When Singapore celebrated its 50th year as an independent nation-state in 2015, it was a national movement embraced by most Singaporeans. The Golden Jubilee was viewed as a significant milestone that marked Singapore’s coming of age as an accidental country made good. When plans were announced to mark Singapore’s next historical anniversary – the Bicentennial in 2019 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Singapore’s founding by Stamford Raffles – public responses have been a lot more ambivalent. Those who supported the anniversary argued that 1819 was historically significant in that it marked the beginning of Singapore’s modern history – a decisive point of inflexion that saw its transformation from an obscure regional trading post to an internationally connected colonial port city, a trajectory that led to Singapore’s current position as an economically successful nation state. But this viewpoint is not universally endorsed. The decision to expend effort to commemorate the anniversary of 1819 has been criticised as an unnecessary and insensitive nod to colonialism. Many have asked: Why should Singapore be celebrating 200 years of colonial subjugation and exploitation?... Continue Reading