Hong Kong, Singapore must democratise to close wealth gap, Lion City politician says
Rich-poor gap won't be bridged or workers' rights boosted without those at top sharing power, Singapore opposition politician argues
Both Singapore and Hong Kong need greater democratisation to resolve their acute wealth disparity, and social media could help foster this, said Singaporean opposition politician Chee Soon Juan.
"Democratisation is essential in Hong Kong and Singapore to overcome income inequality. To reduce income inequality, we have to have an opposition voice," said Chee, secretary general of the Singapore Democratic Party.
The SDP has no seat in Singapore's Parliament, while the People's Action Party (PAP) dominates with 80 of the 99 seats.
"Without democracy, policies in both cities have been skewed to benefit those at the top of the food chain, leaving the middle and lower classes to struggle. Without democracy, there can be no workers' rights. Extreme income inequality does not induce a society's well-being."
He pointed out that both cities had very high income disparities. Hong Kong's Gini coefficient is 0.54, the highest in Asia. A Gini coefficient of zero equates to complete equality and a coefficient of 1 is total inequality. Singapore's is 0.48, higher than the United States' 0.41.
"Singapore has the highest number of millionaires per capita, yet 5 per cent of our workforce draw an annual income of less than US$5,000," Chee said.
While the election of Hong Kong's chief executive is a core issue of the Occupy Central protest, other concerns include the lack of opportunity for the young and wealth disparity, he noted.