Letter from Arnold Segran, a Malaysian living in Singapore, April 16, 2008

I refer to your article Singapore Dissident

I am a Malaysian Indian living in Singapore,

The social and political climate in my country is well documented especially here in Singapore with disparity among races being a key issue.Singapore from the outside has always looked a prosperous country with economical power and political stability.

But only after living here do I know the real situation in this country but it is sad to say that things over here are as bad as it is back home.

In singapore the racial harmony is non existent compared to what they would like to potray with social advertisements.

There is also another article by Dr Selvaraj Velayutham-Everyday Racism in Singapore which talks about the state of minorities in this country.It is a bitter pill to swallow when one feels like a second-class citizen in his own country,

I know that feeling, I've lived through it my whole life,

The problem is that people are not allowed to speak about it here in Singapore as it is seen as a threat to National Security.

It is also sad to say that the freedom of press here in Singapore is below in the ranking compared to even Malaysia.

I quote your article:'this influx of Chinese from Communist China is a step backwards and with time, turns Singapore into another satellite city of China.'I trully agree with this statement as I see it here in everyday life. It has reached to such a bad state that being able to speak Mandarin seems to be more valuable than English.

Looking back to the article where you state that people should demonstrate is a good prospect but unfortunately it would take real unity and perseverance to do so, I say so based on the recent demonstrations in my country where people took to the streets for the sake of their futures and the futures of their children.

I hope that Singaporeans don't wait till melting point to do so as it may be too late then.This has to be done sooner rather then later.