96-LHL-2 Release No: 13/MARCH 16-0/96/03/09

SPEECH BY DPM BG LEE HSIEN LOONG AT THE OFFICIAL LAUNCHING OF THE ELECTRONIC EDITION OF BERITA HARIAN ON ASIA ONE ON 9 MARCH 1996, SATURDAY AT 10 30 A.M.. AT THE FOUR SEASONSHOTEL BALLROOM

Berita Harian has come a long way. From its origins in 1957 as little more than a carbon copy of , a romanised Malay newspaper to rival the Jawi-script Utusan Melayu, Berita Harian has grown to becomethe major Malay newspaperin Singapore.

Over the years, Berita Harian has chronicled the high drama and turbulence leading to the birth of modem Singapore and its quest for nationhood. It has reported on the activities and the steady progressof the Malay community in Singapore. More than that, it has also played an important role in preparing and mobilising the Malay communityto tackle difficult social problems which it faces, and meet the formidable challengesof the 2lst century.

Berita Harian has established its position with a circulation of 60,000 in Singaporealone. The fact that 80% of Malay householdsread the Berita Harian and Berita Minggu is a considerableachievement. Today Berita Harian is launching its Internet edition. You are joining the ranks of the other newspapers in the SPH stable - Business Times, Straits Times, and The New Paper - which are already available on Internet on the site. I surf the net only occasionally,but when I do I have found these electronic versions of the newspapersto be of a high quality. They are not mere reproductionsof the printed versions. They are imaginatively and conveniently presented, packaged to make the best use of the electronic medium, to hold the reader’s attention and to let him quickly get hold of the particular information he is interested in. It is therefore not surprising that the AsiaOne site has won awards for being among the best sites on the World Wide Web. I have no doubt that Berita Harian will also live up to these high standardswhich SPH has already set.

With this venture into cyberspace,Berita Harian can reach out to a wider audience. With your own unique perspective,you can help present Singaporeto the world. Malay Singaporeansand many others living away from Singaporewill appreciatethe opportunity to catch up on Singapore news and other developmentsin Malay through a mere click of a mouse.

Berita Harian’s efforts is another step forward for the Malay community in Singapore.Other Malay Singaporeangroups have already set up Web sites - MUIS, Mendaki and also Kampung Net.These efforts show that the Malay community recognisesthe need to master the new technology of computers and the Internet, and to keep up with the swift changestaking place in information technology. These changeswill affect not only our working environment,but increasinglyeven the way we live. We must understandand control these changes,and not passively let them take control of us. 3 The Internet is evolving rapidly. Singaporeansare hooking up to it in large numbers.We in Singaporehave to stake out a place for ourselves on Internet, to derive maximum benefit from its potential, to convey information, to communicate among ourselves, to learn about develop- ments elsewhere.

NCB is encouraging all government departments and statutory boards to study how to use the Internet to fulfil their responsibilitiesbetter. For example,MTI already posts quarterly economicresults on the Internet the moment they are published. MND can post the sales status of private housing projects, and HDB can post the status of its construction projects on the Internet, so that private flat buyers can check on the state of the market, and HDB flat buyers can monitor when their flats will be ready. Other ministriestoo can accept and processtransactions sent via e-mail on the Internet, especially once procedures for secure and verifiable communicationsare developed.AsiaOne, and now Berita Harian’s venture into cyberspace,complements this effort.

The key to the survival of the Malay community, and indeed of all Singaporeans, is to keep ahead of the competition. In the field of computers and information technology, we have a natural advantage.Our people take easily to computers, and readily pick up the skills they demand. I hope Berita Harian’s venture into cyberspacewill encourage more Malay families to learn about and explore the Internet, be it in schools,in homes,or in cyber cafes.

I wish Berita Harian welI on its latest venture.