POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT OF SINGAPORE: A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL APPROACH Eswaran Ramasamy B.A., Simon Fraser Univexsity, 1987 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department Political Science @ Eswaran Ramasamy 1989 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY August 1989 All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, .without permission of the author. APPROVAL Name: Eswaran Ramasamy Degree: Master of Arts Title of thesis: Political Development of Singapore: A Multi-Dimensional Approach Examining Committee: Chairman: Dr. Maureen Cove11 Y Dr. A.H. Sam* Senior ~upeivisor - Dr. F.Q@UO - ~ D;: Norman ' D. ' palmer External Examiner Department of Political Science University of Pennsylvania Date Approved: August 8th, 1989 ii PARTIAL COPYRIGHT LICENSE I hereby grant to Simon Fraser University the right to lend my thesis, project or extended essay (the title of which is shown below) to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. I further agree that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by me or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publlcation of this work for financial gain shall not be allowed without nw written permission. Title of Thesis/Project/Extended Essay Political Development of Singapore: A Multi-Dimensional Approach ( name 8 August 1989 ABSTRACT The existing approaches which attempt to explain the political development of Singapore, deserve to be questioned and supplemented. Some of them have used theoretical models which are either extraneous or inadequate, so far as the actual complexity of Singapore's development processes are concerned. For that purpose this thesis provides what I have called a composite approach. Such an approach takes into account: Singapore's historical background, changing political economy, ethnic composition and cultural values, and the social concerns and pragmatic policies of her governing elites. We shall examine the contribution of each of these, independently and in conjunction with other factors, to her many sided development. For the purposes of development analysis, Singapore is often lumped together with the other so-called 'dragons', namely, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. That kind of an approach is not very helpful. For each one of them has come through a specific historical and social experience of its own. Equally distinct has been the nature of their economic growth and political development. Our detailed analysis of the different aspects of Singapore's development process will illustrate this point. This thesis critically examines the constitutional, structural and radical approaches to the study of Singapore, and emphasizes the need to adopt a more inclusive approach which takes into account the history, political economy, ethnic composition and immigrant ethic, political institutions, and highly flexible domestic and international policies which Singapore adopted for her economic and social developyent. One of the most neglected aspects in scholarly writings on Singapore is how her immigrant population, and its cultural values, were blended in the drive towards the modernization of Singapore's economy and society. In that sense the impetus from 'below' became most critical to her development Such a contribution is examined in detail in iii this thesis. In the new writings on development studies, there is a growing emphasis on what can be called development particularism. That is to say that we need to pay attention to the peculiar development experience of each society. Towards such an exercise this thesis, with its attempt to understand the uniqueness of Singapore's development experience, is a contribution. DEDICATION To Singapore and My Family. QUOTATION He who gains victory over others is strong but he who gains victory over himself is all powerficl. A Chinese saying ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to take this opportunity to thank Singapore, in general, for providing me and my family the equality of opportunity and a conducive environment to harness our true potential and free ourselves from the cruel and vicious chains of poverty. It is beyond my imagination, that if my parents had remained in India, we would have been able progress this far in our lives. On this note, my sincerest gratitude to my aunt, Madam Kaliammal, for all her past help. My parents, brothers, sister-in-law and nephews for being there when I needed them most. To my gurus, Dr. Somjee and Dr. Quo, for sincerely taking the pains to ensure my scholarly progress. Finally to Dr. Geeta Somjee, her timely advice and motivation made this endeavour a possibility. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Approval ................................................................................................................................................................... ii Abstract .................................................................................................................................................................... iii Dedication ................................................................................................................................................................ v Quotation ................................................................................................................................................................. vi Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................................... vii List of Tables ....................................................................................................................................................... x Preface ...................................................................................................................................................................... xi I . Variety of Approaches Towards the Understanding of Political Development of Singapore....................................................................................................................................................... 1 Constitutional Approach .......................................................................................................................... 3 Structural Approach ................................................................................................................................. 5 Radical Approach ..................................................................................................................................... 9 The Composite Approach ................................................................................................................... 16 I1. Singapore's Development in a Historical Perspective............................................................. 20 Inception Stage 1819 - 1867........................................................................................................... 22 The Matwing Stage - 1840s to 1880s ...................................................................................... 37 The Mature Stage 1890 - To The Present ............................................................................ 42 The Internationalization of Capital ................................................................................................. 48 Some General Observations............................................................................................................... 58 111. Singaporean Society: Its Immigrant Component........................................................................ 64 Background: Factors Responsible for the Migration Process .............................................. 66 Factors Responsible Foq Emigration............................................................................................... 70 Supply-side Factors ................................................................................................................................ 70 Demand-side Factors ............................................................................................................................. 90 Some General Observations.............................................................................................................. 100 viii IV. Singapore's Governing Elites: Their Role ................................................................................. 107 Singapore's Governing Elites: Their Ideology .......................................................................... 109 Policy Analyses ...................................................................................................................................... 126 Domestic Policy Analyses ................................................................................................................. 140 Some General Observations.............................................................................................................. 152 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................................ 155 BIBLIOGRAPHY ..............................................................................................................................................