Faced with a very inhospitable outcome courtesy of Singaporean authorities, 19-year-old New Zealand teenager Brandon Smith is in a pickle.
Born in Singapore to a Kiwi father and a Singaporean mother, Smith faces a stint in jail or a $10,000 fine should he refuse to serve the mandatory national service. No longer identifying himself as a Singaporean after moving to Dunedin when he was eight years old, Smith finds it illogical for him to head back here to serve his conscription, stuff.co.nz reports.
As a New Zealand citizen, he states that he would be treated as an outsider, and the monthly pay would not be able to cover his food and lodging after the initial three-month training period.
He would have relinquished his citizenship long ago, if not for the law that mandates that Singaporeans cannot give up their citizenship until 21 years of age. Applications to defer his national service until the age of 21 has been repeatedly declined too.
His father, Shane Smith, has been corresponding with Members of Parliament in Singapore to no avail. The matter has been brought up to New Zealand’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, who intends to look into it.
