The History of Singapore - Essay Example

Singapore Geography Singapore is a small, heavily urbanized, island in Southeast Asia, located between Malaysia and Indonesia (Geography and climate). It is one of the "world cities" and the fastest growing port of Asia. Singapore city is the capital, largest city, and main port. The distinction between Singapore and Singapore city has virtually disappeared, as almost the entire island has become urbanized (Singapore). Singapore has a total land area of 697.1 km and 193 km of coastline. It is separated from Indonesia by the Singapore Strait and from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor (Geography and climate). Figure 1 Singapore is a diamond-shaped island seperated from Peninsula Malaysia by the Tebrau Straits (Singapore). Singapore's main territory is a diamond-shaped island, although her territory includes surrounding smaller islands. Of Singapore's dozens of smaller islands, Jurong Island, Pulau Tekong, Pulau Ubin and Sentosa are the larger ones. Most of Singapore is no more than 15 meters above sea level. The highest point of Singapore is Bukit Timah, with a height of 164 m or 538 feet and made up of igneous rock, granite. Hills and valleys of sedimentary rock dominate the northwest, while the eastern region consists of sandy and flatter land (Geography and climate). Physical features and land use Singapore does not have any natural lakes or rivers, however, reservoirs and water catchments areas were constructed to collect fresh water for Singapore's water supply. Singapore has reclaimed land with earth obtained from its own hills, the seabed, and neighboring countries. As a result, Singapore's land area has grown from 581.5 km in the 1960s to 697.1 km today, and may grow by another 100 km by 2030 (Geography and climate). Singapore has no noteworthy natural resources other than its deep-water harbor. Less than 5% of Singapore's land is used for agriculture; tropical fruits and vegetables are intensively cultivated and poultry and hogs are raised. There are no profitable natural resources in the country (Economy). History and the rise of nationalism Singapore was a trading center in the Srivijaya Empire before it was destroyed in the 14th cent. by the Majapahit empire. It later became part of Johore in the Malacca Sultanate. The thinly populated island was ceded (1819) to the British East India Company through the efforts of Sir T. Stamford Raffles; he founded the modern city of Singapore there that same year. In 1824, Singapore came under the complete control of the British and, although containing only a little fishing and trading village, quickly attracted Chinese and Malay merchants. The port grew quickly, soon overwhelming Penang and Malacca in importance. Then Singapore became part of the Straits Settlements in 1826 (The development of Singapore). Figure 2 Statue of Thomas Stamford Raffles by Thomas Woolner, erected at the spot where he first landed in Singapore (Singapore). The progress of Malaya under British rule in the late 19th and early 20th cent. made Singapore one of the most important ports of the world for the export of tin and rubber. The construction of a railroad through the Malay Peninsula to Bangkok swelled Singapore's trade, and the building of airports made it more than ever a communication center. A naval base at Sembawang, begun in 1924, was completed in 1938; the island, sometimes called the Malta of the East, was reinforced in the early days of World War II (The development of Singapore). After the speedy Japanese crusade in Malaya, however, Singapore was successfully attacked across the Johore Strait, and on Feb. 15, 1942, the British garrison surrendered; Singapore was reoccupied by the British in Sept. 1945. In 1946, Singapore, no longer a part of the Straits Settlements, was constituted a crown colony, with Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Following a decade of Communist terrorism, Singapore, separated from Christmas Island and the Cocos-Keeling islands became (June 1959) a self-governing state (The development of Singapore). When British troops returned to Singapore in September 1945, thousands of Singaporeans lined the streets to cheer them. However, the fact remained that the British had failed to defend Singapore, and in the eyes of many Singaporeans, this had cost them their trustworthiness as dependable rulers (History of Singapore). Years after the war saw a political awakening between the Singaporean and the rise of nationalist and anti-colonial sentiments. The British, on their part, were prepared to get on a program of slowly increasing self-governance for Singapore and Malaya (History of Singapore). Moreover, in the immediate post-colonial period these liberal, Marxist and economic doctrines were significant in developing ideologies of national unity in Singapore (Hiroyuki). Economy and Singapore's emergence as one of the "World Cities" of Asia Singapore is a chief transport hub in Asia and its history has been strongly tied to the growth of its transport industry since its formative years. The transport industry contributes over 10% of gross domestic product despite a growing diversified economy. The Port of Singapore, managed by port operators PSA International and Jurong Port, is the world's busiest in terms of shipping tonnage handled (Singapore). 1.04 billion gross tons were handled in the year 2004, crossing the one billion mark for the first time in Singapore's maritime history. Singapore also emerged as the top port in terms of cargo tonnage handled with 393 million tons of cargo in 2004, surpassing the port in Rotterdam for the first time. Singapore is ranked second globally in terms of containerized traffic with 21.3 million twenty-foot equivalent units handled in 2004, and retains her position as the world's busiest hub for transshipment traffic. She is also the world's biggest bunkering hub with 23.6 million tons of bunkers sold in 2004 (Singapore). Figure 3 The Central Area is the central business district (Singapore). Singapore gets its power supply from thermoelectric plants, and water is supplied by a number of reservoirs. Singapore has a fine rapid transit system, good roads, and a railroad that crosses the island, and a causeway-carrying road and rail traffic to the mainland. Singapore's workforce is employed chiefly in manufacturing, in the service industries, and in commerce, with an insignificant proportion engaged in agriculture. The country has become a main center of international finance in recent years (Economy). The country's main trading partners are Japan, the United States, Malaysia, and Indonesia; Singapore signed a free-trade agreement with the United States in 2003. With more than 300 factories and deepwater wharves, the Jurong Industrial Estate is Southeast Asia's largest industrial complex. It and the Changi International Airport are built largely on infill of marsh and shallow waters of the straits. The country has a number of huge petroleum storing and refining facilities, and Keppel Harbor is one of the world's largest container-handling facilities. Development of the former British naval base at Sembawang on the Johore Strait as a commercial shipyard helped to enhance Singapore's status as a major center for shipbuilding and repairs (Economy) Other than location, the only reason for the economic development and prosperity of Singapore is its labor force, particularly the training of its labor force. Singapore could not compete mainly on its cheap labor therefore; it had to develop technical skills that are not available anywhere in the world. The training was voluntary and free and it was aimed to the needs of the companies operating in Singapore at that time (Walkins). The government training program proved to be so helpful to employers that they acquiesced to a special tax to help pay for it. As a result of the success of its technical training programs, the government of Singapore branched out into the creation of: a Science Park to share research between government and industry, a national computer board to encourage the computerization of Singapore's schools, offices and homes, a tripling of the size of the two engineering universities the creation of a $50 million venture capital fund to encourage Singaporean startup companies but which would also fund startups outside of Singapore (Walkins). The people Singapore is the second most thickly populated country in the world. Eighty-four percent of Singaporeans live in public housing provided by the Housing and Development Board (HDB). Singapore's population, though small at 4.42 million as of July 2005, is comparatively assorted compared to most other countries, although neighbor Malaysia also features a multiracial population. The population is over 75% Chinese; Malays and Indians constitute large minorities. Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, Confucianism, and Christianity are the religions of Singapore (Singapore). The Chinese had become the largest ethnic group in Singapore as early as 1827. During the earliest years of the settlement, most of the Chinese in Singapore had been Peranakans, the descendents of Chinese who had settled in the archipelago centuries ago, who were usually well-to-do merchants. As the port developed, much larger numbers of Chinese coolies flocked to Singapore looking for work (History of Singapore). These migrant workers were generally male, poor and uneducated, and had left China (mostly from southern China) to escape the political and economic disasters affecting the country. They hope to make their fortune in Southeast Asia and return home to China, but most were doomed to a life of low-paying unskilled labor. Until the 20th century, few Chinese ended up settling permanently, primarily because wives were in short supply (History of Singapore). The country has four official languages-Mandarin, Malay, Tamil, and English-and one of the world's highest literacy rates (a product of a fine uniform education system conducted in all the official languages) (People). Government leaders in Singapore have expressed concern about the potential social impact of a large pool of migrant, particularly unskilled, workers and over-dependence on foreign labor, quite aside from the concern about its impact on the restructuring of the economy (Issues). No instances of violence or open conflict involving locals and foreign workers have surfaced to date. Illegal entry and staying beyond the permitted work period are reportedly on the rise again after the Singapore government had amended the Immigration Act in 1989 to raise the penalties for illegal immigrants and their employers (Issues). Singapore is one of the countries that have low crime rates in the world, and this is one of the reasons why foreign companies prefer Singapore as an investment destination. Laws in Singapore are usually strict with cruel penalty such as caning and execution and a strict censorship of the media including magazines, newspapers, movies and TV programs. Pornography, oral sex, anal sex and homosexual intercourse are illegal in Singapore. Materials that may cause race or religious dissonance are not allowed in Singapore, even on the Internet (Singapore). Architecture and urban planning The architecture of Singapore has a long history with an unclear origin, as was the early history of the city-state itself. Although there are proofs that fabricated structures did exist dating back at least to the 1330s. Found in abundance in the city centre today, however, are numerous districts and buildings harking back to the founding of modern Singapore in 1819 by the British as a result of aggressive conservation efforts of Singapore's built heritage since the 1970s (Architecture of Singapore). The older urban areas of the city lie to the north and northeast of the port. Jurong Industrial Estate (c.20 sq mi/50 sq km), an industrial park built largely on reclaimed swampland, is in SW Singapore (Land). The city-state's architecture is a mix of British colonial, traditional Malay and Chinese, and modern. Among Singapore's notable buildings are the city hall, the Raffles Hotel, the Victoria Theatre and Victoria Concert Hall, the bristly, aluminum-clad Esplanade performance complex, and Old St. Andrew's Cathedral (Land). Today, the city is conquered by modern architecture, with the brutalist style especially present in the thousands of older public housing high-rise flats in the suburbs. These are also equally well known in some of the downtown's older commercial buildings, such as the OCBC Centre by I. M. Pei, as well as many buildings built to house governmental offices and government-linked companies, including the likes of the Singapore Land Tower, Temasek Tower, DBS Building, and the CPF Building. Shifting international architectural trends introduced more architectural styles (particularly the postmodernist style) into Singapore (Architecture of Singapore). Both the government (Parliament House) and the private sector (Parkview Square) built iconic neoclassic buildings. In addition, the call for varied architectural styles has revolutionarized local public housing architecture. The Chinese Baroque style can be found among the homes of wealthy Peranakan in Emerald Hill, as well as elsewhere (Architecture of Singapore). Figure 4 The Parliament House (Singapore). Urban planning in Singapore has formulated and guided its physical development from the day the modern city was founded in 1819 as a British colony to the flourishing, independent country it is today. Urban planning is especially significant due to land limitation and its high density (Urban planning in Singapore). In 1927, the colonial government attempted to arrest the situation by setting up the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT), with the purpose of minimizing urban overcrowding and the provision and improving of public infrastructure, chiefly in the widening of roads to accommodate rising and modernizing traffic (Urban planning in Singapore). A Housing Committee was therefore created swiftly in 1947, and reported severe housing shortage affecting the city, where the population had already reached a million by 1950. With 25% of the population living in 1% of its land area, and with some shop houses housing over 100 people (Urban planning of Singapore). Housing Development Board was founded in 1960, replacing the Singapore Improvement Trust. This proved to be the turning point in the history of modern Singapore. Within five years, the HDB had constructed more than 50,000 housing units, which was several times more than the SIT had constructed within the time span of more than 20 years (Urban planning of Singapore). Singapore's cityscape has evolved over the years. However, much of it is also the consequence of good planning and urban design. Planning and urban design are the logic by which a city's building blocks are assembled to meet its functional, social and symbolic needs. Whether it is the varying of building heights to create a layered skyline; the creation of public spaces for the community; or the provision of covered walkways and shelters for pedestrians' comfort, good urban design sets out the context for which individual buildings can fit well into the larger environment (SRNathan). These designs give character to a place and raise the quality of our urban life. Through good planning and considerate urban design, individual buildings are guided to improve not only its own figure, but also that of the entire area (SRNathan). Additionally, they help to realize part of the greater plan of making Singapore unique. Much can be inferred of the social and cultural maturity of a city's people from how thoughtfully the city is put together (SRNathan). The combination of good design, even in the most ordinary of a city's urban furniture such as bus stops, street lamps and park benches, reflects a culture of superiority and innovation. Singapore aims to apply good design in all areas of development to experience on a daily basis the beauty and comfort of well-designed structures and buildings (SRNathan). Works Cited "Architecture of Singapore." Wikipedia. 14 Nov. 2005. Wikimedia. 14 November 2005. . "Economy." Singapore. 2005. Columbia Encyclopedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . "Geography and climate of Singapore." Wikipedia. 9 October 2005. Wikimedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . Hiroyuki, Taniguchi. "International Symposium and Workshop: "Asian Values in the International Society of the 21st Century" 2 Feb. 2003. Kobe Gakuin University. 13 Nov. 2005. . "History of Singapore." Wikipedia. 16 Nov.2005. Wikimedia. 16 Nov. 2005 . "ISSUES PAPER FROM SINGAPORE." Migration Issues in the Asia Pacific. 2005. Asia Pacific Research Center.. "Land." Singapore. 2005. Columbia Encyclopedia. 16 nov. 2005. . "People." Singapore. 2005. Columbia Encyclopedia. 16 Nov. 2005. < http:// www.encyclopedia.com/html/S/Singapor.asp>. "Singapore." 2005.Columbia Encyclopedia. 16 Nov. 2005.. "Singapore." Wikipedia. 16 November 2005. Wikimedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . SRNathan. Speech at the opening of the Singapore 1:1 - City [A Gallery of Architecture and Urban Design] held at The URA Centre, 14 November 2005 . "The Development of Singapore." Singapore. 2005. Columbia Encyclopedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . "Urban planning in Singapore." Wikipedia. 16 November 2005. Wikimedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . Watkins, Thayer. "Economic History of Singapore." SAN JOS STATE UNIVERSITY. Bibliography "Architecture of Singapore." Wikipedia. 14 Nov. 2005. Wikimedia. 14 November 2005. . Diane K. Mauzy & R. S. Milne (2002). Singapore Politics: Under the People's Action Party, Routledge. ISBN 0415246539. "Economy." Singapore. 2005. Columbia Encyclopedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . "Geography and climate of Singapore." Wikipedia. 9 October 2005. Wikimedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . Hiroyuki, Taniguchi. 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"Singapore." 2005.Columbia Encyclopedia. 16 Nov. 2005.. "Singapore." Wikipedia. 16 November 2005. Wikimedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . Singapore : Planning Dept., Ministry of National Development, Singapore, [1983]. 1982 Singapore: M.B.R.A.S., c1973 150th anniversary of the founding of Singapore. SRNathan. Speech at the opening of the Singapore 1:1 - City [A Gallery of Architecture and Urban Design] held at The URA Centre, 14 November 2005 . "The Development of Singapore." Singapore. 2005. Columbia Encyclopedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . "Urban planning in Singapore." Wikipedia. 16 November 2005. Wikimedia. 16 Nov. 2005. . Watkins, Thayer. "Economic History of Singapore." SAN JOS STATE UNIVERSITY. Read More