Four Decades Later

RIOTS// Singapore’s first major riot in four decades forced the wealthy island to confront a stubborn but vexing question: how to treat low-paid foreign workers whose muscle underpins much of the economy but whose presence increasingly riles its citizens. Images of rioters overturning police cars, throwing garbage bins and burning an ambulance in Singapore’s Little India on the night of December 8, 2013, shocked the orderly Southeast Asian nation and stirred debate over whether foreign workers should be better integrated or see their numbers reduced. “This is just a tip of the iceberg,” said Gayathri, 30, an engineer who lives near the scene of the riots and goes by one name. “I hope the government will take it as a wake-up call. We need foreigners to boost our economy, but not at the expense of our security,” she added, echoing a widely held sentiment. Police charged 24 Indian nationals with rioting, which carries a maximum penalty of seven years’ prison and caning.