when he mentioned:

“You’re not outright quitting your job, but quitting the idea of going above and beyond. You’re still performing your duties, but you’re no longer subscribing to the hustle culture mentality that work has to be your life – the reality is, it’s not and your worth as a person is not defined by your labour.”

The video garnered a whopping 491,000 likes and 4,500 comments on TikTok. The post has opened up an ongoing debate about the ethicality of having such an attitude within the workplace, particularly between the younger generation and the older generation.

While there seems to be much contention about the trend, it is not one that is isolated to attitudes held abroad. It can similarly be seen in Singapore, where in a survey conducted by job portal Indeed, it was found that Singaporean workers surveyed had identified quiet quitting as “saying no” to hustle culture, which advocates for the constant need to work, and view work as a priorit y 1. Notably, the survey found that among various age groups, individuals aged between 16 and 25, known as Gen Zs, are amongst the highest to ‘quiet quit’, with more than half already planning to do so.

However, since then, the trend has particularly vilified Gen Zs, who have now been pitted against the elder millennials. Much of the discussion surrounding quiet quitting has framed it as a new phenomenon, predominantly driven by Gen Zs as being lazy, entitled, and less dedicated to their work compared to their older counterparts.

While quiet quitting has demonised and chastised Gen Zs as ‘strawberry generation’ workers against older generation workers, who are more willing to prioritise their work over their personal lives, it detracts us from the core issues the trend has brought to light. This begs the question, why is the trend of quiet quitting significant within the context of Singaporean society? The answer to this perhaps lies in Karl Marx’s postulations.

“The worker becomes all the poorer the more wealth he produces, the more his production increases in power and size. The worker becomes an ever cheaper commodity the more commodities he creates. The devaluation of the world of men is in direct proportion to the increasing value of the world of things. Labour

produces not only commodities; it produces itself and the worker as a commodity –and this at the same rate at which it produces commodities in general.” 2

In the Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 , Marx warns against the commodification of workers through the division of labour. He cautions this through the use of this very powerful paradox: as society advances and the production of goods and services within the labour market expands to meet the demands of the economy, this becomes a powerful and counterproductive force for workers themselves who are not only commodified but are also likely to face worsening working conditions.

When quiet quitting within the Singaporean workforce becomes summarily reduced to an issue of differing attitudes between the younger and older generation of workers, it becomes a gross oversimplification of the issue at hand. Such an us-versusthem perspective is a red herring, and avoids the salient, core issues the trend has brought up. Marx posits a very grim, albeit pragmatic reality, wherein no individual is indispensable to the organisation they work for. And certainly, not their labour.

It takes two hands to clap, and the nonchalance of companies towards ensuring work does not extend beyond business hours for employees or competitively remunerating staff has triggered a wave of changing attitudes. This seismic shift in how work is coming to be viewed can be accounted for by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The pandemic and previous lockdowns have also brought to light how easy it is to slip into not having boundaries within the realm of our work, particularly when working from home. Notably, the COVID-19 pandemic exposed many chronic faults within the workplace as many had to work from home due to the lockdown and regulations, and often late into the night as the boundaries between working hours and personal time became

obfuscated. With the changing times, it could be argued instead that perhaps, this reality is one that the younger generation has a firmer grasp over, compared to their older counterparts.

This dramatic juxtaposition in attitudes toward being in the workplace between the younger generation and their older counterparts can be accounted for by the ‘Singaporean Dream’. When Singapore attained independence, our founding father, the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew, had endeavoured with his colleagues to build a Singaporean work ethic, where Singaporeans had to be productive workers, punctual, worked hard, did not slack off and took ownership of their tasks to be rewarded accordingly 3

Singapore’s rapid rise to a booming economic hub and dramatic increase in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita is a testament to the success of Mr Lee’s leadership. While this approach may have worked for the past five decades since Singapore’s independence, the economy has transformed significantly since then.

While times have changed, this belief in working hard, however, has not changed. As a result of the astounding success Singapore has achieved as a very young nation, many in the older generation still subscribe to this belief. After all, if it has worked for the past decades, why should we not abide by it? However, this adherence to the ‘work hard and you will be rewarded’ mentality has become a double-edged sword: it has led to a fetishisation of the Singaporean Dream –where if you work hard, it is certain that you will be rewarded.

If one does not achieve success in the employment market, it is because you are lazy. And thus, this has unfortunately led to the attitudes that the younger generation has towards work be disparaged. The younger generation, with their exposure to the Western world through the internet, have unapologetically shed beliefs of slogging themselves to the bone for their careers and possessing ‘the boss is always right’

mentality, and with arguably clearer work and personal boundaries.

It is also important to consider the climate of the workplace for employees within Singapore. In a poll of employees in 14 developed countries by data, insights, and consulting firm Kantar, it was found that 24 percent of workers in Singapore shared that they have been bullied in the workplace within the past year and this is among the highest levels in the world 4 . Additionally, compared with those in other countries polled, 32 percent of Singaporean employees were also the most likely to be made to feel “uncomfortable”. The findings also showed that Singaporean workers were struggling to deal with pressure, with 44 percent reporting that they were affected by stress and anxiety at work, above the global average of 39 percent. The evolving expectations of companies and superiors render the employee feeling increasingly enslaved to the demands of the employer to ensure they remain employed.

While the Singaporean Dream has been successful in transforming Singapore into the vibrant business hub it is today, the list of expectations from employers within the workplace at present context is endless and constantly evolving. Framing the issue of quiet quitting as one that vilifies the younger generation of workers while their older counterparts have no qualms about the status quo has eschewed us from objectively examining our work environments and whether they are conducive to our personal growth and mental health. The harsh reality is that the Singaporean worker occupies a very precarious position within the workplace – while acceding to the requests of their employer within the workplace that exceed beyond working hours, they more often than not inevitably compromise their mental health and time with their families.

Marx warned against capitalism because it could render the worker powerless and alienated not just from their work but also from themselves. And perhaps, the

practice of quiet quitting could be the mark of the worker fighting back against their impending alienation. While many have dismissed the younger generation for choosing to quiet quit, seeing it as a ‘new age’ trend by the ‘strawberry generation’, this pushback could be the markings of a revolution towards how we view work. After all, the youth of today are brilliant, are very aware of the world, having grown up with the Internet and are well-read. And most importantly, while they may not have gone through struggles of hardship similar to their older counterparts, they are hardy.

Often, the term ‘strawberry generation’ trivialises the younger generation’s awareness of issues such as toxic workplaces and mental health, as compared to their older counterparts who faced challenges such as famines or water shortages. While the younger generation is fortunate to not have to experience such crises, their difficulties should not be shrugged away.

It is important that we take a moment to examine our own boundaries and relationship with work. The practice of quiet quitting has brought up a muchneeded discussion about the workplace and our relationship with it. While work is something we spend a significant amount of our time on, it should not be the central aspect of our lives. Quiet quitting is a call to action for us, as individuals, to have clearer boundaries within the workplace. Our work does not define us. There is a need for a healthy balance between work and self-care. We might not have found it yet, but it is something that all generation of workers should strive towards.

Sinchita Valalan-Rajendran is a part-time Research Assistant at the Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA) and a Master's candidate in Sociology at Nanyang Technological University. Her research interests are on issues concerning family, social inequality and gender relations.

Framing the issue of quiet quitting as one that vilifies the younger generation of workers while their older counterparts have no qualms about the status quo has eschewed us from objectively examining our work environments and whether they are conducive to our personal growth and mental health. The harsh reality is that the Singaporean worker occupies a very precarious position within the workplace –while acceding to the requests of their employer within the workplace that exceed beyond working hours, they more often than not inevitably compromise their mental health and time with their families.

‘Pink Brain, Blue Brain’:

Gender Differences in Neurodiversity & Their Consequences

BY SANTRIANI BOHARI JAON

“Where are all the autistic people?” asked Nicole Parish, otherwise known as @soundoftheforest, an autistic TikToker with 2.7 million followers to her name. It’s an innocuous question, but one that perhaps alludes to a harsh disparity between online conversations surrounding neurodivergence, and the relative lack of awareness and understanding of it in real-life situations, especially in relation to gender differences.

Indeed, the neurodivergent community online has flourished in recent years, with a growing number of neurodivergent influencers and professionals alike sharing their experiences and resources with being on the autism spectrum (ASD), attentiondeficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and other neurodivergent conditions like dyslexia and dyspraxia.

GENDER GAP IN DIAGNOSIS

Interestingly, much of this online content is aimed at women. A simple search of ‘ADHD in women’ on TikTok, for instance, pulls up numerous videos made by women on being undiagnosed, or never realising they were neurodivergent. Earlier this year, Women’s Health1 noted that more and more women are self-diagnosing with ASD and ADHD from TikTok alone.

Officially, however, studies indicate that men are still almost three times more likely to be diagnosed with ASD and ADHD than women. And while other studies have shown that ASD does tend to occur more in males than females, female ASD is still underreported 2 . Coupled with the rising trend of self-diagnosed women online, this suggests a huge unmet need for neurodivergent women in terms of early diagnoses (if at all), assessment, and treatment, with dire consequences on well-being and life outcomes further down the road.

Indeed, closer to home, the fact that there are no accurate local studies on the prevalence of ADHD and ASD in Singapore – let alone on gender gaps in neurodivergent diagnoses and treatment in the local context – points to a grievous

lack of conversation on the subject.

So, what accounts for this glaring gender gap in neurodivergent diagnoses?

PINK AND BLUE BRAINS

To begin with, for decades, ASD and ADHD have been understood through a highly gendered ‘pink and blue brain’ lens that aggravated gender biases in understanding and identifying neurodivergence. In 2002, a controversial theory put forth by Simon Baron-Cohen proposed that ASD can be seen as an extreme form of the male brain, which is better at systemising and understanding how things work than the female brain. This inadvertently reinforced popular understandings of ASD as a ‘male affliction’ that originates from innate neurobiological sex differences, which in turn further aggravated the tendency to report and pay more attention to ASD symptoms in males than females.

The same bias is present in ADHD diagnoses, especially in childhood. The official diagnostic criteria for ADHD in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-V) describes ADHD as “a persistent form of inattention and/or hyperactivityimpulsivity”. At the same time, it is well-established that ADHD tends to present as inattention in girls, and hyperactivity in boys. Prevalent gender stereotypes of ADHD also mean that it is more popularly associated with hyperactive boys, while inattentive girls tend to go unnoticed. Female symptoms of inattentive ADHD therefore often go undetected, leading to a much higher rate of undiagnosed ADHD in girls which carries into adulthood.

What’s more, the methodologies of psychological studies on ASD and ADHD tend to favour males over females, with reports of samples that underrepresent the afflicted female population3 , along with the use of psychometric tools and survey questions that are skewed towards male-based behaviours. This means that not only are neurodivergent girls

1 Krouse, L. Women Are Discovering They May Have ADHD Or Be On The Autism Spectrum From Trending TikTok Videos. Women's Health. 2022, August 17. Retrieved from: https://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/a40787937/adhd-autism-in-women-tiktok-self-diagnosis-neurodivergence/

consistently being underdiagnosed –they’re also constantly held up to standards that are backed up by malebiased research, putting them at a double disadvantage.

AGE AND GENDER INTERSECTIONS

Crucially, age also plays a huge role in affecting the way that gender differences in neurodivergence play out. Neurodivergent children who go undiagnosed miss out on early interventions that may play a critical role in equipping them with the necessary skills and coping strategies to live and excel with their conditions later in life. In other words, the later the diagnosis, the greater their struggle with being neurodivergent.

The effect is compounded in adolescence: while childhood diagnoses of ASD and ADHD are far less prevalent in girls than boys, research has shown that rates of female ADHD diagnoses tend to soar after puberty 4 . Similarly, teenage girls with Asperger’s or autistic disorder have also been found to be diagnosed later in adolescence than their male counterparts 5 Compared to teenage boys, they also tend to endure longer waits between the time of their initial evaluation and eventual clinical diagnosis of ASD.

When combined with the inherent social pressures and difficulties of adjusting to the physiological havoc brought on by puberty, along with the academic stresses of adolescent life, the consequences can be disastrous. Studies show, for instance, that one explanation for the higher rates of ASD diagnosis in teenage girls than in childhood is that adolescence itself triggers the latent manifestation of autistic social traits in teenage girls 6 . It could be that the aforementioned additional stresses of adolescence compared to childhood present such a taxing strain on teenage autistic girls’ psyches, that previously manageable difficulties in cognitive function now become much more unmanageable. Female friendships, for example, are much harder to navigate in adolescence than in childhood owing to the greater risk and costs of being

2 Ratto, A. B., et. al. What About the Girls? Sex-Based Differences in Autistic Traits and Adaptive Skills. J Autism Dev Disord. 48(5):1698-1711. May 2018. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-017-3413-9

3 Littman, E. B. The Gender Myths (Or “Only Boys Have ADHD”). Attention Magazine. August 2021. Retrieved from: https://chadd.org/attention-article/the-gender-myths/

4 Ibid

5 Begeer, S., et. al. Sex Differences in the Timing of Identification Among Children and Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. Vol. 43, 1151–1156. 2012, September 22. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-012-1656-z

6 Mandy, W., et. al. The development of autistic social traits across childhood and adolescence in males and females. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 2018, April 19. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12913

ostracised. The difference is understandably even more pronounced for neurodivergent women.

Teenage girls with ADHD, however, may have a different experience: research has found that they are better able to ‘mask’ or ‘camouflage’ their neurodivergent symptoms than teenage boys with ADHD. Here, neurotypical skills and behaviours are consciously and unconsciously learnt through the consumption of popular culture and literature, and replicated to uphold the appearance of relative normalcy, therefore hiding any neurodivergent symptoms. This comes with its own set of consequences, though: after all, flying under the radar only internalises the struggles of being neurodivergent, without eliminating them. They are therefore at far greater risk than their neurotypical teenage girls for ‘invisible struggles’ like depression, anxiety, and eating disorders, as are teenage girls with ASD. Worse, teenage ADHD girls are also more vulnerable to self-harming behaviours and suicidal ideation than their nonADHD counterparts.

In contrast, neurodivergent teenage boys tend to ‘act out’, externalising their struggles in far more visibly detrimental ways than girls. Teenage boys with ADHD, for example, tend to rebel outright and underperform academically, being almost three to eight times more likely to drop out than non-ADHD teenage boys 7, and more likely to develop co-occurring behavioural disorders like conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder too. The increase in testosterone levels that naturally come with puberty may also interact more potently with hormones related to ADHD, leaving them more susceptible to risk-taking behaviours, and increasing their risk for developing substance abuse compared to non-ADHD teenage boys.

THE AVALANCHE OF ADULTHOOD

Ultimately, whether or not they were successfully diagnosed, the data suggests that in the long run, adult neurodivergent women suffer more from an eroded and lost sense of self than men.

One explanation for this is the mental and emotional toll taken through the practice of masking, which is more commonly found in neurodivergent women than men. Such a process requires constant self-monitoring, while also engendering acute anxiety from the constant possibility of being ‘found out’ and socially excluded.

Additionally, the more neurodivergent women mask, the more susceptible they may become to developing co-morbid psychological conditions and adverse experiences. Though more research is needed, we could surmise that the pain and loneliness of not feeling truly seen or heard, may coagulate into worsening mood disorders, which could explain why neurodivergent women are more likely to be misdiagnosed and mistreated. The frustration of being passed around from one psychological service to another, knowing that the real problem isn’t being tackled and without knowing how to articulate what that real problem is, further exacerbates the problem. It may even leave neurodivergent women more vulnerable to exploitation: studies have found that one-third of ADHD women have reported being sexually abused as minors 8 compared to 14% for neurotypical women, while a whopping nine out of 10 autistic women have been victims of sexual violence 9 – a threefold higher likelihood than for neurotypical women.

Adult ASD women, in particular, struggle with their gender identities more than men. As mentioned earlier, since autism is more associated with male behaviours, studies show that adult autistic women have difficulty with their identities as women with ASD. They reported discomfort with “[playing] the [role of] wife or girlfriend”, as well as conforming to “female” traits like being “caring [and] nurturing” 10

than men. Even when diagnosed, compared to their male counterparts, they experience the pain of negative events more acutely and engage in much more self-blame and shame than ADHD men do, though research is inconclusive about why this is so.

Again, however, this might be attributable to the pressures of gender conformity that are more strongly felt by women. Popular archetypes of successful women, for instance, rest heavily on the appearance of perfection and ‘having it all’, as exemplified by tropes like the ‘SuperMom’ or the ‘LadyBoss’, the achievement of which require much more concerted effort – and are therefore much more psychologically taxing – for ADHD women than neurotypical women.

It’s not all doom and gloom, though: when eventually diagnosed, neurodivergent women report a sense of “pride and confidence” in themselves upon gaining access to a community of similar individuals, and at finally feeling “accepted and understood by others who have been through similar experiences” 11 Indeed, finding other communities of neurodivergent women online has also proven to be an effective way of bypassing the real difficulties that neurodivergent women often encounter in forming and maintaining female friendships.

EQUITY AND EQUALITY

In some cases, a more equitable perspective of how gender affects neurodivergence is needed. Here, in order to close gender gaps in diagnosing and treating neurodivergence, we need to look at the ways in which different norms have led us to overlook different gender experiences of neurodivergence. For example, associating ADHD primarily with ‘masculine’ hyperactivity and neglecting ADHD as ‘feminine’ inattention immediately puts girls at a disadvantage in terms of diagnosis. Greater care is therefore needed in observing and studying the ways that inattentive ADHD shows up in girls and women, especially in childhood.

much more

Conversely, what stands out the most in the struggles of adult ADHD women compared to men, is the adverse impact of their condition on their self-beliefs. In the absence of a diagnosis, ADHD women tend to attribute their neurodivergent symptoms to character

In other cases, a more equal perspective is needed. Here, we need to look at the ways in which males and females are similar in their neurodivergent symptoms, yet differently penalised for it. For instance, though ASD may show up in males and females in similar ways, female autism is more socially penalised than male autism, since autistic traits are generally considered ‘masculine’. This in turn may encourage masking, worsening the mental and emotional strain on autistic females.

Ultimately, it is crucial to understand that there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to closing gender gaps in the diagnoses and experiences of neurodivergent conditions. Instead, we need to systematically interrogate ourselves and the communities we’re embedded in, and look at how different biological, demographic and social factors interact with one another to precipitate existing gender disparities. Only then can the gaps begin to be narrowed, until they’re one day almost closed.

In some cases, a more equitable perspective of how gender affects neurodivergence is needed. Here, in order to close gender gaps in diagnosing and treating neurodivergence, we need to look at the ways in which different norms have led us to overlook different gender experiences of neurodivergence. For example, associating ADHD primarily with ‘masculine’ hyperactivity and neglecting ADHD as ‘feminine’ inattention immediately puts girls at a disadvantage in terms of diagnosis. Greater care is therefore needed in observing and studying the ways that inattentive ADHD shows up in girls and women, especially in childhood.

Santriani Bohari Jaon is a writer at a local production house. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Social Science, and enjoys deep dives into psychology, faith, human experience, and emotion. She strives to weave these elements together through the specific craft of storytelling and in her larger practice of writing as well.

He is Different But Never Less

BY JULIANAWARTI JUMALI

One of the things I most look forward to during each year-end is the Individualised Education Programme (IEP) meetings with my son’s teachers. It gives me a better idea of what has worked regarding teaching strategies and interventions, and whether he has achieved some of the goals we had planned for the year.

My eldest son, Aydan Ziqry, is 11 years old and in Primary 4 at Pathlight School this year. Pathlight School is the first autismfocused school in Singapore that offers the national curriculum and equips students with life-readiness skills.

Unlike his peers taking their Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) next year, Aydan will still be doing his Primary 4 curriculum in 2023.

This is because at 7 years old, Aydan was enrolled in the Foundation programme at Pathlight School, which provided him with additional support – he was in Primary 1 for over two years. Currently, he is also on the same timeline for Primary 4.

The additional year in both instances, serve to scaffold key concepts and abstract ideas into manageable chunks, and Aydan’s learning will be reinforced through regular iterations.

When my husband and I were first asked if we were open to placing Aydan on this pathway, we immediately agreed.

We recognise his cognitive limitations and realise the effect of the rigorous curriculum on Aydan. A big part of Aydan’s autism is his impairment with language, which affects how long it takes to process new information before he can respond. We agreed that a longer Primary 4 runway would allow him to keep up with school at a more comfortable pace.

LOOKING FOR A GOOD FIT

The Compulsory Education Act to make primary school education compulsory for all children in Singapore was passed by the Singapore Parliament in 2000 and came into effect in January 2003.

Under the Compulsory Education Act, a child of compulsory school age above 6 but under 15 years old must attend a national primary school unless granted an exemption.

National primary schools include government-funded special education (SPED) schools. There are currently 20 SPED schools in Singapore catering to students with different disabilities.

Our search for a primary school started as early as 2015 after Aydan was diagnosed with autism. My husband and I were determined to get Aydan into a SPED school. We wanted an environment where his learning could be purposeful and he would be supported with all the necessary resources he might eventually need.

Our determination was mainly shaped by our difficulties during Aydan’s preschool years. Right before he was diagnosed, Aydan displayed significant deficits in his ability to socialise and communicate. He preferred to play alone, was easily affected by sudden loud noises, and would not participate in classroom activities. He was 3 years old then.

A NECESSARY EVIL

Between the ages of 3 and 6, Aydan was in three different preschools because we were advised during the initial diagnosis to place Aydan in a kindergarten with a mainstream curriculum. Aydan displayed the ability to assimilate and thus would benefit from interactions with neurotypical children.

This was a very challenging period for us as we tried to find the right fit. We were looking for an environment where teachers and administrators could see Aydan beyond his diagnosis. We finally found a kindergarten where the principal, teachers, parents, and peers saw Aydan as someone with potential, not just a boy with autism.

This lack of a consistent environment and routine over those formative years was a necessary evil. It shaped our parenting behaviour and beliefs – there needs to be more to school than academic achievements.

While we were clear about our expectations for Aydan, we received comments that we might be limiting Aydan’s potential.

“Why not consider a mainstream school? Maybe with a little push, he can do well. Many schools now have specialised staff,

provisions, and intervention programmes for children with special needs.”

We understood these comments were well-intentioned.

Instead of dismissing the idea altogether, we decided to explain our rationale –that beyond academic support, we also wanted a positive, kind and nurturing environment.

To these individuals, we usually would share our incident with a property agent whom we met during a house hunt. She revealed that her son was also on the spectrum. She, too, felt that we were limiting Aydan’s potential and urged us to reconsider our decision.

Her son, she said, was diagnosed with autism at 5 years old, but her husband was against enrolling him in a SPED school.

“Do you know he did so well in streaming exams, he will be in the best class next year?” she exclaimed proudly.

When I asked how she strengthened his social skills, she admitted he had issues making friends. She then confided that her son was often bullied and occasionally expressed suicidal thoughts.

Our answer will be that we measure Aydan in other ways; beyond grades and abilities. We want Aydan to lead a meaningful life, one where he can be an active contributor to better the community and he is able to be independent, happy, and healthy.

At the end of that brief encounter, we exchanged numbers because she was interested to find out more about a therapist Aydan was seeing.

According to a survey conducted by the Singapore Children’s Society in 2007, one in every five primary school students surveyed had been a victim of bullying. Name-calling was seen to be the most prevalent form.

Generally, all students face many unique challenges as they venture into their academic pursuits. However, depending on which part of the spectrum they are on, kids with autism struggle more, both academically and socially.

The first step towards supporting students with autism is to recognise these struggles and provide a safe space for them to make meaningful connections and learn purposefully.

TAKING SMALL STEPS IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

As parents, we are responsible for ensuring our children have the best possible path to learning and development. My husband and I never felt burdened by the stigma of placing our child in a SPED school. We also never shy away from sharing the many difficulties we face as a family, managing Aydan and his quirks. As a family advocating for autism acceptance, we do not tiptoe around the issue of Aydan and his autism because it rarely leads to good outcomes.

I often tell my other children, Aadil Haris and Amelie Sofia Hannah, “Abang (Big brother) needs our love and support.”

Typically, it is through siblings that children learn to openly express their emotions and teach each other social skills. They also play a part in shaping one another’s identity. However, having an older sibling on the spectrum means some aspects of this relationship have changed significantly.

We recognise the stresses they face and acknowledge they do not have the cognitive and emotional maturity yet to deal with Aydan’s stimming and meltdowns. Just like how we support Aydan with the necessary skills to live independently, we expend the same effort in ensuring Aadil and Amelie too never feel isolated.

Aadil’s understanding of Aydan’s condition has given him an ‘old soul’. In addition, we often receive comments that Aadil is very perceptive and reflective, traits many 8-year-olds may not usually display.

Amelie, who is only 2, understands in her own way that Aydan is special. She is more affectionate and patient with Aydan and not at all with Aadil!

DO NOT FEAR FAILURE

Since Primary 1, Aydan’s academic results have never been stellar. He fails in all subjects but receives SPED Awards every year.

The SPED Awards are funded annually by the Ministry of Education to recognise SPED students for their achievements and progress. In addition, these awards serve to recognise students for their accomplishments in both academic and non-academic areas.

This year, Aydan received awards for Most Contributive Student, Most Compassionate Student, and Best in Information Technology (IT).

We are proud of Aydan because these awards were given not just for his hard work but also for his ‘heart’ work in school!

THE ROAD IS LONG

This year marks Aydan's fifth year of primary school, and the journey has been an emotional pendulum. I’m often in awe of his endless growth and joy whenever he makes significant progress. But, there too have been dark days when it aches in a particular way as I look at other children similar in age to Aydan and allow myself to think all that he cannot and may never be.

In those times, I allow myself to grieve for a moment because this autism journey is a long one.

Sometime this year, a fellow parent whose son, much older than Aydan and in Pathlight School, left me a message on my Facebook account. He was concerned when he read all my social media posts on our difficulties with Aydan and his homework load. He advised us to re-evaluate whether Aydan was suited for the academic route.

He faced similar challenges when his son was about Aydan’s age and shared how he was so stressed that the learning was no longer meaningful. He then requested to put his son in Pathlight’s Track V (vocational), where the desired outcomes focus on living, learning, and working.

After doing much research, my husband and I agreed that the objectives of the pathway closely match our expectations for Aydan. Developing work skills may be the answer for Aydan to lead an independent life as much as possible in the future.

However, this vocational track only accepts students 13 years old and above, the age when generally students would have completed their PSLE. By choosing this track Aydan will not be sitting for PSLE, an anomaly where PSLE is often considered a rite of passage for all primary school students in Singapore.

Perhaps this may even be a conversation starter in the future – why do we not even give Aydan the chance to take PSLE?

Our answer will be that we measure Aydan in other ways; beyond grades and abilities. We want Aydan to lead a meaningful life, one where he can be an active contributor to better the community and he is able to be independent, happy, and healthy.

Aydan’s pathway in school and life will always be unique. He may continue to struggle to find his feet in a world that often may be overwhelming for him. However, the goal that we set for him remains the same.

We hope for Aydan to face the future with dignity and grace. With the unwavering support and love from his family, we want Aydan to fully embrace the fact that he is different but never less.

Julianawarti Jumali is a Principal Executive with the Social Media Department at National Trades Union Congress (NTUC). She chronicles her family’s autism journey on Instagram (@juliana_j). She is a mother to two boys and a girl, Aydan Ziqry, Aadil Haris and Amelie Sofia Hannah.

AND ACADEMICS

BY SYED IMAD ALATAS

THE PHD FACTORY

When I first heard the term ‘PhD factory’, it took me a few seconds to realise what it meant and was immediately privy to the precarity of academia. A Doctor of Philosophy or PhD degree connotes a certain level of prestige. It is the pinnacle of learning. You might make friends for life, and friends who challenge your way of thinking. You get to meet and work with professors whose interests align with yours. Securing an opportunity to do a PhD is not easy. No doubt, academia is an elite industry. Scholarships are competitive, and you cannot read the minds of the admission committees. You will not know if your Graduate Records Examinations (GRE) score matters when applying to the US. Ironically, while it is difficult to get a PhD spot, more and more are doing one, leading to an oversupply of PhD graduates. Universities only have so many positions for these individuals. How do they decide? One is publication record. Another criteria is the number and types of grants you have secured for your own research.

The point is, you have to be stellar, and even more stellar, than a PhD graduate a few decades ago. The factory analogy is derived from the perception that PhD graduates are akin to mass-produced commodities constantly rolling on a conveyor belt. Some are ‘packaged’ into a university while others, unfortunately, drop off the end of the belt. Sadly, no one cares what happens to this latter group. Uncertainty and loneliness constitute the dark side of the PhD. Some, if not many, are familiar with the joke that PhD stands for ‘permanent head damage’. It is debatable whether the damage is permanent, but there is certainly damage done. Some just deal with it better than others. The damage lies in the effects academia has on students’ mental health. It takes courage to stay mentally sane.

A RISKY ENDEAVOUR

Academia is meaningful, fulfilling, and a dream, especially for those genuinely interested in being researchers and lecturers. One may also be in academia to mentor the next generation of students. On the other hand, there are also companies outside academia that value a PhD. However, prestige, self-fulfilment, and precarity come in one package. Strip away the glamour, the prestige, the ‘Dr’ title, and you encounter a risk-laden career path. It

is a game where the rewards are not immediate. You need to be patient. Some PhD programmes take four years; others can take up to eight years. Even after that long journey, it is not common to get a job right after defending your dissertation. Part of being patient entails dealing with inevitable mental health issues such as burnout, lack of motivation, and insecurity because a journal reviewer is baffled that you would even write to their journal, or just the constant reminder on Facebook and LinkedIn that your friends have corporate jobs and are currently living the life. Academia is competitive. One is probably applying for the same scholarships, fellowships, or grants as their cohort mates.

And then there is the financial aid that is inaccessible to students because they do not have the citizenship of the country they are pursuing their studies in. Let us not forget the stories we read online or hear by word-of-mouth of students having an abusive relationship with their supervisors but are scared to say anything for fear of reprisal. Lastly, academic cultures vary from region to region. Pursuing a PhD in Singapore might not produce the same experience in more cosmopolitan contexts such as in Europe, North America, or Australia. All these factors test one’s mental strength. It is not uncommon to hear of students dropping out of undergraduate or graduate programmes; it can take a toll on one. Dropping out is not aberrant. Taking some time away from studies may help one recuperate and get back on the academic horse a year later, maybe even two. I do not want to restrict my article to graduate students. Undergraduates have a different set of struggles, but struggle, nonetheless. So, too, do other students .

ADDRESSING MENTAL HEALTH IN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

Now, the mental health of students reflects not just their own biological make-up, but also the mental health infrastructure within their universities and the mental health support they receive. The past two-and-a-half years of the global pandemic particularly saw more discussions on mental health and the educational experiences of students. Zoom fatigue caught up with them. So did a lack of social interaction. Yet, it is likely that the pandemic only exacerbated mental issues in youth. For one, social media, peer

A few months later, in June 2022, CNA published an article reporting results from a survey on 470 Singaporean undergraduates and their mental health concerns. COVID-19 was a factor, though not the only one. Three in four respondents mentioned that they wanted more support for their academics, including deadline extensions for assignments. They also talked about other concerns, such as work/study commitments and issues of selfconfidence. The findings also indicated that students have an unhealthy obsession with grades so as to secure a job after graduation.

pressure, and economic downturns all predate, and coincide, with the pandemic. The world today is arguably more uncertain than before. This uncertainty can affect educational performance as we put pressure on ourselves to get that ‘A’ to increase our chances of getting a job. Getting good grades might also not be enough if you do not feel worthy of those grades. This is imposter syndrome.

A survey done by the People Action Party’s youth wing in March 2022 found that one in two respondents aged 15 to 35 have experienced mental health struggles1 . A few months later, in June 2022, CNA published an article reporting results from a survey on 470 Singaporean undergraduates and their mental health concern2 COVID-19 was a factor, though not the only one. Three in four respondents mentioned that they wanted more support for their academics, including deadline extensions for assignments. They also talked about other concerns, such as work/study commitments and issues of self-confidence. The findings also indicated that students have an unhealthy obsession with grades so as to secure a job after graduation. A few solutions were suggested, including the creation of student-led initiatives that could help alleviate oversubscribed counselling services in universities. The CNA report alone is important. It highlights the stresses of being a student. The urgency to address mental health issues is appreciated.

However, solutions such as planning student-led initiatives for counselling services are not necessarily long-term. First of all, will students be able to take on the role of a therapist when they have their own stress to deal with? Therapists need therapy too. Who will take care of the students leading these initiatives? As for academic ‘grace days’, those are important. Having breathing room because your professor allows you to submit your assignment a few days later is invaluable. What really needs addressing, though, is the academic culture epitomised by terms such as ‘bell curve’. At the UCare Mental Health Forum, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, Edwin Tong spoke of a ‘hustle culture’ where students are

stressed from as young as 14 years old. Such a culture is unlikely to change, given the competition for jobs. At the very least, Mr Tong noted that conversations on mental health needed to be normalised. How will this happen? What will happen in universities so that it is normal to talk about mental health? A still bigger question is how do we reconcile competitiveness with self-care?

Another issue with mental health is reaching out to mental health services. Some may be hesitant to reach out due to stigma. Seeing a therapist means acknowledging to yourself that you have a problem, and that self-admission can be overwhelming. We need to normalise mental health issues so that we can acknowledge it is normal to be mentally stressed. One way is to at least talk about mental issues during orientation programmes before students matriculate, so that students know it is normal to struggle and seek help. It is normal to experience breakdowns, even if you are achieving top marks for all your subjects and want to maintain them because you are worried about getting a good job. Normalising these experiences will make students feel less hesitant to approach mental health professionals since they are less likely to be judged for being ‘weak’ or an ‘attention seeker’. Some students in the survey lamented a lack of professionalism and quality among university counsellors as a reason for not consulting university resources. While not a majority sentiment, this distrust of university resources may erode overall trust in university counselling services in the future. An obvious solution to this would be to improve the quality of counsellors attached to universities. This may mean an increase in funding for mental health services in Singapore’s educational institutions.

Mr Tong also said that solutions to mental health crises need to be thought of at every level. One level is the home. Tackling mental health problems requires a conversation on family dynamics. Do students look at the home as a safe space to vent their frustrations due to schoolwork and feelings of inadequacy engendered during the rat race for that

cumulative average point? It is worth looking into how parents themselves support their children and what their perceptions of therapy are. There are reasons why kids may not turn to their parents. No doubt, it is not easy for a parent to face the reality that their child is struggling, but the normalisation of seeking help has to start at home. Admittedly, I do not have a solution for this. There surely is a generation gap, with therapy and psychological services not being as visible during our parents’ times. Another common reason cited for kids shying away is that there is a stigma and shame associated with seeking help for mental health issues in Asian societies, including Singapore. For students that do not feel comfortable talking to their parents, at least they have their friends to turn to. At University of North Carolina, we often get emails about self-care and mental health awareness. We are periodically encouraged to seek help when we need it. However, even if the stigma associated with seeking help is less severe in some societies, there is still the issue of cost. Not everyone can afford to pay the deductible for therapy.

As the saying goes, ‘it’s okay to not be okay’. Undergraduate and graduate programmes produce different kinds of stresses that I can attest to. Sometimes therapy is needed. Other times, you just need a listening ear from a friend, parent, advisor, or colleague. Education is a noble pursuit, but the journey can get crazy at times. Mental health in academia is a topic that we need to continuously reflect on. Furthermore, poor mental health can also manifest itself physically, through anorexia, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, and other illnesses. With an absence of shame, and the right kind of support, we can stay sane in an insane world.

Syed Imad Alatas is currently pursuing his PhD in Sociology at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. His main research interests are in gender and religion, topics on which he has written for Singaporean and Malaysian publications.

EXPLORING THE WORLD BEYOND WITH SYAHROM RAHMAD

BY NUR DIYANA JALIL

Syahrom Rahmad and his family

Apart from gaining international work experience that can provide long-term career benefits, many Singaporeans are considering working overseas for their own exposure and life experience as it offers them opportunities to experience new cities and cultures. A survey1 conducted by the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Shapers community found that nearly 70 percent of Singaporean millennials who participated said that they are willing to work overseas, with Australia and the United States chosen as their preferred destinations. The number of Singaporeans looking for a job abroad has also grown by 72 percent since the beginning of the pandemic2

For 43-year-old Syahrom Rahmad, his love of exploring the world beyond Singapore and meeting people from different cultures, religions and races made him decide to pursue a career overseas. Prior to working as a Fleet Maintenance Coordinator in Perth, Australia, he had also worked in Qatar for seven years. He shares his experiences overseas with the Karyawan team.

Q: Could you tell us more about yourself and your family?

Syahrom: Both my wife and I are the eldest in our family and we studied in Australia during our undergraduate days. We have been married for 20 years and have five children – four daughters and a son – aged 8 to 16. The first three are in high school and the other two are in primary school. My wife, Surianah Rosli, is the Head of Mathematics at Al-Ameen Islamic College.

Q: What does your job entail and what is your typical day like?

Syahrom: I am a Licensed Aircraft Engineer working with Virgin Australia as a Fleet Maintenance Coordinator. It is a five-day week and office hour job with occasional travels within Australia and to other countries. Virgin Australia sends their aircraft to MRO in Singapore for maintenance. My job is to schedule the aircraft for maintenance as well as liaising with the MRO operators to oversee the maintenance project. MRO in aviation

usually refers to a major maintenance facility where aircraft are taken to be serviced.

Q: What drew you to a profession in the aviation industry?

Syahrom: My family love to travel and have travelled to many countries such as France, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Georgia, and Andorra. We have also visited unique places like the Airbus Factory in Toulouse, Zugspitze Mountain (tallest in Germany) and the Swarovski Factory in Austria. To me, the best way to travel at a low cost, especially when you have a big family, is to work for an airline. There is also the passion that I have for aviation as I have always been fascinated by how a huge piece of metal can fly.

Q: What have been the challenges and highlights of working and living overseas?

Syahrom: The differences in culture and languages play pivotal roles in the common challenges of working and living overseas, especially in the Middle East. It teaches us to be more tolerant, openminded, and accepting while finding a compromise in the differences with our international workmates and friends. Some of the highlights are sharing and educating the non-Muslims about Islam; my first three daughters are studying at a Baptist college in Perth yet still don the hijab and maintain their awrah (modesty), while my eldest two are student leaders in school.

Q: You were based in Qatar for 7 years prior to working in Australia. How different are the culture and lifestyle in both countries compared to Singapore?

Syahrom: Qatar, being a Muslim country, has many benefits. Halal food is easily accessible, and fuel is very cheap. They have mosques at every corner, including in malls and petrol stations, with the azan (call to prayer) being played throughout the day across the country. It is also easier to perform the umrah (minor pilgrimage) from Qatar. The summer season is challenging as the temperature can reach up to 49 to 50 degrees Celsius. During this time, our activities are restricted indoors,

especially in malls just to escape the heat and enjoy the air-conditioning.

Australia, on the other hand, is surrounded by nature and greenery. Its ethnicities are even more diverse than Singapore, yet they have a higher tolerance and accepting culture. In general, Australia has a slower pace and encourages work life-balance. In 2017, we decided to move to Perth upon the approval of our permanent residence (PR) applications.

Q: Your wife teaches at Al Ameen Islamic College. How big is the Muslim community in Perth and is Perth a Muslim-friendly city?

Syahrom: Perth is very much a Muslimfriendly city since it is home to many Muslims from Asia and the Middle East. Al-Ameen Islamic College is one of the four Islamic colleges in Perth. There are plans to expand and add new campuses at these Islamic schools, build more mosques and Islamic Centres. The local supermarkets such as Coles and Woolworths have halal meat sections and a musollah (prayer area) is made available in one of the bigger malls in Perth. Muslim students in non-Muslim schools are normally allowed to perform prayers in their schools. For example, my daughters are given a space to do their

Syahrom's passion for aviation led to him carving a career as a fleet maintenance coordinator.

daily Zuhur prayers in their school, Carey Baptist College. Festivals like Aidilfitri and Aidiladha are major community events that are celebrated across the state.

Q: How do you spend your free time with your family? Do you partake in any activities popular with Australians?

Syahrom: Australia is an outdoor and sports-oriented country. It is also known for its beautiful beaches. My family loves to partake in activities such as hiking, cave-trailing and bush walking through the hills and forests. We also love swimming, snorkelling and my children hope to take up surfing one day. My daughters are huge netball buffs. All of them play for a club and alhamdulillah, the Netball Association has no issues with our girls maintaining their awrah (modesty).

Q: What are your future plans? Do you intend to stay in Australia or venture out to other countries?

Syahrom: We plan to stay in Australia until all our children complete their university education. Moving to another country will always be an option when the right opportunity arises.

Q: If there was one thing you could have done differently to prepare yourself for a career overseas, what would it be?

Syahrom: One thing I could have done differently is to learn Arabic. It is very useful when communicating with the Arabs in the Middle East. They have high regard for non-native Arabs who can speak Arabic fluently.

Q: Do you have any advice for Malay/Muslim youths who aspire to pursue their career overseas?

Syahrom: My advice is to go for it! The experience will definitely change you. Working outside of Singapore will give you a different perspective towards working life. Maintain your Malay roots and share the culture with others, especially our food! Explore the world and meet the people Allah s.w.t has created, spread the word of Islam and dispel any misconceptions that non-Muslims may have about Islam and Muslims.

According to Syahrom, the differences in culture and languages teach us to be more tolerant, open-minded, and accepting, while finding a compromise in the differences with international workmates and friends.

Nur Diyana Jalil is an Executive at the Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA), managing its social media, events and publications.

Islam in a Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Shariah

For Muslims to fully practise their rights by conviction and free choice, it can only be actualised in a secular state. The secular state acts as a safeguard against the hegemonic enforcement of the Shariah that opposes the universal values of Islam. The secular state is also intended to nurture and regulate the role of Islam in public life through the shaping of ethical norms that can be reflected in public institutions, policies and social relations (pp. 1-3). This is the crux of An-Naim’s book, Islam and the Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Shari’a. At the heart of this groundbreaking book is a compelling narrative on how Muslim societies can approach the dilemmas that emerged from the dialectical relationship between the state and religion, particularly Islam. The author Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na’im, a renowned Islamic scholar and human rights activist from Sudan, is a leading voice on Islamic reform and a staunch critic of Islamism and authoritarianism in the Muslim world. Although An-Na’im has primarily spent the better part of his intellectual life in the United States, it can be argued that as an academic in exile, his intellectual project is shaped by his active involvement in Sudan's struggle to reconcile Islam, the state, and society.

BY SHEIKH MOHAMAD FAROUQ ABDUL FAREEZ

For this reason, An-Na’im extrapolated lessons from Sudan’s tumultuous history through the methodological framework of his teacher, Ustadh Mahmoud Taha, also a Sudanese Muslim reformer, to promote an ethical compliance of Shariah that can play a transformative role in the life of Muslims and nation-building, which is essentially the aim of the book (p. 2). This paper provides a critical analysis of An-Na’im’s ideas based on the book's first chapter. Though it is crucial to read it in its entirety, the opening chapter provides a summative

overview of An-Na’im’s intellectual project. It lays the theoretical foundation for studying the relationship between Islam and the secular state.

While the central proposition of An-Naim rested on the institutional separation between Islam and the state, he recognises that Islam cannot be excluded from public life and politics. Maintaining the connection between Islam and politics would allow the implementation of universal Islamic values such as justice in policymaking and concomitantly provide the ideological underpinnings for the maximisation of key notions of human rights, constitutionalism, and citizenship (pp. 4-5). Thus, the key challenge that the book attempts to address is how to sustain the separation between Islam and the state while regulating the role of Islam in the political sphere. In order to address this conundrum, it is crucial to understand three key ideas that the book is premised upon: the secular state, the Shariah, and the discursive interaction between the two.

THE SECULAR STATE AS A MEDIATOR

Crucial to the book’s argument is that the secular state is not entirely foreign to Islam; instead, it can be defended based on Islamic history and its intellectual traditions (p. 4). An-Na’im argues that the Quran addresses Muslims as individuals or a community of believers without citing the need for a state or a particular system of governance. In this regard, the Quran allows Muslims to construct their understanding of a state that is ultimately a human construction and inherently ‘secular’. For An-Naim, the mechanisms of a secular state can negotiate differences among various groups and religious communities without favouring any religion. Indeed, the state is not entirely neutral. Still, it uses its organs and institutions to protect freedom of belief and expression crucial for developing and transforming religious communities that share the same socio-political space. It is essential to recognise that this freedom is not unfettered due to the existence of an overarching framework that mediates any possible tensions. This framework can also be supported by the Islamic principle of mu’awada (reciprocity) and accentuated by the political principles of

self-determination (p. 38). It essentially forms the basis of modern citizenship that denotes an affirmative belonging to a pluralistic and inclusive community that protects equal rights for all without discrimination (p. 33)

Nonetheless, An-Naim also makes it clear that his call for a secular state is different from the secularisation of society or the removal of religion from public life which he deeply opposes (p. 8). A state should be secular in the sense that it is unbiased to all the different religious communities. State impartiality is necessary for true conviction to be the driving force of religious and social practice without fearing those who control the state. Against this backdrop, there is a need to place secularism on a spectrum to avoid faulty generalisations that overlook the term’s complexities. In short, secularism as an equitable political system and not as a coercive philosophy is acceptable in Islam and desirable to Muslims, particularly in places where they are the minority. Singapore’s unique model of secularism is a good case in point, which is described as ‘secularism with a soul’. As a secular state, it does not accord any preference to religion(s) to subvert public order. However, it provides its citizens with the freedom to believe or not to believe. Moreover, religion plays a role in influencing public policies to maintain Singapore’s social fabric. The formation of The Presidential Council for Religious Harmony to advise the Singapore government on social cohesion reflects this desirability.

In view of this, An-Naim’s notion of the secular diametrically opposes the French form of hegemonic secularism that must be located in the broader context of France's historical revolutions and postcolonial anxieties with its former colonies, particularly Algeria (pp. 40-41) This hegemony also applies to the notion of an Islamic state which, according to An-Naim, is a postcolonial invention that combines a European idea of a nation-state and a totalitarian understanding of the Shariah to regulate individual behaviours and social relations (p. 7)

SHARIAH AS AN INTERGENERATIONAL CONSENSUS

According to An-Naim, the enforcement of the Shariah by the state will always be secular and not reflective of any superior Islamic authority. In fact, the idea of a ‘Shariah state’ is a modern invention of the 20th century that was a byproduct of colonialism and Islamic revivalism in its epistemic sense. This understanding of Shariah is fundamentally problematic as the nature of Shariah in its most profound meaning is antithetical to codification. An-Naim added that the interpretation of Shariah by its very nature entails plurality in views about what it means and how it should be applied. In other words, it is not just about law as it represents a complex set of moral, economic, and cultural practices that deeply pervade social structures. On the contrary, codification diminishes the complexity of a vast tradition tolerant of ambiguities to a simplistic view that represents the interests of the people who control the state and not the Islamic intellectual tradition. This is because a key marker of a modern territorial state is the centralisation of its laws for the state to supervise the legal realm actively. To overcome this problem, the state not only has to be secular, but An-Naim proposes a rather exciting idea to rethink the Shariah as a product of intergenerational negotiation and consensus. It implies that the Shariah cannot be part of a statist project that regulates the behaviour of its people from a coercive position. Instead, the interactions within the Islamicate1 have acquainted us that the Shariah, albeit deriving from the religious texts, is always negotiated through the lived experiences of a community and not imposed by the state.

An-Naim further argues that the Shariah ceases to serve its ethical commitments once it becomes a statute as religious and state recognition are two distinct categories that cannot be collapsed on each other. In fact, the Quran does not address institutions or states; instead, it speaks to the community of believers. Following this premise, the Shariah as it is understood today in Muslim-majority countries is an anomaly for two reasons. First, the state cannot have a religion due to its epistemic variance. Second, its

1 The term Islamicate was coined by Marshall Hodgson in his book The Venture of Islam, which refers to "the social and cultural complex historically associated with Islam and the Muslims, both among Muslims themselves and even when found among non-Muslims" (p.59).

monolithic imposition inhibits the growth of independent inquiry and personal responsibility, which are fundamental requirements to facilitate the moral and volitional choices Muslims make (p. 3)

Nonetheless, it is crucial to recognise that the Shariah is not inherently hostile to modern laws as it can serve as a moral directive that allows constructive pathways for engaging modernity. If rightly understood, according to An-Naim, Muslims can embrace a more sophisticated view of the Shariah that is essentially humanistic without feeling conflicted with their multiple identities. Here, An-Naim’s overall understanding of the Shariah draws similarities with the definition put forward by the great Muslim jurist Ibn al-Qayyim wherein the Shariah aims to secure the common good for everyone regardless of their religion by protecting the community from injustices, hostility, and harm. In this regard, the Shariah should aim to reconcile the totality of a Muslim’s piety with the common good voluntarily and not through coercive enforcement by the state. To facilitate this, An-Naim suggests a cross-cultural dialogue to establish an equilibrium between the secular state and religion that must be grounded in civic reason (pp. 37-42).

CIVIC REASON FOR MEDIATING CONFLICT BETWEEN RELIGION AND STATE

Civic reason here refers to a process in which most citizens can accept or reject the foundation and aims of public policies and legislation. Here, An-Naim, to a certain degree, alludes to Immanuel Kant’s notion of a ‘categorical imperative’ wherein one should act in accordance with the rules that could hold for everyone. Additionally, civic reason entitles all citizens to publicly debate on the common good and how it can be translated into society. This process of reasoning is equally accessible to everyone without the need to refer to religious beliefs. Thus, it is incorrect to enforce a state policy by using God as a pretext for a pernicious political interest. Instead, the implementation of state policies has to be persuasive to everyone on account of being a citizen of the state. An-Naim reiterates that civic reasoning does not inhibit the Shariah but drives Muslims to reflect on the higher objectives of the Shariah to persuade others in the

name of the common good without reference to the sacred texts. For example, a Muslim may argue that riba (interest) should be illegal because it contravenes the higher objective of the Shariah – to prevent the unjust depletion of wealth –and can also demonstrate policy rationales to substantiate the argument in a way that other citizens can deliberate, accept or reject without passing judgment based on the normative positions of the religious texts on riba (p. 281). In this sense, the Shariah is not imposed anachronistically based on the conditions of 7th century Arabia, but it is lived and actualised throughout time. An-Naim further argues that civic reason guarantees the separation of state and religion, which essentially benefits Muslims by protecting their rights to form independent beliefs as long as it does not infringe upon the rights of others. He also added that civic reason should not be left unchecked for the state to dictate or exploit but should merely provide a framework for inclusive, internal discourse. This approach overlaps considerably with John Rawls and Habermas’ notion of ‘public reason’ to a certain degree. However, An-Naim notes that his concept differs from theirs as 'public reason' marginalises the role of religion in the public sphere, which aligns with the secularisation thesis that An-Naim opposes (pp. 97-101). Instead, civic reason favours a robust role for religion in public life to advance the common good and ensure human flourishing.

CHALLENGES

Notwithstanding An-Naim’s bold attempts to resolve the tensions between the requirements of a secular state and the Islamic tradition, it might be argued that his arguments are inadequately grounded in the hermeneutical analysis of Islamic sources to be taken seriously by traditional Muslims. This is because his scheme disregards the doctrinal approach that uses theological orthodoxy as a baseline for Islamic commitments in favour of empirical methods of social sciences that might resonate with those who already accept the desirability of a secular state rather than convincing orthodox Muslim skeptics of the plausibility of a secular state in Islam. Concerning Islamic orthodoxy, it is also difficult to imagine an orthodox Shia Muslim openly embracing An-Naim’s secular thesis due to the need for an infallible imam that is part of their

doctrinal commitments. Nonetheless, in critically assessing An-Naim’s Islamic justification for the desirability of a secular state, it should not give the impression that such a project is impossible to achieve nor trivialise the importance of the project, for that matter. Instead, it is offering suggestions to provide more depth and persuasiveness should An-Naim spend more time tapping into the resources of Islam's theological, ethical, and historical tradition rather than slantingly depending on the heuristics of social sciences. As a matter of fact, An-Naim’s central idea that the state can protect the rights of a Muslim society based on democratic principles and that the Shariah can be ideated as an ethical system committed to justice and the rule of law, can be extrapolated from a wide range of Islamic theological and political discourses of the tradition.

Despite the slight dissatisfaction with An-Naim’s Islamic justification for a secular state, this chapter and, by extension, the entire book provides a practical and persuasive way for Muslims who are in favour of a secular state and, to some extent, traditional Muslims who seek to live their lives within the framework of a modern nation-state. Overall, the thoughtprovoking reflections from the book are helpful for readers to understand how Muslim societies can and should address the dilemmas that emerged from the interactions between state, law, and religion.

Sheikh Mohamad Farouq Abdul Fareez was a Senior Research Analyst at the Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA). He holds a Master’s degree in Islamic Thought and Applied Ethics. His area of interest involves issues concerning religion, human development and ethics.

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