The Making of a Rugged S'porean Society

S'pore is a fairly congested island, with an area slightly smaller than Lake Taupo and a density of 9,500 persons per square mile. Since its independence in 1965 it has had no natural resources. It became obvious that survival was going to depend on the people and the expertise they had to offer.

Faced with a youthful population (57% under 24), the Lee government decided early that it had to instill in the multiracial society a sense of 'national identity' and a commitment to embark on the road of rapid development which would ensure S'pore's survival as a feasible political and economic entity. Attention was focussed on the S'pore youth, the future of the nation depended on the commitment of the youth and the extent to which it ascribed to the national political philosophy.

The way the Lee government went about this was to make tens of thousands of school children take the pledge of allegiance every schoolday; the national anthem was sung every morning to the raising of the national flag. Schools actively encouraged participation in extra-curricular activities and be can offering uniformed groups for student participation.

Compulsory National Service compelled the training of young men full-time for two and a half years in military discipline and practice. All this inculcation was done to suit the development policies ascribed by the government. The Lee Government was responsible for the creation of the 'new society' and the carrot used was the promise of material well-being.

Under this context youth is expected to be smart and obedient, creativity is not encouraged in school or work and deviance is dealt with severely. All sections of adult population take it upon themselves to remind the young of their expected role, to be but a cog in the huge machinery of national development, and to function with precision, in order to ensure that no breakdown of the system occurs.

Today, the Lee government takes pride in proclaiming to the world that Singapore has the highest standard of living in SE Asia and yet the only resource which could be developed was human capacity. A population geared to function as production units of a complex system, however, is bound to pay a price for its successes. This is reflected in the social costs, in terms of environmental pollution, crime, traffic congestion, and a whole array of psychological problems caused by overcrowding, an increasing lack of privacy and cultural conflicts.

The tempo of development once started, continues on ... the desired goals of achievement and affluence through ambition and diligence have to be inculcated into the youth at every stage of his growth. Occasionally, as a conscience-easing exercise, politicians remind youths to 'cultivate a high sense of personal integrity and social responsibility' but necessarily stop short of suggesting how to go about it. How is the young S'porean expected to cultivate such values when the survival factor in competitive society demands aggressive, selfish and exploitative behaviour?

Though the distribution of income is far from fair, with a firmly entrenched privileged few holding key positions, social mobility has been facilitated and an ever increasing number of people are joining the ranks of the middle class. This is the class that benefits most from S'pore's development policies. The young people of this middle class are well-educated compared to their parent's generation, are obedient, accept the standard social norms, and are determined to do their part to perpetuate the current national goals so as to have a safe, secure future for themselves and their children.

Though far from being unthinking masses, this category of people have learnt to be unquestioning (at least not out loud), preferring to place trust in the government, which, for its part, never fails to remind the citizen that nothing is for free in the struggle of survival in a precarious and tiny island-nation such as S'pore

This ends the first part of the article adapted from an article written by Nancy Chang in the book 'Questioning Development in SE Asia'.