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The war on Sars (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) is far from over. We must have the common understanding that we should not let our guard down to prevent a new outbreak of the deadly virus. Good leadership, effective strategies and active cooperation from the people have helped us bring Sars under control. Our battle against Sars has won Singapore international accolades which every Singaporean should be proud of. Some people have argued that we have managed to get on top of the Sars problem because Singaporeans are so used to being told what to do - this has made the measures introduced by the government extremely effective. As I see it, in our fight against Sars, the government has as usual been very quick and resolute in responding to challenges. Besides, it has been rather sensitive to the feelings of the people. For example, many fear and are on their guard against people who have been served home quarantine orders as they are not sure what “isolation” means. Sars combat team chief Khaw Boon Wan has said that the person being served the order and his or her neighbours should be explained what it means. In considering whether to name people who are quarantined, Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is in favour of testing it out in one or two constituencies before making a decision. In short, the concerns and feelings of the people are not ignored. Sars is a new disease for which there is no vaccine and the medical profession is working overtime to find out more about the virus. The fear arising from it is understandable and people should not be overly criticised for it. Yet if the fear factor is not managed quickly or managed well, it may give rise to even more thorny issues. It is thus essential to educate people on this “invisible killer”. But the government soon realised that there is a problem in getting the message across - some dialect-speaking Singaporeans understand neither English nor Mandarin. Ministers and MPs began switching to dialects to explain to this group of people, who might have been overlooked in the past, the precautionary measures they should adopt. Ministers and MPs - among them are NTUC Secretary-General and Minister without Portfolio Lim Boon Heng, Mayor Yu-Foo Yee Shoon, and MP Tan Cheng Bock - even adopted a “koyok selling” approach last month to drive home the important message in different dialects on Sars management. It was a refreshing experience to see the leaders bring themselves so close to the people. Even if it was a “political show”, it was brilliant and displayed political wisdom. It was also rare to see our leaders shed their serious and no-nonsense image to interact with people in a relaxed and casual manner. Dialects which are only spoken during elections to woo voter support have “by chance” played an “appropriate” role and showed their “usefulness”. I'm reminded of the Speak Mandarin Campaign which was launched more than 20 years ago. Dialect programmes on TV and radio stations were all taken off, depriving older Singaporeans who speak only dialects of their entertainment. Did they feel lonely because of this? Shouldn’t we have spared a thought for them and not be too obsessed with the “success” of the campaign? Apart from the objectives, consideration should be given to other concerns. Our aim is to reach the summit, yet we need not be in such a hurry that we ignore the beautiful scenery during our climb. Dialects have made a comeback like “extras” in a movie who have stolen the limelight from the main cast. This has led to opposing reactions. Some are glad dialects are no longer shunned while others fear dialects will gain momentum and interfere with the learning of Mandarin by young Singaporeans. Should dialects give way to Mandarin? I think this is not the issue. A language that is often spoken and used widely by people in everyday life will flourish. Chinese Singaporeans speak many dialects (mother tongues) and there must be a single language for them to communicate effectively. Yet the existence of a common language does not mean that it will necessarily thrive. We have perhaps been too uptight about the mother tongue issue (whether Mandarin or dialects) - a slight deviation from the norm is enough to make us all worked up. The writer is a senior educationist. Translated by Yap Gee Poh.
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沙斯战役还没有到可以鸣金收兵的时刻，国人仍须保持警戒之心，以防病毒再次肆虐，这是我们的共识。 我们能漂亮地打赢一场神出鬼没的战役，当然是战略奏效，主帅领导有方，而老百姓也理智地给以充分的配合。对抗沙斯的战役为新加坡赢得了声誉，这个宝贵的资产是属于全国的。 有人说，新加坡老百姓一向习惯于家长式的管理，反而使得抗沙斯的战略更容易行之有效。其实，我觉得政府在抗沙斯战役上，一方面仍保持一贯的明快、果敢的作风，一方面却也采取了亲民的方式。 在处理隔离令方面，因为不少人对“居家隔离”不太了解，对被隔离者存有不必要的恐惧与戒防心理。抗炎作战部队指挥官许文远觉得发给隔离令，不能一纸令下便了事，而是要向被隔离者以及其左邻右舍解释清楚。 当考虑要不要公布被隔离者的名字时，李显龙副总理也主张先在一两个选区试行，看是否行得通，再作决定。总之，是体贴民心，兼顾人情的。 沙斯是一种新的病毒，专业的医疗人员也对它所知不多，无法对症下药。对一种能致命的病毒，我们只能在防御上步步为营，时时警戒，难免引起多少的恐慌；这是人之常情，难以苛责。 可是，这种恐慌没有及时处理，或者处理不当就会带来更多复杂的棘手问题。因此教育老百姓认识沙斯这个隐形的敌人是必要的。 可是，政府发现“上情下达”出了状况，因为部分老百姓既看不懂英文，也听不懂华语，只能用方言向他们解释沙斯的种种相关重要信息。于是，马上作了调整，部长、议员相继用方言向过去可能被忽略的部分老百姓解释怎么把防备沙斯的工作做好来，大家出一份力量，共同战胜沙斯。 后来，林文兴、符喜泉、陈清木等部长议员甚至放下身段，用方言“卖膏药”。这么接近老百姓的方式，在本地的政坛上是令人耳目一新的。即使这只是一种政治秀，也无伤大雅；政治秀用得恰到好处，是难能可贵的智慧表演。 何况，难得我国的政治人物一改过去严肃的、近于不苟言笑的态度，而以轻松活泼的方式与老百姓在一起。本来在全民大选时为争取选票，才有机会派上用场的方言，这一次竟意外地扮演了“正当”的角色，发挥了语言的“正常”功能。 这不禁使我想起二十几年前，当我们如火如荼地推行“讲华语运动”时，电台和电视台的方言节目几乎销声匿迹；只懂方言的年老一辈观赏节目的权利就这样给牺牲了。他们是不是因此而寂寞呢？当年是应该多为他们想一想，不能只考虑到“运动”只许成功，不许失败。目标以外，往往尚有别的什么必须兼顾；登上山峰是我们的目的，却也不必急巴巴地赶路而放弃观赏一路上的风光景色。 这一次，方言的出场有点像是“临时演员”脱颖而出。有的人叫好－－终于不用含羞答答，犹抱琵琶半遮面了。有的人表示担忧；担心方言大行其道，会影响新加坡年轻一代对华语的掌握。 方言是不是应该让位给华语呢？我觉得，一种语言有没有生命力，能不能活在大家的口齿之间，是它在我们生活中有没有“用武之地”，有没有让它施展才华的空间；不是我们认为什么应该，什么不应该的问题。华族各籍贯各有其“母语”，人多口杂，若没有一个共同的语言，各说各话，当然是不行的。有了共同的语言，却不等于它就必然会生机蓬勃地活下去。 我们的母语（不管是华语还是方言）神经不知不觉地给绷得太久了吧，轻轻拨一下，便全身紧张起来。 ·作者是本地资深教育工作者
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