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LIVING CONDITIONS IN SINGAPORE IN 1930-2000

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LIVING CONDITIONS IN SINGAPORE IN 1930-2000

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The past does not merely change in becoming the present; the present also operates retrospectively on the past. Each age has its own idea of the past. These new ideas too are not predictable in detail, but they tend to follow very standard lines of development.

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PAST: LIVING CONDITIONS BEFORE WORLD WAR II

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PAST: LIVING CONDITIONS BEFORE WORLD WAR II

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From 1930s, immigrants stayed in congested squatter settlements consisting of huts made of attap, old wooden boxes, rusty corrugated iron sheets and other salvage material. Almost a quarter of a million people lived in dilapidated living conditions, crammed five to six people in a room, poor ventilation, limited water supply and inadequate sanitation.
Some ethnic groups (Malays, Chinese and Indians) stayed in kampongs with huts closely built near each other. The passageways were narrow and sanitation is also inadequate.

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From this photograph, it is evident that the whole village is facing a lack of clean water supply and adequate sanitation amenities.

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A well-known 'communal space' which immigrants could actively interact with one another.

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The increasingly poor living conditions and severe housing shortage compelled the British authorities to set up the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) in 1927, a statutory board tasked to tackle town planning, slum clearance and subsequently provide low-cost housing.
However, during postwar period, SIT was unable to catch up with the needs of the city. In 1947, the population was nearly 940,000 but SIT was only able to complete 20,907 units, enough to house 100,000 people – out of a population that had grown to 1.5 million from 1947 t o 1959.

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MIRACLES PRODUCED BY HOUSING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD (HDB)

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MIRACLES PRODUCED BY HOUSING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD (HDB)

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Housing and Development Board (HDB) inherited a daunting situation but did a miraculous job! By 1962, just three years after it was established, HDB had built 21,232 units – compared to SIT’s 23,019 units over its 32 years of operation.  On Merdeka Day in 1964, a Straits Times article headlined “A Flat Every 45 Minutes” reflected that the housing problem had been resolved through provision of public housing.

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Public housing in Singapore generally comprises high-density, high-rise developments, mostly located in suburban areas. The majority of public housing estates are self-contained communities with not only the essential facilities to meet the residents’ basic needs but also various community amenities such as schools and recreational facilities (to promote community interaction).The larger estates are known as “new towns”. Singapore’s first new town, Queenstown, had been initiated by SIT in the 1950s but was completed by HDB. The second new town, Toa Payoh, was the first to be developed entirely by HDB. By late 1980s, many HDB towns are set up for residents to have an opportunity to own their flats.

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The Home Ownership for the People Scheme was launched in 1964, but home ownership only took off after changes were made to the Central Provident Fund (CPF) in 1968 to allow Singaporeans to use their CPF accounts to pay their monthly mortgage. This scheme is introduced to maintain social stability and mobility.

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The main categories of public housing are: one-room flats, two-room flats, three-room flats, four-room flats, five-room flats, executive flats (including executive apartments and maisonettes), studio apartments (reserved for Singaporeans who are at least 55 years old) and HUDC flats. Over the years, more flat types have been introduced to cater to the different needs of people, such as elderly-friendly studio apartments, which were introduced in 1997. The emphasis of building programmes slowly shifted from meeting the population’s basic need for proper shelter to quality that extends beyond the design of the flats to the surrounding living environment. This is evidenced by efforts to improve the landscape architecture, enhance the visual identity of housing estates and provide better amenities for the residents. One of the important amenities is the Community Centre in every Town Estate.

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In contrast to the colonial era, where different ethnic groups were segregated from each other, the newly built HDB flats fostered a greater mix of ethnic groups. This helped to build a sense of community and social cohesion – critical to the harmony and stability of a diverse society that had seen ethnically-charged violence in the 1960s. In the late 1980s, there were warning signs that ethnic enclaves were starting to re-form in certain housing estates. As a pre-emptive step, the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) was introduced in 1989 to ensure a mix of ethnic groups in each town and even apartment block. Sales of new HDB flats and resale HDB flats were regulated based on pre-determined ethnic quotas.

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CONTINUITY: SUSTAINING OUR SINGAPORE HEARTBEAT

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CONTINUITY: SUSTAINING OUR SINGAPORE HEARTBEAT

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From a city-state of disparate but segregated communities, our Singapore Heartbeat must continue to beat as one. We need to respect and preserve social bonds that had been built up over the years – communities were often resettled as a group so neighbours and families could continue to live near to each other in their new estates. Moreover, to ensure every Singaporeans has a roof above their heads, Singapore has to continue to create more unique high densities buildings in order to add vibrancy into the matured HDB towns.

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VILLAGES IN THE SKY IN 1990s - MANY MODERN NEW TOWNS

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VILLAGES IN THE SKY IN 1990s - MANY MODERN NEW TOWNS

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Due to land constraint, high density buildings are still the main solutions to address housing issues in Singapore.

In the early 1990s extensive construction was done in Choa Chu Kang, Hougang, Pasir Ris, Tampines, plus many small precints in other towns.

In the late 1990s three New Towns were started: Sembawang, Sengkang, Punggol. Construction suddenly stopped for Tampines and Pasir Ris but continued for Bukit Panjang, Choa Chu Kang, Hougang, Jurong East, Jurong West (Pioneer neighborhood), Woodlands.

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All blocks completed in 1993 have lifts stopping on every floor now and centralized refuse chutes, and multi-storey carparks.

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1998 – introduction of household shelters and A/C ledges placed opposite of kitchen window, that double as second support for drying on bamboo poles.

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RACIAL & RELIGIOUS HARMONY - OUR SHARED VALUE

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RACIAL & RELIGIOUS HARMONY - OUR SHARED VALUE

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The Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) is still an existing policy!
The EIP is implemented to promote racial integration and harmony. The policy aims to prevent the formation of racial enclaves by ensuring a balanced ethnic mix among the various ethnic communities living in public housing estates. In summary, there is still a quota for each ethnic group in each block and neighbourhood.

(Photo below: Neighbours of different races interacting along the corridor is a common pastime. This form of interaction forges close ties among neighbours)

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According to a report in The Straits Times, the oldest void deck in Singapore was built in 1963 at Block 26 in Jalan Klinik.

Void decks are known to be a shared common space for leisure, recreational and cultural activities, so as to create opportunities for residents to interact and bond. They are found under the HDB block on the ground level consisting of historical and heritage significance that holds many different types of memories, thoughts, and happenings for different Singaporeans.

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BRINGING BACK THE KAMPUNG DAYS - KAMPUNG ADMIRALTY

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BRINGING BACK THE KAMPUNG DAYS - KAMPUNG ADMIRALTY

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Kampung Admiralty, is a modern interpretation of ‘kampung’ living, as one can dine, socialise, shop, and receive healthcare services, all under one roof. Located next to Admiralty MRT station, the development is envisaged to foster greater community bonding among its residents and reignite the ‘kampung’ spirit of yesteryear. Wide community spaces and generous green features also be incorporated to enhance the living environment.