ngapore became Chinese dominated. Until the riots 1969, co-existence between the three ethnicities (and other minor groups) was largely peaceful, although the three main racial groups for the most part lived in separate communities—the Malays in the villages, the Chinese in the urban areas, and the Indians in the towns and plantation. More Malays however have moved into the cities since the 1970s, and the proportion of the non-Malays have been decreasing continually, especially the Chinese, due in large part to lower birth-rate and emigration as a result of institutionalized discrimination.
Preceding independence of the Federation of Malaya, a social contract was negotiated as the basis of a new society. The contract as reflected in the 1957 Malayan Constitution and the 1963 Malaysian Constitution states that the immigrant groups are granted citizenship, and Malays' special rights are guaranteed. This is often referred to the Bumiputra policy.
These pluralist policies have come under pressure from racialist Malay parties, who oppose perceived subversion of Malay rights. The issue is sometimes related to the controversial status of religious freedom in Malaysia.
Multiculturalism has been a characteristic feature of the island of Mauritius. Mauritian society includes people from many different ethnic and religious groups: Hindu, Muslim and Indo-Mauritians, Mauritian Creoles (of African and Malagasy descent), Buddhist and Roman Catholic Sino-Mauritians and Franco-Mauritians (descendants of the original French colonists).
Mexico has historically always been a multicultural country, with people of ethnic groups including those of indigenous background, various European backgrounds, Africans, and a small Asian community. Mexico City has recently been integrating rapidly, doing much better than many cities in a sample conducted by the Intercultural Cities Index (being the only non-European city, alongside Montreal, on the index).
The Philippines ranks 8th among 240 countries in terms of ethnic diversity. Among its several ethnic groups, the Philippines has 10 major distinct groups mainly the Bicolano, Ibanag, Ilocano, Kapampangan, Moro, Pangasinan, Sambal, Tagalog and Visayan. The Philippines also has several aboriginal stocks such as the Badjao, Igorot, Lumad, Mangyan and Negrito. The country also has a huge Hispanic community; and a number of American, Chinese, and Indian communities. The Philippine government has various programs supporting and preserving the nation's ethnic diversity.
Although there had been no ethnic-based incidents of aggression between many Christian and animist groups, the same cannot be said about relations between them on the one hand and their Muslim compatriots on the other. The enduring war in Mindanao is one of the most prominent examples of religious conflicts pestering the economically frail southern Philippines. Since the 1899 Moro Rebellion, Muslim groups across Mindanao have bolstered armed offensives against foreign colonizers due to aspirations of self-determination. However, these efforts have failed resulting to the annexation of Islamic regions particularly the Sultanate of Sulu to the Philippines.
Because of immigration, Singapore has a Chinese majority population with significant minority populations of Malays and Indians (predominantly Tamils). Other prominent smaller groups include Peranakans and Eurasians. Besides English, Singapore recognizes three other languages – Malay, Mandarin Chinese and Tamil. English was established as the medium of instruction in schools during the 1960s and 1970s and is the language of trade and government while the other three languages are taught as second languages ("mother tongues"). Besides being a multilingual country, Singapore also acknowledges festivals celebrated by the three main ethnic communities.
During British colonial rule, ethnic enclaves such as Geylang, Chinatown, and Little India were enforced. Presently (2010), remnants of colonial ethnic concentration still exist but housing in Singapore is governed by the Ethnic Integration Policy, 