Beyond Technonationalism by Ibata-Arens Kathryn C.;

Author:Ibata-Arens, Kathryn C.; [Ibata-Arens, Kathryn C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Stanford University Press
Published: 2019-06-14T20:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 6

BORN GLOBAL IN SINGAPORE

Living the Janus Paradox

THE TROPICAL CITY-STATE of Singapore is about seven hundred square kilometers (about three times the size of Washington, DC), or slightly larger than the sprawling Z-Park in Beijing discussed in Chapter 4. Singapore is one of the busiest port cities in the world, measured by tonnage (Central Intelligence Agency n.d.). The nation-state of Singapore was once a part of a greater Malay nation, a land colonized by Great Britain. After emerging from colonial rule officially in 1963, it became clear, according to its first prime minister, Lee Kuan Yew, that Malaysia’s political leaders “were intent on a Malay-dominated Malaysia” (Friedberg 2010, 261; see also Lee K. Y. 1998). By 1965, Singapore’s multiethnic enclave had been cast out from a bumiputra (sons of the soil) vision for the Malaysian nation-state (Friedberg 2010).

The founding principles for Singapore, in part descending from its history as an international trade entrepôt on the southernmost end of the Malay peninsula, were also a direct response to having been excluded from the new nation-state of Malaysia in part due to their multicultural ethnicities. Instead, Singapore would be founded on the “four-M” conception of nationhood: multiethnicity, multiculturalism, multilingualism, and multireligiosity. In later years, observers would refer to Singapore as the “4Ms, plus M,” for meritocracy, reflecting the integrity and overall lack of corruption in the state (Sidhu, Ho, and Yeoh 2011). These central precepts of embracing multicultural identities have guided the national identity and policies of the government. From its inception as a nation-state, Singapore was international in outlook. The majority of Singapore’s population is ethnically Chinese, followed by Malay, Indian, and other, mostly Asian ethnicities. While Singapore has four official languages (Malay, Indian Tamil, Mandarin, English), the administrative language, including in schools, is English.

The entrepôt model was less successful for the Singapore economy after its 1965 independence as it no longer had access to the Malaysian market; and other Asian countries were pursuing postcolonial nationalist-movement inspired import-substitution policies. Singapore needed a new model for its economic survival. Its small size meant that it had little choice but to be open to the outside. Thus, the city-state became technoglobal in outlook, as outlined in table 1.1. This included embracing the presence of MNCs in the domestic economy despite the risks, for example, to domestic workers and state autonomy. This devil’s bargain, so to speak, would continue to challenge Singapore’s ability to act in the interest of its citizens, a theme recurring and increasing with intensity over time, as noted throughout this chapter.

This openness to the outside was complemented, as mentioned above, by a strict meritocracy.1 From the very beginning, talent regardless of ethnicity or citizenship was embraced.2 This translated into a knowledge and network regime that was open to international human-capital networks (see fig. 2.3), though Singapore’s small population of then fewer than 4 million meant that scale would prove elusive. In 1965, Singapore was a swampy, undeveloped spot of land with little infrastructure outside of the shipping docks in the port areas.

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