Chapter 5

Did the Japanese Occupation Change the

Way People Viewed Singapore?
I See… I Think… I Wonder…
I Connect
Jan 1942: Women mourn the loss of their loved ones
during one of the frequent Japanese air raids on
Singapore during which thousands died.
So you think you know the
J.O. well?
Take the Truth or Lie
challenge NOW!
Did the Japanese Occupation Change the
Way People Viewed Singapore?
 Change takes place
1942-1945, when
when something is
Singapore was under
different from its
the rule of the Japanese
original state or what it
military government
used to be

Did the Japanese Occupation change

the way people viewed Singapore?
Immigrants + The different ways in which
those born in people viewed Singapore
Singapore
1) Singapore as ‘home’
2) British as rulers of
Singapore
3) Singapore as an
‘impregnable fortress’
 Historical concept: Change &
Continuity
• Change takes place when something is
different from its original state or what it used
to be. If it remains the same, there is
continuity.

• Something or someone causes change to take

place.
Did the Japanese Occupation change
the way people viewed Singapore?
The different ways in which people viewed
Singapore

1) Singapore as ‘home’
2) British as rulers of Singapore
3) Singapore as an ‘impregnable fortress’
 Singapore as ‘Home’:
Before the Japanese Occupation

• Group Investigation:

Read Sources A-E and answer the questions in

Annex A:
Source A – Account by an Indian immigrant who
came to Singapore to look for work in the 1930s

Their [Indian immigrants’] main intention was to

earn money and go back to India. They came to
Singapore not to stay here permanently. Their
main aim was to earn and send money to India,
and go back and live in India.
Source B – Adapted from textbook, pages 11-13

The immigrants felt attached to their homelands. They kept updated on the
developments in their countries of origin in the early 20th century.

For example:
1. The Indian immigrants supported Mahatma Ghandi’s movement to gain
independence from Singapore through the activities of the Indian Youth League.

2. Many Chinese in Singapore also contributed funds to China to support the

revolutionary movement in removing the weak and corrupt Qing government.
Some even returned to China to fight against the Qing government. When the
Qing government was overthrown in 1911, many Chinese men cut off their
queues, a pigtail hairstyle that was required by the Qing government, to show
their patriotism towards China.
Source C – a news article
taken from the Singapore
Free Press, 3 Oct 1938.

The first paragraph reads, “Singapore

Indians, men and women, mostly dressed
in khaddar with Gandhi caps on,
crowded into Farrer Park yesterday to
celebrate the 70th birthday of Mahatma
Gandhi, the Indian leader.”
Source D – adapted from textbook page 14

There were also people who did think of Singapore as

their permanent home. These were usually those who
were born in Singapore and had lived in Singapore for a
long time. Singapore was where their families and friends
were. Some of them went to English-medium schools and
adopted Western lifestyle. They took pride in being
British subjects. Because of their English education, they
could work in the British colonial service.
Source E – S.R. Nathan’s account, written in 1924

My family has been in Singapore for two

generations. We do not know exactly where my
forebears originated, but it was somewhere in
southern India. I never knew much about my
father’s background… we were localised – my
mother was very Malay in her style of dress. India
did not figure at all in in our lives.
Answer the following questions:
People’s views before the Japanese Occupation (Singapore
as ‘home’):

1) Were people born in Singapore or did they come from

other countries?
2) Did those who came from other countries want to stay
in Singapore permanently?
3) Did they have family and friends in Singapore?
4) Were they interested in contributing to Singapore or to
other countries?
 Singapore as ‘home’
1) Were people born in Singapore or did they come from other
countries? Some were born in Singapore, most from other
countries
2) Did those who came from other countries want to stay in
Singapore permanently? no
3) Did they have family and friends in Singapore? Those who came
from other countries had not many family and friends, but those
who were born in Singapore did have family and friends here.
4) Were they interested in contributing to Singapore or to other
countries? Yes (for those who were born in Singapore) and No
(for those who came to Singapore just to look for jobs)
 What does Source B tell you about the Japanese soldiers? Explain your answer.
 
• Source B A cartoon about life in
Singapore during the Japanese Occupation
 
Did the Japanese Occupation change
the way people viewed Singapore?
The different ways in which people viewed
Singapore

1) Singapore as ‘home’
2)British as rulers of Singapore
3) Singapore as an ‘impregnable fortress’
 British as Rulers of Singapore
• The British believed that they were superior.
Thus, there was very little local involvement in
the government. Even the well-qualified local
people were not given important positions in
the government. They were only involved as
non-official members in the Legislative
Council and had very little influence over
government policies.
 British as Rulers of Singapore
• The British were also given privileged treatment.

Source F – adapted from account by Francis Thomas, a British teacher in

Singapore in the 1930s:

“My starting salary of $400 was far higher than Mr Tan Ah Hung’s, even
though Mr Tan was a senior Chinese teacher and had many years of most
valued service. Salary and skin colour were what mattered, not personal
merit and achievement.”

• Some people questioned this unequal system. For example, the local
non-official members in the Legislative Council tried to negotiate for
more local involvement in the government. Others formed
associations such as the Singapore Malay Union to improve the lives
of the people.
 British as Rulers of Singapore
• At the same time, there were people who were
less concerned about Singapore’s political future
and did not question the unequal system.

Stop and think: Why do you think this group of

people were indifferent?
Answer the following questions in Annex
A
British as rulers of Singapore:
1) What was people’s impressions of the
British?
2) Did they respect the British?
3) Did they accept the way the British ruled
Singapore?
1930s: The Japanese threat is looming!

1931: Japan invaded Manchuria

1937: Japan invaded the rest of China.
1938: the USA cut off its oil supply to Japan to
force Japan to end the war. Japan refused and
looked towards Southeast Asia for alternative
sources for raw materials.
Why was the Southeast Asia so attractive
to the Japanese?

• Dutch East
Indies:
abundant oil

• Malaya:
rubber and tin

• Singapore ???
Singapore as an ‘Impregnable Fortress’

• In the 1920s, the British had realised that Japan was a possible
threat to the British Empire and started preparing to resist
Japanese expansion.

• The British
– built a large naval base in Singapore to protect British colonies in
Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. This was
completed in 1938.
– Installed a series of big guns around the coasts of Singapore to protect
against any Japanese invasion by sea.
– Early Dec 1941: Deployed a fleet of warplanes as well as 2 battleships
(HMS Prince of Wales, HMS Repulse) to station in Singapore
 Why impregnable Fortress?

A) Natural Barrier of Malayan Forest

B) Fortification of the island

C) Naval base and support

1)Natural barrier of the Malayan Jungle

• The geography of Malaya is a factor in it defence.

The coastal plains are about fifteen miles in width
and filled with mangrove swamps.
• The mountain range which runs from north to
south is covered with dense jungle and vast areas
which are almost unknown. Roads are few and
heavily guarded.
• Any invading army would be at the mercy of the
defenders securely hidden in the jungle.
Jungle……
• Sharp shooter crew in the Malayan Jungle
The challenges of the Malayan jungle
 2) Fortification of the island
• 15-inch guns mounted on ships and faced the
sea to prevent any attacks from the sea.
• There were many guns/cannons mounted at
strategic areas around the island as well as key
offshore island like Sentosa.
• Building of military airfields and underground
bunkers.
 The Johor Battery,
built in 1939, was the
main artillery battery
of the British coastal
artillery defence
network set up on
the northeast coast
of Singapore.
Fortress and defence
 Singapore:
An impregnable fortress
How did people view the British defences
in Singapore?
• Account by Ismail bin Zain, a clerk in
Singapore in the 1930s:

They [the British] talked about Singapore as an

impregnable fortress. As far as I knew… they
had quite a lot of big guns here… and they had
concrete beach defences… I thought the defence
was quite good.
How did people view the British defences
in Singapore?

A young British army officer complaining that

the newly completed defences in Singapore
might put off the Japanese from landing there:

"I do hope we are not getting too strong in

Malaya because if so the Japanese may
never attempt a landing.”
 3) Naval base and Supports
• ‘Main fleet to Singapore strategy’- Prince of
Wales and Repulse
• Naval base built in Sembawang
• Many people believed that Singapore was safe
as it was well-protected by the British as the
British were known for their naval power.
• They also thought that the ‘white man’ was
superior to other races
Most advanced Naval base
Answer the following questions in Annex
A
Singapore as an ‘impregnable fortress’:

1) Did people feel safe in Singapore?

2) Were they confident about Singapore’s
defences?
3) Were they worried about war?
Why did the British
fail to stop the
Japanese?
 Why did the British fail to stop
the Japanese?
Factors Japanese
Priority - to conquer countries in
SEA for raw materials
- clear objectives of
conquering Singapore
Equipment - had tanks and modern
weapons
- appropriate transport
(bikes)
Leadership - effective and skilful
- effective strategies
- well prepared (had spies)
Troops - well-trained in jungle
warfare
- committed and loyal
British
- war in Europe was more
important
- did not have tanks
- not decisive or forceful
- officers could not agree
with one another
- not well-trained in
jungle warfare
- disorganized and
complacent
 Why did the British fail to stop the
Japanese?

SIA PLANES

Japanese Japanese
Soldiers Zero
Japanese Japanese Fighter
Intellige Imperial Planes
nce Army
 Japanese Intelligence
• The Japanese set up Intelligence Services in
Malaya and Singapore. This provided them
with information on British Defence and
readiness.

• Read the bottom paragraph of page 101 for 5

minutes
 Japanese Soldiers (pg 102)

• Better trained in Jungle Warfare.

• Besides using tanks, they were also able to use

Bicycles to move swiftly down the jungles of
Malaya.
 Japanese Imperial Army
• Had a large modern Airforce and Naval fleet.
• “Would die for the country” fighting spirit and
Kamikazes.
 Japanese Zero Fighter Planes

• Destroyed half of the Old and Outdated British

planes.
 Japanese force: ambitious, resourceful
and well-prepared.
• Before the war, the Japanese set up intelligence services in
Malaya and Singapore to provide information on British defence
and readiness.

• Japanese troops were experienced :

– Had previously fought in Manchuria and China.
– Trained in jungle warfare (knew that bicycles were an appropriate
mode of transport through the jungles)

• The Japanese were determined to achieve victory in Asia. The

soldiers had high morale because of their victory in Pearl
Harbour and in other parts of Asia.

• Modern air force and naval fleet (zero fighter planes)

On the other
hand….
Weakness of the British Army
 Weakness of British Army
• The British thought Tanks were unsuitable for Jungle
warfare.

• They were no match against the Well-Trained

Japanese Soldiers.
 British: overconfident and unprepared,
and tied up elsewhere
The British
– were too complacent. They believed that their
measures to defend Singapore were adequate; that
Singapore was well-defended
– were too overconfident. They did not view the
Japanese as real threats as they had a condescending
attitude towards the Japanese; often referred to them
as “short, yellow, buck-tooth Japs” and thus felt that
the Japanese army, navy and airforce were inferior.
They also believed that they could rely on the US
Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbour if the Japanese really
attacked.
 British: tied up elsewhere
• The British was also fighting a war in Europe
(against Germany and Italy) and North Africa. They
considered Europe and North Africa more important
than the war in Asia and the Pacific region and thus
could not send enough warplanes and battleships to
the Asia and Pacific region to fight against the
Japanese.

• These were the reasons why Singapore fell to the

Japanese in 1942!!!!
 So…
British
Japanese…
Lack of modern
Weapons were modern weapons
Intensive preparations – Opinions of generals
jungle warfare were different
Nice (effective) strategies Strategies used was not
used effective

Spies sent to Malaya and Europe was their main

focus, not Asia
Singapore
Soldiers not experienced
in jungle warfare
Motivational Quote