S’pore PR draws online flak over CCTV interview
Some netizens say she ‘renounced’ her status on China’s national TV
Zhang Yuan Yuan (left) has drawn online flak after she participated in China’s National Day parade two weeks ago. — PHOTO: BLOG.SINA.COM.CN
Singapore permanent resident Zhang Yuan Yuan is staying calm.
She has drawn online flak after she participated in China’s National Day parade two weeks ago.
Some netizens here have accused the 28-year-old, who was part of the much talked-about women’s army militia, of ‘renouncing’ her permanent residency on China’s national TV.
This was after an interview she did with CCTV-7 – the military and agricultural channel of China Central Television – began circulating online.
In the news clip, Ms Zhang was introduced as an overseas student who had returned to China to join the parade.
The five-minute clip had a screen shot of her blue identity card, which permanent residents here hold.
Speaking to The Sunday Times yesterday from Beijing, where she is taking a rest after the rigours of the parade, she said she did not expect the interview to create such a stir here.
Her Singaporean friends had called her when they saw her picture in the newspapers. But she read about the discussion on her permanent residency only on the Internet.
She is unperturbed though. ‘It’s nothing much. Everybody is entitled to their opinion. They can say anything they like on the Internet,’ she said in Mandarin.
She said she did not flash her identity card for the TV crew to shoot. When interviewing her mother, they had asked her to show it.
She said she enjoyed her five-year stay in Singapore and had wanted to come here in 2003 because she had a ‘good impression’ of the country.
She also wanted to see the world after completing her diploma studies in China.
For two years, she studied English at the Cambridge Institute here.
Later, she became a Chinese language teacher at Julia Gabriel Centre for Learning for three years. At that time, she was also taking a degree course in business management at the Asia Pacific Management Institute.
She lived in a condominium in Upper Bukit Timah with three China friends.
In April last year, she returned home to Beijing to spend more time with her parents, who are reaching their 60s.
‘I’m the only child and my parents are getting old so I decided to go home to take care of them.’ They are both retired.
She said she missed home, and at the same time, saw that opportunities were growing in China. She is now working in a property firm there.
Ms Zhang said she applied for permanent residency in 2006. It took about two to three months to get approval.
‘At that time, I thought it might be easier if I wanted to travel between the two countries.’
She said she made many local friends and even hosted seven of them when they visited China during the Olympics last year.
‘I love Singapore; the environment is very good,’ she said.
Ms Zhang also clarified that she was nominated by her company to join the women militia formation, a highlight of the military parade.
‘But I also wanted to join it. I thought it was a rare opportunity. I’m after all a Chinese and I felt it was my duty to give something back to my country.’
Ms Zhang spent 10 months at the Shahe National Parade Village in the northern outskirts of Beijing to prepare for the military parade.
While the daily eight-hour training was understandably tough, she said the group members had their fair share of entertainment.
‘On weekends, we would watch movies. We would also play basketball or sing karaoke.’
Asked if she intends to return to Singapore, Ms Zhang said she has not made up her mind yet.
‘I’ve not thought about what my future plans are.’
jamieee@sph.com.sg
Entitled to own opinions
‘It’s nothing much. Everybody is entitled to their opinion. They can say anything they like on the Internet.’
Ms Zhang
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It’s difficult to obtain knowledgeable people today on this subject, but you sound like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks
Since 1999 I & some of my friends already felt that obtaining S’pore PR by foreigners is an easy thing. Even if the foreigners didn’t apply for one, the gov will still send out invitation letter asking them to apply for PR. What a stupid act!
Whenever someone criticise the PR or new immigrants or FT or new immigrant sportsman etc policies, he/she will get fired at by PAP. Now there are PRs all over the places, even in various statutory boards,MOE,SAF.
Thses foreigners/PRs don’t regard S’pore as their home.Even if they convert to citizenship, that also doesn’t mean they are loyalty to this island too. I have once talked to AC Nielsen Marketing staff, she got a NUS scholarship without bond from S’pore gov. When she is PR, she always has to apply visas in entering foreign countries. To save the trouble & for conveniences, she converted to citizenship. To her, China is still her home where she longs to returns, whereby S’pore is just a transit station to study & make money.
I kept asking myself, why PAP wants to sponsor free scholarship to foreigners where some locals don’t even have a chance to study at NUS? What is the value of PR & citizenship to these foreigners?
Maybe very soon, we will be like the cichlids fishes eaten up by Nile perch in lake Victoria in Africa.