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Chinatown - Different Exposures - A True Story About Singapore Chinatown
Chinatown - Different Exposures - A True Story About Singapore Chinatown
Chinatown - Different Exposures - A True Story About Singapore Chinatown
Different Exposures
Andrew Yip
Preface 4
1 Chinatown - In Perspective 7
3
Preface
What makes a great story? Nobody can really give a full
answer to this simple question. But obviously, certain ele-
ments must be there. Firstly, the story must be real or at
least, believable. Secondly, the major character must be a
man or woman of substance. Thirdly, the drama and action
must be exciting, interesting or thought-provoking. Finally,
the background or the place where the events occur must
arouse interest.
6
Chapter One
Chinatown - In Perspective
V ery often, we come across dramatic accounts of
Singapore’s Chinatown, and inevitably, such accounts
are accompanied by dreadful images of dinghy death
houses and leisure houses in this place in its distant past.
The uninitiated may have the impression that in the old
days, Chinatown was a picture of filth and squalor,
something akin to a slum. This impression should be
dispelled once and for all.
7
The Singapore Chinatown is unique in its tradition and
heritage. Far from being a slum or having a muddy past,
it was a haven for struggling immigrants from China
and those who survived the atrocities of the world wars.
For those living in Chinatown in the past, apart from the
daily struggle to earn a livelihood, they had to face the
blustery winds and storms that ripped off everything of
value to them, including their loved ones. In such a
harrowing time, life was a matter of survival, individually
and collectively as a community. Permeating throughout
was a community spirit of mutual support, tolerance and
understanding, and avoidance of acrimony and conflicts.
With this spirit and the social structures that emerged,
Chinatown was more than a place to live and die; it
became a shade for the many who went there to stay
and earn a living either by chance or by choice. In this
shade and through the community support system,
however crude this might be, the people were able to
weather the storms, and the ravages of the long war
years, and the painful aftermath.
8
holier-than-thou attitude from another era and living in
different circumstances, shielded from the storms of the
wars and bad times, really have no business to frown
upon others, to criticize, to find fault and pin sinful labels
upon them. Just look again at the dinghy death houses
and the houses where those critically ill were placed. In
those days, government planning was poor or
nonexistent. Concomitantly, hospitals and facilities for
the dead and the dying were unavailable. People in
Chinatown evolved their own system to support
community life, and cheaply too. Take another look at
the cubicles where the singles lived. They represented
a makeshift system of community housing for the poor
who could not, otherwise, afford better types of housing.
In the winter of despair for the dislocated and the
destitute, there was still hope, because the spirit of
community living was there to care for them. In a sense,
Chinatown is a microcosm of Singapore’s past writ large.
9
Chapter Two
Chinatown - ‘A Flash in its Shade’
10
Like other early immigrants from China and Hong Kong,
Yip’s parents left China to have a better life. They were
by no means poor. They had a house in Dongguan in
Southern China, a two-storied brick house, which still
stands firmly but unoccupied today at a corner of a
narrow winding road called Gongchai Street in a small
town called Cha-Shan (meaning “Tea Hill”). An adopted
son was left behind in Cha-Shan under the care of a
relative. The couple stayed in a small room in the
Wanchai District, where Yip was born in 1903. Life was
a struggle for the couple in Hong Kong. Unable to make
ends meet, even the mother had to find work. For the
couple, the only recourse was to send the two-year-old
boy back to China in the care of their relatives in Cha-
Shan. Yip’s father had to change jobs every now and
then, taking on anything that came his way from working
in the harbour to working in groceries and in machine
shops. Despite their difficult circumstances, they brought
the boy back to Hong Kong when he was six. Later, the
couple had a daughter. It was indeed a blessing to the
family. Their joy was complete.
11
of a portrait of Confucius. The chanting of prayers
followed this. It was a brief ceremony done in ritualistic
style, but for the boy, the ceremony for the start of his
education was most significant and memorable.
12
Their parents had forbidden them to walk along that
dreadful stretch of the road. But then this was a challenge.
Who would like to be called ‘chicken-hearted?’
13
Burning offerings to the dead
14
Praying to the dead
15
students, when an official came to check the school.
Most likely the school was not properly registered.
17
curtains, furniture, altar, electrical appliances or even
toys. Ironically, this good practice was power-driven by
superstitious fears.
18
this taboo was not clear. It might have something to do
with bad luck that might ensue, if one was accidentally
came into contact with the broom. Or perhaps, there
were mystic powers in the broom. In Western mythology,
some people, well glamorized in Western movies, could
travel from place to place in the air, with the aid of brooms
or broomsticks.
Yip was told that the important thing in the New Year
would be to get rid of any bad luck in the past, at least
symbolically. The act of destruction of the old must begin.
This is not mere superstition. It is in fact an echo of
19
what Pablo Picasso had said: “Every act of creation is
first of all an act of destruction.” The Chinese did this
symbolically by firing crackers on the eve of the New
Year and during the fifteen days of celebration..
Fire Crackers
20
On New Year’s Day, Yip got up early in the morning, at
5 a.m. Having changed into his new clothes, he kneeled
in front of his mother to wish her a happy new year. He
received a big red packet (Ang-Pow) after this. This
was just a start, as he would receive the red packets,
every time a visitor turned up. He had also learnt what
to say to these visitors as auspicious greetings for the
New Year. His mother took both children in a rickshaw
to the Tua Peh Kong Temple for prayers. The place
was packed with people. Yip remembered the burning
of joss sticks and red candles. There was smoke and
noise everywhere, amidst the shouts by large hordes of
beggars who yelled for money.
21
After the prayer session, which last for about an hour,
the family took another ride on the rickshaw home. As
they travelled along the streets with the cool morning
sun behind them, they could feel the gaiety in the air.
The sporadic bursts of firecrackers and the rockets
heralded the arrival of the most important day in the
year.
An old temple
22
Chapter Four
“One day when we were young”
23
cubicles rented out to the large number of immigrant
Chinese who flocked to Chinatown at that time. The
cubicles were actually two-tier or three-tier wooden
platforms used for sleeping. Mak’s cubicles could
accommodate thirty people at a time, and these people
paid a rental for the sleeping space. In practice, each
cubicle space represented a home to these Majies or
maidservants, as they had no place to turn to, when they
became unemployed. It also meant that they had a
gathering place to meet friends, or to take a rest on their
“off days.”
24
Hair Combing
25
rented a cubicle space from her to join her mutual aid
group. Each person would have to make a monthly
contribution to a mutual aid fund. These “sisters” could
also introduce their friends to join the group. Members
of the fund could tender for a loan and pledge to pay
monthly contributions to settle the loan. In the event of
the death of a member, the payment for funeral and
other expenses would come from this fund. But apart
from such financial support, a departed member could
pass away in peace, knowing that her dear “sisters”
would be there to mourn for her. Moreover, Mak also
arranged for prayer sessions on several occasions in
the year for the departed members and for the worship
of the Goddess of Mercy and the Monkey God, for which
money would be collected to cater for special lunches
or dinners and other necessities. Mak also started the
Seven Sisters Club for the celebration of the Seven
Sisters Festival each year. Even modern management
gurus could not come up with a more ingenious scheme
to attract these single Chinese immigrants, take care of
them and earn money from them at the same time.
26
disapproved of them. This was the pattern of things for
young Yip. He spent part of his time helping his mother
to mind the shop, and studying at the same time, but
much of his leisure hours were spent in the
neighbourhood with a few friends. Once a day, they would
gather in a coffee shop to talk and sometimes to play
chess. They sometimes travelled further to meet other
friends on bicycles.
27
They parked their bikes outside the coffee shop along
the pavement. They did not bother to lock them. They
were tough kids in a tough neighbourhood. This was
their turf. Who would dare touch things belonging to
them? Both were young, tall and good looking, but their
unsmiling faces took on a haughty expression. Hong, a
burly teenager, dashed into coffee shop first, clumsily
upsetting several wooden chairs before he sat down in
front of Yip. His face muscles tightened slightly to
produce a boyish grin. He looked around and saw some
boys standing at the corner in a nearby shop. He flashed
a sign with his fingers at them. The group of boys
immediately disappeared. Hong laughed and yelled some
expletives at them. Chee smiled but looked
disapprovingly at Hong; he took out a chess set and
challenged Yip to a game of Chinese chess as it was
still too early to leave for the Mount Emily pool where
they would meet a few other friends, including girls.
28
the paper box at the rider. The rider swerved and
managed to dodge the flying paper box; then he regained
his balance and disappeared. He never dared to ride his
motorbike along the same stretch of road again.
29
of them, or even thousands. His mother had warned
him about the gangsters at Craig Road. What Hong had
done could result in a gang clash. Hong did not seem to
know the consequences of his dangerous antics. The
British Government at that time passed laws against
gangsterism. Gangsters could be detained indefinitely
without trial as Criminal Law Detainees. Yip decided
to shun gangster-like characters from that point on.
30
night, one may be able to ponder or reflect on those
encounters with the righteous or unrighteous, the big
or the small people. And some of the small people might
have brought harm or danger to one’s life, because one
has failed to close the doors to them, or heed the soft
gentle warnings in one’s head, in one’s soul.
But Tamfa was not really the ideal sanctuary for good
souls. In essence, it was a social club in a locality called
the Blue Triangle, a triangular neighbourhood, flanked
by Kreta Ayer Road, Keong Saik Road, and Neil Road,
where there were many leisure houses with Pipa girls
entertaining rich clients. At Tamfa, people gambled the
night away, and Pipa girls kept them company while
they gambled. At the entrance of Tamfa, the boys
sometimes amused themselves watching the Pipa girls
arriving at night in Rickshaws. When it was dark, the
rickshaw pullers lit two oil lamps to adorn the rickshaws.
31
They usually arrived in a group at night. It was a colourful
display of lights and beautiful ladies with attractive make-
up and ankle-length cheongsums. The Pipa girls were
usually brought up by Majies as their foster daughters,
and were taught the fine art of entertaining men from
young. They were also taught to play the Pipa, a Chinese
lute musical instrument. The Pipa girls would pose a
real challenge to the Japanese geishas.
32
Chapter Five
Festivities and Celebrations
33
the cow herder and the maid. They usually present fruit
and burn joss sticks and incense in the open air, chiefly
on rooftops, in backyards and gardens or at back lanes.
For Yip, there was a great deal of activity at his mother’s
shop house, since his mother operated a Seven Sister
Club with contributions from the Majies staying there.
Members would receive roast pork and other valuables
on that day and gathered for dinner at the premises. At
the back lane of the shop house, Mak would hang on the
wall a big Seven Sisters Plate. Below this was an altar
for prayers, displaying roast pork and other things used
as offerings to the seven fairy maidens.
34
Hungry Ghosts Festival
Hindu Worship
35
A Hindu devotee at a Hindu Temple
36
Awesome is the word. The spectacle of Hindu devotees
assembled with their kavadi at the Hindu Temple in
Chinatown and the solemn religious procession that
followed, created a sense of awe in young minds like
Yip, but he was ready to capture the spectacle with a
camera, since the temple was just a stone’s throw
away from his house.
Kavadi
37
Penance
Thaipusam
38
the two Hindu temples. They watched with fearful hearts
as the devotees carrying the kavadi passsed by .
39
celebration of Thaipusam, Deepavali or other religious
ceremonies like fire walking, or the offer of the first
coconut to dignitaries. Deepavali or Diwali is a festival
of lights. On this day, the entire nation gets together
with the Hindus in celebrating the victory of good over
evil.
40
was to capture the same beauty that he spent his last
six hours on the fateful evening on 16th September 1989
taking pictures of the lantern festival at the Chinese
Garden. It was his passion as an artist to try to capture
such beauty to perfection.
Lantern Dance
41
Chapter Six
Love and Marriage
A chance meeting
42
Modern Marriages - some reflections
43
that he has to face a barrage of complaints every time
he returns from a hard day’s work at the office.
44
So, it is not surprising that the average working man
feels unhappy at home when he faces a daily dose of
complaints from his wife. He may choose to keep quiet.
If he opens his mouth, every word he utters could meet
with a sharp retort, often laced with poisonous
belittlement, ridicule and scorn.
For young people like Yip and Lin in the old days when
the world faced the great depression, and when life was
a constant struggle for survival, love and marriage might
not go completely together like horse and carriage, but
the “carriage” represented either by the “sedan chair”
or the household in marriage in its literary or symbolic
45
sense, was real, strong and enduring; and it took couples
to their destination. The “carriages” in modern marriage
have wheels - will travel, and have spare tyres.” They
could take each partiner to different destinations and
can move in all directions on the long road of life. That
is the difference.
46
For some families, consulting the book of astrology and
determining that the respective dates and hours of birth
would be matching and could bring good luck and good
fortune to the respective households would be most
important. The marriage ceremony often intertwined with
praying to ancestors and to the Heaven.
47
disruptive phenomenon known as broken homes and
displaced or broken children or juvenile delinquency. The
issue is controversial and is best left to politicians,
sociologists and reformists to continue with their
arguments.
The Matchmaker
48
Choo then presented the betrothal gifts to Ah Kow,
enclosing the betrothal letter. The gifts included tea, lotus
seeds, longan, red beans, green beans, red dates, nutmeg,
oranges, pomegranate, lily, bridal cakes, coconuts, wine,
red hair braid, and a money box. Later a wedding date
was picked after consultation with both families.
49
glutinous rice balls or tangyuan using glutinous rice flour,
and offered them to the bride’s aides as a customary
gesture of thanks.
50
In the evening there was a grand feast for the relatives
and friends. At the dinner, the couple had to toast to the
guests to pay their thanks. There was some good-natured
ragging of both bride and bridegroom after the wedding
feast, but such bridal ragging was well handled by the
experienced majies, who were paid about a hundred
dollars each for their services.
51
Chapter Seven
The realities of life
A humble start
From that point on, after Yip married Lin, the grocery
shop had a new shopkeeper, a shrewd businesswoman
who kept a steady hand over the various business
ventures in which they became involved.
52
English education or Chinese education?
53
But due to the existence of overcrowded working class
quarters, secret societies, and brothels and against the
background of rising nationalist sentiment in and from
China, Chinatown was not always peaceful.
54
flags, and no procession. But on the day, things went
out of control. There were groups of activists at the
meeting. They started making speeches and turned the
meeting into a procession. Large crowds joined the
procession and when the procession reached the Kreta
Ayer area, trouble started.
55
The Depression years
56
heavy bags of rice and other things in the harbour and in
the godowns. One day, he did not return home. The police
reported to the family that he was crushed to death when
several heavy boxes fell on him.
Fortunate for him, Yip provided him and his family with
a shelter. He was given free board and lodging, living
with the Majies in a cubicle at Kreta Ayer Road. He
helped Lin once in a while at the grocery shop, bringing
goods to customers’ homes, a chore he disliked very
much. He considered himself a Chinese scholar of sorts.
The job appeared to be menial to him. Frustrations and
disappointments continued to build up in his heart.
57
Chapter Eight
58
1937. No one really expected that soon war would engulf
him or her. Singapore was so safe; and the British forces
were so strong. Moreover, the British had built a huge
naval base, which was deemed to be an impregnable
fortress.
59
were now in Japanese hands. Without air support, the
British ships were easy targets for the Japanese air force,
which sunk them both on December 10.
The main Japanese force moved quickly to the western
side of the peninsula and began sweeping down the single
north-south road. The Japanese divisions were equipped
with about 18,000 bicycles. Whenever the invaders
encountered resistance, they detoured through the forests
on bicycles or took to the sea in collapsible boats to
outflank the British troops, encircle them, and cut their
supply lines. Penang fell on December 18, Kuala Lumpur
on January 11, 1942, and Malacca on January 15. The
Japanese occupied Johore Bahru on January 31 and the
last of the British troops crossed to Singapore, blowing
a fifty-meter gap in the causeway behind them. On the
night of February 8, using collapsible boats, the Japanese
landed under cover of darkness on the northwest coast
of Singapore. By dawn, despite determined fighting by
Australian troops, the Japanese had two divisions with
their artillery established on the island. By the next day
the Japanese had seized Tengah Airfield and gained
control of the causeway, which they repaired in four
days.
Within two months, the Japanese conquered Peninsular
Malaya, and ready to march down the causeway to
Singapore. Meanwhile, Japanese airplanes started air
raids, bombing Singapore and killing about 2,000 people
daily
60
By this time, fear and pandemonium gripped every
household, and fleeing refugees from Malaya caused
panics with their stories of torture and massacre. It was
sad commentary to see large numbers of whites,
especially white bosses scrambled for safety, the moment
they heard news of Japanese attacks. Some from Penang
and other Malayan towns fled to Singapore in the middle
of the night on 16th December 1941, but they found to
their chagrin that they had to leave Singapore because
of imminent attacks by the Japanese. The locals did not
flee and had to face the Japanese stoically, after their
white leaders left them to their fate.
It was bad enough for the people to know that Japanese
attacks were imminent. But in Chinatown, the British
government decided not to build air-raid shelters,
believing that the streets were already too dangerously
crowded. Instead, residents were encouraged to take
shelter away from the city. That was hardly practical
for people who needed to carry on earning a living. So
when Japanese bombers arrived in December 1941,
Chinatown suffered very badly with plentiful deaths and
destruction.
61
In Chinatown, Yip volunteered for civil defence work
as an ARP (Air Raid Personnel). Others formed medical
support and fire fighting groups. As the shop houses at
Kreta Ayer Road were not fire-safe, Yip sent his family
off to a flat in Tiong Bahru, which was a relatively new
housing estate, and the buildings were made of concrete.
He remained behind in the Chinatown shop house with
his brother-in-law, Ah Kow.
62
this rapid invasion as all of their guns and cannons had
been permanently mounted pointing out towards the
ocean. By February 20 the Japanese had seized Bukit
Timah, the highest point on the island providing a good
view of the island and access to other parts of Singapore.
It soon led to the British surrender, and the beginning of
a long nightmare for people living in Chinatown.
63
Japanese Occupation, in retribution for support given by
the Singapore Chinese to China in its struggle against
Japan.
64
Japanese movement had already escaped. Some were
reported to have fled to peninsula Malaya where they
formed the Malayan People’s Anti-Japanese Army.
65
exercise and the atrocities were strong enough to
struggle on. Fortunately, the communal spirit was there.
People helped one another. The Japanese issued ration
cards for collection of rice or noodles made from palm
oil and other food items at the People’s Park market.
They also allocated plots of vacant land for cultivation
of tapioca and vegetables to the local people to enable
them to survive.
66
Perhaps it was the picture of a man seen at the Hilltop
one sunny morning. He was found lying in a heap, naked
and bleeding from a deep gash in his throat. His forehead
was badly bruised and he was semiconscious. The
Kempeitei dumped him there to languish or die. Perhaps,
it was a picture of some men shot as spies by those who
opposed the Japanese regime, and some were hung by
the neck on branches of trees at the Hilltop. Those were
haunting images, which sometimes ran wild in his mind.
67
Inflation grew to such an extent that the Japanese notes
became almost useless, and commonly referred to as
“banana notes.” Shonan became a miserable pit for
despairing souls, a place where speculation, profiteering,
bribery, and corruption were the order of the day.
69
they were meting out justice like self-appointed heroes.
It’s like the aftermath of the French Revolution.
70
frustrated and angry because they could not find suitable
jobs. Mun worked for a while as a coolie in the harbour,
like his grandfather, but he could not stand the physical
strain of having to carry heavy loads, every day of the
week. As an intellectual, his disillusionment in life led
him to seek the company of other discontented young
people in the neighbourhood. With good jobs offered to
them as apprentices, the two young men should have
become less frustrated, because the engineering industry
offered them good prospects at a time when
industrialization geared up in the postwar years.
71
to make your heart flutter. Your heart would go throbbing
wildly as you heard the unmistakable ketok-ketok
sounds from the wooden clogs getting nearer to you.
Some Chinese men and women still wear wooden clogs
at home in the kitchen, but it was common for the mai-
char-mui to walk in wooden clogs to serve customers.
72
Aerial view of Chinatown with the
People’s Park Market on the right.
Fire destroyed the market in 1966.
To everyone at the engineering workshop, it began as
an ordinary Monday morning. Mun started the day
slowly, chatting with some of the mechanics. His friend,
Ah Chai was drinking coffee at the kitchen. The first
sign of disturbance came at 10 am when Yip dashed in
to use the telephone. Something horrible had happened.
Mun heard some loud moaning noises. He rushed into a
room, and found his father cradling his young sister, Ah
Mui. He looked closer and found her foaming in the
mouth. Everyone was standing there, watching the dying
girl writhing and turning in pain, with tears streaming
down their faces. After a while, an ambulance came
and took her to the hospital.
73
Ah Mui was in the Operation Theatre for a long time.
Ah Kow, Mun and Yip were there. They were startled
to learn that the girl had swallowed caustic soda. They
knew at once that there was little chance for her. She
had left a suicide note indicating that her boy friend had
forsaken her. She had chosen to die for unrequited love.
It was in this note that she recorded the specifics of her
anguish, tears and fears. She spelt out details of her
desperation, loneliness, sleeplessness, and pangs of
heartaches and pain and moments of despair. No one,
near and dear to her, had known her suffering, sorrows
and affliction. No one knew about her love affair, or the
name of her boy friend. Ah Mui had been reticent. She
kept everything to herself.
74
In Ah Mui’s case, it may be love lost or not reciprocated.
But it is inane and useless to treat love between
individuals, as though it is the highest form of love. Agape
love, or the love reflected in biblical teachings is the
supreme form of love. Human life is transient; so is
human love. It is futile to place romantic love on a
pedestal of virtue and righteousness, because human
nature is unpredictable and weak and even close human
relationships are fragile and frail, when the chips are
down.
75
It was a cool day. Instead of going to work, Mun walked
around the streets of Chinatown. He went into a coffee
shop and ordered a cup of coffee. Then he bought the
newspapers and started reading it. News of communist
advance in China covered the front page. The KMT
forces retreated to Taiwan. There was excitement in
his veins, and images swamped his mind. Painful
memories of his dead sister bombarded him like shrapnel,
piercing his mind.
76
The story of the arrest of Mun and Ah Chai and other
communist sympathizers did not end there. Soon after
their arrests, the two Special Branch Officers who
disguised themselves as hawkers disappeared. It was
rumoured that they had been killed, and their bodies were
found at the bottom of a staircase.
77
Lin cried and mourned for him in anguish for weeks, but
she was able to pick herself up and continue to look
after the grocery shop and do the household chores.
78
sinsehs were summoned to attend to the patients, but
generally they were left to die. The weeks that followed
were depressing for the family, seeing Mak sleeping
there in a drowsy and semiconscious state. Lin had
preparations for the moment of death. She had taken
out a black wooden box where she had kept Mak’s new
clothing, shoes, a comb, gold plaited ornaments and other
paraphernalia for the preparations.
79
start a life in Hong Kong. She started a family there.
With the death of her husband, she made another bold
move and took her family to Singapore to seek a better
life. Hers was a spirit of hope and faith, of perseverance
and endurance, and of adaptability and tolerance. Never
mind what the challenge were; never mind the humiliation
- she persisted with sweat, blood and tears to raise her
family and fulfilled her dreams of securing a future for
them.
80
much for her family in Singapore, because any surplus
money and extras were frequently remitted to feed and
clothe her relatives in China. Her daughter-in-law, Lin
continued with this practice for many years.
81
Failing to achieve much with her food stall, Mak turned
part of her shop premises into a factory to manufacture
joss sticks with the help of Yip. For a few years, the
marketing of Zi-Zi-Xiang was successful, but it was
discontinued when such factory operation did not get
government approval. Mak switched to the preparation
of Cha chai, a crude form of powder for hair wash for
old ladies; this also failed.
82
A mother’s love - people tend to take this for granted.
In the hustle and bustle of modern living with one’s
senses being bombarded by alluring sounds from popular
music and songs, noises from all directions and sources,
and the sights and sounds of all sorts of fads and fetishes
of modern culture, the simple gesture and expression of
love and kindness is often unnoticed and easily forgotten.
If tears were indelible ink in a mother’s eyes, her face
would have been completely stained and smeared for
life as she struggled through the twists and turns of life
and the heartaches and broken dreams of raising a
family.
83
Yip had not been using his cameras for sometime. Fear
of the Japanese drove him to put photography aside. He
had hidden his cameras and photographic equipment
during the three years of Japanese Occupation. Under
the British Military Administration, he resumed the
activity. On liberation day, he was seen with his cameras,
taking pictures of the Japanese surrender, and the
Commonwealth troops.
84
son, who had undergone such apprenticeship training,
eventually went to England to study engineering. After
graduating from a British university, he became the chief
railway signals engineer of the Malayan Railway. Yip’s
second son, who was also trained as an apprentice in
his workshop, became a school teacher, but because of
his engineering experience and interest, he received
further training in technical studies and was later
appointed as Head of a Technical Institute in later years.
85
Yip, the photographer with a unique camera
86
Chapter Ten
Those Turbulent Years
87
although by then, Maria had already embraced Islam.
Maria was then placed under the custody of the Social
Welfare Department. Aminah then appealed and on 28
July 1950, Maria was returned to Aminah. A marriage
was hastily arranged and on 1st August 1950, Maria
was married to a 22-year old Malay teacher. On 13
November 1950, the Hertoghs revived their custody
battle. The Judge then ruled that Maria be returned to
her biological parents on the ground that the girl’s
father was not consulted when Aminah took her off to
Bandung. The court also decided that the girl be placed
in a Christian convent pending her return to the
Netherland. This caused uproar with the Muslim
community. Calls were even made in the Sultan Mosque
to start a holy war to return Maria to Aminah if all legal
avenues yielded no result.
88
Muslim girl in a Christian convent appeared in
newspapers and that aroused the religious feelings of
the local Muslims. So when the Appeal Court sat to
hear Maria’s case on 11 December 1950, and threw out
Aminah’s appeal after only five minutes, the crowds that
gathered outside the court and at the Padang became
inflamed. They felt that the judge sided with the
Caucasians.
89
After this incident, Henry felt extremely remorseful. His
whole life had changed. He was depressed but managed
to pull himself together. He later embraced Islam.
90
An angry mob
91
But people in Chinatown were hardly affected, as the
rampaging crowd singled out only Caucasians for
attacks. Little did the Chinese community realize that a
few years later, they would be affected by the Hock
Lee Bus riots.
92
in black ink and lightly made a tiny mark on a negative.
He blew on the negative to dry the ink. It was afternoon.
93
faced strikes and student unrest, started by pro-
communist politicians.
It started off with the Hock Lee Bus workers who were
members of pro-communist trade unions staging a strike.
They protested against the work rosters and tried to stop
buses from leaving the depots. Later on, the strikers
went on a hunger strike and picketed the bus depot. In
April 1955 the police tried to break up the strikers,
resulting in 15 of them being injured.
94
government. The workers went on strikes supported by
students from the Chinese Middle Schools, who provided
song-and-dance for their entertainment. Eventually, some
students organized sit-ins at schools as well. The Hock
Lee Bus Riots was the most serious and bloody of the
275 strikes in 1955.
Less than a year later, major riots again broke out at the
18 March 1956 Merdeka Rally at Kallang Airport. Fifty
people were injured. Following this, a curfew for the
first time was imposed. Later that year, more communist-
inspired riots occurred resulting in the death and injury
95
of a few people. Despite the riots, Singapore was given
full self-government in 1957 by the British
with Lim Yew Hock at the helm.
Merdeka
96
and children were manhandled and their belongings and
goods were taken away.
97
The myriads of Street hawkers
The hawker problem was tackled in a comprehensive
way since 1968 when an island-wide census was carried
out. Following this, hawkers were registered, who were
then issued with temporary hawking licenses. Later on,
hawker centres were built, and in 1970, an exercise to
re-site the hawkers was started. In Chinatown, at the
corner of Smith Street stood one of the many hawker
centres controlled by the Environment authorities.
98
Singapore’s desire for a Malaysian Malaysia, the Federal
Government, which insisted on special rights for the
Malays, decided on separation. Singapore became a
nation in 1965.
99
are one historically. Links between peoples could not be
easily severed like political relations. People travelled
to and from the causeway, whether for work, business,
and leisure or for visits to relatives and friends. The social
links between the people are inextricably bound.
‘We are safe for the time being. Just now, a small mob
came, armed with knives and parangs. They knocked at
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the door of our Kenny Hill house, but our Malay
neighbours intervened and persuaded them to go away.
We have bolted our doors, and some of our Malay
neighbours kept us company. They were protecting us
from any intruders. I heard things are pretty bad in town.
We are all right in this estate with so many friends staying
closely together. They are mainly Malay employees of
the Malayan Railway. Please do not be unduly worried.
Do call again after a short while.’
His wife, Lin went to the family altar and started praying.
She knelt there in solemn prayer, holding some joss sticks
in her hands. In moments of crisis, she appeared to be
strong and knew exactly what to do. Then she went to
the back of the house, and started praying again to some
other altars. The rest of the family just stood around,
listening to the news, and wringing their hands.
101
Yip Cheong Fun in a pensive mood
102
Chapter Eleven
China revisited
103
Yip landed with a few friends at the Bai Yun Airport in
Guangzhou after a few hours’ flight. After waiting for a
very long time, they managed to retrieve their luggage,
and made their way to the Chinese immigration. The
immigration officer checked the passports against a huge
book containing thousands of presumably blacklisted
names in handwriting. Computer was not used, and the
process of checking took a long time. They then spilled
out with their heavy luggage to the airport exits, where
they were greeted by a sea of people, all dressed in
blue, as though they were wearing some sort of uniform.
Because of their distinctive attire in lounge suits, there
was no difficulty for the two Chinese officials to find
them. Both spoke Putonghua. They appeared to be
high-ranking officers of the government from Beijing.
104
room door every time a hotel guest needed to enter it.
In the room, the two Chinese officials gave a short
briefing to the group before leaving the hotel. They
promised to take the group for sightseeing the next day.
105
advantage to hold just the Foreign Exchange Certificates,
with which you could not purchase food items from the
small eating-houses. The problem was resolved when
the group got hold of some Ren Minbi and some ration
coupons, and managed to exchange them for some cheap
local food items from the food stalls meant for local
people.
106
It was a cold day when the group reached Nanking. A
long ride from the Airport to the town centre followed.
Here the streets were also crowded with bicycles and
trishaws. The streets were noisy - noisy with bells and
yells.
107
twice his age. He looked haggard, scraggy and hollow-
eyed. He wore a blue shirt that looked too large for his
thin body. There were just a few strands of hair on his
balding head, and only a few front teeth could be seen
in his mouth. It was obvious that the hardships he
suffered had taken a toll on him. By his side was a plumb
lady who spoke with a strong country accent.
Accompanying her was a pretty young girl wearing a
floral dress and carrying a camera.
108
from the authorities. So Mun and his family managed to
see Nanking for the first time. To him, it was an important
occasion, and he told Yip very clearly that he spent a
fortune having to take a train ride with his family to
Nanking.
Mun introduced the plumb lady as his wife and the pretty
young girl as his daughter who was studying to be a
photographer. She showed him the camera she was
carrying, which appeared to be an ordinary camera with
very little features. Yip was delighted to find someone
related to him in China, who shared his interest in
photography.
109
In the days that followed, Yip gave the grandniece a
camera and many tips on how to take a good photograph.
The Chinese family also followed his friends around,
taking photographs and sightseeing. The scenic beauty
of the Yangtze River was breath taking, but occasionally
they were startled by the appearance of soldiers patrolling
around the riverbanks. The soldiers looked suspiciously
at the visitors, and created some fear amongst them. At
that time, there were few foreign visitors going to cities
like Nanking. Anybody not dressed in blue or in army
uniform would arouse curious and sometimes
uncomfortable stares.
110
immigration checkpoint, he was amazed to see a vast
crowd. It was a stark contrast. Everything seemed
different.
111
There was no longer a picture of militarism. Gone were
the men in green uniform, not just the soldiers, but also
the “comrades” who used to don the military garb to
show their patriotism. It would be foolishness to think
that the soldiers just disappeared overnight. They were
just kept somewhere in barracks and training camps, or
were in civilian dress.
112
As Yip hopped into a taxicab, the meters were turned
on. One distracting feature was the radio communication
between cab drivers. Immediately, one would know that
they were from another province in the north in the way
they gossiped with one another through the radio
communication, while they were driving. They told each
other where they were heading, including what roads to
avoid. It’s almost like children playing with their toy
walkie-talkies.
113
latest Mercedes, Honda, Citroen or Toyota to aged old
Volkswagens and China manufactured cars.
114
Like any modern society, the mobile phone had become
the latest status symbol. People in China used hand
phones to a greater extent, because they were cheap
and the charges for calls were no different from the
house phones. Moreover, the phone numbers could be
retained indefinitely. Just look at the billboards. The
number to call in the advertisements was a mobile phone
number. Even the taxicab driver was using the mobile
phone, while the car sped along the expressway, with
Yip in the back seat.
115
The commercial hub of the city resembled those of any
modern city. Shopping centres, fast food restaurants,
discotheques, massage centres, modern offices, and golf
clubs, day care centres – all these could be found. There
was an air of new freedom.
116
They were ecstatic when they met Yip. Xiang, an old
lady with many grandchildren was in her sixties, but she
looked much older. Her hair was white. She was bent
with age, and there were deep wrinkles on her tired
face. This was a woman who had struggled to bring up
her children. Backbreaking work and onerous duties had
taken their toll on her. But in recent years, things had
turned around for her. Her daughter married a rich and
successful businessman from Hong Kong and they were
living in a huge mansion.
117
farms and ponds as farmers and fishermen, and
undertook various kinds of rural jobs.
118
Chapter Twelve
Photography as a creative art
The ‘Grand Old Man of Photography’ - that’s what
the newspapers called Yip Cheong Fun before and after
his death. We have given here in some detail, information
about his life and times. Some examples of pictures taken
by him and exhibited recently in various countries are
shown here to shed some light about his creative
photography, that has captured the imagination of many
young photographic enthusiasts in Singapore.
Rowing at Dawn
120
Yip’s dark room techniques enable him to work on tone
and texture thus bringing life to still pictures. Through
his darkroom skills, he could make pictures vivid like
paintings, and to achieve this, he often combined the
negatives of different pictures into one print. Like the
painter who used different brushes and strokes and a
selection of colours, he developed pictures that resembled
paintings, using lights and shadows in different tones and
textures and occasionally embellished with silhouettes
and other lines and forms in great detail. International
salons wrote about him as master of darkroom
techniques. They praised his ability to “burn in”
superfluous details, thus forcing the viewer to
concentrate only on what he wanted. He also
experimented with infrared film and solarisation.
A Fishing Boat
Even human activities related to the sea, can pose a
great challenge to the photographer. Fishing or casting
the net or children playing on the beach can be a real
fascination.
122
The Long Haul of the Fishing Net
123
Another element that drives the creative process in art
is empathy. To express such feelings in paintings or
poetry requires a process of identification with others.
In photography, just clicking a button cannot do this. A
great deal of patience to capture the mood and
expressions of the subject, and painstaking work to
produce the texture and tone that best display the
emotional qualities, is needed in the dark room.
Just watch the face of the old lady. She went daily to
Raffles Place pouring her heart out over the untimely
death of her son who fell from the scaffolding of a tall
building there. Those feelings in her heart have been
captured in this portraiture.
124
Take this further to child portraiture. Photography is the
best tool for the artist to capture the innocence and
purity of childhood, and the many moods and expressions
and the dynamic interplay of social relationships affecting
little children.
Curiosity
For the photographer, each picture tells a story, a
distillation of thoughts and emotions - a study of the
essence of childhood itself, whether this is expressed in
the spark of life in the child’s eyes, the smiles on their
faces, their mischievous glances or expressive
movements or even their tears. That is what child
portraiture is about.
125
Those eyes and hands
A kampong boy
126
Dark room work can also produce certain special effects
evident in some of the photographs .................
Rare Beauty
Silhouettes
127
Women at work - Samsui women in old Singapore
128
Tranquillity in the pond
130
A fishmonger in Chinatown
131