Singapore riots: A typical India-like situation

The place in

where the recent

occurred is the epicentre for all construction workers from South Asia to assemble for weekend fun. They buy drinks from shops around this locality and sit in open fields (cheaper and nobody asks you to leave) talking over the phone to their respective families and friends till midnight. Some construction companies even provide shuttle buses from workers' dormitories from across the island to this place.

Now, it's a typical India-like situation. A jay walker gets hit by a bus and was run over. Drunk persons started throwing stuff they could find around to protest it. The driver was admitted to the hospital and later arrested. One story suggests that the person who was hit by the bus was an agent who supplied manpower (hence more emotion). The mob doubled within minutes and then they reportedly toppled a police car with personnel inside and then try to set it ablaze.

These protesters are in Singapore trying to make a living for their families back home, some to pay off their loans while some paying for their land. They work hard for their living but with their drunken rants, they faced fines and imprisonment.

It was the first riot in Singapore since the 1970s. The concern is that there will be an impact on work visas for such people. No industry today can survive without relying on foreign labour and construction industry will probably see a bigger impact should there be any extreme/strict measures taken by the administration.