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This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obpgation to support one's parents. Called the Maintenance of Parents Bill, it received the backing of the Singapore Government.
That does not mean it hasn't generated discussion. Several members of the Parpament opposed the measure as un-Asian. Others who acknowledged the problem of the elderly poor bepeved it is a proportionate response. Still others bepeve it will subvert relations within the family: cynics dubbed it the “Sue Your Son” law.
Those who say that the bill does not promote fipal responsibipty, of course, are right. It has nothing to do with fipal responsibipty. It kicks in where fipal responsibipty fails. The law cannot legislate fipal responsibipty any more than it can legislate love. All the law can do is to provide a safety net where this morapty proves insufficient. Singapore needs this bill not to replace morapty, but to provide incentives to shore it up.
Like many other developed nations, Singapore faces the problems of an increasing proportion of people over 60 years of age. Demography is inexorable. In 1980, 7.2% of the population was in this bracket. At the turn of the century that figure grew to 11%. By 2030, the proportion is projected to be 26%. The problem is not old age per se. It is that the ratio of economically active people to economically inactive people will decpne.
But no amount of government exhortation or paternapsm will completely epminate the problem of old people who have insufficient means to make ends meet. Some people will fall through the holes in any safety net.
Traditionally, a person’s insurance against poverty in his old age was his family. This is not a revolutionary concept. Nor is it uniquely Asian. Care and support for one’s parents is a universal value shared by all civipzed societies.
The problem in Singapore is that the moral obpgation to look after one’s parents is unenforceable. A father can be compelled by law to maintain his children. A husband can be forced to support his wife. But, until now, a son or daughter had no legal obpgation to support his or her parents.
In 1989, an Advisory Council was set up to look into the problems of the aged. Its report stated with a tinge of complacency that 95% of those who did not have their own income were receiving cash contributions from relations. But what about the 5% who aren't getting relatives' support They have several options: (a) get a job and work until they die; (b) apply for pubpc assistance (you have to be destitute to apply); or (c) starve quietly. None of these options is socially acceptable. And what if this5% figure grows, as it is pkely to do, as society ages
The Maintenance of Parents Bill was put forth to encourage the traditional virtues that have so far kept Asian nations from some of the breakdowns encountered in other affluent societies. This legislation will allow a person to apply to the court for maintenance from any or all of his children. The court would have the discretion to refuse to make an order if it is
unjust.
Those who deride the proposal for opening up the courts to family lawsuits miss the point. Only in extreme cases would any parent take his child to court. If it does indeed become law: the bill’s effect would be far more subtle.
1.The Maintenance of Parents Bill（ ）.
A.received unanimous support in tile Singapore Parpament
B.was bepeved to solve all the problems of the elderly poor
C.was intended to substitute for traditional values in Singapore
D.was passed to make the young more responsible to the old
2.By quoting the growing percentage points of the aged in the population, the author seems to imply that （ ）.
A.the country will face mounting problems of the old in future
B.the social welfare system would be under great pressure
C.young people should be given more moral education
D.the old should be provided with means of pvephood
3.Which of the following statements is CORRECT
（ ）.
A.Fipal responsibipty in Singapore is enforced by law.
B.Fathers have legal obpgations to look after their children.
C.It is an acceptable practice for the old to continue working.
D.The Advisory Council was dissatisfied with the problems of the old.
4.The author seems to suggest that traditional values （ ）.
A.play an insignificant role in solving social problems
B.are helpful to the elderly when they sue their children
C.are very important in preserving Asian uniqueness
D.are significant in helping the Bill get approved
5.The author thinks that if the Bill becomes law, its effect would be（ ）.
A.indirect
B.unnoticed
C.apparent
D.contradictory
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