Importance Of Japanese Occupation In Singapore

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GES1010 NATION-BUILDING IN SINGAPORE, CA1 ESSAY ASSIGNMENT
Singapore fell into the hands of Japan and was renamed “Syonan-to” from 1942-1945.[1] During the Japanese Occupation, Singaporeans had to breathe Japan and those who were anti-Japanese were either badly tortured or even killed. However, the Japanese Occupation did not last when Japanese surrendered in February 1945, marking the start of Singapore nation. The making of a Singapore nation was when local leaders emerged to govern and lead the country, subsequently making Singapore to become a country of its own. Japanese Occupation was a turning point that led to the occurrence of events, resulting in Singapore becoming a self-governed country by local leaders standing on its own.
Japanese …show more content…

British was not ready to let Singapore be self-governed then due to its military bases that were situated in Singapore. They were afraid that upon independence, these bases would fall into the hands of communists. Through this, it can be seen that the Japanese Occupation did not result in the making of a Singapore nation; instead, Singapore escaped the clutch of Japan only to be under the rules of British again. However, the separation between Malaya and Singapore showed that the British did have plans to eventually hand down the power to Singapore leaders to govern themselves just that they did not plan for it to take place immediately after the war ended. To add on, the British also introduced Rendel Constitution which allowed partial self-government by the locals. This further shows that British did have plans to make Singapore into a self-government country gradually.
In conclusion, the Japanese Occupation played a part in the birth of Singapore nation. Without the occurrence of Japanese Occupation, the separation between Malayan Union and Singapore would not have taken place as the post-war condition would not exist. It has also caused political awakening to a number of leaders who realised they had to step up and fight for independence. Lastly, …show more content…

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[8] “Plan to Kill 50,000 Chinese in Singapore.” Straits Times, March 19, 1947. http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/straitstimes19470319-1.2.44.aspx (accessed September 15, 2015)
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