Singapore is a very safe country with low crime rates. Pickpockets are not unknown but in general crime is not a problem. This is not surprising given the harsh penalties meted out to offenders and the fact that hundreds of suspected criminals are held in jail without trial simply because the government does not have enough evidence to convict them. The importation of drugs carries the death penalty, which is regularly carried out. Simply, drugs in Singapore should be avoided at all costs.
The nanny state of Singapore takes a tough line on antisocial issues - the most famous being its ban on chewing gum (well, it does mess up the pavement and could stop the MRT from working). While having gum for your own consumption is no big deal, bringing it in bulk into Singapore will attract a heavy fine - the standard way of stamping out un-Singaporean activities.Smoking in all public places, littering, jay walking and eating or drinking on the MRT are all punishable with hefty fines.
Modern History
Singapore's inexorable growth continued into the 20th century. However, the outbreak of WWII brutally exposed the fallacy of British might: they suffered the ignominy of defeat when Japan invaded the colony in 1941. The British were welcomed back after Japan's surrender in 1945, but their right to rule was no longer assured.
By the 1950s, burgeoning nationalism had led to the formation of a number of political parties as Singapore moved slowly towards self-government. The People's Action Party, with the Cambridge-educated Lee Kuan Yew as leader, was elected in 1959. Lee became prime minister, a position he was to hold for the next 31 years. In 1963, Singapore formed a union with Malaya (now Malaysia) but by 1965, the nascent federation was in tatters. Singapore became independent soon after and was once again the economic success story of the region. Shrewd and pathologically pragmatic, Lee fashioned a government heavy on strict social order and the suppression of political opposition.Lee Kuan Yew resigned as prime minister in 1990 and was replaced by Goh Chok Tong, a leader more inclined towards consultation and liberalism. In 2004, Lee Kuan Yew's son, Lee Hsien Loong, took over as prime minister, with Goh Chok Tong assuming the new role of Senior Minister and Lee Kuan Yew becoming Minister Mentor. The country's first presidential election was held in August 1993 - prior to that, presidents were elected by members of parliament. The most recent election was in August 2005, when SR Nathan was returned to the post. Opponents who wanted to run against him were deemed ineligible.
Recent History
Economically, the Southeast Asian region's late-1990s downturn (a euphemism if ever there was one) hit Singapore as hard as anywhere else - in one three-month period in late 1998, unemployment in the country doubled. The city-state is slowly bouncing back, however, and on the street things are lively as ever, though the exodus of well-trained professionals seeking glittering international opportunities is a growing concern.
Modern-day Singapore is well known for its clean, modern attitude but part of the efficiency involves a continued tough civil order stance, especially with regard to hard-line criminals. Since 1991 the Singapore government has executed over 400 murderers and (more commonly) drug-traffickers, giving the tiny nation the highest execution rate per population in the world. | 
