OnePeople.sg Survey-CNA/Today-Feb 3
Singapore residents’ trust in other racial and religious groups saw a significant increase last year, although racial stereotyping rose, according to a survey conducted by the Institute of Policy Studies and non-profit organization OnePeople.sg. OnePeople.sg was first launched by then-Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in 2007 as an organization that champions racial harmony initiatives in Singapore. The latest findings from the IPS-OnePeople.sg Indicators of Racial and Religious Harmony study released on Monday (Feb 3) showed that more than three-quarters or 77.6 per cent of respondents trusted over half of Chinese in Singapore to help them during a national crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic.
About two-thirds of respondents trusted more than half of Malays, Indians, and Eurasians to do the same. This was an improvement from the previous studies in 2013 and 2018, said the survey report. Meanwhile, the proportion of respondents expressing distrust in other racial groups decreased from 42.7 per cent in 2013 to 27.2 per cent in 2024, with similar trends observed for religious groups. But while the downward trend was “encouraging”, there remains room for improvement as over a quarter of Singapore residents still indicate distrust in more than half of other racial groups, said the report. The third edition of the IPS-OnePeople.sg survey, conducted between April 2024 and August 2024, polled a nationally representative sample of 4,000 Singapore residents aged 18 and above. The survey compares trends across the waves – distinct periods of time in which survey answers were collected from respondents – wherever possible, across 10 indicators of racial and religious harmony such as inter-racial trust and social cohesion. “These indicators allow us to compare shifts in attitudes and perceptions over time, providing a clearer picture of Singapore’s progress in maintaining harmony and inclusivity,” said the report. Read more at:
