 Economically, Singapore went from strength to strength throughout
the 19th and early 20th centuries. But in the 1940s and 1950s
, political storm clouds were gathering over Asia. Japan's
quest for more power, land and natural resources saw it invading
China in 1931 and 1937, a move which was opposed by the Chinese
immigrants in Singapore.
On February 15, 1942, with Europe in the throes of World War
II, the Japanese sprung a quick and successful invasion of Singapore.
The British, who had prepared for an invasion from the sea in
the south, were taken by surprise by the Japanese penetration
via the jungles of Thailand and Malaysia, on bicycle. The British
surrender was quick, and many of the Europeans were herded
to the Padang, then sent to Changi Prison.
The next few years were a dark period in Singapore's history.
The Japanese treated the Chinese with particular suspicion, and
many of them were tortured, incarcerated and killed, often on
the flimsiest of pretexts. As the war progressed, food and other
essential supplies ran low, and malnutrition and disease were
widespread.
By 1945 however, it was clear that Japan, and its allies, were
losing the war. The Japanese surrendered Singapore on August
14, 1945. The British returned, but their right to rule was now
in question.
Gaining Independence
After the war, the British grouped the peninsula Malay states
and the British-controlled states of Sabah and Sarawak in Borneo
under the Malayan Union. Singapore, which unlike the other states
had a predominantly Chinese population, was left out of this union.
Rebuilding itself after the war was a slow and difficult task.
In the post-war climate of poverty, unemployment and lack of idealogical
direction, communist groups such as the Malayan Communist Party
and the Communist General Labour Union, and the socialist Malayan
Democratic Union, gained popular support.
In the late 1940s, the Communists launched a campaign of armed
struggle in Malaya, prompting the British to declare a state of
emergency where the Communists were outlawed. Twelve years of
guerilla warfare from the Communists on the peninsula ensued,
and left-wing politics was gradually snuffed out in the Malay
states and Singapore.
Lee's Legacy
 In
the 1950s, a rising star emerged in the local political scene
-- Lee Kuan Yew, who headed the socialist People's Action Party
(PAP).
Lee, a shrewd politician, is a third-generation Straits-born Chinese
with a law degree from Cambridge University. When the PAP won
a majority of seats in the newly-formed Legislative Assembly in
1959, he became the first Singaporean to hold the title of prime
minister.
In 1963, the British declared Singapore, the Malay states and
Sabah and Sarawak as one independent nation -- Malaysia. But Singapore's
membership in this union lasted only two years. In 1965, it was
booted out of the federation, owing to disagreements on several
fronts including racial issues.
Left on its own, Singapore embarked on an ambitious industrialisation
plan -- building public housing, roads and modernising its port
and telecommunications infrastructure. English was chosen as the
official language, to facilitate communication between the different
races, and to put the nation in the forefront of commerce.
In about 25 years, by the late 1980s, Singapore had moved from
a fragile and small country with no natural resources to a newly
industrialised economy.
Singapore Today
The Singapore of today was first described by a third century
account as "Pu-luo-chung", meaning "isle at the
end of the peninsula". This description, would in the future,
prove very offhand and unassuming, for even as Singapore entered
the 14th century, it had gained might as part of the romantic,
albeit tragic, Srivijayan Empire.
The "little island" was then known to many as "Temasek",
which meant "Seatown". It was then the point where the
sea routes of Southeast Asia converged; and the harbour where
floating vessels of every kind, from Indian boats and Chinese
junks to Buginese schooners, Arabic dhows and Portuguese battleships,
visited.
Legend has it that as the winds of change blew into Temasek,
a prince of Srivijaya paid a visit to the island and saw a lion.
This wondrous sight so compelled him that he renamed the island
"Singapura", meaning "Lion City". It didn't
seem to matter that lions had never inhabited Singapore, and that
many believed he must have actually seen a tiger!
And so, Singapore's modern day name was born out of a sighting
believed to be a good omen, and the region was established as
a trading post for the Srivijayan Empire. In the 18th century,
the British were searching for a harbour in which to refit, provide
for and protect their fleet of vessels.
This harbour would also be a demarcation point to forestall the
advances of the Dutch in Southeast Asia. Singapore's strategic
location caught the attentions of Sir Stamford Raffles, who then
established Singapore as a British trading station in 1819, with
a free trade policy to attract merchants throughout Asia, and
even all the way from the Americas and Middle East.
By 1832, Singapore was the centre for the government of the Straits
Settlements of Penang, Malacca and Singapore. The opening of the
Suez Canal in 1869, and the advent of the steamship expanded the
trade between the East and West, and also Singapore's importance.
Singapore continued to grow well into the 20th century until World
War II, when the freeport became the scene of the war's significant
fighting.
The end of World War II saw Singapore becoming a Crown Colony,
but the rise of nationalism put Singapore on the path of self-government
in 1959. Singapore formed a union with Malaya in 1963, but opted
for independence and became an independent republic on August
9, 1965, with Lee Kuan Yew as Prime Minister.
Singapore today is a thriving centre of commerce and industry,
with intense economic growth. Singapore is not merely a single
island, but is actually the main island surrounded by at least
60 islets. Measuring a compact 640km, its size really belies its
capacity for growth.
Singapore is now a rapidly developing manufacturing base. The
Republic, however, still remains the busiest port the world over
with more than 600 shipping lines herding super tankers, container
ships, passenger liners, fishing vessels and even wooden lighters
in its waters.
It is also a major oil refining and distribution centre, and an
important supplier of electronic components. Its rich history
as a popular harbour has turned it into a leader in shipbuilding,
maintenance and repair. Singapore has also become one of Asia's
most important financial centres, housing at least 130 banks.
Both business and pleasure are made more accessible and smooth
flowing by the Republic's excellent and up-to-date communications
network, linking it to the rest of the world through satellite
and round the clock telegraph and telephone systems. Now fully
grown into an Asian Dragon, Singapore is, somehow unsurprisingly,
a leading destination for both business and pleasure. |
