Asia Times: From frump to funk - Singapore finds fun



	November 24, 1999	atimes.com

Southeast Asia

From frump to funk - Singapore finds fun
By Jacinta Leow

SINGAPORE - Don't look now, but suddenly staid Singapore is being called a funky town.

In recent months, the western media, fond of bashing this city state of 3.5 million for its blandness, has embraced the country it used to dismiss as a boring and authoritarian one. In July, the US-based Time magazine called it a ''nanny state'' that had relaxed its authoritarian ways to let the club scene flourish and the Internet function with relatively few controls.

''Somewhere within the hustle and bustle of Singapore, a little machine has been toiling away, trying to manufacture something called funk,'' Kelvin Tong of Singapore's Sunday Times observed in a recent article. ''While no one knows what this commodity looks like, everybody agrees that it is exactly what the country needs. And, apparently that machine has just hit the jackpot.''

However, Singapore's transformation into a ''funky town'' is more by design and government direction than by natural evolution. It is part of a plan to make Singapore a popular tourist destination for transit travellers, and a communications and entertainment hub for Southeast Asia.

In his National Day rally speech on August 9, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said he was amused by the Time magazine's article, since making Singapore a ''fun place'' had always been his intention. ''If Singapore is a dull, boring place, not only will talent not want to come here, but even Singaporeans will begin to feel restless,'' he said.

The change started when the Ministry of Information and the Arts (MITA) was created under its then chief, George Yeo, nine years ago. Since then, Singapore papers have gone on the Internet, Singaporeans and tourists can enjoy jazz performances at the colonial-era cafe complex, the Chimes, or view interesting exhibits at the Singapore Art Museum.

To add to the list of fun things to do while in Singapore, you can pop into a newly-opened library in Orchard Road. It's not the first library in a shopping mall in Singapore, but it's certainly the first to have wood finishings for the shelves and flooring, glass panes to separate different sections and halogen lights to create a cozy and soft ambience.

The 1,500 sq m library has a collection of fiction, and books on computers, arts, film and music. You can choose to sit on long-cushioned benches, lean against the metal backrests and listen to music from headphones fixed to the wall or station yourself in front of flat-screen monitors and surf the Internet.

A cafe in the library allows you to read unborrowed books while sipping your cappuccino.This hip and trendy look was created to reach out to those aged 18-30 since it was found that they were not utilizing library resources.

Touted a ''lifestyle library'', Jennifer Yin, consultant for library programs and outreach, said that the fun concept meant that was more than a place to return and borrow books. ''What we want to do is to use this as a discussion forum area, for people to be open to new possibilities.''

Being hip certainly has its rewards. By the end of its opening day, they had 10,000 visitors and more than 7,000 books had been borrowed.

Polytechnic undergraduate James Wong, 20, said, ''I don't like public libraries because they look and feel like examination halls. But this is different because it's more like a bookshop. It's not too quiet, so I feel more comfortable here.''

William Ong, a 27-year-old systems engineer, applauded its location, ''People who come to Orchard Road to shop or walk around can just pop in.''

The private sector has also chipped in to help in Singapore's makeover - even in homes.

On October 2 and 3 this year, Singapore Cable Vision (SCV) celebrated the completion of the construction of its broadband network in Singapore, called Singapore One. The network has television, Internet, telecommunication, banking and many other services that will available to users.

Cable subscribers will be able to view more than 40 channels, play interactive games with their friends overseas, experience video-conferencing, shop online or trade shares while watching a television program. Singapore ONE is a key factor in the IT 2000 vision of the government ''to transform Singapore into an intelligent island to enhance the quality of work, life and play''.

While SCV's offer to subscribe to the broadband network will only be realized next year with WorldGate Internet, Singapore ONE is already available with Magix, a service offered by local Internet service provider Singtel.

But advancement in technology can have its downside as well. ''The intended desire is for the network to be used fruitfully. But will the different segments in Singapore embrace the Network constructively?'' asked Henry Tan, a media studies lecturer at Ngee Ann Polytechnic, pointing to recent occurrences of Internet hacking.

He added: ''If it's used solely for entertainment purposes, then its results are short-term. The government has already provided the infrastructure, the challenge is to take an active approach and find meaning in using it.''

(Inter Press Service)

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©1999 Asia Times Online Co., Ltd.