<![CDATA[For Singapore's 54th birthday, Mahathir, Jokowi are welcome. Raffles' ghost, not so much]>
Singapore on Friday staged a grander-than-usual National Day parade as the Lion City marked its 54th birthday alongside a "commemoration" of the 200th anniversary of the landing of the British colonialist Sir Stamford Raffles.
Joining an estimated 250,000 spectators who flocked to the celebrations in the evening in the city state's historic Padang area were the leaders of its three closest neighbours: Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei.
The Singapore government said Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Indonesia's President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo and Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah were invited to the one-of-a-kind celebration to showcase the city state's "deep historical ties with these countries".
He's invited: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Photo: Instagram alt=He's invited: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Photo: Instagram
The procession featured some 2,700 performers and military personnel, and the Singapore Armed Forces, the region's best equipped fighting force, rolled out 171 armoured battle vehicles that later traversed the island republic in a "mobile armoured column" after an inspection by President Halimah Yacob.
Among the highlights of the two-hour parade was a fly-past by F-15 fighter jets and a fireworks display at the end.
Also a crowd favourite was the heartfelt rendition of the multiracial country's Malay language national anthem Majulah Singapura [Onward Singapore] performed by veteran local rocker Ramli Sarip.
A special segment before the formal military parade feted organisations such as the Singapore General Hospital and the Singapore Post Office, which have existed since the 1800s, when Britain transformed the city into one of its most important colonial outposts.
Raffles, upon landing in Singapore in 1819, took control of the island through surreptitious means from a monarch of the Malay state of Johor, paving the way for 140 years of colonial rule.
Singapore gained limited self governance in 1959, and became a fully independent nation in 1965 after a two-year union with Malaysia failed.
On the eve of Friday's festivities, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the year-long "bicentennial" celebration offered a fresh perspective on how the country could draw on its history to deal with looming global problems.
Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Photo: AFP alt=Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Photo: AFP
"We face grave challenges. One " economic uncertainties, with trade and globalisation under pressure. Two " strategic risks, with growing frictions between the major powers. And three " existential threats, with global warming and rising sea levels," Lee said in his National Day message.
"But our past gives us confidence. Throughout our history, when trials and tribulations have beset us, we picked ourselves up, and worked together to overcome them."
The bicentennial celebrations, featuring heritage tours, light art installations and musical shows funded by the government have not come without controversy.
Some critics have charged that Lee's government, by lauding the progress the island had made since Raffles's landing, were whitewashing British colonial rule.
The specially formed Singapore Bicentennial Office later stressed that the line-up of activities was a "commemoration", and not a "celebration" of colonialism, as naysayers had claimed.
Unwelcome guest: Stamford Raffles. File photo alt=Unwelcome guest: Stamford Raffles. File photo
The National Day festivities will be followed on August 18 by an annual policy speech by Lee.
There had been some expectations earlier this year that the People's Action Party he leads " co-founded by his late father Lee Kuan Yew " would trigger elections some time after National Day to benefit from the buoyant national mood usually prevalent during the August festivities.
In the city state's last election in 2015, Singapore celebrated the 50th anniversary of its independence, also rolling out a similar year-long jamboree.
Singaporeans celebrate the country's 50th National Day in Singapore. Photo: AFP alt=Singaporeans celebrate the country's 50th National Day in Singapore. Photo: AFP
This, coupled with the death of Lee Kuan Yew, the country's revered independence leader, gave the PAP a handsome victory in the polls. It took 69 per cent of the popular vote " its best electoral showing since it came to power in 1959.
But political observers told This Week in Asia there were stark differences between the 2015 celebrations and the ongoing bicentennial commemoration.
"I don't think Singaporeans are animated by the bicentennial celebrations as they were with SG50 [the 50th National Day]," said political analyst Bilveer Singh from the National University of Singapore.
Similarly, long-time political observer Eugene Tan felt that compared to the events in 2015, the bicentennial commemoration thus far had not significantly resonated with Singaporeans.
Tan, a law professor at Singapore Management University, said: "I am sceptical that there is any dividend that can be capitalised on regardless of whether elections are held this year or next year."
Keenly watched on Friday was the presence of the foreign leaders at Friday's parade " in particular that of Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, 94.
The elder statesman received a warm welcome from the crowd as he entered the VIP area to take his seat next to his wife Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali.
Indonesia's leader Widodo and Brunei's Sultan Bolkiah were also accompanied by their respective spouses.
He's invited: Indonesian President Joko Widodo. Photo: AP alt=He's invited: Indonesian President Joko Widodo. Photo: AP
Singaporeans widely perceive Mahathir, in the prime minister's seat for the second time after his shock defeat of one-time protege Najib Razak last year, as having hawkish views about the Lion City.
Bilateral ties had been warm during the Najib era, but suffered a downturn soon after the May polls as the neighbours in December and January quarrelled over a range of issues including air space and maritime boundaries. But relations have since returned to an even keel after Lee and Mahathir struck an accord at a retreat in April.
The Malaysian foreign ministry said on Thursday that Mahathir would meet Lee before the start of the parade. It said Mahathir's latest visit "symbolises the close bilateral relations between the two countries".
This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
Copyright (c) 2019. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
