Singapore deliberately defined its identity as culturally Asian to preserve its competitive edge

Evidence

While citing Singapore’s commitment to parliamentary democracy and excellence in government, the statement of Shared Values explicitly excluded political values from its purview. The government emphasized that Singapore was “in crucial respects an Asian society” and must remain one. “Singaporeans are not Americans or Anglo-Saxons, though we may speak English and wear Western dress. If over the longer term Singaporeans became indistinguishable from Americans, British or Australians, or worse became a poor imitation of them [i.e., a torn country], we will lose our edge over these Western societies which enables us to hold our own internationally.” — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 896

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the framework of ‘torn countries’ discussed earlier in this book and its parallel in civilizational identity politics.