The Singapore example
In today’s modern world with its excellent communications, being an important crossroads of the world’s sea lanes is not enough for economic prosperity. If this were true, many other strategic locations all over the world would get greater priority from commerce. This is further aggravated when handicapped by a total lack of raw material, to the extent of being dependant also upon fresh water supply on another nation. In what can be perceived to be a bleak overall economic landscape, the emergence of Singapore as a major economic force is an important reference point, an object lesson for Third World planners, the total utilisation of human ingenuity in a pragmatic manner to create a society which attracts commerce from all directions. Within the proximity of emerging South East Asian nations, all abundantly endowed with natural resources, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Brunei and to a lesser extent, Philippines, Singapore’s pre-eminent commercial position has been quite an achievement.
The only other comparable port-cities are Dubai and Hong Kong. Dubai is very much like Singapore, the proximity of oil in the neighbourhood has been a great boost for commerce, the great difference being that almost all the skilled personnel remain expatriates imported from abroad and despite the express wishes of a wise and benign ruler anybody but Arabs are treated as second/third class citizens. Smuggling to and from the South Asian sub-continent, Iran and Iraq are the mainstays of Dubai’s commerce though great credit must be given to Shaikh Rashid Bin Maktoum for emphasizing the development of the infrastructure for commercial and industrial ventures, thus creating a centre for commerce in the region. Money has been wisely spent on public projects to make Dubai a comfortable place to live in and in comparison to the other Arab nations it remains an extremely fair and just society. With the hotel industry in a boom because of its sun-swept beaches, even the winding down of the Iran-Iraq war (and its pre-eminent role as a wartime conduit) will not affect its economic resurgence. Hong Kong also thrived because of the proximity of the Vietnam war; remains as a conduit to China and Taiwan, its cheap labour providing for a mini-Japan (of the 50s), its brothels and massage parlours making its function as a sin city its primary attribute. Recently rejuvenated with the opening up of China in the 70s, it is perversely now threatened with extinction of its eminent regional commercial position in the future as the great Hongs (trading companies) find roots in safer havens. With its vast underworld thriving on the flesh and drug trade, Hong Kong is not a city with long-term commercial appeal.
Singapore essentially is a clean Hong Kong and what a difference! In all senses of the word, this is the model city, rid of dirt of every avid description. It is almost as if Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and his colleagues looked at what was happening around them and decided on a single-minded course to keep their city-state and their pluralistic society clean. Given the temptations of attracting American GIs for rest and recreation (a la Bangkok, Hong Kong, Manila and even Jakarta) during the Vietnam war, they adopted a contrary course, not really commercially pragmatic during those times but which has yielded dividends manifold later on, the emergence of Singaporeans as a major nationality in the area, proud of their clean heritage, encompassing without prejudice Chinese, Malaysians, Indonesians and quite a percentage from the South Asian sub-continent. Singapore has emerged as an example that Third World leaders would do well to emulate to give their own aspirant citizens a touch of all the promises that are made to the electorate but are seldom kept.
The secret of Singapore’s success has been the great integrity and honesty of its leadership exemplified by Lee Kuan Yew. For over 30 years this man has led his people to a greater destiny and increase in life-style than any other state could have given its people on a pro-rata basis. He has been inflexible in his resolve, his character so much above reproach, his goal towards the uplift of his people so single-minded that he has created the fair, equitable society that was envisaged in our own religion and almost never practiced after the first hundred years of Islam. The catalyst has been a great recognition of equality of races and religion despite the Chinese majority, a sensitivity to the concerns of the minorities that has encouraged them to participate fully in the nation-building process. A friend of mine recently invited attention to the judgement by the International Court of Justice on the German minorities in Poland (Silesia) as a reference for the treatment of minorities and it seems Singapore has taken this object lesson to heart and is the only example of a prejudice-less society in today’s increasingly parochial world.
Singapore’s island acres being slowly reclaimed from the sea, they are understandably not hospitable to immigrants, after all there is a limit to how much population can be hygienically clustered together per square mile. The city-state has excellent housing, extensive out-door recreation areas, an efficient public transportation, telecommunication facilities par excellence, strict zoning of industries with artificially created industrial parks distinct from residential areas and an education and health-care system which is the envy of the First World. Sir Thomas Raffles set the tone of discipline of the malaria-infested swamps that became the great pre-World War 2 port city of Singapore but only Lee Kuan Yew could have given that firm and mature leadership that has made Singapore whatever it is today.
Repeatedly we have spoken about the need for a secure environment for creating a sound economic base. Money always goes to safe havens and Singapore is an excellent example of this, its dollar as safe a currency as any, rivalling the German mark for its stability. There are no ethnic or civic disturbances of any kind in Singapore, these are frowned upon by the mailed fist in a velvet glove and that is as it should be. By keeping Singapore free of unrest, Lee Kuan Yew has attracted the largest multinational conglomerates to Singapore, a continuous inflow of investment, particularly into hi-tech industries, which is necessary for any country with ambitions of rapid economic growth. As other newly industrialised countries (NICs) have gone into convulsions that are retarding sound economic growth, e.g South Korea, by keeping a tight rein Lee Kuan Yew has ensured that there has been no crisis of confidence in the economy even during the global economic crisis of the 80s. Singapore has remained a sanctuary during troubled times and that is a great plus factor for evaluation by economic managers planning further growth in any area.
One of the other plus points has been Singapore’s association as a founder member of ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations), an economic collaboration that has progressed into an excellent political alliance. Given that Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia are primarily Muslim, Thailand Buddhist and Philippines Christian, this is another reference point for Singapore’s great amalgamation of races and religions. It provides for security in the region, a great deterrent to anyone with covetous eyes, and there have been and are plenty in the near vicinity and even far afield. While China at one time was perceived as a bogey, it is India’s ambitions as displayed by its ever expanding maritime strength that is more of a real threat. Singapore has had to endure great strain in the aftermath of the Vietnam war, for a time after Cambodia it seemed that the Domino Theory would come into effect and other nations in the region would fall leaving Singapore literally with its back to the sea, that this has not come to pass has been because of the steadfastness and unity of ASEAN as much as other coherent reasons.
Singapore has an exceedingly tough and efficient defence services. There exists profound defence understanding to the effect that the island state cannot be defended over an extended period of time unless other countries of the region are part of an alliance, a large outlay is thus budgeted to ensure a credible deterrent. The well-paid volunteer services are backed up by a large mobilisation scheme dependant upon reservists drawn from national conscription. The military proficiency is very high because of exacting standards founded on a basic bedrock of education and physical fitness. The defence service officers also do post-graduation studies abroad in various disciplines, Brig (Retd) Lee Hsien Loong, the son of Lee Kuan Yew and presently Minister of Trade, rose to the highest ranks of the Singapore Defence Forces before opting for early retirement to go into politics and was among those who did higher university studies in the States when still a middle ranking military officer. This accounts for extremely progressive and modern thinking. Constant upgrading of standards with a well-developed armaments industry has created a sense of military security far out-weighing Singapore’s small size. The military budget is well-spent on professional matters, with the defence services keeping a low profile and under the absolute authority of the civilian leadership.
While Lee Kuan Yew has been pragmatic and has motivated Singaporeans to this above-par level of life-style, he has ensured that discipline symbolizes the image of Lion City, as Singapore is known. The Singapore Police is efficient and tough, even throwing a cigarette stub carries a S$500 fine, it conveys to what extent the internal security forces will go to keep the city clean in all senses of the word. For the greater good of the majority of the populace, such draconian measures are necessary, and they are not necessary evil. Singapore has a vast bureaucracy which, strangely enough, works. It works because merit rather than other considerations are the ingredients of advancement. It also works because pay (and bonuses) are according to corporate standards and ensure honesty and integrity. Whereas Lee Kuan Yew is the essential father-figure who has held Singapore together, he is assisted by a large number of colleagues and aides who have contributed, despite being internationally faceless, to Singapore’s great development. There are no Prima-Donnas devoted to looting the country’s till blind while spouting the praises of democracy. In fact, Singapore has been relatively corruption-free, thereby pointing to the fact that such a thing can be achieved, provided there is a will. Demagoguery is unknown, even frowned upon in Singapore politics, action not rhetoric is the way of life. Many bleeding hearts will talk about the restraint on full freedom, if that is the price one must pay for economic emancipation, a majority of our populace would not mind enduring a doubling of them, albeit we would prefer it to be of the civilian kind. In order to raise Singapore to the standards that is the envy of the world, Lee Kuan Yew has had to be tough on those people or groups who would destroy the national unity or were perceived to be causing a threat to internal peace. The Press is relatively free but does not have the licence to do anything it feels like in the name of freedom. While the tough attitude towards the media may be an aberration by liberal standards, in effect it is a form of protection given to the majority of Singapore society to remain free of internecine quarrels created by ill-advised items of news, best known as muck-raking. While there is complete freedom to express one’s views in print, there is no freedom to engage in scandal-mongering or character assassination of the kind that the free world is getting to painfully experience. Sometimes society needs protection from certain individuals and groups devoted to self-destruction and Singapore provides a sophisticated version of it, not the ham-handed all pervasive closed society-kind.
While Pakistan is too big a country to follow the Singapore example in toto, we must learn from their experience, using the concept of the city-state to clean up our act in major urban cities, particularly Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad-Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Multan, Peshawar, Sargodha, Quetta, Hyderabad, Gujranwala and Sialkot. These are the cities where we must set-up all-inclusive self-administering metropolitan governments. If we really want to clean up the environment, provide the basic facilities, improve the general ambience of the cities, we must look to the Singapore example as a role-model. The most pragmatic annunciation of real-politik has been shown by Ms Benazir’s government in the struggle to achieve economic autarky by the proposal for privatisation measures in clear contrast to its own declared party manifesto. To achieve economic emancipation of any kind it will be necessary to study, analyse, modify and emulate the experiences of countries like Singapore both on the urban city concept and the country role-model. How well Ms Benazir (and how swiftly) she can do so will be the measure of her success.
Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically to your feed reader.
Comments
No comments yet.
Leave a comment