The Localised Immigrant
It is easy to understand why Qin Di, a 22-year-old Chinese National undergraduate in Singapore, stands out among his other fellow countrymen here.
Qin Di has been in Singapore for more than six years
Having been here for more than six year now, the extent of his “Singaporean-ization” is obvious – he speaks in fluent English peppered with the occasional Singlish terms of “lors”, “lahs” and “mehs”. The Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) alum is also a hall fellow at his alma mater’s student hostel and the NTU undergraduate even took part in a week-long community service to help Cambodian street children with the school’s Muslim Society.
Language barriers formed the bulk of woes
But that’s not to say that it was always a bed of roses for Qin Di, who, like many other Chinese students who came to Singapore on scholarships, felt lonely and faced many uncertainties and challenges initially.
Language difficulties were something he had expected from the very beginning. He said: “I learnt English when I was in China, but it was of a very fundamental level. What is used here is very different from the Chinese education system. What I knew was totally irrelevant when I came here.”
Things were made tougher when after just three months of English bridging courses, he found himself thrown head-on into Secondary 3 at ACS(I), a school with strong English backgrounds.
“I think even if it were not a school with such a strong English background, Chinese students would still find it quite difficult to cope with the language when they are first here.”
The head start he got has given him an added advantage in being here – he is able to understand lectures without having to constantly refer to an electronic dictionary.
Fellow countrymen discriminated against
While working as a part-time waiter at a restaurant last year, he even experienced preferential treatment on the job.
He said: “There were other Chinese Nationals who had just come from China and were working as permanent staff, but I was paid better even though I was just a part-time worker.
“The boss and other Singaporean staff treated me differently because I’m able to speak English and also because I am educated. But the other Chinese Nationals were treated badly.”
Qin Di described how his Singaporean supervisor and colleagues made fun of the other Chinese workers’ accent and less-than-perfect pronunciations and the way they dress.
“The Singaporeans called the Chinese workers “china man”, even though they knew their Chinese and English names. They would even gossip about my Chinese friends in their face, because they know that my friends don’t understand what they are saying in English.”
Singaporeans’ complaints: Unfounded and unfair
Qin Di eventually left his job at the restaurant because he couldn’t take things lying down.
“The Chinese who come here to work mostly take up low-paying jobs, but to them it is a very good opportunity to find a job here. It’s really difficult for them, so Singaporeans should give them some time to adapt.”
To him, the complains and murmurs that he hears about Chinese Nationals in Singapore are not always fair.
“A lot of Singaporeans see foreigners as competition, but I think they are just complaining. If there are people willing to do the jobs they don’t want, why not? It’s as if you don’t want the job, but don’t want others to have it either.”