首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Family Matters This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation to support one’s parent
Family Matters This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation to support one’s parent
admin
2010-02-20
42
问题
Family Matters
This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation 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 Parliament opposed the measure as un-Asian. Others who acknowledged the problem of the elderly poor believed it a disproportionate response. Still others believe it will subvert relations within the family; cynics dubbed it the "Sue Your Son" law.
Those who say that the bill does not promote filial responsibility, of course, are right. It has nothing to do with filial responsibility. It kicks in where filial responsibility fails. The law cannot legislate filial responsibility any more than it can legislate love. All the law can do is to provide a safety net where this morality proves insufficient. Singapore needs this bill not to replace morality, 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. By the turn of the century, that figure will grow 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 decline.
But no amount of government exhortation or paternalism will completely eliminate 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 civilized Societies.
The problem in Singapore is that the moral obligation 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 obligation 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 of the 5% who aren’t getting relatives’ support7 They have several options: (a) get a job and work until they die; (b) apply for public assistance (you have to be destitute to apply); or (c) starve quietly. None of these options is socially acceptable. And what if this 5% figure grows, as it is likely 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 mixes 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.
First, it will reaffirm the notion that it is each individual’s -- not society’s -- responsibility to look after his parents. Singapore is still conservative enough that most people will not object to this idea. It rein-forces the traditional values and it doesn’t hurt a society now and then to remind itself of its core values.
Second, and more important, it will make those who are inclined to shirk their responsibilities think twice. Until now, if a person asked family elders, clergymen or the Ministry of Community Development to help get financial support from his children, the most they could do was to mediate. But mediators have no teeth, and a child could simply ignore their pleas.
But to be sued by one’s parents would be a massive loss of face. It would be a public disgrace. Few people would be so thick - skinned as to say, "Sue and be damned". The hand of the conciliator would be immeasurably strengthened. It is far more likely that some sort of amicable settlement would be reached if the recalcitrant son or daughter knows that the alternative is a public trial.
It would be nice to think that Singapore doesn’t need this kind of law. But that belief ignores the clear demographic trends and the effect of affluence itself on traditional bonds. Those of us who pushed for the bill will consider ourselves most successful if it acts as an’ incentive not to have it invoked in the first place.
The author thinks that if the Bill becomes law, its effect would be _____.
选项
A、indirect.
B、unnoticeable.
C、apparent.
D、straightforward.
答案
A
解析
原文中有:If it does indeed.become law, the bills effect would be far more subtle.“subtle”的同义语即indirect.
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/MrvO777K
0
专业英语八级
相关试题推荐
Transportationisthemovementorconveyingofpersonsandgoodsfromonelocationtoanother.Ashumanbeings,fromancienttim
A、Fightformarkets.B、Bemoreinventiveandinnovative.C、ExpandintoITindustry.D、Behonestandfairinbusinessdealings.A
Insize,Canadaisthesecondlargestcountryonearth.Intermsof【C1】______,itisamemberofBigSeven,theworld’sleading
Whatdoesitmeantorelax?Despite【C1】______thousandsoftimesduringthecourseofourlives,【C2】______havedeeplyconsidered
Whatdoesitmeantorelax?Despite【C1】______thousandsoftimesduringthecourseofourlives,【C2】______havedeeplyconsidered
A、Onecan’tmeetmorethan20peopleinthewholeday.B、It’seasierandmoreconvenienttolivewithanextendedfamilyinthe
Agoodmarriageisgoodfortheheart,accordingtonewresearchsupportedbytheHeartandStrokeFoundation."There’slittl
Ateamofworld-leadingneuro-scientistshasdevelopedapowerfultechniquethatallowsthemtolookdeepinsideaperson’sbrai
A美国历史。询问和MartinLutherKingJr.处于同一时期的美国总统。MartinLutherKing所处的时代是美国民权运动时期,当时的美国总统是JohnKennedy,两人先后遇刺身亡。AbrahamLincoln领导了美国
随机试题
世界上最早也是目前最大的专业联机检索系统是
我国医院内感染最常见的菌属是
下列有关造血过程描述错误的是()
取茯苓片或粉末少许,加碘化钾碘试液1滴,显
《行政处罚法》规定,不予行政处罚的人是()。
建设工程损失控制计划系统中的应急计划内容包括( )。
在砌体结构建筑中,墙按()分为承重墙和非承重墙两种。
三独坐
结合材料,回答问题:中国古代圣贤孔子在逝世近2500年后,其学说传播到了美国最负盛名的哈佛大学的讲堂。一门名为“中国古典伦理和政治理论”的课程在哈佛颇受欢迎。本学期,这门课吸引了近700名本科生,在注册人数上仅次于“经济学原理”和“计算
A、B、C、D、B
最新回复
(
0
)