Does Culture Matter?

You may have heard about him during History lessons, but you may not know the full story of Lim Bo Seng and his role when World War 2 hit Singapore. Why was he considered a national hero and what were his contributions to Singapore during World War 2?

What is culture? It has been defined in many different ways by hundreds of social scientists. However, the basic idea of culture includes aspects and patterns of human behaviour and social interaction. Culture affects things that are symbolic, such as marriage and death, as well as tangible things, such as food and dressing. Culture varies between different groups of people, and it is how we identify people from different groups. It is also the way people use different objects to express themselves. CULTURAL PATTERNS

CAND PRACTICES ulture includes beliefs, values, objects, religion, language and behaviours. Every social group has its own culture, and different meanings for different cultural practices and objects. Cultural patterns are set by each social group, which can be a blessing and a curse. For example, in some countries, including India, prearranged marriages of children as young as infants are culturally accepted. This pattern of child marriages is acceptable because it is thought to protect the female’s virginity, which is essential for marriage. An unwed female in India is considered a curse and a burden, so to their social group this cultural practice is very important. However, for other countries where human rights are recognised and emphasised, the practice of child marriages is considered inhumane and illegal. This is an example of a situation when cultural patterns are accepted by one social group while eliminated by another.

Cultural patterns are established starting with the beginning of the founding of a cultural group. This means that some cultures, such as those in Asia and South America, have been in the making for centuries. These patterns are so engrained in a social group from the day each member is born that cultural patterns are accepted as unchangeable. One example of this type of cultural pattern is racism. For many cultures all around the world, racism is considered a part of life. Whether the cultural group is being racist or they are victims of racism, discrimination and prejudice is intertwined with most cultural values, beliefs, and practices that involve religion, politics, social status, language, and geography. As racism is a cultural pattern that is woven into so many social groups, it is not easy to remove racism from society.

CHANGING CULTURES

However, culture is constantly changing and evolving, as the needs of humans change and evolve. This change occurs when a part of a cultural group interacts negatively to a cultural pattern within their group, which is called

conflict. For example, for centuries women were not allowed to have an equal say to men in most aspects of life. Women were seen as inferior in every way including physically and mentally. During the earliest Olympic Games women were prohibited from participating because the cultural belief was that the female body was not built to run or even exercise. However, by the start of the 20th century women began to speak out against such cultural patterns. They formed protest groups, took on politics, and eventually changed the US Constitution with the addition of the 19th Amendment, which grants women the right to vote. Since then, other cultural changes have occurred, including the acceptance that women can work outside of the home.

UNDERSTANDING AND APPRECIATING DIFFERENCES

As every culture has its own set of cultural patterns, beliefs, ideas, and language, it is important to understand other cultures. These different aspects have evolved naturally over time as a result of the geography and basic needs of a social group. For instance, in places where cities are far apart and the land is fertile, such as the Midwest in the US, it has historically been necessary to be able to farm the land and raise cattle to be able to feed people. As a result, farming families have often been very large with parents often having more than 10 children. The need to have a lot of children was necessary to provide labour for the farm. If you were going to survive in the Midwest during this time, you would need to accept the cultural patterns of having a lot of children or you would not have the labour needed to keep food on the table.

Another example of culture in the Midwest is being able to understand the language and ideas of this social group. You would have needed to be accepted by your peers in order to gain their respect and trust. Otherwise, in an emergency situation, such as a life threatening farming accident, you would not have anyone to come to your aid. Even more so, the other people in your social group would treat you like an outsider and possibly bring harm to you to get you to leave the group if you refused to conform to their culture. This is an example of when culture can mean life or death to a member of a social group.

Some social scientists who study culture, also known as sociologists, believe that culture is so engrained in people that it is passed down through genetics. They believe that certain cultural behaviours have evolved over time as a result of human action, such as choosing to be shy or being artistically inclined, and these behaviors are passed down from generation to generation. For instance, if a parent is a famous painter, it is expected that their offspring will also be talented. However, it is understood by the majority of sociologists that these cultural behaviors are simply learned and shared behaviors from others in their family or community. In other words, if you grow up in a household where your mother is an artist who is constantly painting, you will

be exposed to painting and more likely to start painting at an early age, thus providing you with more experience than most children. As a result, you would be more likely to be a painter yourself. Other cultural behaviors that are not positive, such as drug addiction or physical abuse, are also passed on to children in this same way.

CULTURE IN SOCIETY

While society creates a culture, culture is also influential in shaping the individuals within a society. Therefore culture matters a great deal. Culture can always be changed. While this can be difficult, as all habits are engrained and difficult to change, understanding that change is possible is important. From the previous example of how drug addiction or physical abuse is cultural patterns that are passed down, most parents acknowledge that their own parents taught them such negative behavior. However, by understanding that this undesirable behavior can be changed is the first step to making the change. It should be noted that within a society, even though culture can be altered, it is a difficult process because cultural beliefs and ideas are so engrained in the mindset of groups. When a cultural pattern becomes dangerous or hazardous to a social group, change may be necessary but it can take years.

Lim Bo Seng was born in China in 1909. He was the first male child out of eleven children. He came to Singapore in 1917 to study in Raffles Institution under the British colonial government. He was an intelligent student and managed to go on to study business at the University of Hong Kong. His education in business came in handy as he inherited his father’s business in 1929. Lim began with two businesses in brick manufacturing and biscuit production, before partnering with his brothers to venture into building construction. On top of this, he was also a leader of the Singapore Chinese community, holding several important positions in the community including Chairman of the Singapore Building Industry Association and Board Member of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

LEADING WITH A CLEVER PLAN

When the Second Sino-japanese War broke out in 1937, Lim and many other overseas Chinese in Singapore participated in anti-japanese activities, such as boycotting of Japanese goods and fund-raising to support their fellow countrymen in resisting the Japanese invaders in China. Towards the end of 1937, hundreds of overseas Chinese working in Japanese-owned industries in Malaya went on strike. At that time, the Japanese

government owned a tin mine in Dungun, Terengganu where nearly 3000 Chinese labourers were employed. The tin was shipped to Japan and used as raw material to manufacture weapons.

Knowing this reliance on the Chinese workers, Lim felt that if the Chinese workers in the Dungun mine went on strike, the Japanese would suffer a huge loss, so he planned to make the workers go on strike. Around February 1938, Lim travelled to Dungun to carry out his plan. By early March, Lim achieved success as the workers left the mine and followed him to Singapore. On March 11, 1938, Lim and the Chinese community held a welcoming ceremony for the workers, who were later resettled and found employment in Singapore.

FERVENT RESISTANCE

In 1941, as World War 2 engulfed the region, Lim was put in charge of organising a group of volunteers to resist the Japanese, who were advancing towards Singapore. On 11 February 1942, Lim left Singapore and travelled to Sumatra with other Chinese community leaders and then made his way to India. He recruited and trained hundreds of secret agents as well as set up the Sino-british guerrilla task force called “Force 136” in mid-1942 together with Captain John Davis of the Special Operations Executive (SOE).

Force 136 launched Operation Gustavus which was aimed at establishing an espionage network in Malaya and Singapore to gather intelligence about Japanese activities. The information was meant to help the British in planning their re-capture of the colonies, codenamed Operation Zipper. Lim was part of a group that arrived in Malaya on 2 November 1943. He travelled under the alias Tan Choon Lim to avoid identification by the Japanese, claiming to be a businessman when he passed through checkpoints. Unfortunately, Operation Gustavus ended in failure as the Japanese learned of its existence and launched a counter espionage operation.

THE UNFORTUNATE CAPTURE

Lim was captured by the Japanese under Marshal Onishi Satoru, at a roadblock in Gopeng. He was taken to Kempeitai headquarters for interrogation where he refused to provide the Japanese with any

information about Force 136 despite being subjected to severe torture. Instead, he protested against the severe ill-treatment of his fellow prisoners. By the end of May 1944, Lim fell ill with dysentery and was bedridden by the end of May 1944. Lim died in the early hours of June 29, 1944.

HONOURED AS A HERO

After the Japanese surrender, Lim’s wife, Gan Choo Neo travelled with her eldest son to bring her husband’s remains home. Lim’s remains arrived at the Tanjong Pagar railway station in Singapore on Dec 7, 1945. Upon arrival, the hearse was sent off by a large procession of British officers and prominent businessmen, from the station to Hock Ann Biscuit factory in Upper Serangoon Road. A funeral service was held on 13 January 1946 at City Hall to mourn Lim’s death. Lim’s remains was transported in a coffin to a hill in Macritchie Reservoir for burial with full military honours. Lim was also awarded the rank of Major-general by the Nationalist Government in China in recognition of his contributions.