The Financial Times (FT) reported on Nov. 3, 2019 that there are signs that Singapore's ruling class has been "unnerved" by protests in the rival Asian financial centre of Hong Kong.

Citing a senior Singaporean official who declined to be named, FT said the Singapore government is "terrified that something similar could happen in Singapore".

However, no hint was given as to the capacity of the senior Singaporean official, or how casual or off-the-record the remark was, which relegates it to hearsay.

The Chinese Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong has been roiled by anti-government protests for the past five months, exposing deep political divides in the city.

Singapore has plans in place to prepare for similar protests

But it is not as if Singapore is not doing anything about it.

FT reported that the government has been "crafting contingency plans", and is "working out their options to minimise that risk", in case the protests in Hong Kong help inspire unrest in the city state.

In response to FT's queries if Singapore was preparing for similar protests, Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs said the police have "plans in place to deal with illegal assemblies".

Cancellation of Yale-NUS course on dissent related to Hong Kong protests?

The London-based global business newspaper, owned by Japanese media giant Nikkei, then pegged a separate speech and education issue to the Hong Kong protests: The recent cancellation of a course on dissent and resistance by Yale-NUS College two weeks before it was scheduled to start.

FT mentioned that the course was organised by local playwright Alfian Sa'at, who is "known for political plays critical of the PAP (People's Action Party)", and that the course featured a screening of a documentary on Joshua Wong, a political activist who was the face of the 2014 Occupy Central movement in Hong Kong.

Ong: No place for Hong Kong-style street riots in Singapore

In addition, it highlighted the response of Singapore's Education Minister Ong Ye Kung in parliament on Oct. 7 to the cancellation of the course.

Ong said being a "small, multiracial and multi-religious country" means Singapore's "margin for error is very small compared to bigger countries".

"Imagine if the demonstrations and riots on the streets of Hong Kong, or the political confusion in the UK, were to take place in Singapore," Ong said.

"Our reputation would be destroyed."

He added that Singapore has "found solutions and struck compromises before the problems become severe".

Singapore does not need a "colour revolution"

FT also mentioned a commentary written by former PAP Member of Parliament Goh Choon Kang.

Goh opined that Singapore does not need a "colour revolution" like the one happening in Hong Kong, which was the "result of foreign manipulation and received foreign support".

Accusations of foreign intervention have been an oft-repeated narrative by Beijing that is rejected by protesters themselves.

PAP using Hong Kong protests as a scare tactic

Giving his take on the protests and the calculations of the government, Singaporean academic Cherian George, who is currently teaching at the Hong Kong Baptist University, opined that there are other reasons as to why the ruling PAP is suggesting that the protests in Hong Kong could inspire similar unrest in Singapore.

He said such talk speaks of "an unjustified insecurity", or "scaremongering" to influence law-and-order-loving Singaporeans to "vote conservatively" in the coming elections.

No signs Singapore is going to follow Hong Kong's example

Summing up the different points, FT wrote that it is unlikely for "loyal" Singapore citizens to follow in the footsteps of Hong Kong demonstrators.

This point was accompanied by an observation about a protest that happened at the Speakers' Corner in March.

Protesters had apparently "rushed out of the park for fear of repercussions" shortly after the event was over.

Furthermore, FT quoted a 39-year-old Singaporean social worker as saying that structure "is not a bad thing", considering what's happening in Hong Kong.

You can read the entire FT article here.

Background

Singapore's stance towards Hong Kong

The Singapore government has been cautious in not being seen as profiting from Hong Kong's protests, or revelling in the embattled city's misery.

Various political leaders have spoken out in favour of stability in the city, which helps to translate into stability in the region, which in turn benefits Singapore, a largely open and trade-dependent economy.

Recently, in his most extensive remarks on the issue yet, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said none of the five demands from the Hong Kong protesters can resolve the deep-seated problems in the city linked to the "one country, two systems" framework.

Instead, they are meant to "humiliate and bring down" the Hong Kong government, he said.

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