From: kytan@mantra.fia.dmg.ml.com (Kok-Yong Tan)
Subject: Article by Sumiko Tan of The Straits Times
Organization: Organised?  Here?  Hahahahahahahaha.....
Distribution: soc.culture.asean
Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1992 15:57:28 GMT

I posted the following article without permission but thought it very
interesting in view of the current...um...debates.  :-) 

ARTICLE FOLLOWS:
--------------------------

Best airport, yes, but S'pore has no Nobel prize winners
========================================================
by Sumiko Tan (who is with the The Straits Times Political Desk)

     Are Singaporeans plain ignorant or just smug and complacent?

     This, sadly, was the question in my mind after reading the results of a
Straits Times' National Day survey on how Singaporeans viewed the world.

     In the study, 403 people were asked which country they considered to be a
model for the world.  The majority--48 per cent--cited Singapore.

     Japan was a distant second with 14 percent, and Switzerland came in third
with 13 percent.  Other countries that came up for cursory mention included the
United States, China and Malaysia.

     Asked what they could learn from other countries, the biggest segment--30
per cent--said:  "Nothing."

     To be fair, the rather small sample size might not have given the most
accurate reflection of the way Singaporeans feel.

     But it was a representative sample and the survey was conducted according
to well accepted survey methodology.  The results are thus a good indication of
some Singaporeans' sense of their place in the sun.

     It cannot be denied, of course, that the country has achieved much in the
20-odd years since independence.

     As has been pointed out repeatedly, sometimes to the point of ad nauseum,
by politicians, newspaper editorials and columnists, the economy is thriving,
people enjoy a high standard of living, the country is crime-free and there is
racial, religious peace and political stability.

     Still, it does seem rather naive, even presumptuous, for a country so
young and so small to think it should be a source of global admiration and
emulation. 

     Why do a large proportion of respondents hold this view?

     There are two possible reasons.  ONe, they do not know enough of the
world, and two, they know enough, yet still maintain that the country is way
ahead of any one else.

     But whether it is ignorance or smugness, it does not augur well for the
Republic. 

     Singapore is too small to live a life of isolation, and too dependent on
the world to survive alone.

     To move forward economically today requires a sound knowledge of what
others are doing, especially countries which have made a mark in particular
fields, so that Singapore knows how far more it has to go.

     Keeping one's mind shut to what others could offer--be it in the realm of
economics, politics or the arts--will surely lead to the nation's downfall.

     What Singaporeans ought to bear in mind is that throughout the country's
short history, it has succeeded mainly by unashamedly borrowing ideas and
talents from all over the globe.

     The economy today is thriving, thanks in part to the international
economic advisers who came here in the early 1960s.  And to the large number of
multinational companies with their accompanying management and technical staff.

     Changi Airport is No. 1 because those in charge have adapted the successes
of airports in other lands. Similarly, the Port of Singapore Authority has had
to learn from others to be where it is today.

     But, still, it is perhaps understandable why some Singaporeans are
preoccupied with their own achievements and sceptical of others'.

     Politicians and the media are always emphasising examples of how other
countries, especially those in the West, have failed--be it their political or
social system--rather than areas they have succeeded and what the nation could
learn from them.

     On the other hand, Singapore's achievements--best port, best airport,
clean environment--are always stressed in the media.

     Little wonder then that the average citizen is insular in outlook, and
quick to make triumphant pronouncements about how much better his country is
compared with others.

     Indeed, just the other day, a friend, a university-educated professional,
remarked how surprised he was that Spain managed to pull off successfully the
Olympic Games.

     Why, I asked.  He replied dismissively:  "You know how incompetent those
Westerners are."

     While ignorance might be a reason for the insularity of some Singaporeans,
there are others who have seen more of the world and yet maintain that the
country has the best of everything.

     To them, I ask, "While Singapore is tops in some areas, there surely are
many others whether the country has still to make a mark?"

     Its people have never won a Nobel Prize; the schools and universities here
are not renowned for any particular field of study; the country has yet to
develop its own literature or art forms; and its sportsmen are not world class.

     Some may argue that Singapore's limited people pool makes it harder for it
to gain world recognition in so many areas.

     True but then, this argument is ignored when Singaporeans make blithe
comparisons about how much life is better here than, for example, America or
Britain. 

     Can Singaporeans really compare the crime rate in their tiny island with
that of the US?

     And when they compare their living standards with others, they should bear
in mind that theirs is a city state, and the comparison ought to be drawn not
with, say, Spain or Mexico, but Madrid, Barcelona or Mexico City.

     As Singapore moves into its 28th year, there is no denying that its
citizens can be proud of many things in this country.

     Still, I think, it would be unwise to feel smug, and the words of Polish
poet Stanislaw J. Lec bear some remembering:  "When you jump for joy, beware
that no one moves the ground from beneath your feet."



--
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Kok-Yong Tan, 			  	| My words are my own: 
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New York, NY 10281-1315.	  	|		- K. Y. Tan, 5 Feb 1992
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