​Social Changes and Challenges in Singapore

Social Changes: Japanization

Japanese poster in Singapore in 1942
​(Image by Nippon News)
A process of Japanization was imposed to remove British influence by implementing Japanese ideology into Singapore.  The central idea of Japanization was that all Asian people should follow and live according to the Japan Imperial way of life. Except renaming Singapore, Japanese authorities banned western music, theater, and film; replaced the Gregorian calendar to the Imperial calendar of Japan; mandated Japanese military yen for daily use, etc. One of the major changes would be the education curriculum, in which schools started integrating Japanese language and culture into the curriculum, including teaching students the Japanese language. 

Social Challenges: Food Shortage

One prominent challenge the people of Singapore faced during the Japanese occupation was the lack of food available. The population of Singapore doubled during the Japanese invasion as a massive influx of immigrants fled the Malayan Peninsula for Singapore. There were now more people to feed with fewer resources.
As the food situation worsened, the social stability of Singapore was exacerbated. To solve the problem, the Japanese government tried to incentivize people to plant crops and reduce the population in Singapore. However, the problem still got worse, which many people suffered from malnutrition, starvation, and illnesses developed from an inadequate diet.

Related Book

Fall of Singapore: 
The Undefeatable British Fortress Conquered

The fall of Singapore is the greatest defeat of the British empire in the Pacific.
​On February 15, 1942, the British surrendered to the Imperial Japanese Army and handed over Singapore and surrounding Malaya countries. The conflict began on December 8, 1941 when Japanese forces bombed Singapore and continued to make their way through the treacherous Malayan jungle. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill stated during the attack, “the worst disaster and the largest capitulation in British history”. Singaporeans were immediately ordered to come in for questioning after the Imperial Japanese Army took over. During the interview, their homes were looted and destroyed by the Kempeitai, the secret Japanese police. 
During the occupation, there were many tragedies. An example is the Sook Ching Massacre. Sook Ching Massacre, literally meaning “purge through cleansing”, began on February 21, 1942. The mass murder of Singapore residents ages 18 to 50, was targeted at eradicating anti-Japanese sentiments. Victims of the massacre were either Chinese, suspected of being pro-Chinese, anti-Japanese, or Communist. Men and women were questioned and if found guilty, they were taken to one of Singapore’s beaches and murdered. The death toll shows less than 5,000 according to the official Japanese record, while Singaporean officials claim the number of victims was at least 50,000.​