Written by Nur Atiqah Mohamad. Photographs by Natalie.

On 18 March 2020, AWARE organised “Women in Politics”, an exciting and insightful discussion with three current Members of Parliament and Nominated Members of Parliament – NMP Anthea Ong, MP Sylvia Lim and MP Tin Pei Ling, with Anita Kapoor as the moderator. The event was held at The Projector and was attended by about 80 audience members. The discussion was officially off the record, and this write-up has been vetted by panelists.

AWARE’s Executive Director, Corinna Lim, welcomed participants with an opening speech, followed by an interactive poll where audience members got to test their knowledge on gender issues in Singapore. The poll revealed that 65% of the audience members didn’t know that women pay 20% more than men for CareShield Life premiums. Audience members were also shocked to find out that only 13 complaints against employers had been filed at the Ministry of Manpower in 2019. (Only 4% of audience members answered that question correctly.) 

After the poll, Corinna presented AWARE’s Gender Manifesto, six principles for a more equal, fair and just world and audience members voted on the principles they believed to be most urgent. Support for low-income households, anti-discrimination and violence against women emerged as the top three issues that the audience wanted the government to address in 2020.

Then, the main event. Moderator Anita kicked off the discussion with the three politicians by asking them what had pushed them into joining politics in the first place.

PAP MP Tin Pei Ling shared her belief that politics must be about improving people’s lives. She expressed her desire to be a voice lobbying in Parliament for positive changes, and to be in the position to mobilise resources and rally support for worthy causes in the community. Her long-time involvement in community service, which she began while an undergraduate student, motivated her to dive into politics.

For Workers’ Party MP Sylvia Lim, it was her desire to contribute to democracy in Singapore that made her join politics. She was further distressed by Singapore’s 2001 snap election, in which two-thirds of total seats went uncontested. 

NMP Anthea Ong, however, had not intended to enter politics at all. But after observing how marginalised communities, like migrant workers and those living with mental health conditions, did not have a real voice in Singapore, she changed her mind. 

Next came a pressing question: With women making up a mere 24 of 100 current Members of Parliament, why are there so few women in Singaporean politics?

While an overarching explanation proved elusive, the panelists cited difficulties balancing work with caregiving and the discomforts of public scrutiny as some factors that discourage women from entering politics. That loss of privacy does not just affect them, it affects their loved ones, they added.  

Speaking more specifically on discrimination in Singapore, the panelists agreed that everyone should be protected from discrimination but what form of protection this takes remains to be figured out. As NMP Anthea put it, if our society is able to progress on gender issues, we will also be able to progress on other issues facing marginalised communities.

Acknowledging that all three of the panelists were Chinese women, the conversation turned to how laws and policies would look different with more minorities in Parliament—as there are currently only four non-Chinese female MPs. The panelists agreed that there should be more diversity in Parliament and expressed that a minority MP, had they been able to join the forum, would be able to shed more light on the issue. 

Finally, in spite of aforementioned downsides, the panelists were full of encouragement for young women interested in joining politics. Hopefuls may start, they suggested, by doing volunteer work or interning at a non-governmental organisation (NGO) to get to know Singapore’s political process more intimately. One should also decide on a political party most aligned with their values. 

Parting advice: While there may be struggles along the way, it is important to keep the bigger picture in mind and remember why you started, while at the same time setting boundaries and staying true to your own values. 

This event was organised with the support of High Commission of Canada.

NMP Anthea Ong’s book 50 Shades of Love is available for purchase here.