For hundreds of years
before Sir Stamford Raffles obtained
it from the
Sultan of Johor in 1819, Singapore had been all
but abandoned. However, within decades of the ownership change,
in a historical echo of its role today, Singapore had been the
commercial hub and strategic centre for the area. In 1867, it
became a British Crown Colony and was home to one
of the UK’s most significant naval bases. This status continued
until 1942 when the Japanese army swept down via
Malaya and took over the colony. 3.5 years later, the Japanese
gave up
and the colony regained its former status.
With the fall of the British Empire, Singapore
achieved its self-rule in 1959. In 1963,
Singapore became a member of the Federation of Malaysia,
however in 1965 broke away from the disintegrating federation and
became completely
self-governing. 2 years later, Singapore was expelled
when Lee Kuan Yew, elected Prime Minister
in 1959 and re-elected 8 times after that,
rejected to implement a federal edict giving Malays a privileged
economic position (to the disadvantage of the ethnic Chinese population).
The initial outlook was not very promising: Singapore is very small
and has no natural resources aside from a good harbour. However,
Lee managed to galvanise the people into building a strong, export-driven
manufacturing and service economy. Lee Kuan Yew
and his political vehicle, the People’s Action Party
(PAP), benefited from a virtual monopoly of political power
from 1972 until 1988 when Lee declared that he would not complete
his 8th term nor seek prospective office.
In October 1990, he officially
gave the premiership to a long-standing
colleague, Goh Chok Tong, staying as Senior Minister
in the Prime Minister’s office and Secretary-General of the
PAP. Some Singaporeans thought that Goh was only a transitional
figure between Lee Kuan Yew and his son Lee Hsien Loong, who took
the post of deputy prime minister after a glittering academic and
military career.
In November 1992, Goh
was nominated and endorsed to take control of the PAP Secretary-General’s
post. In both the most recent general elections, held in
January 1997 and September 2001, opposition parties contested only
a small proportion (about 1-3rd) of the 83 seats. Unsurprisingly,
the PAP easily won both polls. Goh, who is now serving his fourth
term as Singapore’s premier, is widely believed to leave his position
in favour of Lee Junior in 2005.
Over the past few years, there has been some pressure, to which the
Government has acted in part, for a relaxation of Singapore’s
many laws which have given it a reputation as an
affluent but rather hygienic and pettily
oppressive
city-state. Singapore has
the highest rate per capita of judicial execution in the world,
and those in power are still highly intolerant of internal dissent.
Overseas, Singapore has assumed a more active role in regional affairs,
particularly through the Association of South East Nations
(ASEAN), the former anti-Communist bloc which is now adopting
a wider-ranging role in diplomatic, economic
and – due to the the Bali bomb attacks – security affairs.
Some improvement has been achieved in relations between Singapore
and Malaysia, between whom there are a plethora of disputes about
situations such as access to air space, water resources and territorial
boundaries. |
