A FORCE FOR GOOD
Introduction
1 I feel greatly honoured to be invited as your speaker this evening and even more so by the presence of Dr Mahathir and Dr Siti Hasmah. The Medical Alumni is a powerful network in Singapore and Malaysia with some 20,000 members who wield considerable influence in our society. I remember many years ago when I was Health Minister attending one such dinner when Dr Mahathir was the guest of honour and hearing him explain in his inimitable way why doctors make better leaders than lawyers. Dr Mahathir, Dr Siti Hasmah, thank you so much for gracing this evening with your kind presence.
Multipolarity
2 In a rather provocative recent article titled 'In China's Orbit', Harvard Professor Niall Ferguson talked about the Chinese increasingly thinking of themselves as Masters of the world. He said: 'Coming to terms with a new global order was hard enough after the collapse of the Soviet Union, which went to the heads of many Western commentators. But the Cold War lasted little more than four decades, and the Soviet Union never came close to overtaking the US economically. What we are living through now is the end of 500 years of Western predominance. This time the Eastern challenger is for real, both economically and geopolitically. The gentlemen in Beijing may not be the masters just yet. But one thing is certain. They are no longer the apprentices.'
3 With the US and Europe facing severe economic challenges, the Western world is feeling somewhat dispirited. In contrast, the mood in Asia is upbeat and hopeful. China is of course a big story. Martin Jacques in his book 'When China Rules The World' concluded that 'Chinese modernity will be very different from Western modernity, and that China will transform the world far more fundamentally than any other new global power in the last two centuries'.
4 But it is not only China. India is also rising. The ASEAN region between East and South Asia will be pulled along by the re-emergence of these two nations on the global stage. ASEAN is a region blessed with bountiful natural resources, plenty of rain and sunshine, and much more coastline than any other region on earth. Even West Asia with all its problems is enjoying rapid growth. The Gulf countries are endowed with abundant oil and gas. Turkey's return to Asia will change the political, economic and cultural dynamics in that region. If Iran which I visited two weeks ago is prepared to abjure all ambitions to acquire nuclear weapons, its power and influence will be no less than that of Turkey. With its long history, human talent, energy resources and strategic location, there is no reason why Iran cannot once again be a high peak of civilization in Asia.
5 One by one, the major countries of Asia have rid themselves of western domination, recovered their sense of self, modernized and re-emerged as major powers. It started with Japan, followed by the NIEs, then ASEAN, China, India, Turkey and one day, hopefully, Iran as well. At the last Asian Cooperation Dialogue in Teheran last month, the countries of East, Southeast, South, West and Central Asia, including Russia, talked about working steadily towards greater Asian connectivity. An Asia long divided by western powers into spheres of influence and buffer regions is being internally reconnected again. Widespread support of the Nalanda University project is an expression of this deep impulse.
6 Western fears of China's dominance in the 21st century are overdone. That China will become one of the world's great powers is not in doubt and the size of its economy may overtake the US' in 20 or 30 years' time. On a per capita basis, however, China still has a long way to go. When China's Vice-President was in Singapore last week, he reminded us that China's per capita GDP is only one-tenth that of Singapore. Also, by the middle of this century, China's population will have peaked and ageing will become a major challenge, the way it already is for Japan. In contrast, the demographics of India, other parts of Asia and the US will stay favourable for much longer.
7 Pax Americana will therefore not be replaced by a Pax Sinica. Instead, it is being replaced by a messier multipolar reality with the American pole likely to remain pre-eminent for decades to come. From only one sun in the solar system, there will be a few, with the US and China the largest. There will be other suns like India and some very big planets like Brazil. In this new gravitational field, smaller planets, asteroids and comets will enjoy greater orbital freedom.
The Ecumenopolis
8 In the use of this metaphor, however, there is an assumption that the Westphalian system of nation-states stays dominant enabling us to talk about the US, China, India and other countries as if nation-states are the best and only way to organise human communities. In fact, this is unlikely to hold true and everywhere we are seeing signs of the nation-state weakening. With globalisation and interdependence, various aspects of sovereignty are being surrendered to higher regional and international organisations. The European Union has taken regional integration the furthest. In our own region, ASEAN will become more important in the future. When an ASEAN Community is formalised in 2015, we are likely to see the ASEAN flag fluttering side by side with the national flag in our foreign missions following the European example. ASEAN Foreign Ministers have been toying with the idea of ASEAN countries making a joint bid to host the FIFA World Cup some time in the future, even the desirability of fielding an ASEAN team. Of course this is for football associations, sports ministers and FIFA to decide, not foreign ministers. Beyond regional groupings, international organisations like the UN, the WTO and the IMF exercise supranational power. When we stare at challenges like climate change, nuclear proliferation and global pandemics, there is no alternative to greater international coordination and action.
9 As borders become more porous, pre-Westphalian tribal links revive and strengthen. Because tribal networks of trust and knowledge are deep-set, they are tenacious and cross national borders. These networks are the first to exploit and benefit from globalisation. By increasing knowledge of different markets and reducing business risk, they lower cost and add value. Joel Kotkin who wrote the fascinating book 'Tribes' saw successful cities as those with the densest tribal networks. Singapore has always been a hub for international tribal networks, not only Chinese, Indian and Southeast Asian ones, but also others. And the story continues in this century. For example, we are rediscovering and recovering our Middle Eastern connections. Earlier this year, the National Library mounted an exhibition of the Hadramis in Southeast Asia in conjunction with the meeting of ASEAN and GCC Foreign Ministers in Singapore. When I met Patriarch Kiril of the Russian Orthodox Church last year, he indicated an interest to build a church here on the Equator complete with golden cupolas. An international Jewish school is being formed to teach Hebrew to a growing number of Jewish families living here. The Aga Khan will soon be establishing an Ismaili Centre. Next year, for the first time, Nowruz, the Persian New Year during the spring equinox will be publicly celebrated in Singapore for the first time. We have encouraged Japan and Korea to build cultural centres in Singapore as a way to expand their influence and networks in Southeast Asia. Korean pop culture, for example, is spreading in a rather surprising way.
10 New tribes and new tribal networks are emerging. Alumni networks have become more important worldwide. The top schools are responding to the challenge of globalisation through overseas campuses, franchises, joint degrees and alliances. We see so many models being experimented with in both Singapore and Malaysia. The benefit goes beyond education. Every alumni network is a tribal network which opens doors for its members. Singapore has the most IIM (Indian Institutes of Management) graduates of any city outside India. Next year or the year after, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishing of the first IIMs in Kolkata and Ahmedabad, a world meeting of IIM alumni will be organised in Singapore. It will be an opportunity for networking.
11 Countries, regional groupings, international organisations and tribes are but different ways of organising human beings. As in the biological world, they are subject to a Darwinian test of competition and survival. Over time, the fittest forms of human organisation prosper and multiply, while others go into the history books. Looking ahead, it is far from clear what forms of human organisation will prevail. What we do know is that all existing forms are being challenged by the revolution in technology and by globalisation. It is also clear that the western model is no longer seen as the only way to the future, and the Chinese way can only work for Confucianist cultures.
12 At the deepest level, culture is what enables human beings to form communities. Institutions endure only if they enjoy the respect and affection of the people. They are sustained by a sense of fairness and community, and reinforced by rituals and traditions. Rules and punishments are essential but they by themselves cannot create communities without a unifying culture. Cultures are like operating systems which enable computers, smart phones, routers and servers to network. Each component by itself, however powerful, is insignificant compared to the power of the system. The human brain is probably the most complex combination of atoms in the known universe but each brain by itself is nothing compared to what a civilization is capable of achieving.
13 Toynbee in his Study of History analysed the rise and fall of civilizations, and the encounter of civilizations. Each advance in human society represents a successful response to a challenge - the greater the challenge, the greater the response. After a few centuries, and next year we mark the 500th anniversary of the Portuguese conquest of Malacca, the western encroachment into Asia has finally resulted in a comprehensive response that is transforming human civilization and creating one inter-connected world. As it were, all operating systems are linking up in a non-hierarchical way. This inter-connection creates huge benefits but also opens up new vulnerabilities. No individual or company or country by itself can amount to anything if it is not connected to this worldwide web. But once you are connected, the virus that infects the system can infect you as well. What we are seeing now, and it is a huge drama, is the urbanisation of the entire world including all of Asia and Africa. Increasingly, the structure of human interactions resembles the structure of the brain. Toynbee called it the Ecumenopolis. Cities are concentrations of human brains connected to other cities by a multiplicity of links which are like synaptic connections.
14 These new trends weaken the power of nation-states. To borrow a term from finance, old hierarchies are being disintermediated. Coercion is much less effective in this new dispensation. Instead, cities that thrive are those with cultures and policies which attract talent, knowledge and capital. During the period of the Warring States in China, scholars chose the kings or princes to serve, so too in Europe during the Renaissance. Talented individuals today choose the cities, universities or football clubs they want to belong to. Capital flows to where it is welcomed. Patriotism is giving way to multiple loyalties. Many countries now allow dual, even multiple, citizenships.
15 The revolution in IT accentuates this trend. Take the phenomenon of Facebook as an example. Within a few years, Facebook has become probably the most important social infrastructure in the world with half a billion users and growing, all this without government planning or public investment. Other IT waves will follow which we cannot envision today. Smart phones will proliferate even in poor countries as mobile phones already have, drawing the great majority of human beings into the worldwide web. Much of this development will be for the good but others like Al Qaeda will be destructive.
Singapore's Operating System
16 All nation-states, indeed all human organisations, have to adjust to this new environment. Those which are quick to adapt will thrive. Smaller countries which used to diversity may enjoy an advantage. Xenophobic communities will be stuck in the past.
17 Singapore is well-positioned to meet the new challenges. After it was established as a trading post for the East India Company, Singapore quickly became a major node in the British Empire. Free trade, the protection of property, Anglo-Saxon law and accounting standards and the use of the English language were prerequisites then as they are now. The cultural diversity which we inherited from the 19th century China trade has become part of our DNA. Every school, every workplace, every cultural group in Singapore today is diverse. The Singaporean acquires the instincts to operate in a heterogeneous world from childhood, learning to respect differences of religious beliefs, dietary habits and cultural norms.
18 If I can describe the Singapore operating system, it is one based upon respect for the individual's deep programming and does not try to mess with it. Singaporean-ness is the higher software which binds individuals of different ethnic and religious backgrounds together in cooperative effort. The common language used is English. The operating principle is rational, meritocratic and rules-based. The criteria for achievement and success are internationally benchmarked. In recent years, the Singapore operating system has become of interest to many developing countries.
19 Because of the large influx of foreigners into Singapore in the last few years, there has been a domestic reaction. Although the large presence of foreigners in Singapore could be an issue in the coming elections, this is a manageable problem because Singaporeans are themselves migrants or the descendants of migrants.
20 Singapore's operating system, however, need not be confined to the island of Singapore. It is not limited by our geographical size and can expand regionally and internationally. This has been happening for some years now. Foreigners can plug into that operating system not only in Singapore but anywhere in the world where the Singapore network extends. Overseas, Singaporeans often make up only a minority in the Singapore network. Companies like PSA, SIA, NOL, Keppel and Sembawang operate facilities all over the world with mostly local staffs.
21 The Singapore operating system adds value to the individuals who plug into it. Many non-Singaporeans who do so earn significantly more than if they were to plug into their own local networks. Some of the value-added accrues back to Singapore. Operating systems compete worldwide to attract productive individuals. The huge movement of people we see in the world today is the result of free individuals seeking higher values for their labours.
22 Singapore as a geographical city-state can only grow so much because of our physical limitations. However, Singapore as an operating system which is one of the most productive in the world, can continue to grow for a long time to come. Of course the operating system must adapt to the country it operates in and bring benefits to the host. Singapore in China operates differently from Singapore in India. In our domestic debate about the number of foreigners working or living in Small Singapore, we must not lose sight of the Big Singapore beyond our tiny island in ASEAN, China, India and elsewhere.
23 Two weeks ago, I attended a fund-raising dinner for an NGO called Operation Smile. It has a simple mission which is to repair cleft lips. Without corrective surgery, children born with cleft lips are scarred for life. Operation Smile Singapore covers a large part of Asia. Although Singapore doctors and nurses are at the core of it, including some who are present here this evening, medical personnel from other countries also take part in the missions. Wonderful bonds of friendship have been forged. There is a chain of stalls in Singapore selling soya bean milk called Mr Bean which supports Operation Smile. Employees who perform well in Mr Bean's outlets get to take part in overseas mission, not to do surgery but just to help out with extra pairs of hands. Because it has been such a wonderful experience, Mr Bean's employees compete among themselves to go for these missions. In turn, their participation helps maintain the Singapore operating system in Operation Smile. There are many such examples of the Singapore operating system at work like the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology near Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. The President and a few key staff are Singaporeans. Many more are non-Singaporeans who had worked in Singapore. When I visited the University a few months ago, I felt strangely at home.
The Medical Alumni Network As A Force For Good
24 It is the same Singapore operating system which makes us an international medical hub serving patients from as far away as the Russian Far East and the Middle East. Without the reinforcement of many foreign healthcare professionals both in and outside Singapore, we would not be able to operate on such a scale without shortchanging the healthcare provided to ordinary Singaporeans. In fact, Singaporeans enjoy a much higher quality of healthcare because we are an international medical hub, the way the people of Rochester benefit from Mayo Clinic. In every field, Small Singapore is greatly enhanced by Big Singapore.
25 The Medical Alumni Network is a powerful network not only because of the talent, influence and wealth of its members but also because of your connection to other networks in the world. The connections that all of you collectively enjoy are an enormous asset for Singapore. As a network of networks, you can be an enormous force for good because on any subject, for any cause, you are able pull individuals and resources together. For Big Singapore to thrive, Singapore's development has to benefit others in a symbiotic way. The remarkable work done by Prof Arthur Lim and many other Singapore doctors in China, for example, has won us much goodwill there.
26 May I take the opportunity this evening to thank you for all the good work that you have done. Let us always be inspired by your motto: not to be ministered to, but to minister.