Download - WISP - France
franceFRANCE WISP ASSIGNMENT 2
Li Ching-Sze
Shermaine Yeo Janice Chia
Elaine Chai T69
CONTENTS
!!Part A:
!! France in 2005
!! France in 2006
!! France: 2005 v.s. 2006
!!Part B:
!! Singapore in 2009
!!Part C:
!! Preventing the Imagined Future of Singapore
PART A – FRANCE IN 2005
!! Civil Unrest
!! October & November
!! Sparked by accidental
deaths of two teenagers
(of Malian and Tunisian
descent) in Paris’s poor
outer suburbs
!! Large African and Arab communities form in the suburbs of Paris
!! Unemployment is higher than the national average
!! Residents complain of racism and discrimination
PART A – FRANCE IN 2005
!! Rioters were mostly unemployed teenagers from poor
suburban areas
!! Many rioters were youth of north and west African
descents
!! Born in France but lack a clear place in French society
PART A – FRANCE IN 2005
!! Mid-1970s,
!! France's attitude
toward immigration
changed
!! The Maghrebian
immigrants were
thought of as cultural aliens
!! Impossible to adopt
and therefore a
threat to the integrity of the
French national identity
PART A – FRANCE IN 2005
!! Riots in France linked to the
limits of the traditional
French model of
assimilation
!! Stresses adherence to French
cultural norms
!! Government attempted to
link rioting to other
practices
!! Illegal immigration, Muslim
separatism, and polygamous practices
PART A – FRANCE IN 2006
!! Youth Protests
!! February, March & April
!! Unrest was in response to a
new law
!! The First Employment Contract
!! Perceived to compromise job
security, lower wages, and the
rights of French workers
PART A – FRANCE IN 2006
!! The new bill:
!! Allowed employers to fire young employees less than 26 years old
!! Within the first 2 years of employment
!! Without reason
PART A – FRANCE IN 2006
!! Purpose of the law:
!! Stimulate job creation as
it is difficult to fire
employees in France after probation period
!! Makes employers more
keen to take in more workers
!! However,
!! Youths were unhappy as
it compromised job
security
!! Makes it easier for
employers to exert
pressure on employees
PART A – FRANCE IN 2006
!! Caused extensive and violent rioting by youths,
strikes and occupations of French universities
!! As a result of this public pressure, the government
revoked its youth employment law
PART A – 2005 V.S. 2006
!! Discrimination
2005
!! Ethnic minority faced
discriminatory acts and
unequal opportunities compared to
contemporary French people
!! Racial profiling by police
2006
!! Young people faced high unemployment rates, yet
new law was introduced
!! Age prejudice
PART A – 2005 V.S. 2006
!! Social
2005
!! Riots caused by racial
tension
2006
!! Riots caused by high youth
unemployment rates
!! Youths could be pressurized at
work, even by underhand means
!! Social inequity – Higher
unemployment rates among
young immigrants and the ethnic
minority
PART A – 2005 V.S. 2006
!! Political
2005
!! Poor treatment of ethnic
minority by French
government
2006
!! Introduction of unpopular bill/law
PART A – 2005 V.S. 2006
!! Economic factors were similar for both cases
!! High unemployment rates and lack of opportunities
PART B – SINGAPORE IN 2009
!! Similar instances of prejudice and discrimination?
!! Muslim schoolgirls not allowed to
wear the traditional Islamic headscarf to school
!! A government ban was placed on the
garment
!! In an instance, the education ministry
said that the girls had been
"suspended from school and are not allowed to attend classes unless they
are in the prescribed school uniform”
!! It added that "The wearing of the school uniform is an important
means of building unity among students without distinction of race, religion, and social status."
PART B – SINGAPORE IN 2009
!! Similar instances of prejudice and discrimination?
!! Chinese majority outnumbers the Malay and Indian
communities by three to one
!! Singapore experienced violent race riots in 1964 but has
largely enjoyed ethnic peace since then
PART B – SINGAPORE IN 2009
!! Similar instances of prejudice and discrimination?
!! Middle income group pay more income tax, but do not get as
much help as the lower income group (progress packages,
government aid, etc.)
!
!! Widening income gap and lower-income group receive lower
wage increase compared to other income groups
!! The financial divide between the income groups may cause
disharmony
PART B – SINGAPORE IN 2009
!! Similar instances of prejudice and discrimination?
!! Singapore has an aging population
!! Government has been encouraging employers to continue
keeping elderly workers
!! Vie for jobs with young people who do not have as much
experience, thus possibly less opportunity for youth
!! Year 2061
!! Singapore’s population: 6.1 million
!! 47% born in Singapore
!! The rest are foreign-born citizens/workers/talents
!! Robust economy took a dramatic turn
!! Has been in recession since 2048
!! Tensions rising due to increasing unemployment
!! Protests:
!! Daily protests by local-born unemployed citizens against
cheaper foreign labour
!! Protests against naturalized Singaporeans accused of being
“fair weather” Singaporeans who are not loyal to the country
PART C – THE IMAGINED FUTURE OF SINGAPORE
!! Protect the interests of locally born Singaporeans
!! Give incentives for employers to employ local staff – e.g. lower corporate tax per local staff hired
!! Implement a cap on number of foreign workers per organization
PART C – PREVENTING THE IMAGINED FUTURE
!! Continue to provide help to lower-income Singaporeans
PART C – PREVENTING THE IMAGINED FUTURE
!! Create jobs in civil
service for locally born Singaporeans
!! Allow partial
withdrawal of CPF funds to tide over the
recession period
PART C – PREVENTING THE IMAGINED FUTURE
!! Problems we may face:
!! More Singaporeans migrate overseas to
“better” countries – e.g. China, for more job
opportunities
!! Prolonged recession also means that
government is less able to fork out money to
help
!! Singapore history may repeat itself with
most of its people immigrants and few locals
!! National identity may have to be rebuilt
from scratch
THE END Thank you! "