law and order Flashcards
What were some problems in Singapore
Piracy, prostitution, labour abuse, secrets society riots
What was the labour abuse of the coolies
Chinese migrants who came to Singapore had to pay their passage money from China. Those who were too poor to pay for their passage money had ti find a coolie agent to pay for their passage money. In return, the coolies had to work for a by y employer who was willing to pay the coolie-agent a sum of money to employ them. This sun of money was much more than the passage fee, it included the coolie-agents fee.
What means did the cookie-agents take to obtain coolies
The coolie agents tricked and kidnaped many coolies, and on the ship to Singapore, the living conditions were horrible, they were described as a living hell. There was overcrowding, lack of food and water, many died on this voyage to Singapore. When they did arrive in Singapore, they were kept in houses that were cramped and unhygienic, closely guarded by gangsters hied by the coolie agents.
What were secret societies meant to be for
Secret societies were meant to give poor uneducated Chinese migrants protection and help them find work.
What did the secret societies end up doing
As their numbers increased, the more the secret societies took part in gang robberies, gang fights and other forms of lawlessness. The secret society members would carry out armed robberies, usually at night but sometimes in broad daylight, on the homes of the rich.
What did the British do about the secret societies during the reign Of the EIC
The British government to no steps to tackle the problem. The British officials had few dealings with most of the Chinese living in SG and they knew very little about how secret societies operated. There were no British officials who understood various Chinese dialects.
What was prostitution
The young women from China were tricked or kidnaped and brought to Singapore where they were sold to keepers of brothels. The owners of brothels made loathe profits as there was a high demand for prostitues.
What did the British do to regain law and order is Singapore
The British had a police department and a Chinese protectorate and they passed the dangerous society ordinance.
Tell me more about the police
William Farquhar made his son in law the police chief, however he was too busy to give his time and attention to his police work. The public complained to the gorverent about the crime rate, Therefore in 1857, Thomas Dunman became the commissioner of police. Thomas Dunman persisted in making the police force more appealing to potential recruits by fighting for better working conditions and higher wages. I’m doing so he managed to attract men of good character. Despite his best efforts, he could not solve all the problems of crime and disorder. Thomas Dunman finally retired in 1871 and in 1881 a police training school was started.
Tell me more about the Chinese protectorate
The Chinese protectorate could speak various Chinese dialects, therefore he was able develop a comprehensive understanding of the complicated operations of secret societies. William Pickering persuaded the Chinese community to settle their quarrels instead of going to the secret societies. All Chinese secret societies also had to register with the fínese protectorate. To stop the labour abuse of the cookies, the Chinese protectorate controlled cookie trade by registering the cookie agents and lodging houses to ensure that the cookies were treated fairly. He also set up a department called PO LEUNG KUK. This place was to rescue many young women from being sold to brothers and also provided shelter for those who were poorly treated as servants.
What is piracy
Piracy was when pirates would attack trading ships, taking cargoes and killing travellers or selling them as slaves. Every year during the months of august and October was called the pirate wind where large fleets of pirates would attack trading ships. The pirates could be seen attacking ships outside Singapore harbor. Because of this, many traders were afraid, therefore they stayed away, this affected Singapore’s trade and we lost lathe sums of money.
What did the government do about piracy.
Traders repeatedly asked the government to take strong action against piracy, however the government had no legal means to punish the pirates and had to be sent to India for trial. After many appeals did the government in India send gunboats to patrol the waters. In the early 1870s piracy became less of a problem when the increased patrolling by the British and European powers.
what were the major problems that Singapore faced
Secret societies, prostitution, piracy, labor abuse
what are the secret societies problems
the secret societies were originally used for protection. unskilled poor Chinese migrants would usually join the secret societies as a way of protecting themselves, to gain protection and credibility. the secret societies, ended up being involved in robberies, sometimes even in broad daylight. there were also many riots between different societies for control over the territory.
