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It is common on weekends to see dark-complexioned foreign workers shopping at NTUC FairPrice supermarkets.
In groups of two to three, they appear careful in deciding what they will buy and are often seen chatting among themselves. While they speak softly, they are far from diffident. They may be cautious about what they spend on but they do not appear hard-pressed.
This is a sight that never fails to move me and set me thinking...What is human dignity? To have a sense of dignity, I think one should at least have the means to afford daily necessities and not suffer from feelings of inferiority due to poverty.
When I first came to Singapore, I was shocked and awed by the wide array of products displayed in supermarkets. I never knew one could be spoilt for choice!
As far as I can recall from my childhood memories, a shop was where one could buy soy sauces and vinegar. As for food, it was either bread or dianxin. Even when they had lost their freshness for being on the shelf for too long, they were still beyond the reach of me and my peers.
When I found a respectable job after completing university education, my salary was barely enough for meals after paying for transport fees, let alone for buying new clothes.
Which is why I often feel grateful to Singapore for giving me a sense of dignity.
When my father, an elderly man who has been self-reliant and self-disciplined all his life, sighed of late over being reduced to poverty by the rising cost of living and medical fees, it was the Singapore dollar which I converted into Renminbi that helped to preserve his self-respect.
I'm even more deeply indebted to Singapore for the self-esteem I enjoy as a woman. There is no sex discrimination here and people get equal pay for equal work. The familiar textbook principle of “to each according to his work” is a practice here.
Jobs are available if one is prepared to work hard. A woman who is economically independent is also psychologically independent - there is no need for her to rely on her husband or any man for that matter.
I can create my own universe if I'm so inclined and not just hold up “half the sky” as Mao Zedong has said.
Equality of men and women is not a slogan. There are many avenues for upgrading one's skills. By acquiring expertise in the latest technology and knowledge, I can compete with men on brain rather than brawn power.
Women are also protected by effective laws and are no longer the weaker sex. The sense of dignity is real, not just a notion. Domestic violence is not a family matter as the authorities will intervene.
My mother, a long-time women's rights worker in China, couldn't help recalling many past incidents when the culprits had gone unpunished for abusing and assaulting women, when she saw a picture in Lianhe Zaobao some time back that showed a wife-beater being taken away by the police.
Singapore has given foreigners like myself equal opportunities to pursue their dreams. It has given us not only the jobs that we need but also human dignity which cannot be bought.
·The writer who does accounting work, came to Singapore in 1997 and is now a Singapore citizen. Translated by Yap Gee Poh. </TD>
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周末，在职总平价合作社，不时会看到面孔黝黑的客工在选购物品。他们三三两两，时而小声商量，时而认真挑选。他们的声音虽小，却不含卑下，神情虽谨，却绝不窘迫。
这情形常常令我感动颇深，驻足良久……什么是人的尊严？从容面对生活必需品，有足够的财力和心理储备应对它，不必因阮囊羞涩而自惭形秽，尊严才有了基础。
记得刚刚来新加坡时，面对超级市场丰富的货品，震撼继而自卑。原来可以有这么多的选择！儿时记忆中，商店是售卖酱油和醋的地方；食品只有两样－－面包和点心。且不说它们常年摆在那里，僵硬而陈腐，对于我和周围的人尚属可望不可及。
等我大学毕业后有了一份体面的工作，拿到的薪水却是搭了公车就不够吃饭，遑论添衣。
常常感激新加坡给了我人的尊严。我的父亲，一个自尊自律了一辈子的老人，面对高涨的生活费和医药费，发出了“穷困潦倒”的悲叹。若不是我以新加坡币换成人民币，他何以维持尊严？
更要感激新加坡给了我女性的尊严。这里没有性别歧视，同工同酬。在新加坡，“按劳分配”这个熟悉的、书本上的词走入生活。
只要勤劳，工作机会有的是，有了经济上的独立才有精神上的独立、人格上的独立；不必依赖丈夫或某一个男人，不仅是“半边天”，如果我喜欢，还可以撑起自己的一片蓝天。男女平等不是一句口号，这里提供许多进修提升的机会，掌握现代科技和知识令我不用在体力上与男性一较高下。
健全的法律保护女性，她们不再是弱者，尊严是实实在在的。家庭暴力在新加坡不是家务事，有人管。我的母亲，一个中国资深的维护妇女权益工作者，看了《联合早报》上丈夫殴打妻子被警察当场带走的新闻，忍不住讲起一件又一件妇女被残害的往事，两相对照，感叹嘘嘘。
美丽的花园城市，清新的小岛之国，你给了异乡人平等，给了我们机会，还给了我们理想，不仅给了我们工作，更有千金难买的宝贵的尊严！
·作者在1997年来新，现在已经是新加坡公民。目前从事会计工作。 </TD></TR></TABLE> |
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