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The Singapore Dilemma : The Political and Educational Marginality of the Malay Community
This study examines the factors that have contributed to the persisting socio-economic marginality of the Singapore Malay Community. It proposes that this problem requires a national solution as it is organically connected to the social, economic, and political challenges confronting the multiethnic island republic.
- GenresRace
320 pages, Hardcover
First published February 11, 1999
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About the author
Lily Zubaidah Rahim
10 books14 followersLily Zubaidah Rahim is an Associate Professor in Government and International Relations. She lectures on Southeast Asian Politics and Reformist Islam. The Singapore Dilemma: The Political and Educational Marginality of the Malay Community, (KL: Oxford University Press, 2001) established her as a leading researcher on political and social developments in Singapore. The book precipitated a public debate on Singapore’s nation-building paradigm particularly after it received prominent coverage in the Malaysian and Singaporean newspapers. The policy significance of The Singapore Dilemma led to its translation in 2004 by the Malaysian National Institute for Translation to the Malay language.
Building on the themes in The Singapore Dilemma, Lily Zubaidah’s second sole-authored book Singapore in the Malay World: Building and Breaching Regional Bridges (London: Routledge, 2009) focuses on Singapore’s mercurial relations with neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia.
She is currently engaged in a global project on gender justice and shariah reforms in Islam. Another project funded by an ARC Discovery Grant (2003-2006), led to the publication of an edited book entitled ‘Paths Not Taken’, published by the National University of Singapore Press in 2008.
A Singaporean national, Lily Zubaidah’s international exposure includes extended periods of teaching and research in Malaysia, Singapore and The Netherlands. In 2001, she presented a paper on indigenous minorities in Southeast Asia at the historic UN Conference on Racism and Public Policy in Durban, South Africa. In 2003, she was commissioned by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, to prepare a report on ethnic minorities in Singapore and Malaysia. In 2008 and 2009, she was engaged by the Asia-Europe Foundation as a consultant on ethnic tensions and inter-faith dialogue in Asia.
Her multidisciplinary research interests have been published in numerous international journals and book chapters. They include an eclectic range spanning from governance in authoritarian states, democratisation, development, ethnicity, regionalism and political Islam. She was Co-convenor of the 2008 Malaysia-Singapore Society Colloquium at the Australian National University.
(updated June 13, 2013)
Building on the themes in The Singapore Dilemma, Lily Zubaidah’s second sole-authored book Singapore in the Malay World: Building and Breaching Regional Bridges (London: Routledge, 2009) focuses on Singapore’s mercurial relations with neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia.
She is currently engaged in a global project on gender justice and shariah reforms in Islam. Another project funded by an ARC Discovery Grant (2003-2006), led to the publication of an edited book entitled ‘Paths Not Taken’, published by the National University of Singapore Press in 2008.
A Singaporean national, Lily Zubaidah’s international exposure includes extended periods of teaching and research in Malaysia, Singapore and The Netherlands. In 2001, she presented a paper on indigenous minorities in Southeast Asia at the historic UN Conference on Racism and Public Policy in Durban, South Africa. In 2003, she was commissioned by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, to prepare a report on ethnic minorities in Singapore and Malaysia. In 2008 and 2009, she was engaged by the Asia-Europe Foundation as a consultant on ethnic tensions and inter-faith dialogue in Asia.
Her multidisciplinary research interests have been published in numerous international journals and book chapters. They include an eclectic range spanning from governance in authoritarian states, democratisation, development, ethnicity, regionalism and political Islam. She was Co-convenor of the 2008 Malaysia-Singapore Society Colloquium at the Australian National University.
(updated June 13, 2013)
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 1, 2016
This book provides a structural critique of how the Singapore government's policies and institutions, shaped by what the author deems as misguided political and ideological assumptions, have contributed to the persisted socio-economic marginality of ethnic minorities and other socially disadvantaged groups in Singapore. Recommend it as a worthy read to those who wish to have an alternative view to the mainstream narrative of Singapore being a meritocratic multiracial society. But take note that as this book was perhaps adapted from a doctoral thesis, the language and style of writing can be somewhat academic and not very easy to fully comprehend if one is not used to such language and writing style.
August 28, 2022
Succeeds at its goal of demonstrating "the salience of historical, ideological, and institutional factors in contributing towards the socio-economic, political, and educational marginality of the Malay community and other socially marginal Singaporeans who experience difficulty in attaining social mobility and keeping apace with the highly competitive Singaporean society" (247).
The most compelling point is that economic differences in family situations can lead to a failure of success in education outcomes and career choices and success. This is true, but not particularly surprising.
Rahim broader argument succeeds by relentlessly attacking a highly simplistic opponent - the "cultural deficiency thesis," while her own policy prescriptions are barely defended. For example, while the government's idea that only ~10% of any racial community is gifted and needs to be nurtured to lead is dissmissed as "elitist" and "eugenicist", her implicit alternative of all students being intelligent, even if they have different needs, is affirmed by simply being put in the mouth of a random teacher.
She also seems to have a constituional aversion to the corporatist state model because of a commitment to "organic" community activism, but this is assumed instead of contextually defended. For example, she does correctly point out that by spreading Malay people across the island, their electoral power was weakened. But we also know how easy it is for segregated populations to languish precisely because of their concentrated status: contact can also force Malay interests to be taken seriously everywhere. But instead of thinking through such considerations critically, she opts for the soundbite.
Overall, its a predictable progressive framework applied to the Singapore case. Given how little opposition viewpoints are put forward publicly, this was probably groundbreaking. But in hindsight, it appears somewhat dated and utopian.
The most compelling point is that economic differences in family situations can lead to a failure of success in education outcomes and career choices and success. This is true, but not particularly surprising.
Rahim broader argument succeeds by relentlessly attacking a highly simplistic opponent - the "cultural deficiency thesis," while her own policy prescriptions are barely defended. For example, while the government's idea that only ~10% of any racial community is gifted and needs to be nurtured to lead is dissmissed as "elitist" and "eugenicist", her implicit alternative of all students being intelligent, even if they have different needs, is affirmed by simply being put in the mouth of a random teacher.
She also seems to have a constituional aversion to the corporatist state model because of a commitment to "organic" community activism, but this is assumed instead of contextually defended. For example, she does correctly point out that by spreading Malay people across the island, their electoral power was weakened. But we also know how easy it is for segregated populations to languish precisely because of their concentrated status: contact can also force Malay interests to be taken seriously everywhere. But instead of thinking through such considerations critically, she opts for the soundbite.
Overall, its a predictable progressive framework applied to the Singapore case. Given how little opposition viewpoints are put forward publicly, this was probably groundbreaking. But in hindsight, it appears somewhat dated and utopian.
October 21, 2018
This should be necessary reading for anyone who believes in the cultural deficit thesis, that Malay socioeconomic marginality is due to their "deficient cultural values" - which I suspect is many. For this book will help broaden your perspective in considering the various historical, political and structural factors that contributed to the current position. Educators especially should certainly read the section on educational marginality to ensure that we don't harbour destructive beliefs about our own students.
May 5, 2025
The Singapore Dilemma – A Work Frozen in 1999, Detached from Reality
Dr. Lily Zubaidah Rahim’s The Singapore Dilemma commits the cardinal sin of polemics: it mistakes grievances for analysis. Penned in 1999, the book’s central claim—that Singapore’s Malays are doomed by systemic bias—relies on outdated data, anecdotal slights, and a refusal to engage with counterevidence.
She blames streaming policies for Malay struggles, yet ignores that working-class Chinese and Indians also languished in EM3. She condemns bilingual education, but Malay literacy and English proficiency rose steadily post-1980s (MOE data she omits). She dismisses MENDAKI’s early gains as “cosmetic,” despite clear upward mobility in Malay university enrollment by the late 1990s.
Worst of all, Rahim presumes permanence in temporary disparities. The Malay community’s progress since—rising incomes, educational attainment, and political representation—exposes her fatalism as either myopic or dishonest. A book this rigid, this allergic to nuance, deserves its fate: a relic of 1990s activism, not a serious study of inequality.
Verdict: ★☆☆☆☆ – A time capsule of bias, not a blueprint for change.
Dr. Lily Zubaidah Rahim’s The Singapore Dilemma commits the cardinal sin of polemics: it mistakes grievances for analysis. Penned in 1999, the book’s central claim—that Singapore’s Malays are doomed by systemic bias—relies on outdated data, anecdotal slights, and a refusal to engage with counterevidence.
She blames streaming policies for Malay struggles, yet ignores that working-class Chinese and Indians also languished in EM3. She condemns bilingual education, but Malay literacy and English proficiency rose steadily post-1980s (MOE data she omits). She dismisses MENDAKI’s early gains as “cosmetic,” despite clear upward mobility in Malay university enrollment by the late 1990s.
Worst of all, Rahim presumes permanence in temporary disparities. The Malay community’s progress since—rising incomes, educational attainment, and political representation—exposes her fatalism as either myopic or dishonest. A book this rigid, this allergic to nuance, deserves its fate: a relic of 1990s activism, not a serious study of inequality.
Verdict: ★☆☆☆☆ – A time capsule of bias, not a blueprint for change.
January 1, 2010
An interesting inside about the Malays in Singapore
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews