Don't exclude issues just because they have roots in

Don't exclude issues just because they have roots in

I REFER to Ms Felicia Tan's letter on Thursday, 'Facts outshine faith'.

I cannot disagree more with her views that 'by basing an argument on one's religious views, one would essentially be alienating the views of other Singaporeans who are of other religions or are non-believers'.

The very nature of a harmonious multiracial and multireligious society is the ability to hear one another's views and discuss them before reaching a consensus on the values of society as a whole.

There is nothing wrong with religion in one's views because most Singaporeans have a religion. As long as these do not contradict or go against good sense and common values, people should be free to take their stand. The national pledge states 'regardless of race, language or religion', not 'with no regard to race, language or religion'.

It is not possible to argue a societal issue without alluding to one's personal beliefs, whether based on religion, cultural practice�or simply�familial upbringing.

That is the underlying basis of any democratic society, the freedom to debate one's cause. The point about 'militant secularism' is that it prevents people from raising an issue�just because it has�its roots in religion. But why should that be so?

Many�values that are important to us as an Asian people�have common threads in all major orthodox religions - for example, do not�kill, do not steal, respect one another. They are not strictly secular and they have their own merits. In many issues that have arisen from the 'politics and religion' debate, the line is blurred�because of the speaker, not because the argument was without merit. People with a faith are made to look like the voice of that religion by the press, even when�the issues they raise�can be said to be�cultural, not religious.�

To exclude�these discussions is precisely the evil Ms Tan argues against - to exclude issues simply because they are�not free of religious implications. We will have very little to discuss, and end up a more divided people, if we do not respect religion in the views of our neighbours enough to hear them out.

Monica Wong (Ms)

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