Article:

The bonsai under the banyan tree: democracy and democratisation in Singapore, Michael D. Barr

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13510347.2012.706606

This article follows and evaluates Singapore’s “People’s action party” or PAP’s gradual move to a more competitive autocracy, and suggests how Singapore may continue this trend to eventually arrive at a true democracy in the future.

While Singapore is not considered a typical democracy it does still hold elections, which are becoming less and less symbolic as the ruling party faces tougher competition. Lee Kuan Yew of the PAP said in his book “Lee Kuan Yew: Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going” that the electoral system is not structured to prevent competition, but to prevent duds i.e. incompetent rulers. The article describes the system as having a propensity to identify national crisis for which national solidarity is demanded, which is notable during the current COVD-19 crisis, as Singapore reacted quickly and placed strict travel controls.

The PAP held one hundred percent of the seats in parliament for 13 years until the early 1080’s, and in 1990 Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong was elected, who presented a more friendly face as a leader. In 1991 four opposition party representatives won seats in parliament, and in 2011 the PAP almost lost the presidency by just 7000 votes. In 1991 the minister for information and the arts made a speech where he promised to trim the banyan tree, comparing the tight restrictions of the PAP to the thick canopy and dense root system of the banyan tree which prevent other plants from growing in its shade. This intention was to provide more freedom for non-governmental institutions. However these promises were eventually forgotten as freedom of assembly laws have become stricter, as now even an individual in a public place can be considered to be an illegal assembly, and people can even be barred from leaving their homes if they are suspected of intending to illegally congregate out in public.

More progress towards democracy was made in 2011 however, as Singapore saw the government assume a kind of accountability never seen before in Singapore. For example the prime minister publicly apologized for “Mistakes” he had made. The former deputy Prime Minister Tony Tan sat uncomfortably as he tried to answer hostile questions from an audience on live TV. Not a move that any politician would have made in the past. But this kind of accountability became more and more normal, meaning the government began to find MPs and ministers more suited to this kind of environment.

One of the greatest pushes towards democracy has been the internet and faster spread of information and opinions through the younger generation. In the race for the 2011 elections many parties used the internet as a campaign tool, meaning that the PAP had to reply to the oppositions rally speeches, which would have usually held no weight.

These kinds of developments don’t tell us for sure that Singapore will eventually become democratic, but the possibility is becoming more and more real as time moves on.