Singapore's success story. Can it be repeated elsewhere?

Singapore success story, Can it be repeated elsewhere?

Dr Seow Onn Choong

The tiny island of Singapore is home to 5,5 million people with the second highest per capita income in Asia just behind Japan. It has no natural resources and nearly everything it consumes is imported. When it first gain its independence in 1965 nobody would give it a chance of survival and many believe it will soon be grovelling under the country that gave it independence. 46 years on , the story is so different.

Its largest neighbour Indonesia gave Singapore its nickname , the tiny red dot. Obviously it is with reference to its majority Chinese population and its size being so small that militarily it could be run over easily. Little do they know they were one of the main contributing factors to Singapore's success story.

Singapore has a very large expatriate population. As a dentist inevitably I get to treat many of them. it is also my habit and source of enjoyment when I talk to my patients and through it develop a good relationship with them. There was one such lady from Ireland who was one of the directors in GSK. GSK is one of the largest drug manufacturer in the world. they had built a very large high tech  factory in Singapore. She was very curious about  Singapore's success story. As she was in a high level position, she had met up with high level staff from the Economic Development Board who were the architects of Singapore's industrialisation. To attract high tech investment such as from companies like GSK, foreign companies are given extremely good tax breaks for a period of 10 years. She was curious how Singapore can benefit from it and if The Singapore success story could be repeated elsewhere. She was not satisfied with the explanations provided by the EDB officers. She was told Singapore was in an ideal location with an educated workforce and a good government. This were all the factors for its success. To her these were not special as many countries have such similar conditions. Well she thinks her dentist can provide her with the answer, well of all persons.

Yes I d because I am from the era and is part of the Singapore success story. I was born in Malaysia in 1954 in the town of Kuala Lumpur. Due to circumstances at that time I ended up in Singapore University in 1974  as a dental student .Even though I left Singapore in 1984 to seek greener pastures in Brunei , I finally return to Singapore and eventually became a citizen. Thus I can see the Singapore story better than a Singaporean who has not left its shores.

There are 4 reasons for Singapore success. Most countries would have one or 2 of them but I don't think I have read about any with 4 together.

1) Lee Kuan Yew

He is the founding father of modern Singapore. He is the right man at the right place at the right time. A brilliant man who brought up in Chinese environment , he had the opportunity to study law in Cambridge , England.

Thus he was exposed to western ideas yet steep in Asian culture.

It was the era of change in the late 50's and early 60's. Britain was under financial strain and were giving up her colonies one by one. Second world war had  shown the colonies that their masters were not invincible. Thus through peaceful or violent ways, all the colonies were striving for independence.

 Communism was gaining ground in Asia after the Mao Tse Tung unified China. Singapore had a majority Chinese population who then look towards China as their motherland. Malaya had just gone through a period of communist insurgency. The tactics used by the communist were very harsh with many threats and assassinations. Lee Kuan Yew and his colleagues were very forceful in their handling of the threats posed by the pro-communist factions. Many of them were jailed ,some without trial. The government also took over the trade unions which were then fertile grounds for the communists.

The hall mark of Lee Kuan Yew's administration was a corruption free government. Corruption was endemic at that time and without eradicating it, no young country can survive its ills.

2) "You are all coolies' The local Singaporeans

the first time I heard about the phrase, I was quite angry. My Hong Kong patient was trying to explain to me why the population of Singapore can be subjected to strict rules in the country and still does not oppose the government.

His rationale was very simple. There are 3 places outside China which had a majority Chinese population. They are Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore.

A closer look shows that the chnese who migrated to these 3 places are very different types of people.

Taiwan is an island just off the eastern shores of Fujian province. Prior to the exodus of Chiang Kai Shek's armies after the their loss to the communist , it was an unimportant island. Obviously there were original Taiwanese people but they were overwhelmed by this refugee group of armed forces, warlords, and wealthy people.

Taiwan had a authoratian government during the reign of Chiang Kai Shek. It was more a less a police state until democracy took hold after the collapse of the Chiang dynasty. Even with its so call democracy, politicians can be seen fighting in parliament and when the masses do not agree with the ruling government they will demonstrate on the streets. As can be seen the Chinese in Taiwan are not the subservient type.

Hong Kong was under British rule. It became a British colony as a result of the opium wars. Effectively it was founded by British merchants and thus trade was the main concern. The Hong Kong Chinese were attracted to it because of the opportunity to make money. It was enhanced by the mass migration of business families from Shanghai who brought along with them even more money making skills. For all the Hong Kong Chinese making money was utmost of importance. the British can govern as much as they like so long as the conditions suited both parties. Politically the Chinese never develop a sense of belonging and eventually the confidence in governing itself. Hong Kong thus attracted many Chinese of the merchant class while the worker class who came along was subdued by the British money making trading houses or Hong's.

Singapore was situated at the most southern tip of the Malaya Peninsula which is part of South East Asia. Tin mines, rubber plantations were all sprouting up to feed the demand of raw materials needed by the industrialising western countries. Boat loads of workers were streaming in not only from southern China but also from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu Singapore was fast developing as a port . Not only were most cargo being handled through the port , it was also the first port of call for migrants.

The majority who arrived in south east Asia (SEA) were the poorest of.the lot in their homeland. Nearly all of them were trying to escape extreme poverty due to the many wars in China. Food was scarce and there was no law and order back home. Thus as the story spread in southern China about the wonderful opportunities in SEA ,boat loads were arriving by the day. In fact those who had arrived will send  money home so that all their relatives can join them here.

The mantra then was simple. Don't cause any trouble with the authorities and you will not be send home. Always be on the good side of the law. That was what my mum repeatedly drum into me when I was a kid.

So now you can understand the source of Singapore's very obedient people. This set the opportunity for Lee Kuan Yew's government to rule with an iron fist.

3) Suharto and the Indonesian purge in 1965.

One of Singapore's largest neighbour is Indonesia. This country is huge in comparison not only in land mass but also in population. The majority of Indonesians are like the Malaysian Malays. They make up more than 90% of the population. Once again there are Chinese migrants who make up about 3% of the population. Unlike Singapore and Malaysia , Indonesian was ruled by the Dutch. Since they already have such a large local population there was no necessity to bring in migrant workers to exploit the land. Thus the small Chinese population. Maybe it is due to the climate and subsequently the abundance of food resources  the locals ( that includes the Malays in Malaysia) were very contented with whatever they had. You will be surprised , the simple coconut tree can provide virtually all the needs of the locals. Its fruit can provide not just a drink, it also provides milk that is used for cooking the favourite curry. When you squeeze the dried kernel you will get coconut oil which not only can it be use for cooking but also hair oil. What is left can be chicken feed. The shell can be turned into bowls and ladle. The list is very long.

The Chinese on the other hand were trained over the centuries to accumulate wealth, soon dominated the economy This domination is not well taken by the locals especially the ruling elites who at times needed the rich  Chinese to finance their activities. All these came to a boil in 1965. A army general by the name of Suharto came into power. A good excuse then was that the Indonesian communist wanted to seize power, and the army rose to the occasion to save the nation from communist rule. The chinese were an easy target as they were label as communist due to China being a communist country. A pogrom was launched.
SIngapore was the nearest safe haven. Most of the Indonesian Chinese had already developed a trading relationship with Singapore, thus many of them carried suitcase of cash to avoid disaster back home. Back then in 1965 Singapore had just been kicked out of Malaysia. The Malay politicians thought that soon SIngapore will be on its knees, as this small island nation had no resources at all.

The money from the Indonesian tycoons was a blessing for Singapore just as the welcome rain in spring. This was in reality a cheap source of borrowings.

4) The Malaysian Chinese Diaspora.

Malaya gained its independence from the British in 1957. In 1963 it was enlarged by the inclusion of  SIngapore , Sarawak and Sabah. By the time it gain its independence, the foreign population made up of Chinese and Indians had made up nearly 35 to 40% of the population. The British made a deal with the Malays insisting that all those resident at the point of independence be granted citizenship. The Malays had fought for independence but with the communist insurgency going on , they had little choice but to accept the British demands. The communist were defeated , and peace reined. When Malaysia was formed, the Malays were quite happy as now they have a country twice the size.

Lee Kuan Yew had a different idea in mind. With Singapore's inclusion into Malaysia the non Malay population cam to nearly half of the total. Mr Lee started to campaign for a Malaysian Malaysia. To the Malays this was a big threat. How can the newcomers usurp their dominance. Thus Singapore was expelled.

The seeds for political battle have already be sown. Being a young democracy, everyone had their own aspirations. With lots of similarity to Indonesia, the Chinese majority lived in the cities and other than some leftover British companies dominated the economy. Everything look peaceful on the surface. The government was formed by a coalition of 3 major political parties each based on their racial background. This was known as the Alliance party with the Malay Umno group in dominance. Every party knew their position.

However in 1969 things began to unravel.

The May 13 riots.

May 1969 was time for elections. As Malaysian political parties were formed on racial lines, so too was the opposition parties.  Malaysia was made up of 13 states with Selangor being the most prosperous state. The reason was the countries capital Kuala Lumpur was situated in Selangor. Thus with the majority of the businesses and industries situated int he state , it also had a very large Chinese population. The results of the elections in Selangor came as  a shock to the Malays. The opposition made up of mainly Chinese and Indian parties won with a one seat majority and thus was to form the government. This was definitely an unacceptable position. Rumours that a large group of Malays gathered at the home of the ousted chief ministers home and a huge pogrom was started.

The result was the government declared emergency rule, and with that the situation changed in Malaysia.

From once a democracy, the new constitution now preach Malay dominance. Overnight the system had been changed and now the races were no local equal. Discrimination  in all aspect of life was now implemented with the aim of bringing the Malays economic status on par with the Chinese. These sow the seeds of the Malaysian Chinese migration, probably one of the largest undocumented migration.

Just as the purge in Indonesia, some Malaysian Chinese left immediately for Singapore. The greater numbers were yet to come as  the impact of the discrimination set in. It is still going on.

The Chinese on both side of the causeway were very similar in literally all aspects of life. After nearly all of them came from the same source i.e southern china. Thus the new migrants were able to blend in without any one knowing except the government. These new comers provided Singapore with a very cheap source of workers. They were very similar to the local Singaporeans who followed the rules without much of a complaint

The biggest contribution must be to the talent pool. Few people know that the University of Malaya in the 60's was a premier university with many top rated students. With increasing discrimination few Chinese could enrol to study there. Most of these so rejected talented students came to study in Singapore University. Many stayed back after their education.

When we plot a Bell curve of the population, it gives us an idea of the of the number of smart , average and the not so smart people. With the top students from all the 13 Malaysian states now migrating to Singapore, the bell curve is greatly shifted towards a higher percentage of talented people. Thus the government was able to undertake rapid industrialisation, propelling the nation to a developed status. There at least 1 million Malaysians mainly Chinese with some Indians out of Singapore's total of 5.5 million people.

So you have a great leader, an obedient population, seed money and a large talent pool.

Which country in the world was so lucky? I am sure history cannot be repeated.

Now you can understand the reasons behind Singapore's success story.