Story: Malaysians and Singaporeans
Page 2 – Singaporeans
Ethnicity
Ethnically, Singapore’s population is primarily Chinese, with a minority of Malays, Indians and other groups. Singaporeans only began to arrive from the 1960s; but of the 975 Singapore-born people who were living in New Zealand by 1971, most were probably British expatriates.
Student visitors
Singaporean students have visited New Zealand since the 1960s. It was common to study overseas, as there were few places available at local universities. Initially, many found New Zealand boring and unbelievably quiet. Although students tended to return after completing their studies, their travels blazed a trail for future migrants.
Chinese Singaporean immigrants
In 1986 the New Zealand government no longer required Singaporeans to obtain visas. This open policy, together with the changes made to the immigration system in the following year, stimulated migration.
Life in Singapore, the ‘Lion City’, could be highly stressful, and many migrants who arrived during the 1990s were in search of quieter times. Singaporeans invested heavily in businesses and residential property. But not all stayed – over the 1990s some left as they found New Zealand’s economy too small to support their enterprises.
Less money, more fresh air
Shih Liang Chye left Singapore for New Zealand in 1984. His partner joined him two years later and they had two children there. He outlined the reasons that saw him take a more than 50% pay cut:
‘The air here is clean and there is an abundance of fresh water and greenery all round. New Zealand is also open and egalitarian, not status-conscious’. 1
Chinese Singaporean migrants mainly socialise with their own group, as they have little in common with the Chinese community. While most Singaporeans are ethnically Chinese, in cultural terms many are Malay. Some Baba or Straits Chinese speak only Malay. For the most part, however, migrants are multilingual, speaking English, Malay and Chinese dialects. Sometimes words are mixed into a hybrid tongue dubbed ‘Singlish’.
Culture
Most Singaporeans have settled in Auckland, which supports a national club. There are also clubs in Wellington and Christchurch, and student groups are prominent.
Christchurch’s Singapore Club, formed in 1993, publishes quarterly newsletters and helps new migrants settle. Singapore’s diverse ethnicities are reflected in the club’s events. They celebrate both the Chinese Lantern Festival and Deepavali, the Hindu festival of lights. The club’s insignia features the symbol of yin and yang: a letter ‘S’ represents Singapore (yang) and a curved silver fern represents New Zealand (yin).
Auckland’s Singapore Club website has pages dedicated to the best makan (food). It also offers information on issues such as migration and education, and invites new members to ‘come and join us and we can create our own kampong [village] right here in this beautiful country’. 2
Clubs often celebrate key dates, including Singapore National Day on 9 August. At events such as the Auckland club’s 2001 Christmas function, authentic fare was served, including chicken rice, buah keluak (blacknuts) and chap chye (mixed vegetables).
