endence: 9 August 1965 (from Malaysia)

Constitution: 3 June 1959, amended 1965; based on preindependence
State of Singapore Constitution

Legal system: based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

National holiday: National Day, 9 August (1965)

Executive branch: president, prime minister, two deputy prime ministers,
Cabinet

Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Leaders:
Chief of State--President WEE Kim Wee (since 3 September 1985);

Head of Government--Prime Minister LEE Kuan Yew (since 5 June 1959);
First Deputy Prime Minister GOH Chok Tong (since 2 January 1985); Second Deputy
Prime Minister ONG Teng Cheong (since 2 January 1985)

Political parties and leaders: government--People's Action Party (PAP),
Lee Kuan Yew; opposition--Workers' Party (WP), J. B. Jeyaretnam;
Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), Chiam See Tong;
National Solidarity Party (NSP), Soon Kia Seng;
United People's Front (UPF), Harbans Singh; Barisan Sosialis (BS);
Communist party illegal

Suffrage: universal and compulsory at age 20

Elections:
President--last held 31 August 1989 (next to be held NA August 1993);
results--President Wee Kim Wee was reelected by Parliament without opposition;

Parliament--last held 3 September 1988 (next to be held NA September
1993);
results--PAP 61.8%, WP 18.4%, SDP 11.5%, NSP 3.7%, UPF 1.3%, others 3.3%;
seats--(81 total) PAP 80, SDP 1; note--BS has 1 nonvoting seat

Communists: 200-500; Barisan Sosialis infiltrated by Communists

Member of: ADB, ANRPC, ASEAN, CCC, Colombo Plan, Commonwealth, ESCAP,
G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU,
ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Tommy KOH Tong Bee; Chancery at
1824 R Street NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone (202) 667-7555;
US--Ambassador Robert D. ORR; Embassy at 30 Hill Street, Singapore 0617
(mailing address is FPO San Francisco 96699); telephone p65o 338-0251

Flag: two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; near the hoist
side of the red band, there is a vertical, white crescent (closed portion is
toward the hoist side) partially enclosing five white five-pointed stars
arranged in a circle

- Economy
Overview: Singapore has an open entrepreneurial economy with strong
service and manufacturing sectors and excellent international trading links
derived from its entrepot history. During