From a Singapore Angle

I've always wanted to do a post on that unbelievable outpouring of compassion from the Singapore public that manifested itself as soon as the magnitude of the tsunami disaster became know, and as soon as charitable organizations and private individuals began calling for collections.

When the events of Dec 26 occurred, my wife and I were spending Christmas with friends in San Francisco. I vividly remember watching Channel-i news clips on Straits Times interactive (on my ibook, courtesy of my friend's home wi-fi network)--the long lines at Red Cross House, old ladies and young boys coming with their savings, the stacks of material collected in Little India, the cab drivers and their collection tins. And I remembered thinking to myself: is this the Singapore I know?

My thought was not that Singaporeans are suddenly more generous than the rest of the world--hardly. But what happened does not jive easily with certain stereotypical expectations one tends to have about our quirky society: the hardnosed realism, the kiasuism, the less than generous attitude toward the unfortunate, the siege mentality; though I would be dishonest if I say that I have not met my share of generous and kind behavior among Singaporeans from all walks of life.

I suspect that the tremendous outpouring of generosity from the public is no ephemeral thing. Rather, it springs from something deep in our national psyche, even while it stands in tension with a certain image we have created of ourselves--an image that we both abhor and yet behold with secret pride.

But I'll leave these ramblings for another day. The following is made possible by thanks to the efforts of a denizen who frequents www.sgforums.com, call-sign "Moxie". He answered my call for help with a stack of late Dec ST articles he saved.

From that material (plus www.Channelnewsasia.com's archive), I've collated these highlights. They are all about the response of the public--the ordinary man (and woman) on the street, and the private corporations--in those last days of December 2004. If you have been following the local news, they should not be totally unfamiliar, but I just thought it would be nice to have them together in one place.

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As earlier detailed in this post, the Singapore Red Cross Society put out their appeal to the public one day after the disaster, with the initial target of 1 million Singapore Dollars. Little did they, or anyone else for that matter, expect that in four days, more than 7 million will be collected.

Three and a half weeks have past (Jan 17) and the total now stands has reached S$48,000,000 (approx. US$29.2 million, or US$6.8 per capita). As the number continues to increase--mostly by continued corporate giving, we run the danger of forgetting how humbly it all began, with the first individual donors dropping in their $50s and $20s at Red Cross House:

One woman even turned up at 7am--two hours before doors opened. Elderly women clutching handbags and umbrellas unfolded $50 notes from their purses, while cabbies in windbreakers took out wads of notes tied in rubber bands. Children also turned in plastic bags of coins and Christmas hongbaos, or red packets. During lunch break, office workers from as far as Ang Mo Kio came with envelopes of cash collected from colleagues. (ST Dec 29)

Sales personnel Lily Tan, 36, who was there with her husband, daughter and mother-in-law, said pictures and videos of dead babies brought her to tears and reminded her of her daughter Zoe Teo, who just turned one on Christmas Day. She said, "We were so happy on Christmas Day itself, it being my daughter's birthday and all. The next day, this disaster happened." (ST Dec 29)

Medical researcher Jay, 28, said: "During Christmas, we spent so much on ourselves, now it's time to help others." Cabbie Patricia Lee, 48, turned up to give $200, as well as contributions from the staff at the beauty salon she visited in the morning. "Regardless of race, we should all help when there is a disaster," she said in Mandarin. By the time the place closed at 8pm, at least 300 people had dropped in. (ST Dec 29)

Housekeeper Tan Geok Huay, 51, whose son survived the killer waves in Thailand, broke down while waiting in line at Red Cross House to donate to those hit by the disaster. "Even though my son called home on Monday to say he's safe, I still feel extremely sad because so many died," said the mother of four. She was among nearly 3,000 people who showed up yesterday with their cheques, piggy banks and offers of help….Madam Tan, whose 27-year-old son went to Krabi for rock climbing, wanted to take the donation tin to work as it's "bonus time" and people are generous, but was told she couldn't. So she put in her donation at Penang Lane. (ST Dec 30)

Other donors also expressed shock and grief at the tragedy and said they wanted to help. Said Helen Tay, 55: "I feel so helpless just sitting at home watching the news. So I have decided to come here to donate money and volunteer my services." (ST Dec 30)

Donors ranging from octogenarians to entire families filed in through the day, giving amounts which ranged from $2 to $50,000. (ST Dec 30)

DBS Bank customers have also contributed almost $800,000 in donations in less than two days, primarily through the Internet. "We are very pleasantly surprised by the compassion and generosity of Singaporeans," said its spokesman, Ms Eunice Woo. The bank began accepting donations at 5pm on Tuesday. A tally on Wednesday night revealed people had given $647,000 through the Net and $148,000 via its network of 780 ATMs here. This sum does not include donations collected yesterday. "The biggest donors were two individuals, who gave $10,000 each," Ms Woo said. However, she could not give more details about them. (ST Dec 31)

Some individuals and families did more than donate. They did the almost "subversive" thing in Singapore--take matters into their own hands and put out their own calls:

Residents of Greenridge Crescent received mailers yesterday evening appealing for medicine, dried or canned food, tents, blankets and sleeping bags. Posting the mailers door-to-door to some 70 households were businessman Loh Sien Chi and his two children--John, 15, and Michelle, 17, who typed out the mailer. "I've asked every contact on my database to donate items requested by the embassy," said Mr Loh, who has tied up with Yusen Logistics to provide warehouse space and to pick up donated items today. (ST Dec 29)

The other half of that initial collection was donated by the corporate Singapore. In many of these instances, it's not just a bunch of directors deciding to write a cheque, but some degree of volunteer effort is involved on the part of the staff and management:

Leading the donors for victims of Sunday's undersea earthquake and tidal waves are the United Overseas Bank (UOB) Singapore and UOB Group CEO Wee Cho Yaw, who pitched in, with a total of $200,000. DBS Bank has pledged $100,000 and the Singapore Island Country Club $50,000. (ST Dec 29)

UOB's subsidiaries in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand are contributing $200,000 to the relief efforts in their respective countries. DBS Bank's Indonesian subsidiary will give $100,000 to help relief work there. Back home, SingTel is planning to donate $200,000... And Sentosa will be holding a vigil this Sunday to raise funds. Smart Automobile's 300 taxis have taken to the streets with donation tins in aid of the Red Cross relief efforts. They hope to collect $50,000 within a week. (ST Dec 29)

Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) yesterday launched a public appeal for funds and relief supplies to help victims of Sunday's devastating tsunami. To spearhead its efforts, the mainboard-listed company will donate $200,000 to the Singapore Red Cross Society and use its headquarters as a collection point for donations. [It will collect some S$8 million by Jan 8] (ST Dec 30)

Meanwhile, a number of corporations gave generously to the Singapore Red Cross yesterday, with Singapore Airlines Group pledging $300,000. Hong Leong Foundation donated $200,000. OCBC Bank and its subsidiary Great Eastern Holdings will donate $250,000. Haw Par will give $100,000 and Canon Singapore $60,000. Canon has also set aside a further $49,500 (US$30,000) for five key distributors in Indonesia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka to give to organizations of their choice, to help relief efforts in those countries. Petrol giant Shell will donate five cents for every litre of fuel sold at its stations island-wide from tomorrow to Jan 6, and expects to raise more than $400,000 this way. (ST Dec 30)

MediaCorp, with its extensive TV, radio and print network, is playing an active role in encouraging donations for the tsunami victims. Its regional news channel, Channel NewsAsia International, will carry extensive trailers on its regional feed to encourage viewers in Asia to donate to the Red Cross. MediaCorp has also launched efforts to rally Singaporeans to donate, in an initiative costing the company some $2m in airtime and advertisement space. And that's not all. Its staff are also doing their bit to raise funds for the victims. Moved by the terrible tragedy that has devastated the lives of millions, MediaCorp staff have been putting cash donations into a box at the MediaCorp reception. (CNA Dec 31)

I've always been ambivalent about the direct collection of relief supplies (as opposed to money). The material takes resources to ship and are not always most appropriate on the receiving end. But still, one cannot fight with the generosity of the public, and in some specific instances (medical supplies and water purification tablets for example), even its critical usefulness.

The response from the public has been spontaneous, says physiotherapist Thilaga Govindasamy, who turned her Balestier Road clinic into a collection centre for relief items from the public. "Imagine, up to Africa, people are affected, but Singapore – so close to the epicenter--is spared. We can't bear to sit around doing nothing," said Miss Thilaga, 37, who sent out SMS messages for torches, tents, food, blankets and other relief supplies. (ST Dec 29)

People of various nationalities donated over 50 bundles in a single morning. All the items collected will go to the embassies of Sri Lanka and Indonesia tomorrow "because they are the worst hit." (ST Dec 29)

Packing $50,000 worth of food staples yesterday were staff of NTUC FairPrice, which has tied up with Mercy Relief to fly their first batch of relief supplies, including milk bottles and undergarments, to Sri Lanka within the next five days. (ST Dec 29)

Mr Chew Kah Chuan, managing director of Khong Guan Biscuit Factory, has donated 200 cartons of biscuits, and Life Brandz has sent 75,000 bottles of mineral water for Sri Lanka. Mr Robert Khoo, 65, has given sterile wash--all 40,000 pieces in stock at his pharmaceutical company Optopharm--to be distributed between Sri Lanka and Indonesia. Used to clean eyes and wounds, it is very useful in first aid. (ST Dec 29)

The quaint streets behind Tekka Mall spilled over with relief supplies yesterday as people from across Singapore dropped off hundreds of bags of clothes, blankets, canned food and medicine for tsunami victims. A solo effort by Frico Express, a Sri Lankan freight-forwarding company at Dalhousie Lane, to collect aid supplies for victims in their home country gathered momentum in just two days, as shop owners and staff from nearby shops, children and even tourists came forward to donate items. Many stayed on to help sort, pack and load the donations onto lorries. By noon yesterday, Dalhousie Land and Madras Street looked like a relief zone, with cartons of goods piled taller than the adult volunteers. Traffic crawled to a snail's pace as vehicles stopped to drop off donations, and the police turned up to help direct traffic. (ST Dec 29)

Amazed at the public's response were restaurant partners Nancy Leelavathi and Jeff Kumah who opened up their Madras Street restaurant Roots de Café as an alternative drop-off point for donations. "Volunteers have poured in non-stop since we opened at 9 am, and so have donations," said Ms Nancy, 36. (ST Dec 29)

Emergency supplies filled at least six containers, weighing over 5,000kg, flown by Sri Lankan Airlines to the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo yesterday. Although the relief aid was meant only for Sri Lanka, there were so many clothes donated that the surplus was shared with the Indonesian Embassy. (ST Dec 29)

After being featured on Channel NewsAsia, the Singaporean family collecting clothes and blankets for tsunami-stricken victims in Chennai has received an overwhelming response from the public. Shoba and Srinivas Vadrevu were swamped with phone calls and emails from Singaporeans from all walks of life wanting to help. They now have more than they can take by themselves and are trying to work with airlines to get them to waive excess baggage charges. Members of the public and friends are continuing to drop off contributions at the family's apartment in Bukit Batok. And some have even volunteered their time to help pack the items. (CNA Dec 31)

Companies, too, including shipping outfits and airlines, are contributing:

Apart from individuals, more companies have stepped forward to help. Some offered money. Others rallied staff to donate relief items. Apart from cash, local textile and apparel manufacturer Ghim Li Group, whose manufacturing plant and staff in Sri Lanka were spared, donated some 5,000 pieces of clothing for men, women and children there. Traditional Chinese medicine manufacturer Eu Yan Sang gave 2,000 cartons of 1.5-litre bottles of drinking water and 1,500 boxes of essence of chicken products to Mercy Relief for distribution to stricken areas. (ST Dec 29)

The airline industry is also doing its bit. Singapore Airlines Cargo is helping relief aid from as far as Europe and the United States to reach affected areas. Singapore Airlines flew the first shipment of emergency supplies totaling 19 tonnes from Singapore, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Red Cross here, to Thailand and Sri Lanka last night. Tiger Airways plans to offer free seats to Singapore-based aid agencies to transport emergency aid teams and medical equipment to Phuket. (ST Dec 29)

Let's not forget the religious organizations and other NGOs. Information tidbit: do you know that of the S$438 million donated by individuals between 2003 Apr and 2004 Apr, 52% went to churches, temples, mosques and other places of worship: that's some S$227.8 million out of the S$438 million total, in one year (ST Jan 14):

All the major religious groups in Singapore have joined in the outpouring of help following the tsunami disaster. Many have started organizing efforts to raise funds for the victims.
- Roman Catholic churches: The 30 Catholic churches in Singapore will make an appeal for donations at all masses this weekend.
- National Council of Churches, Singapore (NCCS): It is encouraging its churches to have an extra collection during services this weekend for the victims.
- Hindu Endowment Board: Collection boxes for devotees and the public to drop in cash or cheques will be set up at 24 temples island-wide and at shops and restaurants along Little India. A tent collecting cash and cheques will be set up in front of the Little India Arcade in Serangoon Road. Tomorrow, a garage sale will be held at Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple in Serangoon Road (7am to 1pm and 5pm to 9pm).
- Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (Muis): Cash collection during prayers at all mosques today. The public can also donate by bask or cheque at Muis' reception counter at the Islamic Centre of Singapore, 273, Braddell Road, during office hours. They can donate online at www.muis.gov.sg and by Nets and CashCard at the 254 AXS machines island-wide.
- Buddhist Fellowship: On Jan 7, a team of four to six volunteers headed by Firefly Mission will take supplies and medicine to Sri Lanka. Singapore Buddhist Federation: From now to Jan 9, donations will be collected at more than 100 Buddhist groups and temples. Taoist Federation (Singapore): Donations will be collected at nine places of worship during the Prayers for World Peace Ceremony 2005 tomorrow.
- Sri Lankaramaya Temple: From now to Sunday, money and items such as blankets, medical supplies and water-purification tablets will be collected. (ST Dec 31)

The Buddhist organisations have collected some $14,000 in donations. At Al-Muttaqin mosque, a special sermon during Friday prayers was delivered. The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore urged all 68 of its mosques in Singapore to come forward and donate generously. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister in Charge of Muslim Affairs, said: "On the part of the Malay-Muslim community, we stand shoulder to shoulder with our other colleagues on this. I have asked Mendaki to initiate some efforts with the Malay-Muslim organisations and even mobile our volunteers where we can, to assist in whatever effort possible, be it packing of supplies and where possible if they are volunteers who are prepared to join some of the efforts overseas." Three SOKA Associations collected some 300,000 surgical masks and 100 cartons of biscuits. Donations in cash and clothings were also coming in and they were attended to by some 50 volunteers at each of the centres. Churches in Singapore are also joining in the nationwide effort to raise funds for the tsunami victims. Most churches will have collections at this weekend's services for the victims. City Harvest Community Services Association said it had raised over $50,000 so far. (CNA Dec 31)

Mercy Relief has raised about $300,000 in cash so far for the tsunami victims. This is in addition to the food aid which it will start sending to Sri Lanka from Friday. More than $18,000 was collected at one centre over an eight-hour period on Friday…Donations started trickling in as people came with cash, medicine and clothes, but things picked up…One woman not only came to donate cash, but also to sign up as a volunteer in Sri Lanka. Ms Julia Russel said: "We saw in the news this morning that they are looking for volunteers to go to Sri Lanka and help distribute aid, and I just want to come down and help because there are a number of us who are happy to go on a plane and help in whatever way we can." Lending support to raise funds is Singapore Idol Taufik Batisah. "What I'm doing here is the least of what other people are doing in other countries...make it a New Year resolution to not think about yourself but care about other people," he said. Mercy Relief will hold an islandwide collection on January 15, with a flag day with 500 volunteers from Singapore Polytechnic helping out. (CNA Dec 31)

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What exactly is the meaning of all this? Does it mean that Singapore has finally come of age, that it has made a significant step closer to being a fully responsible member of the world community? I am not sure. Other, wiser heads will have to supply the answer.