Singapore Independence & Nation-Building (PDF)

Singapore: Independence and Nation-Building DR PATRICK ZIEGENHAIN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS PRESIDENT UNIVERSITY Singapore as a British Colony 1819: Treaty between the British East India Company and the Sultan of Johor to establish a trading post/ port on the (nearly uninhabited) island of Sing...

Singapore: Independence and Nation-Building DR PATRICK ZIEGENHAIN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS PRESIDENT UNIVERSITY Singapore as a British Colony 1819: Treaty between the British East India Company and the Sultan of Johor to establish a trading post/ port on the (nearly uninhabited) island of Singapore (competition with Netherlands)  In 1824, the British bought the whole island of Singapore from the Sultan of Johor  Singapore became a British colony (Straits settlement) 1824: Signing of the Dutch-Anglo Treaty:  Defining two separate spheres of influence  The Netherlands gave the port of Melaka to the British and allowed the British to build a harbour in Singapore  The British gave their port in Bencoolen (Sumatra) to the Dutch  Raffles left Bencoolen, became 1st British governor of Singapore Video: 1824 - The Signing of the Anglo Dutch Treaty and the Crawfurd Treaty https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGZlMH8_1fo (2 min.) 1963: Singapore as part of Malaysia  1957 Independence of peninsula Malaya from UK  1963 Founding of Malaysia. Treaty between the UK, Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore  Lee Kuan Yew agreed, Sukarno protested  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUzIWhGDeLM Singapore leaves Malaysia: Independence  Distrust and ideological differences between the leaders of Singapore and of the federal government of Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur  Disagreement about finance, politics and ethnic policies FINANCE  Singapore complained about trade restrictions to other parts of Malaysia, despite giving a lot of its tax revenues to the federal government (around 40% of Malaysia’s budget then came from Singapore) POLITICS  In the Malaysian parliament: Singapore was underrepresented in terms of seats compared to its population size  Difficult international situation: Indonesia under then-President Sukarno did not want to accept Malaysia (“imperialist British product”) and launched several terror attacks in Singapore as part of Indonesia’s konfrontasi policy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CBLW9yHWs0, 2 Min.) Singapore has to leave Malaysia: Independence  Conflict between UMNO (Malay-based government party in Kuala Lumpur) and PAP (Chinese-majority party run by Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore)  Malay-based parties protested when the PAP run in many electoral districts in Peninsula Malaya  UMNO demanded specific rights (affirmative action) for bumiputera (Muslim Malays) what Singapore refused (equal treatment of all ethnic groups)  Violent ethnic-based riots in several cities in Malaysia. All this led to the decision of Malaysian Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman to expel Singapore from the Malaysian Federation  9 August 1965: Singapore became independent (and Lee Kuan Yew was disappointed)  Until now: 9 August is celebrated as Independence Day or National Day of Singapore (Malay: Hari Kebangsaan Singapura; Chinese: 新加坡国庆日; Tamil: சிங்கப்பூரின் தேசிய நாள்) Video  Singapore - The Country That Didn't Want Independence  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfdewkU3_Hg  From the beginning until 9.55  After that economic miracle, but also negative sides starting after 13:40 min.  Lee Kuan Yew  Born as Harry Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore (British Crown Colony) on 16 September 1923  Lee was the eldest son of a wealthy family of English- speaking ethnic Chinese (peranakan)  Studied Law in Cambridge (UK) between 1946 and 1950  Lawyer in Singapore (1950) and in 1954 was one of the founders of the People’s Action Party (PAP)  Lee’s family lost its fortune in the Great Depression in the 1930s and Lee became a typical “depression child,” acquiring the pessimistic conservatism  Japanese Occupation of Singapore 1942-1945 : Lee had to work for the Japanese and was badly treated by them  Lee said he “[ the war] taught him that no one (neither Japanese nor British) had the right to push and kick us around …. (and) that we could govern ourselves.“  Elected as First Prime Minister of Singapore in 1959 (still under British rule)  Lee Kuan Yew’s strategy for Singapore Strategy based on Singapore’s specific geography  No short-term populist policies but long- term social and economic planning  Trade orientation: Dependent on the global economy  Financial Center  Defining of Singapore as a new nation  Nation-building: Efforts by a state to create a new specific own identity so that its citizens feel first and foremost as part of the new nation. This includes that ethnic or religious differences are not the main sources of identity, but the nation.  Successful nation-building results in a feeling of solidarity (despite differences) among citizens, what in effect reduces conflicts and brings political and economic stability Singapore’s successful Nation-Building  Singapore as an immigrant nation  Singapore as a melting pot of races, religions and cultures  Nation-building decisive to avoid ethnic unrest and political/economic instability Religions in Singapore (2020) Strategies for Singapore’s successful Nation-Building  Equality of all ethnic groups  Stamford Raffles (first British Governor in the early 19th Century) as Founding Father  Inclusion of the British Heritage: Raffles Monument at the most central place in Singapore - Raffles Place  English as national language (domestic stability for an immigrant society – suitable for international trade) Singapore’s successful Nation- Building  Strategies for Singapore’s successful Nation- Building Education System: Same public schools for everybody (language: English plus mother tongue). Very low school fees Conscription/Military Service: All male Singapore citizens must serve 2 years in active duty as full-time national servicemen in the Singapore Armed Forces Active government interference in the multi-ethnic composition of city quarters and apartment blocks Repressive Crackdown on all forms of ethnic or religious radicalism Strategies for an economically successful Singapore  Authoritarian Rule  People’s Education (Strict enforcement and heavy penalties)  Flexible Economic Policy: From industrialization (manufacturing), to trade middleman strategy, to financial center strategy  State-led development plus friendly policies for private business  Professionalism, integrity and meritocracy in the state administration  International Orientation (Attracting foreign capital and professionals/workers) Authoritarian Rule  Hegemony of the PAP (“dominant party system”)  “Electoral Authoritarianism”  Dissidents were detained, bankrupted, or marginalized  Lee supported the use of repressive practices - including the detention of political opponents for years without trial or charge (under the so-called Internal Security Act)  No press freedom  Singapore also implements physical and corporal punishment in the form of caning  Mandatory death penalty for murder and drug possession (Since 2010: 28 executions, 23 for drugs) Singapore as Education State  Singapore launched several campaigns influencing heavily the public behavior and also private life of Singapore’s citizens  Strict Law Enforcement and heavy (financial) penalties  Keep Singapore Clean Campaign – Drastic fines on littering (300 Singapore-$, 3 Mio. Rp.) for throwing away small things)  Ban of chewing gum, Ban on crossing the street in non- designated areas etc.  No Smoking Policies  Singapore imposed high taxes on the possession of private cars (use of public transport): No traffic jams in Singapore  In the 1960s and 1970s Family Planning program (2 children only) - Later after the number of children went down dramatically, pro-child policies promoting marriages, babies Economic Policies 1: Macro Orientation  In the 1950s and 1960s Singapore was pursuing a conventional program of economic development through Import Substitution Industrialization  Upon Singapore’s separation from Malaysia in August 1965, Singapore suddenly had a domestic market of less than two million people, making ISI unsustainable  Lee’s economic advisor Winsemius (Netherlands) advised a switch to an Export Oriented Industrialization (EOI)  In 1968, Lee put his weight behind a plan to establish Singapore as the Financial center of Southeast Asia: A few years later, Singapore completed the world’s first twenty-four-hour-a-day financial and banking market Economic Policies 2: State-led Development  Importance of government-linked companies (GLC):  wholly or partially government-owned  given preferential treatment in domestic markets  Reliable political tool (patronage)  Two major sovereign wealth funds  Temasek Holdings  Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC)  Government equity in the Singapore economy between 60 to 70 percent  Marginalization of local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Today this outcome is regretted, but originally it was an intended effect. Economic Policies 3: Professionalism  Singapore promoted continuously and quite successfully managerial professionalism in its state administration  Avoided the typical problems of corruption, ineptitude, and inefficiency, especially in developing countries (high degree of integrity)  Lee introduced legislation giving the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) greater power to conduct arrests, search, call up witnesses, and investigate bank accounts and income-tax returns of suspected persons and their families  Lee believed that ministers should be well paid in order to maintain a clean and honest government  Meritocracy Economic Models 4: International Orientation  Attraction of foreign direct investment  Attracting Multinational Corporations (MNCs) to set up factories and eventually regional bases in Singapore by providing tax and other incentives to attract  Attracting foreign skilled and non-skilled workers  Improving the quality of education (for example by international lecturers/professors)  Relatively liberal Immigration policies (currently 30-35 percent of the people living/working in Singapore are non-Singapore citizens)  Political-Military support of the USA (but also friendly with China) Conclusion  Singapore became independent in 1965 against its own will  Economic miracle after that: Singapore is world class in all regards (GDP per capita, low corruption, healthcare, education, etc.)  Authoritarian Developmental State  Successful Strategies  Nation-Building in a multi-ethnic community (carrot and stick)  International Orientation (Pro-British inclusion, high number of immigrants and guest workers, attracting foreign companies and investment)  Professionalism and Merit System in Government/Administration  Shift from Manufacturing Sector to Trade and Finance Additional Videos  Al Jazeera (2015): Singapore: The success story https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJ07H0bsM_U (25:00 min.)  Lee Kuan Yew: The man who defined Singapore (2015): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFVDnmjHhAw (7:35 min.)  Why Singapore is so rich? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRDgnLa42PQ (6:37 min.)