Reflection on Forum Letter -- Irene

Article Tittle: Govt's done enough, it's up to couples
Sourse of Artile: http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Story/STIStory_484044.html
Author: Huang Meifang (Ms)
Date of the Article: Jan 30, 2010

Govt's done enough, it's up to couples
UNLIKE Mr Wong Yeow Chong in his letter on Wednesday ('Be single-minded about having more babies'), I think there must be a limit to blaming the Government for individual lifestyle choices in postponing procreation or giving it a miss.
Blaming the Government is almost like saying one will not procreate because of insufficient incentives.
If the economic incentives have not been effective in arresting falling birth rates, the key reason is that many people simply do not see procreation as a priority.
One must take ownership of one's choices. If I, like the Singaporeans Mr Wong describes, work long hours and attend night classes, it is not because anyone forced me to. The choice is mine and I should face the consequences. I can also choose how I want to deal with matters beyond my control, like the high cost of living and national service requirements; instead of using these as excuses for not procreating and blaming the Government for lacking clarity about priorities, as Mr Wong described it.
Finances are important when planning a family, but many couples choose to postpone parenthood to fulfil personal desires, like not wanting to be tied down, enjoying a longer exclusive spousal relationship or building their careers.
Money, or the lack of it, is not entirely the reason, if at all. If it is, how do we explain the fact that many less well-off couples across our multiracial spectrum have two or three children and yet manage financially? They face the same challenges as those who decide not to have children, ranging from managing their work-life balance to the rising cost of living and staying fit and healthy.
They choose to have more children not because they see themselves as supermums and superdads or even super-rich, but because they love children and think it wise not to postpone parenthood.
Mr Wong's call for the Government to be single-minded about prioritising population growth should be directed at the citizens instead.
Frankly, the Government has done enough to encourage procreation.

Summary: I refer to the ST Forum 'Govt's done enough, it's up to couples'. The author express her disagreement with Mr Wong Yeow Chong as Mr Wong Yeow Chong blamed the government not doing enough in encouraging procreation in his letter.

Reflection: After looking through the whole article. I agree with the author, Ms Huang Meifang, on her opinions about what influence couples to have child or not. As a foreigner student, I do not really know how much the parents need to raise a child in Singapore, but just as what the author says, there are still many poor families to choose have more than one child. So whether to have child or not, it absolutely doesn't only depends on money. However, we can't ignore the huge impact from finances. That is also the reason why I disagree with Ms Huang that the government has done enough on improving birth rate. What is "enough"? From the definition, 'enough' means 'to the necessary degree'. I know that the government of Singapore has released many policies to encourge procreation, such as five working days a week, giving special holidays for couples, providing extra bonus on children's medical care and education fees, etc. But whether it is enough or not I think depends on the results. The birth rate is still declining in 2009 in Singapore. So there are still a lot efforts needing to be done. From my point of view, the government of Singapore is better to try it from two sides. Firstly, it is to give more allowance to families having children especially on education fees. Moreover, with the divorce rate rising, I think the government needs pay more attention on improving those children's life. This is for the couples who are not willing to have child because of fear of divorce. Secondly, it is from thought. As the article metioned, people postpone parenthood may be caused by personal desire. The government should make more efforts on convince couples that children are not burden. They are happiness. In addition, I notice that in the past, the government of Singapore asked citizens to stop at '2'. I think it necessary for government to explain it to public in detail and give the period of validity for the policies of encouraging procreation to resolve doubts and worries.