‘Downright heartless’: PAP MP Alex Yam calls out commenters for cruel remarks toward missing Singaporeans in Nepal

SINGAPORE: Marsiling–Yew Tee Member of Parliament Alex Yam penned a post about online responses to the Singaporeans who are among the more than 4,000 missing after the catastrophic flash floods that took place in Nepal on Aug 26.

In a Facebook and Instagram post on Monday morning (Aug 31), Mr Yam first listed the names of the missing Singaporeans: Estee Loeh. Ghosh Aditi. Ng Kit Kuen. Rajesvaran Ayyavoo. Rengarajan Prabu. Shalinny Deavy Elan Sozan. Shubakshi Rawla. Subramaniam Diraviam. Sumit Rawla, emphasising that they are “Nine of our own.”

The fact that they are missing is terrible on its own, but the MP, who is also Mayor of the North West District, added that as he was looking at the comments on the reporting about them, he wrote, “I found something else equally difficult to stomach,” which the MP characterised as a “Tragedy Doubled.”

“While families wait desperately for news of their loved ones, a loud minority of people apparently looked at the names and faces of those missing and decided that this was the moment to ask whether they were really Singaporean,” he wrote.

Mr Yam also provided some examples of these comments, which ranged from saying that the missing did not look Singaporean or did not have Singaporean names.

Even more cruelly, some wrote, “just import more,” questioned why Singapore should help them, or hoped that they would stay stranded or die

Mr Yam wrote heatedly, “Seriously?? People are missing. Their families are waiting, hoping, praying. And somehow, for some people, this becomes an opportunity to decide who is Singaporean enough?

What have we become if, in the face of possible death and grieving children, our first instinct is to check someone’s race, birthplace, accent or how long they have held a pink IC?”

Acknowledging that discussions can be held about immigration, citizenship, and integration, he argued that given the present tragedy, this is not the time to do so, as people whose loved ones are missing are waiting to hear about what happened to them.

“You do not have to know someone to have compassion for them. You do not have to share their ancestry to pray for their safety.

And you certainly do not have to diminish someone else’s Singaporeanness to prove your own.

Some of the comments are not just racist. They are downright heartless,” he added.

Mr Yam also expressed the hope that the commenters who left such cruel remarks are actually trolls, as the thought of Singaporeans being unable to “put aside race and resentment for one moment” is untenable.

Mr Yam ended his post with the prayer that the missing Singaporeans, as well as the others, would be found.

“May we remember that before race, nationality or politics, there are frightened families hoping that someone they love comes home. And I pray we never become so angry with one another that we lose the ability to simply be human,” he wrote. /TISG

Read also: ‘Please stop.’ Ex-NMP calls out anti-Indian sentiments in connection to Air India, Nepal flood