COMMENT: Why Singapore is so much more than 'misery city'

Just how compassionate are Singaporeans? (Yahoo photo)

Kirsten Han is a Singaporean blogger, journalist and filmmaker. She is also involved in the We Believe in Second Chances campaign for the abolishment of the death penalty. A social media junkie, she tweets at @kixes. The views expressed are her own.

When Charlotte Ashton and her husband moved to Singapore, a friend posted a link on her Facebook wall to a survey revealing Singaporeans to be one of the least positive people in the world. 'Good luck in misery city!' he said.

Ashton's experience in Singapore has now gone on to be a viral op-ed on the BBC's website entitled ' Does Singapore deserve its 'miserable' tag?'. Singaporeans are passing it from one social media profile to another, arguing over how awful it really is to live in Singapore. Some have leapt on the piece as an opportunity to once again rehash complaints about the city, while others insist that Ashton has made it all up.

I don't doubt Ashton's account of crouching on the floor of an MRT train with no one to help her. Nor do I have any interest in participating in any discussion about whether her pregnancy was showing at the time (and even less interest in commenting on how ' chio ' she might be), thus justifying the lack of concern. It was bad that no one helped a woman who was visibly ill, or at least offered her a seat. Someone should have.

Yet the article remains unfortunately superficial throughout. Ashton is of course entitled to share her experience, but there is much more to be looked at in an examination of Singapore as 'misery city'. As someone who has spent the majority of her life here - and admittedly spent quite a lot of that time complaining or criticising this place - reading it left me with a sinking sense that the complexity, nuance and depth of this country had been neglected in favour of a quick-and-easy read.

Seyward Darby recently wrote an excellent article on why the media needs to stop referring to things in terms of ranks. She focused mainly on the reporting of LGBT issues and/or women's rights issues - who hasn't seen the 'Uganda is the worst place to be gay' or 'Afghanistan is the worst place to be a woman' articles? - but her points can also be applied to other forms of ranking.

'First, saying a country is the worst for a particular group of people assumes that pretty much everyone in that group has the same lived experiences,' she writes. 'Problem being, people's circumstances, as we know, vary widely based on factors like income, education, ethnicity, and whether they live in rural or urban areas. ... In short, it is dehumanizing and ultimately unproductive when the media conflate people's experiences under national banners of 'good' or 'bad.''

It highlights my problem with the media scrambling to report on Singapore in terms of our ranking in the world. We're portrayed as the 'least positive', the 'most expensive', the 'most emotionless', on and on and on as one survey or another is trotted out to plague journalists' email inbox with media releases.

(Note: I myself have fallen victim to such reporting, doing fast-writes of such press releases for international publications eager for bite-sized nuggets of information on a country their readers probably know little about.)

But such framing tells us little about what it's actually like to live in Singapore, in the same way that Ashton's anecdotal experience sheds little light on this city. What's the use of wasting our energies arguing if we're the most miserable or not, when there are real problems to be addressed?

I don't think Ashton's wrong; there is a compassion deficit in Singapore. Yet this is not something that can be measured merely in the number of times someone gives up their seat on the MRT, awful though some people on public transport might be.

The compassion deficit should also be discussed in relation to more structural or institutionalised issues.

For example, Singapore's abhorrence of anything that might sound remotely like 'welfare' needs to be looked at. Underneath it lies assumptions about poverty, class and even race that demonstrate a worrying lack of empathy, compassion or even sympathy for others in situations different from one's own.

Our stubborn mantra of 'meritocracy' has not helped, either. It is why we would blame homeless families - incidentally, many of them probably camp near the 'free public BBQ pits of Singapore's beautifully-kept parks' Ashton so loves - for being homeless, rather than see poverty as an issue that needs to be addressed at a structural level.

Like any other country or city, Singapore cannot be simply described in labels that gloss over the diversity of experiences present on this small island. These labels, and the anecdotal accounts that feed into them, rarely offer any real insight into the complexity of our lives, nor do they help us better understand the issues that we face here.

Related articleBBC commentary sparks debate on compassion in Singapore

Missing MH370: Dilemma of giving out timely and accurate information

The authorities managing a crisis wrestle with the dilemma of giving out timely information to families - and the media - desperate for any news while making sure the information is accurate.

This is the challenge facing the Malaysian authorities who are still trying to locate the Boeing 777-200 aircraft that disappeared last Saturday and who have come under fire for giving out conflicting reports in some instances.

Said crisis management expert Rick Clements: 'The aircraft is missing and it has not been found. There is really nothing much the airline can say. Yet it is important that any information that is given must be absolutely accurate and it should come from the official government source.'

Mr Clements headed Singapore Airlines' public relations team during the crashes of a SilkAir flight in 1997 and Singapore Airlines in 2000. Social media makes matters worse now, he said.

'There are always rumours and speculation but in MI185 and SQ006 there was no social media.

'Here, you have speculation from everywhere spreading all over the place like wildfire. Families hear these rumours and they want the airline to comment and, of course, the airline cannot if it is not sure of the facts.'

Without a crash site or even clear leads on what happened to MH370, the Malaysian authorities, including the civil aviation department and military investigators, appear increasingly beleaguered.

Mr Clements, who now runs his own strategic and crisis communications consultancy, said: 'In any air tragedy, the primary focus must be family care and taking care of the survivors, if any. This is mainly the responsibility of the airline.'

Giving out timely and consistent information is also critical.

On both these fronts, SIA did better in 2000 than it did in 1997, said experts.

When SilkAir Flight MI185 plunged into Palembang's Musi River in December 1997, killing all 104 on board, families of victims waited 17 hours before they were taken to the crash site.

Three years later when a Singapore Airlines (SIA) jet crashed in Taipei, arrangements to fly the families were made in less than 12 hours.

That tragedy claimed 82 lives and put many more passengers and crew in hospital, some with extensive burns and injuries.

Apart from anticipating families' needs better, the airline also had a more savvy media response plan.

Less than three hours after SQ006 bound for Los Angeles crashed just before take-off in Taipei, SIA gave its first media briefing in Changi Airport, at 2am.

By 7am, the fourth briefing had started. Four more were conducted before the day ended.

In 1997, the first briefing for relatives was conducted at 9.30pm, more than five hours after the crash.

The next morning, then Communications Minister Mah Bow Tan gave a press briefing.

Yesterday, SIA declined to comment on the lessons learnt in the SilkAir crash that were applied in Taipei beyond saying that in an emergency, a senior management team, comprising all division heads, would be activated.

The department in charge of crisis management conducts regular exercises to ensure everyone is familiar with activation procedures, and roles and responsibilities.

In Singapore, search and rescue operations for air mishaps are provided by the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore in collaboration with the defence and health ministries, Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, the Meteorological Service of Singapore and the Singapore Police Force, among other government and relevant bodies.

Search and rescue operations are conducted through the Singapore Rescue Coordination Centre, which is located at the Singapore Air Traffic Control Centre.

Every country should have such a set-up, experts say.

But with MH370 still missing, managing the growing frustration among the family members and loved ones of those on board is a challenge.

As long as no clues surface, the ordeal will only continue for affected families and the airline, observers said.

karam@sph.com.sg Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Is there a 'massive compassion deficit' in Singapore?

Freelance writer and self-described food lover Charlotte Ashton jumped at the chance to relocate from London to Singapore last year, she says in the biography section of her website.

The Oxford University graduate and former BBC reporter and her husband were happy here until one day, in her 10th week of pregnancy, she felt nauseous while taking the train to work and ended up crouching for 15 minutes because no one offered her a seat.

'For the first time, Singapore had made me feel unhappy. I had been vulnerable - completely reliant on the kindness of strangers. Singaporeans, I felt, had let me down,' she wrote.

Recounting the incident in a BBC Viewpoint piece, she concluded that Singapore suffers from a 'massive compassion deficit'.

MH370: Singapore deploys another plane to help in search operations

Singapore has deployed one more aircraft to help with the ongoing search for the missing Malaysian Airlines plane, MH370. The Republic of Singapore Air Force sent a maritime patrol aircraft with six personnel to scour the seas in the Straits of Malacca. The latest move came after Malaysian authorities widened the search to that area earlier this week.

Here is a statement from Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen: Get the full story from The Straits Times.

Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen has written to Malaysian Defence Minister Dato' Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and Chinese Minister of National Defense General Chang Wanquan to convey Singapore's sympathies and reiterate support for the search-and-locate (SAL) operation for the missing Beijing-bound Malaysian Airlines flight MH370.

At a doorstop with local media today, Dr Ng said: 'I know it must be very difficult for [the families] that despite the search efforts the missing plane has not been located after seven days since it's gone missing. Singapore is not giving up.

'As part of the international efforts, I can say that our servicemen from the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are actively looking for the missing plane and we are not giving up.'

The SAF has deployed additional assistance in the form of a Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) Fokker-50 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (F-50 MPA) to Butterworth Air Base, Malaysia, to assist in the SAL operation in the Malacca Strait.

Since 8 March 2014, the SAF has supported the SAL operation in the South China Sea with C-130 aircraft, a Formidable-class frigate (RSS Steadfast) with a Sikorsky S-70B naval helicopter on board, a Victory-class missile corvette (RSS Vigour) as well as a submarine support and rescue vessel with divers on board.

Viewpoint: Does Singapore deserve its 'miserable' tag?

Singapore's reputation as a wealthy, aspirational and hi-tech country ensures it attracts a great deal of foreign talent - so why is it labelled the world's least positive country?

It was Christmas, but as my husband and I waited for our luggage in the shiny arrivals hall of Changi airport, the internet delivered tidings of no joy.

'Check this out,' posted one friend on my Facebook wall, with a link to a survey of 148 countries in which Singaporeans were revealed to be the least positive people on earth.

At the bottom of the happy pile along with Iraqis, Armenians and Serbians. 'Good luck in misery city!' he wrote.

Over the next few months a happiness battle kicked off around us. Singapore's politicians reinforced their commitment to well-being and Starhub - a mobile network provider - launched an advertising campaign called 'happiness everywhere', full of smiling Singaporeans dancing to plinky-plonky guitar music.

On the other side there emerged, mostly on the internet, an army of discontented souls who applauded the survey for validating their sense that life just seems to be getting harder and more expensive as Singapore gets richer.

Personally, I chose to ignore the public hyperbole and concentrate on what I encountered personally. And sure enough we have found plenty of apparent happiness.

In the free public BBQ pits of Singapore's beautifully-kept parks, for example - always full of jolly families and groups of friends enjoying an evening in the tropical heat over a cool-box of beer.

And in the broad, toothless grin of the septuagenarian vendor at our local food court, who served me my daily dose of delicious, fresh pineapple juice.

And at dinners with our Singaporean friends who did not seem to moan anymore than the rest of us - sure they are battling soaring property prices and the tedium of the corporate ladder, but coming from London that was hardly unfamiliar.

We got on with life on the immaculate island, where social housing estates look like spotless toy towns, crime is pretty much non-existent and you can get a delicious bowl of noodles for $3 (£1.50). If we were living in the misery capital of the world it certainly was not affecting our own sense of happiness.

From Our Own Correspondent Insight and analysis from BBC correspondents, journalists and writers from around the worldBroadcast on Radio 4 and BBC World Service

Until I got pregnant.

Ten weeks of morning sickness ensued, turning my daily commute into a 45-minute gauntlet.

One morning the nausea finally got the better of me just as I had stepped onto a packed train. Worried I was going to faint, I crouched to the floor, holding my head in my hands.

And so I remained, completely ignored, for the full 15 minutes it took to reach my station. Nobody offered me seat or asked me if I was okay.

For the first time Singapore had made me feel unhappy. I had been vulnerable - completely reliant on the kindness of strangers. Singaporeans, I felt, had let me down.

As I sat recovering on the platform I wondered if this was part of the story behind those Gallup poll results. By this time a follow-up to the original survey had been published and according to the figures, Singapore had apparently cheered up quite a lot.

But all I could see was a massive compassion deficit. Or were my fellow passengers that day just unusually uncaring?

'Oh no, I am not surprised at all,' said a Singaporean friend later that day. 'My sister is seven months pregnant and she fell down a packed escalator the other day and had to crawl to the nearest railing to heave herself up. Nobody helped.'

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Another Singaporean friend was equally unsurprised. 'I slipped down a drain last year and cut my leg,' she said. 'It was bleeding badly but nobody stopped to help. Perhaps they were all in a rush.'

Our friend Marcus offered deeper analysis over brunch in a trendy retro cafe. That is not his real name by the way - in this authoritarian democracy, the majority of people are very reluctant to go on the record with anything remotely negative about Singapore.

And negative Marcus is: 'We are programmed to think only about ourselves,' he exclaimed. 'The only thing that matters is money - helping people is not important.'

Marcus is Chinese Singaporean but was educated in Canada. After five years back home he is desperate to leave again, because, he says, Singapore makes him unhappy too.

'In Canada people were helpful and friendly and they respect each other regardless of whether you are a manager or a bus driver.

'The problem here is that we measure everything in dollar bills - personal identity, self-respect, happiness, your sense of worth - it is all linked to how much money you have. But only the top few percent earn serious cash - so everyone else feels worthless and apathetic.'

We went on to discuss the numerous theories about whether it is materialism making Singaporeans unhappy or uncaring - or the fiercely competitive education system, or Confucianism, or the government's historic emphasis on economic growth above all else.

More misery on the Magazine

The debate certainly has not gone away despite the latest set of survey results.

Happily my morning sickness has passed, but despite becoming visibly pregnant, it was still rare for anyone to offer me a seat on the packed commuter train without my having to ask first.

I do not know if I would have had a better time in London, but in the Singaporean rat race you are certainly on your own. An unhappy conclusion, I am afraid, from misery city.

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MH370: Singapore deploys another plane to help in search operations

Published on Mar 14, 2014

Singapore is deploying one more aircraft to help with the search of the missing Malaysian Airlines plane, MH370. The Republic of Singapore Air Force will send a maritime patrol aircraft with six personnel to scour the seas in the Straits of Malacca. This, after Malaysian authorities widened the search to that area.

Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said the Malaysians have accepted the additional help, and the plane will take off on Friday afternoon.

The plane has a longer range and can cover greater distances; it also has better radar capabilities. It is usually used for daily anti-piracy patrols along the Straits of Malacca.

Dr Ng also pledged that Singapore will continue to help with the search efforts.

Singapore was one of the first countries to offer assistance when the plane went missing on Saturday. It has so far sent two military transport planes, a naval helicopter, two warships and a submarine support and rescue vessel.

Temasek offers to buy Singapore's Olam, values firm at $4.3 billion

Credit: Reuters/Edgar Su

A man walks past a logo of Olam International Limited at its office in Singapore November 29, 2012.

The deal will be done through a Temasek unit, Breedens Investments. Breedens, along with Olam's family share holders, members of its executive committee, and Arandda Investments, another Temasek unit, already hold around 52.5 percent of Olam shares.

'Breedens wishes to increase its shareholding to support Olam's strategy and growth plans for the long term,' it said in a statement.

The offer price of S$2.23 per share represents an 11.8 percent premium over Olam's last traded price.

Breedens is not planning at this point to take the company private, intending to Olam remain listed in Singapore unless it becomes in breach of the exchange's requirement that at least 10 percent of shares be freely floated.

Breedens is also offering to buy Olam's outstanding convertible bonds and warrants.

Olam, which is one of the world's biggest coffee and rice traders, had to be propped up by Temasek after the trading firm came under attack from short-seller Muddy Waters in late 2012 for its accounting practices.

The company's shares plunged as much as 22 percent in the weeks after the allegations. Olam denied the short-seller's claims, but drew up a plan to cut its capital spending and debt levels in order to address its investors' concerns.

Its shares have since recovered and were last at S$1.995, their highest level since October 2012, before trading was suspended on Thursday morning, pending an announcement. The shares have climbed 25 percent in the past two months.

Temasek subscribed to a $712.5 million cash call in January 2013 to bolster the firm's finances.

Last month, Olam reported a 12.5 percent drop in second-quarter profit on weaker sales and commodity prices.

Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.VX), DBS Group Holdings Limited (DBSM.SI) and United Overseas Bank Ltd (UOBH.SI) are acting as advisors on the deal.

($1 = 1.2661 Singapore Dollars)

(Reporting by Rachel Armstrong; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)