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6. The Singapore Government took powers in August 1986 to restrict
the circulation of foreign publications which meddled in local
issues. Both Time magazine (September) and the Asia Wall Street
Journal (January) have had their circulations limited, in the former
case for refusing to publish an official correction to an article on
Jeyaretnam; in the latter on the AWSJ's refusal to accept that a
story on the new second tier Singapore stock market was factually
incorrect. More recently, the Singapore authorities have refused to
renew the employment pass of the resident correspondent of the Far
Eastern Economic Review for reasons as yet unspecified. It is
doubtful whether this authoritarian approach has any serious effect
on Singapore's ability to attract investment or on its role as a
services and financial centre. However the trend should not be
taken too far.
7. Mr Lee, now 62, has reshuffled his Cabinet, bringing on a new
generation of political leaders. Goh Chok Tong (44) First Deputy
Prime Minister and Brigadier General Lee Hsien Loong (34), Mr Lee's
son, Minister for Trade and Industry, Deputy Defence Minister and
Chairman of the Economic Committee set up in 1985 to identify "new
directions" for the Singapore economy, are possible future Prime
Ministers. When Mr Lee relinquishes the premiership he may become President, which under legislation now in preparation will become an elected position with some executive powers.
The Economy
8. From an unpromising beginning in the early 1960s, Singapore
experienced rapid growth for two decades, averaging 10% a year during 1965-83, with low inflation and a strong balance of payments position. At the outset of independence, the authorities adopted an
export-orientated development stategy. The economy has been built upon manufacturing, Singapore's traditional role as an entrepot port, and its emergence as a regional and financial banking centre.
9. In 1980, Singapore's economic strategy changed from encouraging
entrepôt activity and labour-intensive manufactured exports, to
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