lecture 5: Singapore (Rileys quizlet)

Question 1

What aspects of Singapore make it unique?

Answer 1

-has its own state
-one of the most densely populated areas on Earth
-one of the wealthiest places on Earth
-one of the highest life expectancies
-world’s most competitive economy

Question 2

Characteristics of pre-modern Singapore

Answer 2

-key strategic position in Indo-Chinese trading routes since at least 1300s
-under the cultural influence of Indosphere
-firmly connected to Chinese trading world
-marginalized by Dutch and Portuguese in 1600s and 1700s

Question 3

Characteristics of Singapore’s post-colonial developmental state

Answer 3

-1959 self-government
-1965 full independence
-democratic one-party system
-state directed process of growth and development,
-investment in industry and infrastructure, education,
-healthcare,
-urban infrastructure,
-housing,
-employment,
-community groups

Question 4

Singapore public housing

Answer 4

-80% of Singaporeans
-huge investment in quality of life+affordability
-1989 Ethnic Integration Policy

Question 5

Multiracialism in Singapore

Answer 5

-national unity pledge recited since 1966 in schools
-govt constitutionally required to care for racial minorities
-CMIO
-social organizations provide education and welfare to their ethnicity

Question 6

What are some pros and cons of Singapore’s policy of multiracialism?

Answer 6

Pros: commitment to ethnic and cultural diversity, tolerance, inclusion, equity
Cons:
-too rigid,
-focus on classifying and categorizing,
-limited accommodation of multiple identities
-reinforces and accentuates cultural difference
-perpetuates perceptions of difference
-CMIO is connected to colonial social policies
-limits a post-racial Singapore

Question 7

What are some reasons why Singaporeans are not fond of new Chinese migrants?

Answer 7

-inassimilable
-higher property prices
-perception that government is too accommodating to new migrants
-scholarships given to students who use Singapore as a stepping stone