[Singapore Islands] Pedra Branca

Pedra Branca: The Book (Amazon)

In the past, Pedra Branca was every sailor's nightmare. But in 1979, Malaysia and Singapore clambered over this rocky outcrop, together with two other outcrop called Middle Rocks and South Ledge. The deliberations and discussions as to who owns Pedra Branca and the other outcrop spanned more than a decade. The two governments then agreed to allow the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to determine who has the sovereignty over these outcrop. (Jeyakumar and Koh, 2009)

The book - Pedra Branca - published in 2009 had also prove to be a very good read.

As of February 3, 2017, Malaysia has lodged an appeal to the ICJ to revise the previous ruling made. The Malaysian government has said that they have discovered three new documents from the United Kingdom National Archive. (Naidu, Feb 2017)

The three documents are:-

1. An internal correspondence of the Singapore colonial authorities in 1958
2. an incident report filed in 1958 by a British naval officer and
3. an annotated map of naval operations from the 1960s

[Update: 12 Aug 2017]: Malaysia has even built a base on the Middle Rocks to stake their sovereignty over the rock outcrop.

 

So why is this situation so important to both countries? Well, the first reason is about sovereignty. In a very basic playground talk, "If it's mine, it's mine". Also, though Pedra Branca may be just a small outcrop, occupying it will mean having control of the maritime movement in and out of the Straits of Singapore.


3 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT PEDRA BRANCA

1.  Most Easterly Island of Singapore

Pedra Branca (Pulau Batu Puteh as it is known in Malaysia or the former Coney Island) is the eastern most point of Singapore. It's situated at approximately 24 nautical miles to the east of Singapore. The island is actually closer to Indonesia's Bintan Island than to Singapore. (ibid)

Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs

2. It's all about rocks and stones

The British erected a lighthouse on Pedra Branca in 1850 and named it after the late Captain James Horsburgh, a navigator and hydrographer. (Koh and Chew) Pedra Branca itself is an uninhabited "reef of white stone-rocks of granite". (Cornelius-Takahama)  The granite stones used to build the lighthouse came from the granite quarry of Pulau Ubin. (Koh and Chew)

Aerial View of Pedra Branca. Source: China Post

3. Invited and Uninvited Dignitaries

When the foundation stone was laid on May 24, 1850 to commemorate the Queen's birthday. British dignitaries including government officials, naval personnel, foreign consuls and merchants graced the launch. (The Straits Times)

Fast forward to 1998. Relation between Malaysia and Singapore were going through a rough patch as both countries were fighting over who had the sovereign rights over Pedra Branca. Former Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir tried to get close to the outcrop but was then warned by the Singapore Navy to stay away, in which he did to prevent any potential skirmishes. (Hussein, 2009)

A litograph by J. T. Turnbull and T. Picken produced in 1850. (Horsburgh Lighthouse)

References

Amazon.com. Accessed on January 30, 2016. Retrieved from http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51MmRK6EOTL._SX334_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg

Cornelius-Takahama, V. Pedra Branca. Singapore Infopedia. Accessed on January 31, 2016. http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_722_2005-01-20.html

Foo, Y. C. May 24, 2008. World Court rules Singapore owns strategic isle. China Post.
 http://www.chinapost.com.tw/photos/default.asp?ID=157824&GRP=C

Horsburgh Lighthouse. University of Otago. Accessed on January 31, 2016. http://s3.amazonaws.com/ourheritagemedia%2Foriginal%2F2fbf089ced8216bf4b953abebf366cd7.jpg

Hussein, Z. December 20, 2008. Pedra Branca: Behind the scenes. The Straits Times. P26.

Jayakumar, S. & Koh, T. (2009). Pedra Branca. The road to the world court. NUS Press: Singapore. P 161.

ibid. P162

Koh, Q. R. V and Chew, V. Horsburgh Lighthouse. Singapore Infopedia. Accessed on January 31, 2016. http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_107_2005-01-20.html

Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Accessed on January 30, 2016. http://www.mfa.gov.sg/content/dam/mfa/images/media_center/special_events/pedra_branca/RevisedmapshowinglocationofPedraBranca%28SingaporeMemorial%29.jpg

Naidu, S. (February 4, 2017). 3 UK documents cited for Malaysia's application to revise Pedra Branca decision. Channel News Asia. Accssed on February 4, 2017.  http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/3-uk-documents-cited-for-malaysia-s-application-to-revise-pedra/3492172.html

The Horsburgh Lighthouse. May 28, 1850. The Straits Times. http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/straitstimes18500528-1.2.10.aspx

Good Morning Yesterday

 

"Everyone has a story to tell and you can learn for it only if you listen".

Well, I came up with that saying. There's much we can learn from books.

The writer of the book "Good Morning Yesterday" - Mr Lam Chun See, brings to life images and words that are fast disappearing.

Let me pose you a couple of questions where the answers can be found in the book:-

1. Where is Ang Sar Lee? 

2. Have you heard of the brand Brylcreem

3. What is 'chow ta' loti?

These are just some of the many nostalgic look-back to the 1950s and 1960s. Mr Lam's book has inspired me to continue my quest for everything Singapore. Looking out for decades-old eateries; Picking up old products such as Brylcreem; Finding out the many roundabouts there are in Singapore.

So read his book and get ready to be zap back into history! You can also check out his website.

Singapore Air Force: 10 Interesting Facts

I've just finished reading the book "Full Spectrum Force" and the author Mr Goh Yong Kiat has truly put together an interesting book that captures every aircraft that Singapore has, both past and present. A number of these aircraft can also be seen at the Air Force Museum.

Well, I thought that it would be good to pull together 10 interesting facts about RSAF that are seldom heard. So here goes.

1. In September 1968, the Singapore Air Defence Command (Currently known as The Republic of Singapore Air Force) was formed. Singapore had no choice but to set up its own air force as the republic was no longer a part of Malaysia. At the same time, the British had declared that they will be pulling out all its forces by 1971. (1)

2. The first aircraft that came under the "wings" of SADC were a pair of Cessna 172H that was acquired in September 1968. Nicknamed the AF100, the aircraft was sold off in 1979. (2)

3.The helicopter that SADC purchased were the Aeroespatiale SA316B Alouette III. Operating under 120 Squadron, the helicopters participated in the first ever National Day flypast in 1970. The lead helicopter was flying the national flag. The helicopters were retired from service in 1978. (3)































4. The cutest transport aircraft has to be the Short Skyvan 3M. The aircraft is also known as the flying coffin. (4)

5. The most reliable and longest serving aircraft is the Lockheed C-130.

6. There were four aircraft that Singapore had in possession but did not proceed to purchase more of these platforms:- EC-47P, Meteor F.8, Sea Vixen FAW.2 and a Hunter F.4. In 1979, all these aircraft were donated to Sentosa as static display. They were later disposed of in January 1989. (5)

7. Singapore's first tandem-seat trainer aircraft was BAC Strikemaster MK.84 in 1969.

8. The Hawker Hunter was Singapore's first jet fighter. The aircraft arrived in 1970 and was based in Tengah Air Base. (6)

 

9. The Northrop F5 was the first supersonic fighter to be in service with the air force. The aircraft arrived in 1979. The aircraft is also the longest serving fighter aircraft as its still currently in service. (7)

10. Singapore most advanced fighter, the Boeing F15SG is based at Paya Lebar Airbase (8)

Address


RSAF Museum
400 Airport Road
Singapore 534234


Opening Hours:
Tuesday to Sunday 8.30am to 5.00pm (Closed on Monday & Public Holidays)

How to get there 
Buses: SBS 90 and 94 (SBS 94 not available on Sunday)





References

1. Goh, Y.K. 2014. Full Spectrum Force: Aircraft of the Republic of Singapore Air Force. 9VSPOTTER: Singapore.  P9

2. ibid. P28

3. ibid. P36

4. ibid. P56

5. ibid. P58

6. ibid. P61

6. ibid. P82

7. ibid. P94

8. ibid. P106

Singapura: 700 Years

The National Museum has recently taken some flak for typo errors seen on their exhibition boards. (1) The new exhibition - Singapura: 700 Years brings together archeological finds from as early as the 1920s till recent. 

A large number of historical findings in Singapore can be found in this definitive book - Early Singapore 1300s - 1819. Published in 2004, the book brings together papers written by Singapore history scholars. It goes out to prove that Singapore was not a sleepy village before pre-Raffles.

Through various excavations, gold ornaments, glass sheds and vessels, and Chinese bowls have been found. All these are shown in this book and the current exhibition is based largely on the findings.

As early as 1320, it was said that a prominent place in Singapore was mentioned in the Yuan Dynasty's record, the "Yuan-Shih". The unique stone feature that  was then known as "Long ya-men" Or Dragon's tooth gate.

In 1349, a Chinese businessman named Wang Da Yuan was said to have visited Singapore. So with all these factors coming into play, Singapore was not just an island.

There were also maps to show that Singapore was a known island before Sir Stamford Raffles. The map above was taken from a section of Captain J. Lindsey's 1798 "The South part of the Straits of Malacca". (2)

Interestingly, the map also shows other nearby island such as Salat Booro (Pulau Ubin?), Tooly (Pulau Blakang Mati), and Pedra Branca.

Reference:

1. Zaccheus, M. December 1, 2014. Showcase of S'pore marred by typo, errors. The Straits Times. http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/showcase-spore-history-marred-typos-errors-20141201

2. Miksic, J. & Low, C. M. G. 2004. Early Singapore 1300s - 1819. Singapore History Museum: Singapore. P96.

[People] Samsui Women in Singapore

We have followed the entire 24-episode historical drama - Samsui women - when it was shown in 1986. We have seen for ourselves how the Samsui women trod on with their lives even when the going was hard. Still, I did not know much about their lives. 

 
So when I saw this book - Remembering the Samsui women - on the bookshelf, I knew that I had to read it. I've also extracted nuggets of rich information from newspaper articles.

A Samsui woman sculpture outside the Chinatown Museum

Called "the toughest women in Singapore", Samsui women or colloquially known as Samsui Por,  started flocking into Singapore near the turn of the century. This was followed by an influx of Samsui Por in the 1930s. Sau Eng was one of the Samsui Por (Women), shared about her reason for coming to Singapore from China in 1938. She was 26 years old then. (1)

"Day and night for 3 years, no rain...dry weather for 3 years, even if it rains, it's just such a drizzle that it can't even make the soil wet. Isn't that very difficult? So those grains will dry up." (2)

Another Samsui Por that the author had interviewed was Choi Yuk. She travelled with her mother-in-law to Singapore when she was 18 years old.

"Very terrible conditions...4 persons had only 1 meal a day...no money until paddy field had to be sold off, then came to Singapore." (3)

There were others who left their homeland due to the mistreatment dished out by their husbands or mother-in-laws. (3)

It was also a time where the world was just recovering from the Great Depression. The colonial rulers had limited the number of men coming into Singapore to work. There was no such restriction for women and children. During 1934 and 1938, Chinese women - driven by economic pressures and hoping to find their life partners husband, embarked on an arduous trip to Singapore. (3)

It has never been easy leaving the familiarity of a place for an unknown destination and future. So for the Samsui women to make this five-day sea journey in search of work, life in China must have been pretty bad back then. Each of them similar in that they were looking for a better life, but different in the sense that each of them has a different story to tell.

Arriving in Singapore

Photo: National Archive of Singapore (6)

It was not a breezy boat ride into Nanyang (Singapore as it was known by the the Chinese). They would have to take a boat ride from their hometown to Guangzhou. Then to Hong Kong before moving again to Macau and finally to Singapore. The entire journey took them through seven days of choppy seas. A number of them, who were taking a boat for the first time, had to manage motion sickness, beyond other things such as cramped spaces within the boat, and unsanitary conditions.

When they arrive in Singapore, they were either picked up by their relatives. If not, these Samsui Pors settled themselves down in and around Upper Chin Chew Street or locally called Toufu Kai (Toufu Street). Even in the 1970s, Samsui women were still turning up at Cross Street "to sit at the five-foot way". (4)

The Samsui women interviewed said that houses along Toufu Street were decrepit; even worse than Hong Kong and Guangzhou.  (7)


Post-War presence

Photo: National Archives of Singapore (5)

In 1978, there were some 60,000 Samsui Pors left in Singapore as they continued to age, while other younger samsui women chose "alternative employment in factories or even civil service. (3) The Samsui Pors were also listed as a "must see" in some travel brochures. (1)

Contributions to Singapore

The hard work of these samsui women did not come to a nought. The hardy women played a part in the construction of "Capitol Building, Changi Airport, and the Development Bank of Singapore building." (8)

Family's Personal Experience

I was having a regular chat with my mother about the topic of the Samsui women and was surprised to hear from her that she had interacted with two Samsui women. This work-related converstion happened in the late 1960s when when my parents had just purchased their new flat. They paid for the Samsui women to work on tiling both the wall and floor.

My mom shared that Samsui women were renowned for quality and efficient work. They commanded more pay than other construction workers. Though my parents have long sold that flat, my mother still proudly states how neighbours would stop by our flat to gawk at the tile finishing.

Trustworthy; Hardworking; Resilient in the face of hardship. The Samsui women truly embodied that and more!

The Lost Red Headscarf:-
CCTV documentary

Part 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyQxiHzez6M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSt04WBhtyw

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdnff_a6RJ0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyQxiHzez6M



Words that played a part in the lives of the Samsui Pors :

Dai Hup Kar - The ships that brought the Samsui women to Singapore
Tsui Haak - Middleman whom they have to pay to get them to Singapore




References

1. Wee, M. (January 11, 1960). Work all day, then home to cook. Straits Times. P 6
2. Low, K. E. Y. (2014) Remembering the Samsui women. UBC Press. P111
3. Low, K. E. Y. (2014) Remembering the Samsui women. UBC Press. P112
4. Chew, M.L. (May 25, 1978). The Samsui Por. The Straits Times. P14
5. National Archives of Singapore. http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/photographs/record-details/b388ba32-1161-11e3-83d5-0050568939ad Retrieved on October 10, 2014.
6. National Archives of Singapore. http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/photographs/record-details/b38ee0fb-1161-11e3-83d5-0050568939ad Retrieved on October 11, 2014.
7. Low, K. E. Y. (2014) Remembering the Samsui women. UBC Press. PP125-126

8. 7. Low, K. E. Y. (2014) Remembering the Samsui women. UBC Press. P173.