ABSTRACT

The Singapore Story, though hegemonic in stature, has been challenged or contested on many fronts, including the academic one. The National University of Singapore (NUS), for instance, hosted a symposium in 2005 called Paths Not Taken, which had more than 200 registered participants. It brought together academics from Singapore, Australia, the UK, and elsewhere to debate alternative perspectives on Singapore’s post-war history. The presentations and discussions were turned into chapters of an edited book that examined the ‘cultural, intellectual, and political dynamism’ of Singapore from the 1950s to the 1970s, a vibrant period when the cultural, ideological, and political landscapes were characterized by diversity, pluralism, and contestation, as political parties, activists, and popular movements advanced alternative visions for Singapore’s future (Barr and Trocki, 2008). Several younger historians – such as Edgar Liao, Lim Cheng Tju, Loh Kah Seng, Seng Guo-quan, and Thum Pingtjin – have led the way to re-examine various aspects of Singapore’s public history, focusing on topics such as the British military withdrawal from Singapore, the mass resettlement of kampong dwellers, the left-wing trade union movement, left-wing student activism in the Chinese-and English-medium universities, and the crackdown on the leftists in the name of internal security. In July 2014, Loh took the lead in organizing a series of forums, titled Living With Myths, whose aim was to unpack the myths of Singapore history that have been rendered in ways that are ‘useful for nonhistorical pursuits’. The series website explained that:

By myths, we do not mean fabrications, but discursive devices that have become accepted as part of our ‘common sense’. Myths are a shorthand for official discourses and policies; they thus mask countervailing views of history and obscure other possibilities for the future. As Singapore celebrates 50 years of nationhood in 2015, being aware of myths is an important social project that will make us a more mature, self-reflexive and inclusive people.