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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Singapore
Index
Government: Parliamentary system with written
constitution. Unicameral parliament of eighty-one members
(in 1989)
elected by universal suffrage. President largely
ceremonial head of
state; government run by prime minister and cabinet
representing
majority of parliament. British-influenced judiciary;
Supreme Court
divided into High Court, Court of Appeal, and Court of
Criminal
Appeal. Subordinate courts include district courts and
magistrate's
courts.
Politics: Nineteen registered political parties
in mid1980s , but People's Action Party (PAP) won every general
election
from 1959 to 1988, usually holding every seat in
parliament.
Opposition parties divided and weak. Lee Kuan Yew prime
minister
from 1959 through 1989, providing unusual continuity in
leadership
and policy. PAP policies stressed economic development,
government
management of economy and society, firm government with
little
tolerance for dissent.
Administrative Divisions: Unitary state with no
secondorder administrative divisions. Some advisory bodies based
on
fifty-five parliamentary electoral districts.
Foreign Relations: Primary goals of maintaining
sovereignty, stability in Southeast Asia, and free
international
trade. Member of Association of Southeast Asian Nations,
Commonwealth of Nations, Nonaligned Movement, World Bank,
Asian
Development Bank, United Nations.
Media: Seven newspapers, five radio stations,
and three
television channels publishing and broadcasting in four
official
languages. Government operates radio and television and
supervises
newspapers.
Data as of December 1989
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