Singapore

We publish here excerpts from speeches by Dr. Ng Eng Hen, Singapore's Minister of Defense, at the Shangri-La Dialogue

We must and can avoid a physical conflict in Asia. Nor could we in the world endure another geopolitical shock after the war in Ukraine and what is happening in the Middle East. And I feel I can say that one of the prevailing moods among ministers and officials attending this year's Dialogue, compared to last year's Dialogue, is that what happened in Europe and the Middle East “must not happen in Asia.” We are learning important lessons to do or not to do by observing what is happening. (...) I would say that there is a strengthened determination that conflict should not happen in Asia. The United States and China are predominant players and their relationship will influence the future of the Asia-Pacific. Since the Shangri-La Dialogue last year, there have been positive signs. Joe Biden and Lloyd Austin have made it clear that the U.S. wants competition but not conflict. And these days the Secretary of Defense has stressed that a war is neither imminent nor inevitable. Xi Jinping has assured that he does not want to challenge the U.S. role and that he does not want a new cold war. (...) But in this stream of events that also sees signs of trade clashes, it is important to increase dialogue at the highest level. Trade and security are two sides of the same coin. The regional security architecture leaves countries believing that they need new deterrence initiatives, but we must not forget about the crucial role of reassurance. Despite their strategic rivalry, both the United States and China are critical to the global economy, on which they all depend. (...) Washington and Beijing do not need a third party to mediate between them, and I also doubt that a third party can help them. They must and can deal with this issue on their own. We, understood as Singapore and as ASEAN, can foster increased cooperation among the various regional and international actors. We are like the hobbits in “Lord of the Rings”: ASEAN should keep the ring because the great powers covet it too much. We are devoted to neutrality and prosperity. Even if we occasionally have disputes among ourselves, we resolve them peacefully. Look at the agreements between Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam over the South China Sea. (...) Our approach is to convince the powers, be they large, medium or other, that it is in their collective interest to have a system that protects the rights of both large and small powers. An inclusive system to avoid military alliances and trade blocs.

We publish here an excerpt from the inauguration speech of Lawrence Wong, the new prime minister of the city-state

Today marks a significant milestone: a passing of the baton, not only between leadership groups, but also between different generations. I am the first Prime Minister of Singapore to be born after independence. Almost all of my team colleagues were also born after 1965. The story of my generation is the story of independent Singapore. Our lives bear witness to the values that have forged our nation: Incorruptibility, meritocracy, multiracialism, justice and equality. These principles are deeply rooted in all of us. We understand the vital importance of good leadership, political stability and long-term planning. We ourselves are the beneficiaries of the imaginative policies of our founding fathers, pursued with determination and patience for decades. Shaped by these experiences, our leadership style will be different from that of previous generations. We will lead in our own way. We will continue to think boldly and think far ahead. We know there is still much to be done as the history of our island-nation continues to unfold. There are still many pages to be written. And the most beautiful chapters of our Singapore history await us. (...) Singapore's position is strong. But the world around us is constantly changing. For 30 years, since the end of the Cold War, we have enjoyed unprecedented peace and stability in the Asia Pacific. Unfortunately, that era is over. Great powers are competing to shape a new, as yet undefined global order. We need to prepare for these new realities and adapt to a more messy, riskier world. (...) Today Singapore is at a high economic level compared to most other countries. By international standards, we have built excellent systems of education, housing, health care and transportation. But circumstances are changing, technology is advancing and the population is aging rapidly. Therefore, we cannot afford to muddle along. We must continue to do our best to improve, upgrade and transform Singapore. I am convinced that we can and must do better. As Singaporeans, we all know what it means to exceed expectations, to go beyond what others think we can do, or even what we ourselves thought we could do. When the going gets tough, we don't collapse. We move forward, with confidence in our fellow citizens and in Singapore's future.

Full speech here

After 20 years Singapore is changing Premier. And for the first time, it is not a member of the Lee family

By Francesco Mattogno

On May 15, Singapore will have a new prime minister, the fourth in its history. As has always been the case since the city-state's independence (1965) to the present, the handover will not be due to the result of an election, or a vote of no confidence in parliament. For the third time since it has been in power, that is, since forever, the People's Action Party (PAP) has carefully planned well in advance the leadership change, which will pass into the hands of the “fourth generation” (4G) of party leaders.

Last April 15, the current premier Lee Hsien Loong, who has been in office since 2004, announced that he will leave his post to Wong Shyun Tsai, known to all as Lawrence Wong. Underscoring how everything has been organized down to the last detail, a month in advance we already know the time when the swearing-in ceremony will be held in the presidential palace in Singapore, namely 8 p.m. on May 15, precisely. Wong will thus become the fourth prime minister in the country's history, the second not to be a member of the Lee family.

Lee Hsien Loong is in fact the eldest son of Lee Kuan Yew, who came to power in 1959 and the first premier in the independent history of the Republic of Singapore, which became an autonomous state in 1965 following its split from Malaysia. The PAP has ruled continuously ever since, legitimized by the enormous economic growth of the city-state, which it has transformed over the decades into one of the world's leading financial centers. Singapore holds regular elections, which the PAP has always overwhelmingly won, monopolizing parliament. The next ones are scheduled by November 2025, but could be brought forward.

The change of leadership comes at perhaps the most sensitive time in the PAP's history. Meanwhile, in contrast to what happened during the 1990 handover between Lee Kuan Yew and his successor, Goh Chok Tong, the Lee family's historic hold on the party seems likely to fade in the near future. At that time Goh immediately appointed Lee Hsien Loong as his deputy, making it already clear how he would be the future leader of the PAP and premier of the country, more than a decade in advance.

Today, however, there do not seem to be any Lee heirs on the horizon ready to keep the PAP a family-owned asset for decades to come. This will make Wong the first premier to have no explicit connections to the Lees, although it is likely that, at least for the next few years, Lee Hsien Loong will continue to exert his influence over the PAP and thus the country.

Also complicit in this situation, the party has begun to show signs of fragility. Wong was not the first choice for the leadership change. Before him in 2018 was designated Heng Swee Keat, who was supposed to take Lee's place as early as a few years ago. The outbreak of the Covid pandemic led the PAP to postpone the transition, whose stability was then challenged by the 2020 elections, in which the party won “only” 83 of the 93 elective seats, one of the worst results in its history. The relatively modest outcome of the vote convinced Heng to step aside.

Instead, the pandemic proved to be an opportunity, for Wong. A former finance minister and deputy prime minister, Wong was noted for the good work he did as co-chair of the task force set up by the government to handle the emergency caused by Covid. In 2022, the PAP leadership then appointed him leader of 4G and de facto successor to Lee, but not unanimously (15 in favor out of 19), denoting at least a slight internal fragmentation. To this must be added the scandals that in recent months have technically led to the resignation, in practice the removal, of parliament speaker Tan Chuan-Jin (over an extramarital affair with a female MP) and Transport Minister Subramaniam Iswaran, who was accused of corruption (we reported on them here).

The two affairs caused a stir, undermining the image of integrity and fairness that the PAP has built up over the decades and contributing to the strengthening of the opposition, led by the Workers' Party (WP). The party's 4G members thus do not enjoy the same level of adulation shown by Singaporeans toward previous leaders (there is already no shortage of nostalgics and hagiographies of Lee Hsien Loong).

Wong will have to deal with this and a domestic situation that is not the best. Although Singapore's per-capita income remains among the highest in the world ($80,000 in 2022), income inequality between the upper and lower segments of the population is increasing, as is the cost of living. This is leading Singaporeans to have fewer and fewer children or leave the city-state, while the country's perception as a stable financial center is being eroded by increasing corruption and “dirty” money laundering. The various international crises are also challenging the international order that has allowed Singapore to thrive in recent decades.

We publish here an excerpt from the inauguration speech of Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Singapore's new president

I have dedicated my life to serving Singapore, our home. Nothing could be more meaningful to me. My greatest privilege has been to work actively on the ground, week after week, for more than two decades. Listening to people's hopes and concerns, helping them overcome life's difficulties and sharing their joys. (...) An equitable and inclusive society goes far beyond government policies. It is about all of us. It is about the respect and friendship we bring to one another. Regardless of our background and educational achievement. Regardless of race, religion or any other differences. And it's about knowing that if one group of our people loses hope, all of us will have less hope as Singaporeans. Now more than ever we need to deepen our solidarity as Singaporeans so that we can lift each other up. (...) The challenges facing our country will increase. We are in a time of transition, both in Singapore and internationally. We are entering a new, more difficult and more complex era. The world is increasingly divided and unstable. Global crises-economic, geopolitical and environmental-are erupting more often. They will test all countries, especially smaller ones like Singapore. At home, in Singapore, we are becoming a democracy with more diverse opinions. I see this as inevitable and healthy, and I have said it many times. But our real challenge as Singaporeans is to ensure that this diversity of opinion does not lead us to a more divided society, like many others. We need to be a democracy with more room for diverse opinions and a thriving civil society. But to be confident in our future, we must also be a society with a strong center of shared aspirations and respect for all citizens.(...) We can and must strengthen a culture of respect for all Singaporeans in the years ahead. We must never become just another small country. I have been flying Singapore's flag internationally for many years and will actively work to strengthen existing partnerships and build new ones. (...) In my many years in government as a minister, I have remained true to my ideals of social justice and inclusion and have worked continuously, year after year, to build consensus on practical and sustainable ways to improve the lives of ordinary workers and citizens. Although the president is distinct from the government and does not engage in politics, I will never give up this purpose in my life and mental independence in the performance of my duties. We will go through ups and downs. But we are still one place where we can work together to make the future better for all.

Former vice-premier Tharman Shanmugaratnam, 66, got 70.4 percent of the vote

Article by Tommaso Magrini

Singapore’s presidential elections took place on Friday 1st September. over 2.5 million Singaporeans went to the polls at 1,264 polling stations across the island. According to the final results, Tharman Shanmugaratnam, 66, garnered 70.4 % of the vote, while his fellow candidates Ng Kok Song and Tan Kin Lian, both 75, obtained 15.72% and 13,88%. The margin by which the former deputy Premier Tharman won, was surprising and unexpected to some analysts, given the recent scandals that have plagued the People’s Action Party (PAP) in recent weeks and which, they argued, could have invalidated his candidacy. this was not the case. The winner has a deep relationship with the party that has always dominated the city-state scene. If the election was seen as a barometer of public sentiment, then the PAP has confirmed its grip. Tharman was a popular politician, having won several parliamentary election victories, including the largest margin of votes in the 2020 general election as a member of the PAP. Tharman resigned from the party and his government posts in July to run for president after 22 years in politics. The President’s role is largely ceremonial in Singapore, although the office is supposed to provide checks and balances on the government. The President has veto powers over any specific budget or transaction that may draw on the national ‘grand reserves’. The president can also veto the appointment or removal of key public officials and instruct the anti-fraud office to investigate specific cases even when the Prime Minister disagrees. Premier Lee Hsien Loong said he called Tharman to congratulate him. “I assured him of my government’s full cooperation”