ABSTRACT
In 2015, Singapore celebrated its first 50 years as an independent state. Singapore’s success has been credited variously to luck, meritocracy, and pragmatism, among other factors. This chapter explains Singapore’s own definition of pragmatism via interviews with Singapore leaders in a literature review. It illustrates how pragmatism works in practice, focusing on Singapore’s domestic issues. The chapter discusses the “ideology of pragmatism” and its promoters. The focus on pragmatism in analyzing Singapore’s political decision-making can be traced back to the beliefs of founding fathers Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Keng Swee. The most detailed examination of pragmatism in Singapore’s governance can be found in Kenneth Paul Tan’s article, “The Ideology of Pragmatism”. In terms of foreign relations, Singapore’s foreign policy is frequently described as “realist”. Michael Leifer is generally seen as the defining work on Singapore’s realist foreign policy, although the topic has also been tackled by Kawin Wilairat, Chan Heng Chee, Bilveer Singh, and Alan Chong.
