Original sin? : revising the revisionist critique of the 1963 Operation Coldstore in Singapore / Kumar Ramakrishna.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ramakrishna, Kumar, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Detention of persons--Singapore.

Detention of persons.

Political prisoners--Singapore.

Political prisoners.

Singapore--Politics and government--1945-1963.

Singapore.

Singapore--History--1963-1965.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (vi, 167 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Singapore : Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2015.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Revisionist' or 'alternative' historians have increasingly questioned elements of the Singapore Story – the master narrative of the nation's political and socioeconomic development since its founding by the British in 1819. Much criticism focuses especially on one defining episode of the Story: the internal security dragnet mounted on 2 February 1963 against Communist United Front elements on the island, known to posterity as Operation Coldstore. The revisionists claim that Coldstore was mounted for political rather than security reasons and actually destroyed a legitimate Progressive Left opposition personalized by the charismatic figure of Lim Chin Siong – rather than a dangerous Communist network as the conventional wisdom holds. Relying on both declassified and some previously unseen classified sources, this book challenges revisionist claims, reiterating the historic importance of Coldstore in helping pave the way for Singapore's remarkable journey from Third World status to First in a single generation.

Contents:

Frontmatter

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

INTRODUCTION. The "Alternate" Challenge to the Singapore Story as Context

1. Government Sources: Who Uses Them, and the Alternates' Unarticulated Ideological Outlook

2. Was there Really a Dangerous Communist United Front?

3. The Curious Case of Lim Chin Siong

4. Why "Was Operation Coldstore Driven by Political and Not Security Grounds?" is the Wrong Question

Conclusion: The Enduring Need for a Singapore Story 2.0

BIBLIOGRAPHY

INDEX

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Jun 2017).

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9789814620444

9814620440

OCLC:

910089643