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File photo: While Singapore's mercantilism appears the epitome of success, it is an economy unable to re-generate itself, writes Dr Chee Soon Juan.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Editor's note: Dr. Chee Soon Juan is the secretary-general of the Singapore Democratic Party. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.

(CNN) -- Hong Kong's democracy movement has raised issues such as income inequality and an increasing cheerless economic outlook, especially for the younger generation. Not coincidentally, these are the same issues that are causing Singaporeans to despair over their future.

Despite the fact that, according to the Economic Intelligence Unit, Singapore lays claim to the dubious honor of being the most expensive city in the world, there is no minimum wage in Singapore. Is it any wonder then, that amongst comparable economies, the island-state has one of the highest levels of income inequality? Singapore has the highest proportion of millionaires in the world but nearly 5% of the workforce have an annual income of less than U.S. $5,000, according to a 2011 report by The Straits Times.

And it's not just the lower-income workers who are getting pounded. The middle-class squeeze is as prevalent as ever. Nearly 50% of Singaporeans subsist from paycheck to paycheck, saving less than 10% of their monthly incomes. An alarming 14% have no savings at all. If and when an economic whirlwind visits, many will be left unable to cope.

Working conditions have also deteriorated. For years, Singaporean workers have worked more hours than in most countries, and, perhaps unsurprisingly it has resulted in an extremely unhappy workforce.

The death of innovation

What facilitated such a dismal outcome? One major factor is the lack of dissenting views. The ranks of the opposition, civil society and labor movement have been decimated in the last 50 years through imprisonment without trial and criminal prosecution, and nearly every newspaper, TV channel and radio station is owned and run by the state. Without an opposing voice, the echo chamber in government simply grew louder.

Singapore's first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew has argued that the practice of democracy serves only to undermine political stability and, therefore, economic progress. The strategy that Lee articulates, what might be called the Singapore model, bifurcates the economics of a community from its politics, the goal being to maintain absolute power while pursuing economic growth.

Excerpt from:
'Singapore needs democracy'

HONG KONG - Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters clashed with police in the densely populated district of Mong Kok early on Thursday as tensions escalated at one of three remaining demonstration sites for the first time in more than two weeks.

Dozens of police armed with batons and shields swept into the area where hundreds of protesters were gathered and scuffles broke out after 2am local time in the gritty district that has become a flashpoint for ugly street brawls.

More than 30 people wearing grinning masks of Guy Fawkes, who plotted to kill a British king in 1605 and who has become a symbol of anti-capitalist protests, joined the demonstrators who are calling for greater democracy in the former British colony.

The protesters, led by a restive generation of students, have been demanding China's Communist Party rulers live up to constitutional promises to grant full democracy to the city which returned to Chinese rule in 1997.

In August, Beijing offered Hong Kong people the chance to vote for their own leader in 2017, but said only two to three candidates could run after getting backing from a 1,200-person "nominating committee" stacked with Beijing loyalists.

On Wednesday, Regina Ip, a former Hong Kong security chief and a top adviser to the city's embattled leader proposed members of the Hong Kong Federation of Students be given seats on the committee, broadcaster RTHK reported.

Students are hoping to take their protest to Communist Party rulers in Beijing and are expected to announce details of their new battle plan on Thursday.

Pro-democracy activists plan to march on Sunday from the heart of the city's financial centre to the Chinese central government's liaison office in Hong Kong.

For more than a month, key roads leading into Hong Kong's most economically and politically important districts have been barricaded with wood and steel by protesters.

The protests drew well over 100,000 at their peak and are now concentrated in two key areas - the district of Admiralty next to government buildings and across the harbour in Mong Kok. A handful of protesters remain in the bustling shopping district of Causeway Bay.

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Hong Kong democracy protesters in fresh clashes with police

Published November 06, 2014

HONG KONG Pro-democracy protesters have clashed with police in Hong Kong for the first time in more than two weeks.

The skirmishes lasted about four hours early Thursday in the city's bustling Mong Kok neighborhood. Police say they arrested three people.

Tensions remain high as thousands of people camp out on the streets of three busy neighborhoods, demanding open nominations in elections for the city's leader. The protests erupted more than a month ago after Beijing ruled that a friendly committee would screen the candidates.

The newest skirmishes began when police attempted to arrest a man who was shining his cellphone light into officers' eyes. Protesters responded by surging at police lines, unleashing running confrontations that left one protester bleeding from the head.

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Pro-democracy protesters clash with police after weeks of calm in Hong Kong; 3 arrested

HONG KONG: Clashes broke out early Thursday (Nov 6) between Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters and police for the first time in more than two weeks, Reuters reported.

According to the report, the clashes broke out in Mong Kok after 2am Hong Kong/Singapore time and involved dozens of police officers armed with batons and shields at the area, where hundreds of protesters, including more than 30 people wearing Guy Fawkes masks, were gathered.

Three men were arrested by police following the clashes, reported Dow Jones, while according to local television reports, police had used pepper spray on dozens of protesters. The incident was "allegedly caused by a man using a camera flash to provoke a police officer," Dow Jones reported.

Hong Kong has been rocked by mass demonstrations for a month by protesters calling for fully democratic elections for the citys next chief executive in 2017. In August, Beijing ruled that candidates for the elections must be vetted by a committee in what protesters call "fake democracy. The campaign drew over 100,000 at its peak, spread out over several demonstration sites including in Admiralty and Mong Kok.

On Wednesday, about 20 pro-democracy activists held a protest march calling on Beijing to release nearly 100 mainland Chinese detained over the past month for supporting the Occupy movement. Protesters are also considering travelling to Beijing to directly petition Beijing authorities as the Chinese capital hosts US President Barack Obama and other world leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum from Nov 10 to 11.

According to Reuters, protesters are planning a march on Sunday from the heart of the city's financial centre to the Chinese central government's liaison office in Hong Kong."

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Fresh clashes between Hong Kong protesters and police: Reports

Blackballed: The Black Vote and US Democracy | Darryl Pinckney and Cornel West HIGHLIGHTS
Highlights from the Oct. 22nd discussion with Darryl Pinckney and Cornel West. Darryl Pinckney presents his newest book, Blackballed: The Black Vote and U.S....

By: Strand Bookstore

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Blackballed: The Black Vote and US Democracy | Darryl Pinckney and Cornel West HIGHLIGHTS - Video