PM Lee given World Statesman Award for fostering harmony in multi-ethnic Singapore
SINGAPORE — Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong received the 2019 World Statesman Award during the 54th Annual Appeal of Conscience Awards Dinner in New York on Monday (23 September).
The award honours leaders who support peaceful co-existence and mutual acceptance in multi-ethnic societies. It is given out by the Appeal of Conscience Foundation, an inter-faith organisation dedicated to religious freedom and human rights.
Past world leaders who have received the award include former British prime minister David Cameron and former Soviet Union president Mikhail Gorbachev.
Former United States secretary of state Henry Kissinger read the citation for PM Lee, who is on a working visit to New York.
After accepting the award from the foundation’s president and founder, Rabbi Arthur Schneier, PM Lee said, “It is my honour to accept the World Statesman Award.
“Singapore has embraced diversity and multiculturalism as fundamental ideals of our society. We strive to build a multi-racial, multi-lingual, and multi-religious society where people live peacefully and harmoniously together.
"Singapore shares the Appeal of Conscience's vision of a world underpinned by human dignity and respect."
In handing out the award, Schneier said that PM Lee was recognised for his “skilled leadership in stewarding Singapore's development, for advancing regional and worldwide economic stability and peaceful coexistence and for fostering a society that embraces mutual acceptance and respect for all ethnic communities”.
Not by chance
According to The Straits Times, PM Lee said during his 25-minute speech that Singapore’s harmonious society did not come about by chance. Rather, it worked hard to lay the foundation for religious harmony and then maintain it over the years.
“We did not become so because Singaporeans are a uniquely virtuous people.We created structures – constitutional, political, social – that discouraged intolerance, curbed chauvinism, and nudged social behaviour in positive ways, long before nudging became intellectually fashionable,” he said.
PM Lee added that he accepted the award on behalf of all who contributed towards building a harmonious society in Singapore. However, the world is changing and Singaporeans must adapt to new forces.
According to The Straits Times, he listed four challenges: growing religiosity among all faiths, external influences, provocative views that proliferate on social media, and violence in the name of race and religion.
The event also handed out the 2019 Appeal of Conscience Award to business executives with a sense of social responsibility, who use their resources and vast reach across boundaries to better serve the global community.
This year’s recipients of the World Statesman Award are: Timotheus Hottges, CEO of Deutsche Telekom AG, Stephen M. Ross, chairman and founder of Related Companies, and Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube.
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