Straits Times Forum 27 Jun 11;
I HAVE just returned from a trip to Malacca and had the opportunity to visit the Unesco World Heritage city's famous Bukit China Cemetery ('Take a DIY walking tour at Bukit Brown'; June 18).
Singapore's Bukit Brown Cemetery may pale beside Bukit China in terms of size or the size and age of the graves themselves, but it is our own. Chinese Singaporeans like me will undoubtedly experience a sense of history, identity and pride visiting the graves at Bukit Brown which belong to our Chinese forefathers, including prominent personalities like Tan Lark Sye, Lim Chong Pang and Chew Boon Lay.
Bukit Brown also boasts the oldest grave in Singapore dating from 1833 and the largest grave 'guarded' by statues of the Sikh watchmen or jagas, belonging to businessman Ong Sam Leong and his wife.
While we understand the need to adopt a balanced approach towards conservation in our land-scarce country, nonetheless I hope the authorities will heed the calls of Singaporeans to find creative ways to conserve at least parts of Bukit Brown, perhaps by relocating some selected graves and tombstones to occupy a smaller area.
As the Bukit China graveyard shows, a historic cemetery may yet have its place in the modern cityscape.
More importantly, its conservation, even if it is done selectively, may mean that this and future generations of Singaporeans need not mourn yet another loss of an invaluable and irreplaceable piece of our heritage which contributes to our sense of rootedness to the place we call home.
Edwin Pang
Bukit Brown graves have tales to tell
Straits Times Forum 29 Jun 11;
ALLOW me to add my voice to Mr Edwin Pang's ('Save selected parts of Bukit Brown Cemetery'; Monday) and those of others who support the preservation, part or whole, of Bukit Brown Cemetery. I hope it will not go the same way as so many of Singapore's heritage sites - demolished in the country's haste to rebuild and modernise.
My maternal grandparents, Cheong Koon Seng and Chia Siew Tin, are buried at Bukit Brown, beside other plots that my grandfather had thoughtfully purchased for his relatives.
My grandfather's name is associated with:
- The auction company he founded in pre-war Singapore;
- The Chinese Swimming Club, where he held the position of president for several terms;
- The Anglo-Chinese School, which has a 'house' carrying his name; and
- Koon Seng Road in the heart of Peranakan Katong.
When I was growing up in the 1950s, it was a family tradition to congregate at his gravesite on the second day of Chinese New Year.
There, the usual duties - trimming grass, cleaning the stone lions and tablets, and asking for numbers - were somehow accomplished amid the chatter and distraction that inevitably dominate such gatherings. Afterwards, it took an age to line everyone along the semi-circular stone rim demarcating the large grassy mound for a family photo. Finally, as we trooped downhill, the boys would set off firecrackers, flinging them in the direction of the elderly aunts to send them scurrying as fast as their sarongs would allow.
I add these little anecdotes in the hope that the authorities would allow some of these sites to be preserved and not be sacrificed for soulless structures. In every developed country, these links to history are what scholars, students and sightseers are proud to show off.
The graves at Bukit Brown can tell many a tale. The living families are still here to delve into their memory banks. Should we not grasp the opportunity while we still can, in order to build on national pride and a sense of belonging? Give our young people a more meaningful heritage than bricks and mortar could ever do.
Maureen Lim (Ms)
