I would have had a worse day if I went! Already feeling so down and out before exam week, I wanted to go witness how bad the parade could be since i had bad reports about it. I saw it on tv and i nearly hurled. I regret not making the soft news article more negative...
Chingay’s ethnicity—Malay, Chinese, Russian?
By Chia Kylie
“If the purpose of Chingay today is to boost tourism, I am sure tourists will be eager to discover more about Chinese culture in this part of the world, rather than sample an attempt at mimicking a Disney parade,” said Mr Nge Tuck Long in a forum letter to Straits Times last year.
Mr Chan Xiang Ju, a photographer agrees: “If I wanted entertainment, I’d watch some Hollywood movie instead.”
Case in point, is the purpose of the Chingay Parade becoming too watered down? Or is it just incorporating so many cultures that his Mardi Gras seems to be exaggerated already? Some argue that Chingay is increasingly a white elephant, however on the lighter side, there are more benefits that Chingay might still offer us.
Anyone who has gone to view the Parade live will have experienced the atmosphere, the entertaining costumes and decorated floats that traverse the parade grounds. There is also interactivity as you get to walk with the performers and immerse into the spirit of the crowd; Mr Chan even complimented the effort that “with Singapore being a globalised city, it would be good to introduce Singaporeans to others’ cultures”. Such are the beneficial points of the Parade, another being that it is good to have nation-wide events year round to de-stress Singaporeans.
But one would also discover that everyone would be lost about what was going on. “There are different cultural performances, but you don’t hear the emcees saying what type of dance it is or the purpose of it,” said Mr Fahmi Raihan who watched the parade first-hand. “Someone has to explain to, example, their children as it is very noisy there.” The parade, seemingly, defeats its purpose if spectators don’t know the significance of the performances and if simple harmonious values cannot be instilled in the younger generation. It is demeaning that organisers do not consider the spectators and it is one area that can be improved in.
Of course, other justifiable means that Chingay seems to deviate from the four main races in Singapore is that the different organisations, like People’s Association Youth Movement (PAYM) and Singapore SOKA Association, would churn ideas based only on their interpretation of the theme provided. Last year’s was Wonderland, hence it used insects, flower petals and elves to bring out the wonderland in youth. The ants came together to collect the food for themselves while butterflies flew around.
The question is whether we should try to create themes that are more in line with our own four cultures and reserve it only for the Chinese festivities? Or do we let the show go on and keep things spiced? In the position of the organisers, one would choose to stay relevent and loud in hope of maintaining or even luring audiences to the parades, so it is as more a business prospect than it is an ethical issue.
On another note, Mr Chan feels Chingay still serve its purpose as it is a tourist attraction which would aid in boosting the economical sector in Singapore. “Not only does it boost our economy, we also have foreign broadcasters and reporters coming to broadcast on Chingay because of its culture,” said Mr Gary Mo, secretary of PAYM Joo Chiat CC.
However, taking it a bit further, layman Mr Marcus Tay takes a more negative stand. He states that the parade mirrors Singapore society taking a more globalised route, paralleled with the influx of foreign talents and such. He argues “Singapore is losing its culture and becoming less unique now that it has become a rojak (messily mixed) country”.
There is no doubt that Singapore has become so racially diverse we might be losing our roots soon. But it is an inevitable fate that foreigners would flock to our country because we might be the only racially harmonious and secure country in the world now. We have a choice to continue celebrating our rich cultural diversity and forever hold our peace with foreigners, or to condemn the country for being so mixed and forever outrightly discriminating against people of a different colour. Should we choose to embrace change is up to the individual to decide.
