S'pore promotes tourism through cultural performances

S'pore promotes tourism through cultural performances

By Oei Eng Goan

On Feb. 27, the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board invited a number of journalists from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Hong Kong to partly witness the implementation of its 'Tourism Unlimited' campaign. The Jakarta Post was represented by its journalist, Oei Eng Goan. Below is his report.

SINGAPORE (JP): Although often dubbed a "country ruled by an iron hand in a velvet glove", Singapore still attracts millions of tourists every year because of the wonders it creates to encourage travelers to visit the island state.

The wonders are none other than strong government promotion of national identity over ethnic allegiance, clean administration, and an outright upholding of law and order, which makes Singapore a country with the lowest crime rate in Southeast Asia.

Singapore's well-planned development of business, residential and recreational centers, as well as presentation of regional and international cultural performances, are other factors underlying its successes.

With an average economic growth of 8 percent annually, Singapore's development has impressed many nations. China's paramount leader Deng Xiaoping, according to noted futurist John Naisbit in his Megatrends Asia, published last year, has "encouraged China to tap into the Singapore experience".

Part of the backbone of the country's economy is its tourism industry. Though last year's tourism receipt was slightly down from that of 1994, which recorded 6.9 million arrivals and S$10.9 billion in earnings, it still ranked third in the nation's income, an official of the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board told The Jakarta Post recently.

Since 1994, the board, which functions as the architect of the tourism business, has launched a campaign called Tourism Unlimited, which Christine Khor Sek Kee, the board's assistant director for arts and entertainment, calls "a combination of tourism resources and Singapore appeal with attractions of its neighboring countries".

A lot has been done to realize the campaign; the opening of a new art museum on Jan. 20 is an example. The museum, set up in the renovated 19th century catholic school building St. Joseph's Institution on Bras Basah Road, is a showcase of the works of some 250 contemporary artists from Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, the seven member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"Taking the theme 'Modernity and Beyond', we encourage Western tourists to see for themselves the fine creations of ASEAN artists. All the artists' works displayed in this museum have been carefully selected by art critics of each ASEAN members," T.K. Sabapathy, guest chief curator of the ASEAN exhibition, told the Post.

Indonesia is represented by works that include renowned painters Affandi and Hendra Gunawan, realist painters Soedjojono and Dede Eri Supria, modernists Semsar Siahaan and Fajar Sidik and sculptor Gregorius Sidharta.

"The works displayed here reflect common themes of this region, such as urbanization, popular culture, mythology, religion, nationalism and revolution, in the tradition of realism, abstraction and the emergence of the modern," explained Tan Chee Koon, deputy director of the National Heritage Board, which oversees the museum.

Besides museums and art galleries, Singapore also encourages a number of performing arts festivals, involving local, regional and international artists.

"It is expected that some 2,000 performances can be held annually, with an estimate of $80 million in sales turnover," said Siti Rosminah Ismail, the board's public relation executive.

Last year's festivals saw performances by 25 groups from 10 Asian countries. Highlights included performances by world- renowned sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar from India, who was accompanied by the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra from China, and performances by noted choreographer Sardono's dance group from Indonesia.

In line with its Tourism Unlimited strategy, the island state, which has earned the reputation as a shoppers' heaven in the region, has also introduced the concept of theater travel to the region. It has presented such world-class performances as the West End hits Cats and The Phantom of the Opera, by Andrew Llyod Webber, and Les Miserables, by Cameron Mackintosh, to whet the appetite of more sophisticated foreign tourists.

"A decade ago no one would have dreamed of watching the musical Les Miserables in Singapore," said a foreign diplomat of the musical currently on at the Kallang Theater, until the end of this month.

The diplomat's remark seems to answer why Singapore, a tiny nation of 632 square kilometers, or about the size of the Indonesian capital Jakarta, can attract foreign tourists whose number is more than double its population of 2.9 million.

With 89 star-rated hotels, including the 70-story, 280-meter world's tallest Westin Stamford; scores of boutique hotels, provided for the more budget-constrained tourists; and 12,000 taxis, ready to serve the travelers, the island state offers holidaymakers ease and comfort in terms of accommodation and transport.

Now, despite numerous tourist attractions, including the 20- hectare Jurong Bird Park, which boast the world's largest walk-in aviary housing some 8,000 birds of 600 species from Asia, Africa and America; and Underwater World, which occupies a 2.5-hectare plot with more than 6,000 marine animals, making it the largest tropical oceanarium in Asia, presenting famous musicals in the country has affirmed Singapore's status as a regional hub for the arts.