Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, and also known as Singarich,[4] is a city-state
“”If Singapore is a nanny state, then I am proud to have fostered one. |
—Lee Kuan Yew |
“”We are well positioned to serve as a gateway to Asia, and provide a platform for businesses to benefit from the shifting of centre of gravity to this region. |
—Josephine Teo, Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport, 2014.[2] |
“”Singapore. You look at their airports and their highways and their roads, and their everything, their infrastructure, and then you come back at home and you land at LaGuardia, you land at JFK, you land at LAX or Newark, and it's third world airports. It's so sad what has happened to our country. |
—Donald Trump, 2015 interview with Fox News.[3] |
As a global financial hub and popular tourist destination, Singapore is highly developed and has a thriving modern economy, and generally maintains good relations with the rest of the world, although it has relatively strict laws, being dubbed the the "Fine City". It is also a de facto one party state under the People's Action Party
Despite the PAP being on the conservative side on social issues, it espouses a liberal immigration policy, with visas such as temporary work permits (WP) and employment passes (EP) making up a significant proportion of its population. However, permanent residency (PR) and citizenship (SC) has tightened in recent years, as the government maintains a policy of the CIMO model.
Singapore has an internationally-known fun fact in that it has outlawed sales of chewing gum
History
Early history
Human settlement of Singapore is only known to date back to the 14th century CE. Singapore was initially ruled by a series of Malay rulers: Parameswara,
In 1819, Thomas Stamford Raffles
Meanwhile, Japan, following the lead of other colonial powers, began to build its military and its empire,
Japan continued to make inroads into China, invading and effectively annexing all of Manchuria in 1934, then instigating the Second Sino-Japanese War
Life in Japanese-occupied Singapore
Post-World War II up to independence
“”Repression… is like making love — it is always easier the second time! The first time there may be pangs of conscience, a sense of guilt. But once embarked on this course, with constant repetition, you get more and more brazen in the attack and in the scope of the attack. First… you attack only those whom your Special Branch can definitely say are Communists. They have no proof except X told Z who told Alpha who told Beta who told the Special Branch. Then you attack those whom you Special Branch say are actively sympathising with and helping the Communists, although they are not Communists themselves. Then you attack those whom your Special Branch say, although they are not Communists themselves. Then you attack those who your Special Branch say, although they or fellow travellers, yet, by their intransigent opposition to any collaboration with colonialism, they encourage the spirit of revolt and weaken constituted authority and thereby, according to the Special Branch, they are aiding the Communists. Then finally, since you have gone that far, you attack all those who oppose you… Repression is an easy substitute for hard work and organisation. |
—Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore Legislative Assembly Debates, 4 October 1956[9]:10[note 1] |
Following World War II, worldwide decolonization began apace, both peacefully and by revolution. The idea of continued colonialism in Singapore was particularly untenable due to the embarrassment of 'Fortress Singapore' falling in a mere 7 days, and the hardships and war crimes that Singaporeans suffered under the Japanese Empire. Britain acceded to a peaceful decolonization strategy for Singapore and Malaya, though one that was staunchly anti-communist.
The First Legislative Council (1948-1951) and Second Legislative Council (1951-1955) were only slightly better than the colonial status quo, with minimal representation of Singaporeans. This period of time was marked by the start of a communist insurgency in Malaya, known as the Malayan Emergency (1948-1960),[11] led by the Malayan National Liberation Army,[12] the military wing of the Communist Party of Malaya.
In 1954, members of the University Socialist Club
Following social unrest and riots in 1955, then-Chief Minister David Marshall
In 1959, the PAP won a landslide victory (43 of 51 seats) in the legislative assembly in the first election with full internal self-government.[18] The victory had been based on courting the Chinese-speaking majority, labour unions and radical student organizations. The election also marked Lee's election as the first Prime Minister. The uncompromising and autocratic tendencies of the PAP — both inside and outside of the party — were noticed during the PAP's first 15 months in office.[19]:88
In 1960 due to ongoing efforts Lee to control the labour unions, PAP member Ong Eng Guan
In 1961, following a by-election, left-wing members of the PAP planned to oust Lee from the Party. Instead, Lee called for a no-confidence Parliament vote in July 1961, to which the left-wing members voted against or abstained. As a consequence, Lee expelled those members from the PAP, and the expelled members formed the Barisan Sosialis ("Socialist Front"), with Lim Chin Siong as its Secretary General, in September 1962.[20]
The expulsion enabled Lee to consolidate power within the PAP, but not within Singapore as a whole because many grassroots PAP member shifted their allegiances to the Barisan Socialis.[16]:29 The Barisan Sosialis was a major threat to the PAP's ability to continue to hold a parliamentary majority, since the strong labour union movement in Singapore would no longer support the PAP without its leftist wing. Lord Selkirk, the commissioner-general for Southeast Asia, noted prior to the 1963 general election that:[16]:29
“”Lee is probably very much attracted to the idea of destroying his political opponents. It should be remembered that there is behind all this a very personal aspect… he claims he wishes to put back in detention the very people who were released at his insistence — people who are intimate acquaintances, who have served in his government and with whom there is a strong sense of political rivalry which transcends ideological differences. |
In December 1962, the Partai Rakyat Brunei (PRB, Brunei People's Party) revolted against British colonial rule within Brunei.[16]:46 The revolt was short-lived, and the exact causes of the revolt remain unclear. Historian Greg Poulgrain has suggested that the revolt was in reaction to threatened arrests of PRB members by the British Special Branch of Sarawak,[21]:258 implying that it was effectively a false flag operation of the British government.[16]:46,48 The Prime Minister of Malaya, Tunku Abdul Rahman,
In January 1963, the Federation, the British and Lee began planning for mass political arrests under the ISA but none of the parties were keen to take public responsibility for the arrests.[16]:54-56 The Federation had insisted on the arrests as a matter of public security, Lee feared that doing so would jeopardize his political future and the British feared that it would make it appear to the British public that they were forcing the Federation on Malaya and Singapore.[16]:55,66-68 An initial list of people to be arrested was drawn up and eventually agreed upon by the three parties: "100 in category A ('hardcore organizers of the communist conspiracy'), excluding the six Singapore assembly members, 32 in category B ('leading collaborators in the communist conspiracy'), including the three UPP members, making 133 proposed detainees."[16]:59-60 Lee specifically demanded that the 3 UPP members be arrested, and privately admitted that it was basically for the purpose of his own political survival.[16]:60 The list eventually agreed upon included 169 people.[16]:60 On February 2, 1963, what came to be known as Operation Coldstore
“”A total of 130 people were taken into custody. These included 31 in the political sphere, including [Lim] Chin Siong, 40 trade union leaders, 18 from the education sphere, 11 from the cultural circles, seven members of rural committees or hawkers, nine people only identified as members of CPM and 14 others. Major figures included Lim Chin Siong, Fong Swee Suan, Sandra Woodhull, |
It was in fact known by the British that "there had never been any justification on security grounds of the arrest of the U.P.P. members and that they had only been included in 'Operation Cold Store' on the insistence of Lee Kuan Yew'."[16]:66
According to historian Geoff Wade, who has analyzed the formerly-classified British documents on the decolonization of Singapore and Malaysia, there were four main processes leading up to Operation Coldstore:[16]:67-68
- The British wished to create a united Malaysia as a Cold War anti-communist bullwark. The British desired the inclusion of Singapore within Malaysia because they feared that an independent Singapore would eventually become communist due to the ethnic Chinese majority, at least some of whom had sympathies towards the People's Republic of China. Hence the British favored an ethnic Malay-dominated Malaysia, led by UMNO.
- Tunku Abdul Rahman wished to maximize his own power, and tried to control Singapore's entrance into Malaysia on his own terms.
- Lee wished to maximize his own power within Singapore, while maintaining plausible deniability of his responsibility for political suppression of the left-wing.
- The left-wing in Singapore attempted to win power through legal means, so as to try to avoid detention under the ISA. Because of this, the left-wing was not directly involved in guerrilla activities.
The aftermath of Operation Coldstore effectively enabled the creation of the PAP one-party state in Singapore, and consolidated Lee's power within all of Singapore.[16]:68-69 This was confirmed by a snap election called by the PAP and held on September 21. The PAP only polled at 46.9%, but due to the indefinite detention of key opposition members and the first past the post voting system, the PAP obtained 37 seats (vs. 13 for Barisan Sosialis and 1 for UPP).[19]:113-114[23]
Meanwhile following the 1959 election, a campaign for the merger of British colonies in the region, between Malaya, Singapore, Sarawak, Brunei, and North Borneo. PAP leadership, but not pro-communist elements of the PAP were strongly opposed to the merger, fearing that the main political party in Malaysia, the anti-communist United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), would help to defeat them following the merger. There were also concerns that the majority Malay and Muslim population of Malaya would give preferential rights to ethnic Malays over ethnic Chinese in the majority Chinese Singapore. In 1963, UMNO changed its position over the merger, based on the prospect of a possible communist takeover, and the Federation of Malaysia was subsequently established in September 1963, comprising Malaya, Singapore, Sarawak and North Borneo.
Independence endgame
The pro-Malay discriminatory policies that were implemented in the Federation very quickly increased ethnic tensions within Singapore, and resulted the 1964 race riots.
Meanwhile, the prospect of the resulting Federation had caused President Sukarno
In August 1965, due to high levels of hostility between PAP and UMNO and high levels of ethnic tensions, the Parliament of Malaysia voted unanimously to expel Singapore from the Federation, thus creating Singapore as a fully independent nation — perhaps the only country to gain independence by being peacefully forced out of another country.
Aftermath
The Malaysian ISA was finally repealed in 2012,[13]:410[25] five decades after the end of the Malayan Emergency,[11] and two decades after the dissolution of the Malayan National Liberation Army[12] and the Malayan Communist Party.[26] The ISA in Singapore however is still in effect as of 2020.[27] In Singapore, a total of 1190 people were known to have been arrested under the ISA from 1950-2013, including 768 since Operation Coldstore.[13]:432-488 There was a lull in ISA arrests between June 1988 and August 2001, when there apparently none. Following 9/11, the ISA arrests resumed but exclusively for people with Muslim names who planned terrorist attacks in Singapore; prior to 9/11, the arrestees predominantly had Chinese names who were sympathetic to communism.[13]:432-488
The effects of the ISA were damaging to the political prisoners, causing mental and physical health problems from the poor living conditions under detention that included prolonged solitary confinement in sometimes filthy, tiny cells.[28]:229-230,233-234,237[29]:339-344 The long periods of detention, up to 20 years continuously for Lim Hock Siew and a total of 32 years for Chia Thye Poh,
There has never been an open truth and reconciliation for Operation Coldstore and the effects of the ISA.[30]:200-201 Access to original documents in the National Archives of Singapore requires preclearance, and is only given to scholars who are likely to be favorable to the PAP.[31]:124-125
“”Any nation that denies the contribution and struggles of any section of society or people to the history of independence, nation building and progress, while promoting only the narrative of the elite, does injustice to historical truth. Such action also seriously jeopardises the development of civilsation, prevents the harnessing of the people's collective energies, and undermines national unity and solidarity. For any nation to be united and to advance, it is imperative that its history be inclusive, comprehensively documented from as many perspectives as possible and passed on for the posterity. |
—Poh Soo Kai[30]:200 |
Another consequence of Operation Coldstore and the ever-present threat of ISA detention was a lingering climate of fear and apathy among Singaporeans:[13]:420[29]:347
“”An attitude of mai gong (refusing to comment) and mai chap (not wanting to meddle) became fashionable as the guiding principle of human behavior on this strange little island republic. A populace constantly looking to the party in power for signals and commands to do something or refrain from doing something is what we have now. One would have thought that Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong |
—Tan Kok Fang[29]:347 |
Government and politics
Singapore is effectively a one-party democracy which benefits from first past the post voting. Ruled by the People's Action Party (PAP) since its independence and separation from Malaysia in 1965, the Government of Singapore follows a progressive form of free market state capitalism[32] with a hint of elitism under the mask of meritocracy. Free speech is de jure allowed in Singapore, although subjected to even more restrictions. In fact, the "free speech" of Singapore is more of a freedom to common sense and pro-government rhetoric. Hong Lim Park is the only place in Singapore where public demonstrations and protests are allowed.
Civil rights, law and rights to assembly
Riots, strikes and demonstrations are generally banned in Singapore as it is a common understanding by both the government and general populace that such events disrupt and hinder the productivity and affect the livelihood of Singaporeans, even among those who are generally not supportive of the government. In fact, many Singaporeans would rather complain about their issues through proper channels or visit their Members of Parliament (MPs) than participate in demonstrations/riots/strikes as they will be shunned by the rest of their family if they go against the government. Singapore, in its unique way of implementing democracy, has allocated a park, Hong Lim Park, for such activities.[33] However, anyone holding the activity must first apply a permit with the Police and no foreigners are allowed to participate in such activities, mostly to avoid foreign interference
In Singapore's justice system, a single judge decides all questions of both law and fact at a trial. An appeals process exists, but is largely irrelevant since criticizing the objectivity of the trial court (or any other Singaporean court) in any way will, by law (called scandalising the court), result in your appeal being dismissed out of hand and additional criminal charges filed against you.
Homosexual activity between men (legal among women) remains criminalized under Section 377A of Singapore's penal code, a law initially placed by the previous British adminstration. The government claims that they have bowed to public pressure and will no longer enforce this prohibition but seem quite uninterested in bowing to public pressure by taking it off the books, by claiming that there's "no strong scientific evidence that a person's sexual orientation is unchangeable". However, it was known that Lee Kuan Yew knew that sexual orientation was genetic and such statements were meant to satisfy a conservative religious populace, mainly the Christians and Muslims.[35]
Capital punishment still exists in Singapore for major crimes such as murder, kidnapping, trafficking of recreational drugs and armed robbery under the Penal code of Singapore.[36][37] Caning is still a punishment for men below 50 years old. Caning is a compulsory punishment for rape, sexual harassment, civil dissent and vandalism. In the 1990s, it caused particular attention in the United States when American Michael P. Fay
In 2014, Prime Minister Lee sued an ordinary citizen, a young social activist Roy Ngerng.
Judgement was handed down in December 2015 and Ngerng was ordered to pay S$150,000 in damages to PM Lee with comments from the judge that "The comparatively low standing of the defendant warranted a substantial reduction".[39]
Lee Kuan Yew's death in 2015 was promptly commemorated by the arrest for racial and religious hatred of a teenage blogger named Amos Yee
A different sense of nepotism was scrutinized under public light when the brother of prime minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Yang, accused his brother the Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong (son of Lee Kuan Yew), of abuse of power by not demolishing the Oxley Road House that had belong to the founding father.[42] The entire saga, also known as Oxley Road controversy,
Gerrymandering and grassroots leaders
Critics have long accused the ruling PAP of gerrymandering to maintain a significant parliamentary majority. However, the elections in 2020
Some ctitics in Singapore believe that the government has nominal restrictions for foreigners to become PRs and eventually citizens as the new citizens are most likely to vote for the incumbent government, believing in this reason to explain behind PAP's continued electoral success.
Salaries of ministers and MPs
The salaries of ministers and members of parliament (MPs) are of constant domestic debate among local Singaporeans.
With a salary of US$1.7 million per year, reduced from an initial 2.9 million per year under mounting public outrage, Lee Hsien Loong is the highest-paid head of government in the world by a substantial margin.[44] Lee Hsien Loong has reportedly mentioned that he donates 50% of his salary to charity but this claim could not be substantiated. The salary of MPs (including non-PAP MPs, to be fair) are fixed at SGD $16,000 per month before taxes as of 2017.[45] MPs are not required to quit their job so they can hold their day job while performing their MP duties. In fact, many MPs are rich enough without the $16,000 salary and the official explanation for their large compensation is so that they have enough pride when talking to business leaders who earn equivalent salaries. Most MPs use the salary to pay their secretaries who are usually the ones that speak with their constituents for minor issues such as estate maintenance, also known locally as "bread-and-butter issues".
Society
Women arguably enjoy greater rights than men in Singapore, especially in regards to conscription and in court. Under the Women's Charter, women are guaranteed 50% of their partner's assets and subsequent salaries upon divorce regardless of the reason for divorce.[46] Notably however, the PAP initially opposed the Women's Charter and was one of three significant reversals by the PAP in the early years (1959-1960),[19]:88 which likely led to the PAP realizing that despite autocratic tendencies, it needed to appease the populace.
Women are excluded (similar to South Korea) from compulsory conscription in Singapore, in contrast with Israel's system. Singapore has the lowest rape cases in the region as non-consensual sex in Singapore is viewed as rape and comes with compulsory caning of the offender. Non-consensual sex in Singapore includes impaired consent (i.e. having intercourse with a drunk female) and retroactively withdrawn consent (i.e victim regretting the sex and retracting the consent given). Women in Singapore are given exclusive tax rebates for childbirth (up to 75% of their annual income) and are one of the richest in the region due to their high salaries and low taxes.
Men, while generally also wealthier in the region, have to enroll in compulsory conscription (draft) that have been in place since 1967[47] through the passing of the NS (Amendment) Act. Every male citizen in Singapore is subjected to two years of full-time National Service (unless medically exempt) and a subsequent part-time service (unless one isn't physically fit) every year up to the statutory age limit of 40 years old. Men who obtained commissioned officers' ranks are required to serve until age 50, though at this point that's what you signed up for. During the whole duration of service (until the statutory age limit), every man who is deemed to be medically fit has to pass a physical test. They are also subjected to random call ups at any point in time, also known as Mobililsation Exercise, where they must turn up at their respective camps within 2, 4 or 6 hours depending on the requirements of their vocation, usually to gauge preparedness in case of an actual war. Employers in Singapore must release their male employees to compulsory service.
Adultery is legal so it's generally fair game for both genders on at least one count.
Economy
The Singapore government relies heavily on foreign labour especially in construction. Former minister Lim Swee Say who was previously the Secretary-General of NTUC (the only workers union in Singapore), has coined the term "Cheaper, Better, Faster" as a competitive strategy and solution to Singapore's economy.[48]
Banking is a major part of the Singapore economy. While Singapore is generally transparent in the public sector, the banking industry in the private sector has historically been closely tied with laundering ill-gotten gains from individuals living in neighboring countries in the Asia-Pacific (reminds you of a certain country?), that's right, Singapore has been called the "Switzerland of Asia".[49] This can appear particularly ironic to those in the know when Singapore occassionally suffers from bad air pollution caused by forest fires in neighboring Indonesia, some of which are associated with illegal land clearing.
Singapore has also signed multiple free trade agreements with many countries, including with China, the European Union, Japan and the United States.
1 in 6 Singaporeans are millionaires. Singaporeans as a whole have an average debt of US$50,000, which has been stated as "moderate for a high-wealth country". [50]
State investment firms
The city-state operates investment firms called Temasek Holdings
A conspiracy believed by some of the local populace was that their compulsory savings and retirement accounts, known as Central Provident Fund
Culture and religion
Singapore has a wide variety of cultures and religions. In fact, Singapore is so culturally diverse that one can see nine different religions blessing a public infrastructure.[54] Singapore has four official languages (English, Chinese, Malay, and Tamil).
Singaporeans are generally cohesive and view themselves as Singaporeans rather than as a group of their respective races. In fact, local Singaporean Chinese would identify themselves with their local Malay or Indian counterparts rather than with Chinese from China. Locals who are generally negative about foreigners being employed here are sometimes labeled as xenophobic or racists. The discussion of race and religion in a manner that could be interpreted as hostile is banned in Singapore under the sedition act.[55] It is an offense to make racial or religious jokes in Singapore as the government does not wish a re-enactment of the Maria Hertogh riots
Casual racism
Casual racism was brought into the spotlight when a local Singaporean actor of Indian descent named Shrey Bhargava wrote a lengthy post on Facebook about his experience with stereotyping during an audition for a role in Ah Boys To Men 3, a local movie on National Service.[57] Local online television personality Xiaxue, was quick to respond that it was right for the directors to do what they did and called "bullshit" on Shrey Bhargava for not being professional enough and a hypocrite.[58] Subsequently, Shrey was questioned by the police for alleged racism (due to his discussion on racial issues) and was released when the police determined that no damage was done to the social fabric of Singapore.[59]
This incident brought the topic of casual and arguably harmless racism into the public with many agreeing that while it might not be a big deal for the majority Chinese populace to laugh and joke about common racist stereotypes, that's because the minority in Singapore has been very tolerant as well, and would also make casual racist remarks about the Chinese.[60]
Foreign relations
Singapore is so influential in the world and generally punches above its weight that a Singaporean citizen has visa-free access to 190 countries. This most probably stems from the fact that Singaporeans are wealthy enough to not illegally emigrate or overstay in various countries, despite its relatively small land area.
Singapore was offered to be a major non-NATO ally during the Presidency of George W. Bush, but had turned the offer down, stating that it was in violation of its neutrality policy, which usually described as to appease its Muslim-majority neighbours mentioned below. Nevertheless, it maintains relatively good relations with the United States.[61]
Singapore has a love-hate relationship with its neighbors, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Relations with Malaysia
Many Malaysians travel to work in Singapore from Johor and are viewed as the extended cousins of Singaporeans, as both were under the same country about half a century ago. Singapore and Malaysia were in a legal conflict over the Pedra Branca dispute
Malaysia's goals were however not realised as the International Court of Justice
Operation Pukul Habis
Malindo Darasa 3AB (a.k.a. Operation Pukul Habis) was a joint exercise by Indonesia and Malaysia held on August 8th, 1991 which coincided with Singapore's 26th National Day. The operation involved an airdrop of troops from both countries in Johor and it happened during the transition phase when Lee Kuan Yew passed the baton to the new Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong.
In response to the operation, a massive island-wide mobilisation exercise was triggered by Singapore's Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) and all reservists were given loaded M-16 assault rifles with live ammunition and deployed to the coasts of Singapore to prepare for a potential invasion by sea. It was one of the largest mobilisation exercises in Singapore and it was done to dissuade her neighbors from an actual invasion.
Gallery
Notes
- This quotation reflects the oppressor's view in contrast to Martin Niemöller's powerful quotations against apathy towards victimization (First they came…
File:Wikipedia's W.svg ) that began circulating in 1946:[10]:175“” First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out —- Because I was not a socialist.
- Because I was not a trade unionist.
- Because I was not a Jew.
- Because I was not a socialist.
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- 9 religious leaders bless tracks for upcoming MRT Tuas West Extension by Nyi Nyi Thet (June 6, 2017 @ 12:08 pm) Mothership.
- Sedition Act (Chapter 290) (Original Enactment: M Ordinance 14 of 1948) Revised Edition 2013 (31st August 2013) Singapore Statutes Online.
- Painful lesson (Jul 15, 2015, 5:00 am SGT) The Straits Times.
- Shrey Bhargava (May 27, 2017) Facebook.
- Xiaxue wades into ‘racist’ Ah Boys To Men audition saga, calls actor a hypocrite by Jonathan Lim (May 29, 2017 @ 11:54 am) Mothership.
- Police question actor over Ah Boys To Men audition Facebook post by Belmont Lay (June 1, 2017 @ 10:10 am) Mothership.
- Putting 'casual racism' in the spotlight by Audrey Tan (Published Jul 2, 2017, 5:00 am SGT; Updated Jul 2, 2017, 1:39 pm) The Straits Times.
- Huxley, Tim (30 July 2012). "Singapore and the US: not quite allies". Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
- "Case Concerning Sovereignty over Pedra Branca/Pulau Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks and South Ledge (Malaysia/Singapore)". International Court of Justice. 23 May 2008., para. 16.