After World War 2, the local people in Singapore responded negatively to British rule. There was widespread poverty, lack of basic necessities, and disease. The people organized strikes and riots to protest their living conditions. Political parties also formed to demand self-governance and blame the British for post-war troubles. Notable riots included the Maria Hertogh riots in 1950 over a custody dispute and anti-national service riots in 1954 among Chinese students. The British instituted reforms like elections but maintained control. Over time, more power shifted to local leaders as Singapore progressed toward independence.
1. How did the local people respond to the British Rule after World War 2? Done by: Charlotte Chua (6) Khairulhariza(20) NurHazirah(29) NurNaazilah(30) M.Shalini(32)
2. Condition of Singapore in1945 Lack of jobs and poverty Shortage of food, water, electricity and housing Diseases due to overcrowded living conditions, poor sanitation and lack of health services
3. How did the local people respond to British rule after World War 2? Organised Strikes Staged Riots Maria HertoghRiots Anti-National Service Riots Demanded Self Governance Formed Political Parties
4. The year of strikes Strikes occurred due to the difficult living conditions More than 300 strikes occurred in 1947 by almost 70, 000 workers Strikes were started by the communists. It got worse after the involvement of the Malayan Communist Party (MCP)
5. What DID the communist do? The communists stirred up people’s feeling through the trade unions They blame the British for all the Post-war troubles Encouraged people to join communist-controlled trade unions to fight for better working conditions and higher pay
6. Protest Against NS On 13 May 1954 500 students led a protest against National Service Government House(Istana) Riot Squad stepped in and the event turned violent. 26 people were injured, 48 students arrested(mostly chinese students The Chinese students felt that it was unfair to them, as they saw no future in the British-ruled state. They were under the influence of the Malaya Communist Party In the end National Service was introduced in 1967
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8. Nadra underwent a marriage(only 13 then) with teacher, but dutch law did not recogniseit.
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10. The people thought Some were concerned about their livelihood while others feel that it was time for the British to leave as they had failed to protect Singapore Some also felt that since other countries had gained independence, why not Singapore?(Eg. India) So the British called for change.
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13. They also introduced proposals to provide financialsecurity for workers in their retirement or for those who were no longer able to work.
16. Democracy The elections did not really help British as not many people took part in it as only Singaporeans are allowed to vote. Also, only one party took part in the 1948 elections, the Singapore Progressive Party(SPP) SPP won 3 out of the 6 Seats, the other 3 were won by Independents A Mere 13 800 people voted out of a population of 940 000, this was partly because many were not eligible to vote(only those born in Singapore could vote)
18. Rendell Constitution In 1955 the Rendell Constitution came into effect(although proposed in 1953) It was a comission led by British Diplomat Sir George Rendel It gave the local population more power to determine the government but the colonial administration still held most of the authority over internal matters. Areas The elected Local Ministers handled: Housing, Health, Trade, Industry and Education It was an important step to full self-governance.
19. The Two Political Parties-Labour Front Formed in July 1954 Led by David Marshall, Lim Yew Hock and Francis Thomas Comprised of mostly low income and English-educated trade union leaders Supported immediate independence Promised to bring about more equality for Singaporeans within the civil service Called for the extention of Singaporean citizenship to China born inhabitants Promoted the introduction of multilingualism
20. The Two Political Parties-People’s Action Party(PAP) Established on 21 November 1954 Founded by Lee Kuan Yew, GohKengSwee, Toh Chin Chye, S Rajaratnam, K M Byrne Demanded immediate independence Felt a strong political organisation was needed to exert pressure on the British Called for all anti-colonial forces to co-operate in this struggle Aimed to win the support of the workers, trade unions and students in the Chinese Schools
21. 1955 Elections 79 Candidates, 25 elected seats in the legislative assembly They made house to house visits to garner votes Distributed newspapers and pamphlets Organised rallies Gave Speeches to win the people’s support The Elections mainly focused on anti-colonialism Succeeded in making ordinary people believe that they could put an end to British colonial rule.
22. Situation of 1955 Elections The electoral fight was on . The people of Singapore were treated to a performance of the antics of political parties It was as if the party that could shout the loudest would be the most convincing.
23. Polling Day 160 000 People voted Results: -Labor Front -10 seats -SPP – 4 -AP – 3 -PAP – 3 -Independents - 3 -Democrats – 2 David Marshall – First Chief Minister(as his party won the most seats)
24. Brief history of The; Legislative council Judiciary Branch Executive council
25. 1946-1948 The Singapore Colony Order-in-Council of 1946 to 1948, provided for a partly elected Legislative Council of 6 non-officials elected by adult British subjects. In this first Legislative Council election of 1948, only British subjects were allowed to vote. Eligible voters had to register themselves as voters
26. 1955 The first Legislative Assembly election was a lively affair. Automatic registration expanded the number of voters and for the first time it included a large number of Chinese
27. 1959 Singapore attained full self-government. The Legislative Assembly election was won by the People's Action Party (PAP) and PAP's party leader, Lee Kuan Yew, became the first Prime Minister
28. 1963 Singapore was allocated 15 of 127 seats in the new federal legislature and retained her own legislative assembly and executive government. The Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore (State Constitutions) Order-in-Council was enacted to effect this change in status. On 16th September 1963, the Malaysian Proclamation announced the merger of Singapore with Malaysia
29. 1965 The Independence Act was passed by Parliament to provide for the continuity of the existing laws and the adoption of some provisions of the Malaysian Constitution after Singapore left the Federation of Malaysia.
30. 1984 A constitutional amendment was passed in 1984 to ensure that there will always be a minimum number of members from the opposition parties allowed the best "losers" (maximum of 6) from among the opposition candidates in a General Election (based on percentage of votes cast), to sit in Parliament as a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament.
31. 1988 to introduce group representation constituencies (GRCs) in the General Elections. In a GRC
32. 1990 President based on the recommendation of a Special Select Committee, NMPs serve the function of presenting independent and non-partisan views on policies
33. 1991 The Constitution was amended to provide for a directly-elected Head of State who would be provided with veto powers to safeguard Singapore's foreign reserves, ensure the integrity of the public service and to act as a check on certain powers of the Government.
34. Judiciary Branch Branch of the government that interprets law determines whether acts are under the law and pronounces them
Directors and Principals of ten boys' and girls' high schools announced on 21 May that their schools would be closed for summer vacation two weeks earlier, a decision which affected 15,000 Chinese students. This sparked off defiance; the next day, on 22 May, 2,500 boys and girls locked themselves into the Chung Cheng High School. Parents of the students came down to the school at dawn on 23 May to fetch their children but were met with opposition from student leaders who tried to prevent the parents from entering the school. The police later persuaded the leaders to let the parents pass and the school grounds were cleared peacefully by 11 am.
For three days, mobs of Malay and Indian Muslim rioters attacked any European and Eurasian in sight. They set up barricades along major roads, set cars and houses on fire and took control of districts in the vicinity of Sultan Mosque, North Bridge Road and JalanBesar. Riots continued for three days and a curfew was imposed for two weeks.18 ppl killed,173 injured.
Cars equipped with loud-speakers were moving up-and-down the streets and even travelling to nooks and corners blaring forth their advertising campaign praising their candidates One party after another claimed that, and only it, possessed the ingredients to cure all ills and could deliver good. It was as if the party that could shout the loudest would be the most convincing. Therefore, it was not only a battle of words; it was also a battle of noise. – Adapted from Reflections by Lim Yew Hock