By Professor Tommy Koh: GE 2020: A Reflection

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On July 10, the People’s Action Party (PAP) won 83 out of 93 seats and secured 61.2 per cent of the popular vote in the 2020 General Election. In any democracy, such an outcome would be regarded as outstanding. It is important to remind ourselves that Singapore is a democracy and not some other form of government.

EXTERNAL VIEW

I am quite shocked by the comments of some foreign observers. Professor Michael Barr from Flinders University in Australia described the result as a “disaster” for the PAP. Professor Bridget Welsh from the University of Nottingham Malaysia and National Taiwan University described the outcome as a “humiliating defeat” for the PAP.

Are these fair assessments?

Let’s compare the PAP’s electoral performance to those of the winning parties in Australia, the United Kingdom and India.

In the 2019 Australian federal election, Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s coalition won 77 out of 151 seats and secured 41 per cent of the popular vote.

In the 2019 general election in the UK, the Conservative Party won 365 out of 650 seats and secured 43.6 per cent of the popular vote.

In the 2019 Indian general election, the Bharatiya Janata Party won 303 out of 542 seats and 37 per cent of the popular vote.
 

VICTORY FOR PAP AND WP

When we compare the PAP’s electoral performance to those of the winning parties in these three countries, any fair-minded person would conclude that it was an outstanding victory. It was certainly not a “disaster” or a “humiliating defeat”.

At the same time, the outcome of the election was a victory for the Workers’ Party (WP). There was a doubt, before the election, whether it would be able to retain its seat in Hougang SMC and its five seats in Aljunied GRC. WP not only retained those six seats, and with increased majorities, but it also won a four-member group representation constituency, Sengkang, defeating three PAP office-holders on the opposing slate.

LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION

I applaud Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s decision to appoint WP chief Pritam Singh as the official Leader of the Opposition. As Leader of the Opposition, Mr Singh will be given staff support and resources to carry out his responsibilities, PM Lee has said, although it is not clear what level of support he will be given and whether he will be paid a salary. In Britain, the leader of the opposition draws a salary equivalent to that of a Cabinet minister.

By appointing Mr Singh as the Leader of the Opposition, PM Lee is acknowledging that the WP is here to stay and is likely to grow stronger in the coming years.

I agree with Straits Times Opinion editor Chua Mui Hoong’s comment that we may be seeing the emergence of a two-party state in Singapore. (July 11, “A result that could please voters from both sides”.) She wrote that the election result showed that “a two-party system in its infancy is taking shape, as the WP now has the clout to attract good candidates, run a good campaign and put up alternative policy proposals. It will be tested in town council and constituency management next”.

I also agree with Singapore Institute of International Affairs chairman Simon Tay’s comment that the correct reply to the question of who won the election is that Singapore won the election.

On his Facebook page, Associate Professor Tay posted: “If Singaporeans want to signal that we have concerns but are not panicked, that we have trust in a PAP government but not blind faith, and that we will want diverse perspectives and voices of hope to be heard, even as we listen to our leaders in responding to this crisis, our message was sent.

“Who won the 2020 General Election? Singapore won.”

TIMING OF THE ELECTION

Singapore is in the midst of two crises: a health crisis and an economic crisis. The conventional wisdom is that an election during a crisis will benefit the incumbent. Why didn’t the PAP benefit more from the crisis?

I think the reason is that many voters felt that holding the election in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic was too opportunistic. Many doctors had feared that it could lead to a second surge of the virus outbreak.

TAKE THE HIGH ROAD

I think the electorate was sending several messages to the political parties. One message was to urge the parties to take the high road and not the low road.

The second message was for them to focus on the issues instead of attacking their opponents. Character assassination is frowned upon by the electorate.

For this reason, the following attacks were not well received:

  • An attempt to use local playwright Alfian Sa’at as a stick to beat Mr Singh.
  • An attack on Ms Raeesah Khan, a young WP candidate for Sengkang GRC, for her social media posts on race issues.
  • An attempt to brand Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) chief and Bukit Batok SMC candidate Chee Soon Juan as a liar.
  • The use of Pofma (Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act) over statements made by SDP chairman and Bukit Panjang SMC candidate Paul Tambyah.

INTERNET ELECTION

This is Singapore’s first Internet election. Because of Covid-19, physical rallies were not possible. Political parties concentrated their activities on home visits, meeting voters at hawker centres, and campaigning online via e-rallies and virtual talk shows.

My impression is that all the parties did a good job using the Internet to connect with voters and to disseminate their messages. The PAP and WP were particularly effective in this respect.

WOMEN POWER

A wonderful aspect of the 2020 election was the large number of women candidates – 39 in all.

It is also significant that the PAP women candidates in single-member constituencies, such as Dr Amy Khor, Ms Tin Pei Ling, Ms Sun Xueling and Ms Grace Fu, won their seats by large majorities.

I am very pleased to see more women joining politics and entering Parliament. We need more women in Parliament and in the Cabinet. My dream is that one day, Singapore will have a woman prime minister.

SENGKANG GRC

WP’s victory in Sengkang GRC was a big surprise. It brings back memories of the loss of Aljunied GRC by the PAP to the WP in 2011.

How did the young WP team of Ms He Ting Ru, Associate Professor Jamus Lim, Mr Louis Chua and Ms Raeesah succeed in defeating the older PAP team, which included three office-holders – Mr Ng Chee Meng, Dr Lam Pin Min and Mr Amrin Amin?

Mr Ng as labour chief was a Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, Dr Lam was Senior Minister of State for Health and Transport, and Mr Amrin was Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Home Affairs and Health.

I don’t know the answer. Some experts think that it was due to the special character of the constituency, with its higher percentage of younger voters, and to the star power of the WP candidate, Prof Lim. Others think the PAP’s strong criticism of Ms Raeesah swung young voters over in a sympathy vote.

Sengkang GRC is a new constituency carved out of previous wards. Most of its voters live in Housing Board flats and it is a constituency with many young voters and young families. Do young voters have a different world view and aspirations than older voters?

I think the answer is yes. Young voters want the Government to be more consultative and less paternalistic. They are more liberal and accepting of alternative views and lifestyles. They are less race-conscious and do not agree that Singapore is not ready for a non-Chinese prime minister.

Young voters are also more socially conscious and want to see a radical reduction of poverty and inequality. They want a fairer Singapore. They are more environmentally conscious and want Singapore to grow greener.

They have sent several messages to the PAP Government with the vote and I sincerely hope the PAP is hearing them. I hope the Government will consider them with an open mind and not brush them aside.

In conclusion, two things bear repeating.

First, the outcome of the 2020 election was a victory for the PAP. It was not a disaster or a humiliating defeat.

Second, the WP has made a major breakthrough by retaining Hougang SMC and Aljunied GRC, and winning Sengkang GRC. It is now recognised as a credible opposition, and Singaporeans will expect it to oppose the Government in areas where it disagrees but always be loyal to Singapore.

By Professor Tommy Koh: Are Art Workers Non-essential?

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The Sunday Times (14/6/2020) last weekend published results of a survey it commissioned which asked 1,000 respondents, which are the jobs that are most crucial in keeping Singapore going.

The result is very interesting.

The survey includes a definition of an essential worker  as someone who is engaged in work deemed necessary to meet basic needs of human survival and well-being, such as food, health, safety and cleaning.

When asked to identify the jobs that are essential and not essential from a list of 20 jobs based on this definition,  respondents’ top five picks for essential jobs were: doctor and nurse; cleaner; garbage collector; hawker; deliveryman.

Their five picks for not essential jobs were: artist (71 percent of the respondents); telemarketer: social media manager or PR specialist; business consultant; human resource manager. The survey was conducted by consumer research firm Milieu Insight.

This finding with artists topping the list of not essential jobs has caused pain and consternation to the arts community. I would like to comfort them by reminding them that the survey was conducted during a global public health crisis when many respondents’ minds are understandably on health and their basic needs such as food. This might be why they consider artists less essential.

It does not necessarily mean respondents do not value the work of artists in normal times. On the contrary, many people in Singapore appreciate and enjoy the work of artists. In this article I will explain why I think art workers play an important role in Singapore.

Who Are The Art Workers?

I will define the term “artist” to mean the art workers.

Who are the art workers? In literary art, they are our poets, novelists, non-fiction writers, translators, editors and book designers. In the visual art, they are our painters, sculptors, potters, ceramic artists, printers, photographers, multi-media artists, performance artist, and new media artists. In the performing arts, we have all the workers in music, theatre and film. I would also include the people working in our museums and galleries. As a general rule, the art workers are poorly paid. They deserve our approval and not our disapproval.

Singapore Without Music

Without musicians we would have no music. If we have no composers we would not have had Zubir Said, the composer of our national anthem.

Music touches our hearts and it can evoke strong feelings, including, the love of country. When Singaporeans sing Majulah Singapura together, they feel united and committed to the onward march of the nation. Dick Lee’s song, Home, touches the hearts of all Singaporeans. It has become our most popular national song.

I cannot imagine Singapore without the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, the Singapore Chinese Orchestra, the Singapore Jazz Orchestras, the Singapore Dance Theatre, the Singapore Lyric Opera, the Esplanade and many others. Making music, singing and dancing are three of the things which make us human.

The Value of Literature

Literature is under-valued in Singapore. Most Singapore schools no longer require their students to study literature as a compulsory subject. Most Singaporean parents feel that literature is not a useful subject for their children to study.

I hold the contrary view. I feel that it is “useful” to read literature because it will improve our ability to write clearly, it will enhance our understanding of the human condition, it will increase our empathy for others, and it will help unlock our understanding of another country or another civilisation.

When our young diplomats call on me before their departure for our Embassy in Washington, DC, I always give them two lists of books to read. The first list contains 10 books of non-fiction. The second list consists of 10 books of fiction. To understand America, you need to read both types of book.

To understand Singapore, it is not enough to read reports and non-fiction books. We should also read the poetry, short stories and novels of our writers. The non-fiction books give us the facts and numbers. The other writings give life and blood to the facts and numbers. The poems of Edwin Thumboo, Lee Tzu Pheng, Boey Kim Cheng and Leong Liew Geok, the short stories of S Rajaratnam, Catherine Lim, Claire Tham and Simon Tay, the novels of Goh Poh Seng, Suchen Christine Lim, Meira Chand, Rex Shelley, Isa Kamari and Ovidia Yu, the plays of Kuo Pao Kun, Haresh Sharma, Robert Yeo and Lim Chor Pee are among my favourites. I am happy to say that there is a new generation of talented young poets and writers in Singapore.

The Value of Visual Art

What is the value of visual art? Why do I collect the paintings of Singaporean artists and the pots of Iskandar Jalil? Why do I enjoy visiting our museums and galleries?

I collect a painting or pot, not for its commercial value, but for its beauty. It gives me joy to look at it, again and again. Sometimes, a painting has sentimental value, because it is a painting of my childhood home or because it brings back happy memories of an event, a place or a friend. Sometimes, a painting provokes us to leave our comfort zone and look at reality from a different perspective.

Some paintings can evoke much deeper emotions. Picasso’s painting of the Spanish Civil War, Guernica, is such a painting. I have seen people shedding tears before it. I have also seen people weeping before the abstract paintings of Mark Rothko. Obviously, those paintings speak to their viewers and evoke their feelings. It is the aspiration of every artist to produce art which speaks to the viewers. Our lives are enriched by beautiful art and design.

The Magic Of Theatre

I love going to the theatre. I regard the theatre as a magical place. When you sit in a darkened theatre, you are transported to another world. For the next two hours, you are entertained and inspired, provoked and challenged and made to laugh and cry. I thank Wild Rice, Pangdemonium, the Necessary Stage, TheatreWorks, The Theatre Practice and the Singapore Repertory Theatre for the many happy hours I have spent watching their productions.

Our playwrights, directors, actors and theatre companies have excelled in staging plays, musicals and pantomimes. Haresh Sharma’s plays deal with or social issues. His play, Off-Centre, has become a Singapore classic. Kuo Pao Kun’s plays, The coffin is Too Big For the Hole, Lao Jiu and Descendants of the Eunuch Admiral, are three of my favourites. Stella Kon’s Emily of Emerald Hill, and Michael Chiang’s Army Daze and Beauty World, Robert Yeo’s Are You There, Singapore?, Tan Tarn How’s The Lady of Soul and Her Ultimate ‘S’ Machine, Alfian Sa’at’s Cooling Off Day are some of our most important plays.

The Power of Film

Film is a very powerful medium. A successful film can transcend barriers of language, culture, and geography. A successful film can highlight a national or international issue, in an entertaining way. In 2019, the US Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, made two extraordinary awards.

For the first time in its history, the Oscar for Best Picture, was given to an Asian film, Parasite, that deals with social and economic inequality in South Korea. The brilliant film by Bong Joon-ho, revolves around two families, the Kims who are poor and the Parks who are rich. Inequality is, of course, a global issue and this could be one of the reasons for its choice.

The Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film was given to a Mexican film called Roma. The film is about a domestic helper, Cleo, an indigenous woman. The indigenous people of Mexico are marginalized and discriminated against.

By casting an indigenous woman, Yalitza Aparicio, to play the role of Cleo, the director of the film, Alfonso Cuaron, wanted to tell the story of the Mixtec women who work as maids in Mexico.

The success of Roma has brought about changes in Mexico. The Mexican Congress has approved a law to grant the two million domestic workers, labour rights such as social protection, written contacts and paid vacations. The National Domestic Workers Alliance in the United States has urged the US Congress to adopt a National Domestic Workers Bill Rights.

In Singapore, nothing so dramatic has taken place yet in our film industry. Our two most successful film makers, Eric Khoo and Jack Neo, have been joined by a new generation of talented young film makers, such as, Royston Tan, Anthony Chen, Boo Junfeng, K Rajagopal and Kirsten Tan. They are making good films and winning international recognition. I hope one day a Singapore film will win an Oscar or a Palme D’or.

Conclusion

Singaporeans today enjoy a rich cultural life. There are many performances of music, dance, theatre and film all year round. We have world class museums and galleries. Our artists have produced outstanding works. Singaporeans should remember that the high quality of cultural life they enjoy is made possible by our art workers. During the Circuit Breaker, many Singaporeans kept themselves sane by reading books, listening to music, watching film and television shows and concerts online.

It is not right to regard our art workers as non-essential. Without them, Singapore would be a cultural desert.

By Professor Tommy Koh: ASEAN’S Response to COVID-19: A Report Card

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The focus of this essay is on Asean, the regional organisation.

First, I want to find out whether Asean was prepared for the pandemic. Second, has Asean responded, in a timely and effectively manner to the pandemic? Third, did Asean try and coordinate its efforts with those of its Dialogue Partners? Fourth, was the doctrine of Asean solidarity reflected in the behaviour of the Asean member states? Fifth, what is Asean’s attitude towards the World Health Organisation (WHO)?

1: Was Asean prepared?

In 2003, the region was hit by the severe acute respiratory syndrome Sars. Learning from that and other health emergencies, Asean set up five things to prepare itself.

These are: a Network for Public Health Emergencies, led by Malaysia; Sa Biodiaspora Regional Virtual Centre, led by the Philippines; a Regional Public Health Laboratories Network, led by Thailand; the Asean Risk Assessment and Risk Communication Centre, and; a rice stockpile, co-organised with China, Japan and South Korea.

Asean should consider having a stockpile of essential medical products.

With these five assets in place, Asean was not unprepared when Covid-19 arrived.

2: Was Asean’s response prompt and effective?

Asean’s health ministers reacted promptly to the growing threat of Covid-19. They met on January 30.

This was followed by the meetings of Asean ministers for defence, economy, agriculture and forestry, foreign affairs, tourism and labour. The most important meeting was the Asean Summit, held via video conference on April 14.

What are the most important outcomes of the Asean meetings?

First, Asean will not turn inward and become protectionist. Instead, Asean will remain open and continue to support a rules-based international trading system.

Second, Asean will keep its markets open. It will facilitate, not hinder, the flow of food and essential goods, especially medical products. Third, Asean will maintain its productive capacity and seek to minimise any disruption to the region’s supply chains. Fourth, Asean will exchange timely information and best practices and cooperate to fight the virus.

3: Did Asean try and coordinate its efforts with its dialogue partners?

Asean was proactive in seeking to coordinate its efforts with them. The most important initiative was the special summit between Asean and China, Japan and South Korea (Asean+3) on April 14.
Asean Ministers also held bilateral meetings with the ministers of the European Union and Japan.
Relations between China and the United States have become increasingly hostile. Asean foreign ministers held a physical meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi of China on February 20 and a virtual meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on April 23.

Asean’s policy is to be on good terms with the two rival powers and not to take sides in their disputes.

4: Was the doctrine of Asean solidarity reflected in the conduct of member states?

Solidarity and cooperation are two of the most important values of the Asean family. Have the Asean countries lived up to their own professed values?

I find many examples of Asean solidarity in practice. Brunei and Vietnam have donated test kits to other Asean countries. Vietnam has donated personal protective equipment (PPE) to Laos. Singapore has donated test kits to Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia and Laos.

Singapore has also donated ventilators and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) machines to the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Indonesia and Laos. Singapore has looked after the Malaysia workers stranded in Singapore. Malaysia has, in turn, helped Singapore to bring its citizens home from various countries, including, Egypt.

5: What is Asean’s attitude towards the WHO?

Asean has a favourable attitude towards the WHO. All 10 Asean members are members. It is, however, illogical for the WHO to assign three of them – Indonesia, Myanmar and Thailand – to the South-east Asia region, and the remaining seven countries to the Western Pacific region. My plea to the WHO is to locate all 10 Asean countries in the South-east Asia region.

Asean invited the Director-General of WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, to participate in the Asean+3 Special Summit, on April 14. This is a vote of confidence in him and WHO.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I think that Asean led ably by Vietnam, has responded quite well to the pandemics. I want to make three additional comments.

First, Asean is an inter-governmental organisation. It is not a supranational institution. The response of the region to Covid-19 depends less on Asean than on the member states themselves.

The response of the member states has been uneven, given the disparities among them. Some member states like Singapore have world-class healthcare systems. Others do not.

Some member states, like Vietnam, responded promptly and decisively to Covid-19. Others did not. Some member states have the financial means to procure masks, test kits, PPEs, ventilators. Others did not have such means. For an excellent review of how the 10 Asean countries have responded to Covid-19, see this by Mr Choi Shing Kwok, “Covid-19 battle: How have the South-east Asian nations fared?” in The Straits Times(9/5/2020).

Second, I refer to an article, written by my good friend, Nicholas Robinson and Christian Walzer, “How Do We Prevent the Next Outbreak”, in the Scientific American (25/3/2020).

The authors wrote: “The health of all life on the planet is connected. The Covid-19 outbreaks starkly remind us of a basic fact that cannot be ignored: human, animal, plant and environmental health and well-being are all intrinsically connected and profoundly influenced by human activities.”
Third, I refer to a paper written by Sharon Seah, the Coordinator of the Asean Studies Centre at the Yusof Ishak Institute of South-east Asian Studies: “Asean Covid-19 Pandemic Response: Practical Next Steps”, May 18.

In her paper, Ms Seah calls on Indonesia to ratify the Asean agreement on the establishment of a Coordinating Centre on Animal Health and Zoonoses. With Indonesia’s ratification, the agreement will come into force.

Why is the agreement important? Because it will facilitate cooperation among Asean member states and between Asean and such international organisations as the WHO, the Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Organisation for Animal Health.

It will also speed up regional coordination for the prevention and control of zoonotic diseases (which can be transmitted from animals to people). Covid-19 is not the first, nor will it be the last zoonotic disease.

By Professor Tommy Koh: 7 Silver Linings in COVID-19 Dark Cloud

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The Covid-19 pandemic is like a big black cloud which has descended on earth, bringing with it death and destruction. However, without minimising the seriousness of the situation we are in, I see some silver linings in the black cloud.

First Silver Lining

It is hard to believe that COVID-19 began as an animal virus. Scientists believe that it was probably a bat virus. It succeeded in infecting a human.  There are different theories about its origin, but the disease was first reported in the city of Wuhan, in the province of Hubei, in China. The Chinese, as well as some other Asians, have the bad habit of eating the meat of wild animals. I recall that the virus which caused severe acute respiratory syndrome or Sars, in 2003, was believed by scientists, to have jumped from a civet cat to a human in the city of Guangzhou. As a result of COVID-19, the Chinese government has decided to ban the trade of wild animals for consumption, and the eating of the meat of wild animals. This is the first silver lining I see. I hope that other Asian governments, especially those of Vietnam and Indonesia, will emulate the example of China.  It is time for all Asians to stop eating the meat of wild animals as well as cats and dogs.

Second Silver Lining

The second silver lining I see is the elevation of the importance of international organisations, such as, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). There is a misguided attempt by some countries in the West to degrade such multilateral institutions. The WHO is one such victim. Its budget has been progressively cut during the past decade. This has reduced its capacity to intervene in an emergency, such as the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014. The current pandemic is a good reminder of the indispensable role played by the WHO in maintaining international public health. In the absence of US leadership, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of WHO, is leading the global battle against the pandemic. The economic impact of the pandemic is global and devastating, as countries around the world close borders and quarantine entire cities to avoid infections, leading to closures of businesses. Many workers have lost their jobs.  Whole industries, in some sectors like aviation and tourism, have been shut down, as leisure travel drops to near zero. As a result, many countries are in financial difficulties. The Director-General of IMF, Kristalina Georgieva, has warned that we are faced with a global recession which is worse than the 2008-2009 Global Financial Crisis. She also said that over 80 countries have applied to the IMF for help. I think the pandemic has given the world a wake-up call. The message is that we truly live in one inter-connected world. What happens in one country, such as China, will inevitably affect other countries. In this situation, international cooperation is an imperative. There is therefore no alternative to multilateralism and to multilateral institutions, such as, WHO and IMF.

Third Silver Lining

The third silver lining I see is a reminder to us of the importance of public health and of the need by every country to develop a comprehensive, affordable and effective healthcare system. Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea, have high standards of public health. They also have good healthcare systems. This is one of the reasons for their effective response to the pandemic.

Fourth Silver Lining

The fourth silver lining I see is the lesson that we need political leaders who are rational and who listen to expert advice. The countries which have done better than others in this pandemic are led by leaders who make their decisions, based on facts, science and reason. An example of an irrational decision is the abandoned policy of the British government to allow for the community spread of the virus so that the British people would develop “herd immunity”  against the virus. According to experts at the Imperial College, such a policy could result in 250,000 fatalists. The British government later changed its mind and tried to contain the spread of the virus – but it was too little, too late. Some countries have done badly in the pandemic because they are led by irrational leaders, who do not listen to expert advice and who are primarily interested in their own popularity and political survival. We also need leaders who are honest and who will not cover up bad news. Honesty and transparency engender trust. Without trust, the people will not comply with the advice and instructions of their governments.

Fifth Silver Lining

The fifth silver lining I see is the importance of social capital. Social capital means people having a shared sense of identity and solidarity. It means having shared values, such as, trust, cooperation and reciprocity. I see many examples of social capital at work in Singapore and other countries affected by the pandemic. In Singapore, doctors and nurses have volunteered to work at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases, in spite of the danger to themselves. Many Singaporeans have volunteered to work at frontline jobs. Workers in frontline jobs have put in very long hours without complaint. I see neighbours looking out for one another. I see Singaporeans doing acts of kindness to strangers, such as looking for Malaysian workers who are stranded in Singapore, without accommodation, and bringing them to hostels. I see students volunteering to deliver food to people under quarantine.  I see a group of restaurants delivering free food to healthcare workers.  I see Singaporeans complying willingly with the social distancing rule. I see that most Singaporeans have refrained from panic buying at our supermarkets. For me, these are all examples of our social capital. It is just as important for a country to develop its social capital, as its economic capital, cultural capital and natural capital.

Sixth Silver Lining

The sixth silver lining I see is a reminder for each country to examine its food security. No country should depend on a single source for its rice, wheat, meat, fish, egg and vegetables. There is a Global Food Security Index, developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit and Corteva Agriscience. The Index analyses 113 countries for: (a) how affordable food is; (b) whether people have physical access to food; and (c) how safe and nutritious the available food is. I am pleasantly surprised that, for the second consecutive year, Singapore is ranked first, in the index.

Seventh Silver Lining

The seventh and final silver lining is the fact that, because of international trade and globalisation, we have become deeply inter-dependent economically. Manufacturers locate their plants and procure components from different locations, to benefit from the law of comparative economic advantage. In an emergency, such as the present, borders are shut and supply chains are disrupted. I fear that the prophets of economic nationalism and protectionism, will take advantage of the current situation, to attack free trade and globalisation. I am not sure whether the post-Covid-19 world will be more insular or open and more free or more protectionist. We must however not lose faith in our beliefs. To borrow an analogy from Star Wars, we must fight against the Dark Side. The world will have a bleak future if it retreats from free trade and globalisation.

Conclusion

Every dark cloud has a silver lining. In the dark cloud of COVID-19, I see seven silver linings. We must work hard and intelligently to save lives and our economies. We must stay strong. We must keep faith with our ideals and beliefs. We must help the vulnerable in our countries. We must also help the less developed countries, especially those in Africa. The truth is that no one is safe unless the whole world is safe.

NUS BBA and Tembusu College Alumnus – Ong Kah Jing

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An alumnus of NUS BBA and Tembusu College, Ong Kah Jing is a documentary storyteller. He has garnered a Best Documentary (Open Youth Category) award in the 2019 National Youth Film Awards, won first place in the AIC Video Competition 2019 organised by the Agency for Integrated Care, and was a semi-finalist in the 2018 Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival. At Tembusu College, he joined the inaugural student-run STEER Expedition to Komodo National Park.

More information can be found here: https://outside-in.nus.edu.sg/nus-business-school-a-foundation-to-realise-my-documentary-dreams/

Free Public Talk by Dr John Van Wyhe–“The First Female Tourist – The Amazing Ida Pfeiffer”

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John van Wyhe Friday, 24 April 2020, 7 pm Ngee Ann Auditorium, Asian Civilisations Museum.

In the 1840s it was considered utterly impossible for a woman to travel alone. Modern tourism had not yet emerged. This meant no transport accommodation, or restaurants for travellers. Despite all this, one woman decided to go her own way anyway. Ida Pfeiffer (1797-1858) was the first woman to travel and then circle the world alone.

She displayed incredible courage, endurance, and perseverance. Along the way she survived storms at sea, parched deserts, plague, malaria, a near-drowning, earthquakes, robbers, murderers, headhunters, and cannibals. Singapore and Southeast Asia were perhaps her favourite destinations. As a result of her incredible exploits and her best-selling travel books, Pfeiffer became one of the most famous women in the world in the 19th century. Her tale culminates in spies, intrigue, a botched revolution, and a remarkable career cut tragically short by one voyage too many.

About the speaker: Dr John van Wyhe is a historian of science at the National University of Singapore who specialises in the explorers and naturalists Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace. He is also founder and director of the award-winning Darwin Online project and has published 14 books. Dr van Wyhe has lectured and broadcast on these topics worldwide.

This lecture is free. Seats are available on a first come first served basis. No registration is required.

Opportunities Abound at Tembusu & NUS

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Imaan Rowter graduated from Singapore Polytechnic and enrolled in NUS Mechanical Engineering. At Tembusu College, he picked up latte art, photography and table tennis, and learned about climate change. Now, he is helping the NUS Centre for Additive Manufacturing achieve certification to create ground-breaking 3D-printed metal implants to help patients.

By Professor Tommy Koh: Time to put Mental Health high on List of National Priorities

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I have been thinking and worrying about the mental health of Singaporeans. I am the Rector of a College at NUS. One of my responsibilities is to look after the welfare and well-being of the 600 students who stay at the College. The report of a Visiting Committee, on the College, highlighted the need for the College to pay greater attention to the mental health and pastoral care of our students. In this essay, I wish to make five points.

Mens Sana In Corpore Sano

There is wisdom in the Latin saying, “mens sana in corpore sano”, which means, a healthy mind in a healthy body. The first point I want to make is that mental health and physical health are two sides of the same coin. There is an inextricable link between mind and body.
Let me tell you a story. When I was living in New York, I befriended the distinguished editor of a weekly magazine, Norman Cousins. He fell ill after returning from a work trip to the Soviet Union. His doctors diagnosed his condition as ankylosing spondylitis, a crippling connective tissue disease. He was told that the prognosis was very bad, with a one in 500 chance of recovery.

Norman Cousins was a fighter and he refused to accept the prognosis. He checked himself into a hospital and designed his own recovery programme. It consisted of massive intravenous doses of Vitamin C and laughter induced by watching comical movies and television shows. Miraculously, he recovered. His 1979 book, Anatomy of an Illness as Perceived by a Patient, was a best seller. It also got him an appointment, as an adjunct professor, in the Department of Psychology and Biobehavioral Sciences, of the University of California, at Los Angeles, Medical School. His research interest was the connection between attitude and health.

Like Cousins, I believe that a happy, optimistic and positive attitude helps one cope better with illness than a sad, pessimistic and negative attitude. A positive attitude may even aid recovery. I commend the Readers Digest for publishing a regular column, entitled, Laughter Is The Best Medicine.

Irrational Attitude Towards Mental Illness

My second point is that we need to change our attitude towards mental illness. We have a healthy attitude towards physical illness. A person who is physically ill, evokes our sympathy and support.

In contrast, a person who is mentally ill, evokes fear, suspicion and hostility. We call persons with mental illness by such pejorative terms as “mad” and “crazy”. We should recognise that our attitude towards mental illness is not rational and is not supported by science or the facts.

An example of the discrimination which persons with a mental illness suffer, compared to persons with a physical illness, is the attitude of our insurance companies.

Persons suffering from depression or anxiety have been rejected by our insurance companies, when they apply for medical insurance policies. I call on our regulators to end this discriminatory practice.  I wish to salute the NMP, Anthea Ong and the Straits Times’ Singaporean of the Year 2019, Angie Chew, for their admirable work in championing mental health.

State Of Our Mental Health

My third point is that the statistics on the mental health of Singaporeans probably under-report the incidence of mental illness in Singapore. In a survey carried out by the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) in 2016, 13.9 percent or 1 in 7 persons in the survey, said that they suffered from mental illness. The global average is 20 percent.

Why do I think that there is under-reporting in Singapore? In the same survey, 64 percent of the respondents said that they would feel embarrassed to admit that they had a mental problem.

Nominated MP Anthea Ong has pointed out in her excellent commentary, ”Let’s Talk about the ‘men’ in mental illness” (ST 24/8/2019) that the problem of under-reporting is particularly acute among our men.

The reason is cultural. Our society expects men to be strong and tough. Men fear that to seek help is a sign of weakness and could damage their masculinity and status. Men therefore prefer to suffer in silence. In Singapore, men are 2½ times more likely to commit suicide than women. In 2018, 283 men and 114 women committed suicide.

We should encourage our men to seek help when they are mentally unwell and not to be ashamed of doing so.

Mental Health of Young Singaporeans

My fourth point is that our alarm bells ought to be ringing about the mental health of our students and young Singaporeans. The situation is quite serious.

According to YouGov, one-third of young adults in Singapore have suicidal thoughts. The same percentage of young Singaporeans have indulged in self-harming activities.

According to one study, 18 percent of young Singaporeans suffer from depression. In 2018, 19 young Singaporeans, between the ages of 10 and 19, committed suicide. Suicide is the main cause of death of the millennials in Singapore.

Singapore is a very successful country. Singapore is also a very competitive and success-oriented society. We put enormous pressure on our students to excel in their studies. This generates stress. Some students cope well with the stress. Other students cannot cope with the stress and with the fear of not meeting the high expectations of their parents.

In the 2018 Programme for International Students Assessment (Pisa), carried out by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Singapore came in second, after China when it came to students’ performance in math, science and reading.

However, a high percentage of Singapore’s students, 86 percent were worried about getting poor grades, compared to the OECD average of 66 percent. 72 percent of Singapore’s students expressed fear of failure, compared to the OECD average of 56 percent.

The NUS Mind Science Centre, together with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health will be jointly conducting a study on the psychological well-being of our students. We want Singapore to continue to out-perform other countries. However, we don’t want Singaporeans to be a nation of anxious, depressed and neurotic people. We want Singaporeans to be successful, healthy and happy.

Mental Health Of The Elderly

My fifth and last point is that the mental health of the elderly also needs our attention.  In 2019, persons over the age of 65 make p 14.4 percent of our population. The fact that 36 percent of the suicides in Singapore are by persons over the age of 60, should ring an alarm bell.

Why are older Singaporeans killing themselves? Is it due to poverty, ill health, loneliness or for some other reasons?

According to the Singapore Longitudinal Ageing Study (SLAS), carried out by the NUS Medical School, in 2012, one in five elderly persons, over the age of 75, showed signs of depression. Elderly depression was due to limited mobility, senile dementia, loneliness and financial problems.

Prof Chong Siow Ann, of IMH, is the principal investigator of a major study on the well-being of the Singapore elderly. The study will establish the prevalence of dementia and depression among the elderly in Singapore and describe the current healthcare services provided to this population as well as the unmet needs.

In his admirable book, The Colours of Ageing, Professor Kua Ee Heok discussed the work he has done, over the past 30 years, in looking after the mental health of elderly Singaporeans. He described a path-breaking programme, initiated by NUS and involving the People’s Association and the National Parks Board, called the Dementia Prevention Programme.

The programme enlists elderly Singaporean to boost their mental well-being through exercise, gardening, choral singing and group dancing. The results have been encouraging.

The lesson learnt is that preventive medicine is the best medicine. In view of this, I would encourage our educational institutions to offer their students, courses in meditation, yoga and taichi. This will help them to de-stress and to calm their minds.

I shall conclude by recapitulating my five propositions. First, I believe that mind and body are inextricably linked and a healthy mind can affect one’s physical health.

Second, we should give up our irrational and prejudicial attitude towards mental illness.

Third, we should encourage Singaporeans with mental health problems, especially the men, to seek help.

Fourth, the mental health of our students and young adults, manifested by depression, self-harming activities and suicide, has reached an alarming level and requires the joint attention of the Ministries of Education and Health.

Fifth, the mental health of elderly Singaporean also needs attention because of the suicide rate and the rising incidence of dementia.
Finally, speaking as an octogenarian, I want to say that for those lucky enough to live till a ripe old age, growing old is inevitable but good mental ill health is not inevitable. – we need to work hard as individuals and as a society, to maintain that.

Jeremy Fernando at Comma Space 逗号空间

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‘I’m dead’ was first performed as part of ‘I can’t, I have to go to Mongolia’ by Michael Lee at Comma Space on 13 February 2020. Each participant was tasked to come up with an excuse, with various excuses, as to why they couldn’t be at the opening, at the performance — and then were to take the stage to perform said excuse.

Interested to Apply to Tembusu College?

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Faced with too many options? Not sure which Residential College to apply to? Fret not, here are some resources which you may find useful pertaining to Tembusu College!

  • For an overview of Tembusu College: check out our college brochure
  • Wish to find out more about the kind of modules offered in Tembusu College? Check out the lovely ModBooks designed and produced by our students:
    –    Junior and Senior Seminars offered by Tembusu College in AY2019/2020 Semester 1
    –    Junior and Senior Seminars offered by Tembusu College in AY2019/2020 Semester 2
    –    Ideas & Exposition Modules offered by Centre for English Language Communication in AY2019/2020 Semester 2
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