Singapore

Republic of Singapore Republik Singapura 新加坡共和国 சிங்கப்பூர் குடியரசு
Flag Coat of arms of Singapore Coat of arms
Motto: Majulah Singapura (Malay for: "Onward, Singapore")
Anthem: Majulah Singapura
Capital	Singapore 1
Largest city	Singapore 1
Official languages	Malay (National), Mandarin, English, Tamil
Government	Parliamentary republic
Independence
• Water (%)	1.444
Population
• July 2005 estimate	4,425,720 (118th)
• 2000 census	4,017,700
GDP (PPP)	2005 estimate
• Total	$131.3 billion (56th)
• Per capita	$29,700 (19th)
HDI (2003)	0.907 very high (25th)
Currency	Singapore Dollar (SGD)
Time zone	UTC+8 (SST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+8 (Not observed)
Calling code	652
ISO 3166 code	SG
Internet TLD	.sg
1. Singapore is a city-state. 2. 02 when dialling from Malaysia

The Republic of Singapore ([Republik Singapura] Error: {{Lang-xx}}: text has italic markup (help); Chinese: 新加坡共和国, Pinyin: Xīnjiāpō Gònghéguó; Tamil: சிங்கப்பூர் குடியரசு, [Ciŋkappūr Kudiyarasu] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)), is an island city-state and the smallest country in Southeast Asia. It is located on the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, south of the Malaysian state of Johor, and north of the Indonesian Riau Islands. Its coordinates are 1°17.583′N 103°51.333′E, just 137 kilometres (85 mi) north of the Equator.

The site of several ancient port cities and a possession of several empires in its history, Singapore was a Malay fishing village when it was colonised by the United Kingdom in the 19th century. It was further occupied by the Japanese Empire in World War II, and was later part of the merger which formed the Federation of Malaysia. When Singapore acquired independence, having few natural resources, it was sociopolitically volatile and economically undeveloped. Foreign investment and rapid government-led industrialisation has since created an economy which relies on exports of electronics and manufacturing primarily from its port.

More than 90% of Singapore's population lives in housing estates constructed by the Housing Development Board and nearly half uses the public transport system daily . As a result of public transport and environmental initiatives by government ministries, Singapore's pollution is mostly confined within the heavy industry area on Jurong Island. Under the Constitution, Singapore is a representative democracy. Singapore initially undertook a democratic socialist policy during independence, adopting a welfare system. However, the government has since shifted to the right. Singapore faces criticism for being a reduced democracy because of its dominant-party system and has attracted controversy for some of its policies.

History

Main article: History of Singapore

The name Singapore is derived from the Malay words [singa] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (lion) and [pura] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (city), which were themselves derived from the Sanskrit words सिंह siMha and पुर pura. Hence, Singapore is also known as the Lion City. The naming is attributed to a prince named Sang Nila Utama, who according to folklore, saw a lion as the first living creature on the island and decided to name it Singapura as a result.

The first records of Singapore's existence are in Chinese texts from the 3rd century AD. The island was an outpost of the Sumatran Srivijaya empire and originally bore the Javanese name Temasek. Temasek rose to become a significant trading city, but subsequently declined. There are few remnants of old Temasek in Singapore, but archaeologists in Singapore have uncovered evidence of the civilization, as well as other settlements. Between the 16th and early 19th centuries, Singapore was a part of the Sultanate of Johore. During the Malay-Portugal wars in 1617, Singapore was set ablaze by Portuguese troops.

In 1819, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, an official with the British East India Company, signed a treaty with the Sultan of Johore. He also established Singapore as a trading post and settlement, which saw instant growth and immigration from various ethnic groups. Singapore was later made a crown colony by Britain in 1867. After a series of territorial expansions, the British Empire soon raised Singapore's status to that of an entrepot town, due to its strategic location along the busy shipping routes connecting Europe to China.

Statue of Thomas Stamford Raffles by Thomas Woolner, erected at the spot where he first landed at Singapore. He is recognised as the founder of modern Singapore.

During World War II, the Imperial Japanese Army invaded Malaya and the surrounding region in the Battle of Malaya, which culminated in the Battle of Singapore. The British were unprepared and swiftly defeated, despite having more troops. They surrendered to the Japanese on 15 February 1942. The Japanese renamed Singapore as Syonan-to, Japanese for "Light of the South", and occupied it until the British arrived to repossess the island a month after the Japanese surrender to the United States in September 1945.

Singapore became a self-governing state in 1959 with Yusof bin Ishak as its first head of state and Lee Kuan Yew from the People's Action Party (PAP) as its first Prime Minister, after the 1959 elections. The Merger Referendum passed in 1962 and led to Singapore joining the Federation of Malaysia along with Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak as a state with autonomous powers in September 1963. Singapore was expelled from the federation on 7 August 1965 after heated ideological conflict developed between the state government formed by PAP and the Federal government in Kuala Lumpur. It gained official sovereignty two days later on 9 August 1965, which later became Singapore's National Day. Malaysia was the first country to recognise it as an independent nation.

The fledgling nation had to become self-sufficient, and faced problems including mass unemployment, housing shortages and lack of land and natural resources such as petroleum. During Lee Kuan Yew's term as prime minister from 1959 to 1990, his administration curbed unemployment, raised the standard of living and implemented a large-scale public housing programme, developed Singapore's economic infrastructure, eliminated the threat of racial tension and created an independent national defence system. Singapore evolved from a developing nation to first world status towards the end of the 20th century.

In 1990, Goh Chok Tong succeeded Lee as Prime Minister. During his tenure, the country tackled the 1997 Asian financial crisis, the 2003 SARS outbreak, and terrorist threats posed by the Jemaah Islamiah (JI). In 2004 Lee Hsien Loong, the eldest son of Lee Kuan Yew, became the third prime minister.

Politics and government

Main article: [[:Politics of Singapore, Government of Singapore and Law of Singapore]]

File:Singapore Parliament House.jpg

Parliament House

Singapore is a republic with a Westminster system of a unicameral parliamentary government. The bulk of the executive powers rests in the hands of the Cabinet of Singapore, which consists of ministers led by the Prime Minister of Singapore. The office of the President of Singapore was, historically, a ceremonial one as head of state, but the Constitution of Singapore was amended in 1991 to create the position of a popularly elected President and also to grant the President veto powers in a few key decisions such as the use of the national reserves and the appointment of key judiciary positions. The legislative branch of government is the Parliament.

Singaporean politics have been dominated by the People's Action Party (PAP) since the country's independence in 1965. Foreign political analysts and several opposition parties including the Workers' Party of Singapore and the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) have argued that Singapore is a de facto one-party state. Many consider the form of government in Singapore to be closer to authoritarianism such as illiberal democracy or procedural democracy rather than true democracy. Reporters Without Borders ranked Singapore 140th out of 167 countries in its 2005 Worldwide Press Freedom Index. It has also been alleged that the PAP employs censorship, gerrymandering and the filing of civil suits against the opposition for libel or slander to impede their success. Several former and present leaders of the opposition, including Francis Seow, J.B. Jeyaretnam and Chee Soon Juan perceive the Singaporean courts as favourable towards the government and the PAP due to a lack of separation of powers. Nevertheless, there are a few cases where the courts ruled in favour of the opposition.

Singapore has what its government considers to be a highly successful and transparent market economy. The PAP's policies contain some aspects of socialism. The Housing Development Board oversees a large-scale public housing programme and education in Singapore is a rigorous compulsory public education system, and the dominance of government-controlled companies in the local economy. Although dominant in its activities, the government has a clean, corruption-free image. Singapore has consistently been rated as the least-corrupt country in Asia and amongst the top ten cleanest in the world by Transparency International.

Although Singapore's laws are inherited from British and British Indian laws, including many elements of English common law, the PAP has also consistently rejected liberal democratic values, which it typifies as Western and states that there should not be a 'one-size-fits-all' solution to a democracy. Laws restricting the freedom of speech are justified by claims that they are intended to prohibit speech that may breed ill will or cause disharmony within Singapore's multiracial, multi-religious society. For example, in September 2005, three bloggers were convicted with sedition for posting racist remarks targeting minorities. Some offences can lead to heavy fines or caning and there are laws which allow capital punishment in Singapore for first-degree murder and drug trafficking. Amnesty International has criticised Singapore for having "possibly the highest execution rate in the world" per capita. The Singapore Government responded by asserting it had the right as a sovereign state to impose the death penalty for serious offenses. Most recently, the PAP has relaxed some of its socially conservative policies and encouraged entrepreneurship.

Geography

Main article: Geography and climate of Singapore

Singapore is a diamond-shaped island separated from the Peninsular Malaysia by the Tebrau Straits. (details)

Singapore is a diamond-shaped island with surrounding smaller islands. There are two connections from Singapore to the Malaysian state of Johor — a man-made causeway known as the Johor-Singapore Causeway to the north, crossing the Tebrau Straits, and Tuas Second Link, a bridge in the western part of Singapore that connects to Johor. Jurong Island, Pulau Tekong, Pulau Ubin and Sentosa are the largest of Singapore's many smaller islands. The highest point of Singapore is Bukit Timah Hill, with a height of 166 metres (538 ft).

File:Singapore botanic garden pond.jpg

Singapore Botanic Gardens, a 52-hectare (128 acre) botanical garden in Singapore that includes the National Orchid Garden which has a collection of more than 3,000 species of orchids

.

The urban area used to be concentrated on the southern part of Singapore around the mouth of the Singapore River, while the rest of the land was tropical rainforest or used for agriculture. Since the 1960s, the government has constructed new towns in outlying areas, resulting in an entirely built-up and urban landscape with a few exceptions, such as the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. In addition, Singapore has reclaimed land with earth obtained from its own hills, the seabed and neighbouring countries. As a result, Singapore's land area grew from 581.5 square kilometres (224.5 sq mi) in the 1960s to 697.2 square kilometres (269.1 sq mi) today, and may grow by another 100 square kilometres (38.6 sq mi) by 2030.

Without natural freshwater rivers and lakes, the primary domestic source of water in Singapore is rainfall, collected in reservoirs or catchment areas. Rainfall supplies approximately 50% of Singapore's water; the remainder is imported from Malaysia or obtained from recycled water facilities, a product called NEWater and desalination plants. More NEWater and desalination plants are being built or proposed to reduce reliance on foreign supply.

Singapore has a tropical rainforest climate with no distinct seasons, under the Köppen climate classification. Its climate is characterised by uniform temperature and pressure, high humidity and abundant rainfall. Temperatures range from 22°C to 34 °C (72°–93°F). On average, the relative humidity is around 90% in the morning and 60% in the afternoon. During prolonged heavy rain, relative humidity often reaches 100%. The lowest and highest temperature recorded in its maritime history is 18.4 °C (65.1 °F) and 37.8 °C (100.0 °F) respectively.

Economy

Main article: [[:Economy of Singapore, Tourism in Singapore]]

The Merlion is one of the best-known tourist icons of Singapore.

Singapore has a very highly developed market-based economy, and is often considered to be a developed nation, ranking 25th on the Human Development Index which measures standard of living. Although Singapore has one of the highest per capita gross domestic products (GDP) in the world, domestic demand is relatively low. The economy depends heavily on exports produced from refining imported goods in a form of extended entrepot trade, especially in electronics and manufacturing. Along with Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan, Singapore's fast-paced industrialization earned it a place as one of the four original 'East Asian Tigers'.

The Central Area is the central business district and hub of economic transactions in Singapore, and is also the home of the Singapore Exchange, Asia-Pacific's first de-mutualised and integrated securities and derivatives exchange.

In 2001, a global recession and slump in the technology sector caused the GDP to contract by 2.2%. The Economic Review Committee (ERC), set up in December 2001, recommended several policy changes with a view to revitalising the economy. Singapore has since recovered from the recession, largely due to improvements in the world economy; the Singaporean economy itself grew by 6.4% in 2005. In the longer term the government hopes to establish a new growth path that will be less vulnerable to the external business cycle than the current export-led model, but is unlikely to abandon efforts to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia's financial and high-tech hub. The per capita GDP in 2005 was US$30,228 and the unemployment rate was 2.5% in January 2006. The economy is expected to grow by 4–6% in the year 2006, according to the Budget 2006 speech delivered by Finance Minister Lee Hsien Loong on 17 February 2006.

Singapore introduced a Goods and Services Tax (GST) with an initial rate of 3% on 1 April 1994. This has substantially increased government revenue, S$1.6 billion, stabilising the government's finances. The government has used revenue from the GST to reorient the economy around services and value added-goods to reduce dependence on electronics manufacturing. The taxable GST was increased to 4% in 2003 and to 5% in 2004.

Singapore is a popular travel destination, making tourism one of its largest industries. In 2005, a total of 9.05 million tourists visited Singapore. Much of its attraction can be attributed to its cultural diversity that reflects almost 200 years of colonial history with immigrant cultures originating from Chinese, Malay, Indian, Eurasian and Arab ethnicities. The Orchard Road district, which is dominated by multi-storey shopping centres and hotels, is the centre of tourism in Singapore. Other popular tourist attractions include the Singapore Zoo and its Night Safari along with the tourist island of Sentosa. To attract more tourists, the government decided in 2005 to legalise gambling and to allow two casino resorts to be developed at Marina South and Sentosa.

Military and defence

The Gurkha Contingent, recruited from Nepal, is a counter-terrorist force in the country. Here, the officers are dressed in the no.3 dress and brandish the M16 rifle.

Main article: [[:Military of Singapore, Total Defence]]

The military of Singapore serves primarily as a deterrent to potential invaders of the island. Singapore has mutual defence pacts with several allies that it militarily cooperates with, such as those in the Five Power Defence Arrangements. Singapore uses the concept of Total Defence, which classifies defence into five aspects. Besides the military, the other four aspects of Total Defence are civil defence, which is carried out by the Singapore Civil Defence Force, and concepts of 'economic defence', 'psychological defence', and 'social defence'.

The military of Singapore comprises various armed forces collectively known as the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). Various agencies of the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) and some private companies also play a supporting role. The military of Singapore is one of the most modernised in Asia, with its current standing reflecting the continued emphasis of the government on military defence — military expenditures dominate the annual government budget.

The recent uses of unconventional warfare and terrorism have elevated the other aspects of Total Defence. The Gurkha Contingent, which is part of the Singapore Police Force, is also a counter-terrorist force. Singapore's defence resources have been used for international humanitarian aid missions. These missions included United Nations peacekeeping abroad in areas such as Kosovo, Kuwait and East Timor, and participating in the multinational force in Iraq. Even after World War II, while still in the Federation of Malaysia, Singapore suffered bomb attacks during the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation sponsored by Indonesia while it was under President Sukarno. Other recent threats include the Jemaah Islamiyah, which tried to attack Singapore in the Singapore embassies attack plot.

Demographics

Built in 1843, the Sri Mariamman Temple is the largest Hindu temple in Singapore. It is also one of the many religious buildings marked as national monuments for their historical value.

Main article: [[:Demographics of Singapore and Religion in Singapore]]

Singapore is the second most densely populated independent country in the world. Eighty-four percent of Singaporeans live in public housing provided by the Housing and Development Board (HDB). Its population of 4.42 million (as of July 2005) is racially diverse. The Singaporean Chinese, the majority, account for 76.8% of Singaporeans. Singaporean Malays, who are the indigenous native group of the country, constitute 13.9%, though this number includes many Malay ethnic groups from other parts of the Malay archipelago including the Javanese, Bugis, Baweans and Minangkabau. Indian Singaporeans are the third largest ethnic group at 7.9%, consisting of several groups— Indian Tamils and Sri Lankan Tamils, who form the largest Indian group, and others such as Malayalees, Punjabis and Bengalis. The rest are made up of smaller groups such as Arab Singaporeans, Jews, Thais, Japanese, European and the Eurasian Singaporean community.

Singapore is also a multi-religious country, due mainly to its location on one of the world's major transportation routes. More than 40% of Singaporeans profess adherence to Buddhism. The large percentage may be due to a lack of distinction between Taoism and Buddhism; Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism, and ancestral worship is merged into one religion by most of the Chinese population. Most Muslims are Malay. Christianity in Singapore consists of Roman Catholicism and various Protestant denominations, and comprises approximately 14% of the population. Other religions include Sikhism and Hinduism followed mainly by those of Indian descent.

The government of Singapore has been careful to maintain ethnic harmony after racial riots erupted in the 1960s. Racial harmony has been emphasized in all aspects of society, including the Singaporean education system, military and housing. So far the policy has been largely successful, and there have been few signs of ethnic tension since the early 1970s. Current issues include the ban on wearing the Islamic headscarf in public schools. The national language of Singapore is Malay for historical reasons, and it is used in the national anthem, "Majulah Singapura". The official languages are English, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil. English has been promoted as the country's language of administration since independence, and it is spoken by the majority of the population. Most public signs and official publication are in English although there are also translated versions in the other official languages. The government has introduced a Speak Mandarin Campaign to promote Mandarin as a common language among the Chinese.

After two decades of a successful family planning policy, Singapore is now facing the threat of an aging population with declining birth rates. The government is encouraging Singaporeans to have more children through the provision of financial incentives for the first to fourth child of each family.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Singapore

Singaporean cuisine is a national pastime. Hundreds of Hawker centres and kopi tiams are distributed throughout the country.

Singapore is a small and relatively modern amalgam of an indigenous Malay population with a third generation Chinese majority, as well as Indian and Arab immigrants with some intermarriages. There also exist Eurasian and Peranakan (known also as 'Straits Chinese') communities. Singapore has also achieved a significant degree of cultural diffusion with its unique combination of these ethnic groups, and this has given Singapore a rich mixture of diversity for its young age. One of the prime examples is in Singaporean cuisine, often a cultural attraction for tourists.

The English used is primarily British English, with some American English influences. The local colloquial dialect of English is Singlish, which has many creole-like characteristics, having incorporated vocabulary and grammar from various Chinese dialects, Malay, and Indian languages. Singlish is spoken commonly on the streets, but often frowned upon by the goveernment for use in official contexts. English use became widespread after the implementation of English as a first language medium in the Singapore education system, and English is the most common language in Singaporean literature.

The majority of Singaporeans live in high-rise, closely-packed HDB flats.

Singapore has several ethnic neighbourhoods, including Little India and Chinatown. These were formed under the Raffles Plan to originally segregate the immigrants, but now have a diverse patronage whose main intentions are to either eat or buy something specific to that culture. Many places of worship were also constructed during the colonial era, a practice encouraged by the British to promote religious tolerance. Sri Mariamman Temple, the Masjid Jamae Mosque and the Church of Gregory the Illuminator are among those that were built during the colonial period. Work is now underway to preserve these religious sites as National Monuments of Singapore. The policy for the primarily commercial ethnic neighbourhoods stands in contrast to the housing policies of the Housing and Development Board (HDB). HDB policies attempt to promote a mix of all races within each housing district in order to foster social cohesion and national loyalty.

Since the 1990s, the government has been striving to promote Singapore as a centre for arts and culture, including theatre and music, and to transform the country into a cosmopolitan and diverse community at the 'gateway between the East and West'. The highlight of these efforts was the construction of Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay, a centre for performing arts that opened in 2003.

Education

Main article: Education in Singapore

Students having assembly in the hall of a Singapore secondary school.

Primary and secondary education are compulsory in Singapore. The curriculum is set by the Ministry of Education , and there are a mix of private schools and public schools, as well as private schools that receive government aid. Each school must follow a core set of requirements by the Ministry of Education, but the public schools, which are run by the government directly, follow the Ministry of Education's guidelines closely, while private schools are given a degree of autonomy.

The education is rigorous and specialised, and has attracted many international students. There is a three-year kindergarten program, which is non-compulsory. After primary education, students take the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE). Their performance in the examination is the main criteria in determining whether they enter their desired secondary schools. Some parents have criticised the system as rigid and promoting rote learning through its prominent use of large examinations to judge ability. There have also been complaints about excessive educational streaming. A major element of the examination-based education system is the common usage of ten year series by students in order to practice for examinations. After secondary education, a further set of examinations are taken which determine which kind of tertiary education they pursue, such as university, polytechnic or vocational education through the Institute of Technical Education (ITE). The use of vocational education makes complete dropouts rare. Singapore has hundreds of schools, most of them being in the neighbourhoods, and the literacy rate is 95%.

Transport

Main article: Transport in Singapore

A C751B train at Eunos MRT Station on the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, one of three heavy rail passenger transport lines in Singapore.

Singapore's Changi International Airport is one of the largest aviation facilities in Asia, serving 179 cities in 57 countries.

Singapore is a major Asian transportation hub, strategically lying on major sea and air trade routes. Its history has been closely tied to the growth of its transportation industry since the establishment of its port. The transportation industry comprises over 10% of Singaporean GDP despite an increasingly diversified economy. The Port of Singapore, managed by port operators PSA International and Jurong Port, was the world's busiest port in 2005 in terms of shipping tonnage handled with 1.15 billion gross tons handled, and in terms of containerised traffic, with 23.2 million Twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) handled. It was also the world's second busiest in terms of cargo tonnage, coming behind Shanghai with 423 million tons handled. In addition, Singapore is the world's busiest hub for transhipment traffic and the world's biggest ship refuelling hub.

Singapore is a major aviation hub and an important stopover point for the 'Kangaroo route' between Australasia and Europe. Singapore Changi Airport has a network of 81 airlines connecting Singapore to 179 cities in 57 countries (2005). It is one of the top five airports in Asia in terms of passengers handled, with 30 million passengers passing through in 2004. It has been consistently rated as one of the best international airports by numerous international travel magazines and as the only 5 star airport in the world by Skytrax. A low-cost terminal, the Budget Terminal, which started operation in March 2006 and a third passenger terminal now under construction will increase the airport's total annual capacity to 66.7 million passengers by 2008. The national carrier Singapore Airlines (SIA) has also received several accolades internationally and is renowned for the image of its air stewardesses, the 'Singapore Girls', who wear the traditional dress of Sarong Kebaya. SIA will also be the first airline in the world to fly the new Airbus A380 commercially.

The backbone of domestic transport infrastructure is the road transport system which includes a network of expressways that form the arteries between distinct towns and regional centres as laid out in Singapore's urban planning. Private transport has been growing steadily since independence and has led to the rise of environmental issues such as air pollution and reliance of fuel, as well as concerns over traffic congestion. Consequently, the Land Transport Authority began a series of measures to discourage excessive use of private transport, by improving the public transport system such as the nation's bus service and liberalising the hired vehicle market to allow for more taxi operators. Vehicles are subject to toll by an Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system during hours of heavy road traffic to regulate road usage.

In 1987, the heavy rail passenger Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) metro system began operation. MRT was later augmented by and linked to the Light Rapid Transit (LRT) light rail system, which provides service to several expanses of housing estates. The EZ-Link system allows contactless smartcards to serve as stored value tickets for use in the public transport systems. This allows convenient transfer between individual components of Singapore's public transport system. More than 2.8 million people use the bus network daily, while more than 1.3 million people use either the LRT or MRT as part of their daily routine. Concerns regarding terrorism have led the government to take precautionary measures such as increasing security and conducting routine emergency exercises in public transport stations and interchanges.

References

• Diane K. Mauzy & R. S. Milne (2002). Singapore Politics: Under the People's Action Party. Routledge. ISBN 0415246539.
• "Census 2000". Singapore Department of Statistics. Retrieved 11 January. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
• "Key Facts & Figures". Ministry of Transport, Singapore. Retrieved 11 January. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
• "Nation's History". Singapore Infomap. Retrieved 11 January. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
• This article incorporates public domain text from the websites of Singapore Department of Statistics, United States Department of State, the United States Library of Congress & CIA World Factbook (2004).

External links

• Singapore Government Online Portal
• Singapore Infomap
• Amnesty International's 2005 report on Singapore
• CIA World Factbook Entry for Singapore
• Singapore on MovingPlanets
• Singapore Tourist Guide
• Singapore Yellow Pages
• Template:Wikitravel
• CityMayors profile of city state government
• Photographs of current events of interest in Singapore.

Panoramic view of the Singapore River. Once centre of trade and commerce as the port of Singapore, it is now a tourist spot with numerous bars, pubs, and seafood along the river.