Curry dispute boils over in multiracial Singapore

By Kai Portmann Aug 17, 2011, 4:25 GMT

Singapore - An old dispute between a Chinese family and their Indian neighbours over the cooking of curry has caused a new uproar in Singapore, even prompting some netizens to start a spicy protest movement against intolerance.

The controversy broke out when a newspaper article about mediation cited the case of the Chinese family that had moved to Singapore and soon complained about the smell from the neighbours' kitchen.

The family took the case before a Community Mediation Unit under the Ministry of Law for a ruling in the matter.

According to the article, mediator Marcellina Giam got the Indian family to agree to cook curry, their national dish, only when the Chinese family was not at home.

The report sparked an outcry in multiracial Singapore, incensing even many of Singapore's native Chinese population which eyes new immigrants from mainland China with some disdain.

As the island state with its population of 5 million people takes pride in the generally harmonious coexistence of its Chinese majority and substantial Indian and Malay minorities, the curry case hit a raw nerve.

Although the neighbours' dispute dated back about seven years, Singaporeans in internet forums have boiled over with anger at the reported outcome of the mediation, criticising it as unfair and condemning the Chinese immigrants for their intolerance.

'If the family can't stand the smell of curry cooking by the neighbour, they have only to consider moving away. Or going back to their country,' one comment said.

The mediator should have told the Chinese 'to adjust and adapt to Singapore's way of life and not to tell locals to adjust to the foreigner's way of life,' said another.

'Can we tell the (Chinese) politely to stop eating and roasting live dogs,' commented a more sarcastic voice.

The mediation agency was quick to rebuff the report, stating that 'Madam Giam did not propose the solution, neither did she impose it on the parties.'

'Despite clearly different cultural backgrounds, both parties were able to come to a mutually agreed solution themselves,' it said.

However, the curry case became so hot that on Tuesday Law Minister K Shanmugam himself came out to make clear that the mediator did not dictate the outcome of the dispute.

'Some of the people ... are reacting to a set of facts that are wholly inaccurate, therefore allowing emotions to run high in some places,' he said.

But he was heartened to see Singaporeans of all races coming together over the incident 'to affirm a key aspect of the way Indians lead their lives in Singapore.'

'While we must affirm our Singaporean identity and must protect it, ... at the same time let's not turn this into a xenophobic attack on foreigners in general,' he warned.

The biggest protest movement in the curry case formed on social networking website Facebook, where one group urged Singaporeans to 'cook and share a pot of curry' on Sunday to express their national pride because curry, in one form or another, was loved by people of all races.

'Let us all calm down and just take it to a quiet level of cooking curry and let us share these pots of lovely curries with our new citizens and get them to appreciate curries or any other Singaporean dishes,' they said.

'We sincerely hope you integrate into our local culture and make attempts to assimilate,' they added in 'a message to all new citizens.'

Curry is 'not just an issue of our Indian fellow citizens, it is a beautiful symbol of what co-existence can create - of being Singaporean in spirit,' the group said.

By Wednesday morning, nearly 48,000 people supported the call on its Facebook site.