A few weeks ago, a news portal broke the news that the Penang Island City Council planned to extend an existing ban on using foreign cooks to cover all hawker (street food) stalls, food courts and coffee shops.
The ban would cover 13 types of local hawker food: nasi lemak, asam laksa, pasembor, mee sotong, char koay teow, koay teow soup, hokkien mee, curry mee, wan tan mee, loh bak, chee cheong fun, char koay kak and oh chien.
According to the report, the Penang state government had already banned foreign workers from cooking selected hawker food in all hawker centres and food courts belonging to the city council. The ban was introduced in 2014 and has been implemented since 2016.
The current initiative aims to extend the ban to privately owned food courts, hawker centres and coffee shops. But it will not affect cafes, restaurants, hotels and franchises.
Various reasons have been given for the ban and the proposed extension. Among them was the need to preserve the authenticity and quality of local food, Penang being famous for its hawker food. The impression given to tourists was another reason that was cited. The possibility of creating more job opportunities for locals was another justification for the ban.
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Those who have reservations about the existing ban will be relieved to learn that the plan to widen the ban is now under review. The Penang Island mayor said the city council would need to consult those who will be affected by the extended ban.
Review the ban
It would be better if the city council reviews the entire ban. Concerns arise over the need for such a ban, let alone its extension.
Let’s look at some of these concerns.
First, how a dish is prepared and what it tastes like has nothing to do with whether the cook is a local (ie in possession of a Malaysian identity card).
The taste of any dish – and taste is subjective – relies on many things: the recipe, the quality and type of ingredients used, and the cook’s culinary skills. There can be traditional preparations, as well as variations to the original recipes.
We also know that there is a difference in how hawker food dishes are prepared within and between states across the country – even among ‘local’ cooks.
What is the evidence (ie the data) that the quality or authenticity of these specific hawker dishes has deteriorated and that this is due to hawkers employing foreigners to prepare these dishes?
Second, if food at a hawker stall is of poor quality or has veered so far off traditional preparations and is no longer recognisable, shouldn’t the stall owner and the cook be told?
Whether it is a local cook or a foreign cook who has prepared the dish, let market forces work: people will stop frequenting the stall if the food is not to their liking. Is there a need for a blanket ban on foreigners cooking 13 local delicacies in hawker stalls?
We must also ask if the existing ban under city council by-laws – and the plan to widen it – is discriminatory. True, the city council is empowered to issue and revoke licences. But can it ban foreign cooks from cooking specific types of cuisine and only on certain premises?
Just for argument’s sake, why are cafes, restaurants, hotels and franchises offering the same dishes exempt from the ban? What is the rationale here?
The justification that the ban could result in more job opportunities for locals also raises questions. Where is the evidence for this so far?
Some stall owners have experienced difficulty in recruiting local staff as cooks. Imagine a situation where a hawker selling one of the 13 dishes does not have family members who want to work at the stall. Or the hawker is unable to find or afford a local cook.
Are we saying such hawkers should close shop or stop work because of the ban on employing foreign cooks? What are the practical or operational realities of the ban?
Let’s do better
Let’s not lay our hawker food problems on foreign workers working in hawker food stalls.
If there is evidence of declining quality or authenticity of hawker food, poor hygiene at food stalls or misuse of hawker licences, then assess and tackle these issues rationally and fairly.
Let’s guard against xenophobic attitudes. Let’s ensure we do not institutionalise discrimination against foreign workers.
We can do better.
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