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Choppers sent to fight forest fires in Riau, Kalimantan

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Central government to send choppers to Riau, Kalimantan Climatologists warn of more forest fires in Kalimantan due to rising temperatures

The central government will deploy helicopters to Riau and Kalimantan to help local administrations fight forest fires, which have begun to appear in some areas, an official has said.

“We are currently waiting for the helicopter. Other than Riau, reports say another helicopter will be deployed to Kalimantan,” Riau Environment and Forestry Agency head Yulwiriati Moesa said during a coordination meeting with the Riau governor’s office on Friday.

She said the Riau administration had requested assistance from the Environment and Forestry Ministry in Jakarta to address the forest fires.

She said the chopper would help them put out fires found in Riau’s 12 regencies and municipalities.

“I visited the location where the forest fires occurred inside the Bukit Betabuh protected forest in Kuantan Singingi regency a couple days ago.

The firefighters there experienced difficulties reaching the hot spots in the hilly area. That is when a helicopter is needed,” she added.

The province is planning to form a joint patrol to anticipate forest fires in addition to building canals and a hot spot monitoring centre.

“Not to mention, we will also increase monitoring of private companies in the forests.

We have demanded they report their inventory of equipment and facilities to prevent and mitigate forest fires,” Yulwiriati added.

Although hot spots have been detected this week in some Riau regencies, including in Rokan Hulu, Rokan Hilir, Siak and Meranti Island, the province has yet to issue an emergency alert, a status that is needed for the provincial adminismantan tration to start deploying all equipment to areas prone to forest fires.

“It needs at least two regencies or municipalities to declare an emergency alert in their areas [before we can issue a provincial emergency alert],” Riau administration regional secretary Ahmad Hijazi said.

Ahmad said his office was currently pushing for some regencies such as the Kuantan Singingi regency and Rokan Hilir regency to increase their status so that Riau province could announce the emergency alert aimed at “anticipating haze in the early stages”.

Military Region Command (Korem) 031/Wira Bima commander Brig. Gen. Nurendi called on all stakeholders to increase preparedness amid predictions that say the province might face a harsher dry season this year.

“The sooner these things are handled, the better that will be.

Patrols and education is necessary and so is the effort to spread posters banning slash-and-burn practices,” said Nurendi, who last year led a task force to fight forest fires.

He also expressed support for all related stakeholders engaged in making sure the existing canals, built last year to maintain the wetness of peat land in the province, worked well.

“All elements should work handin-hand to fight forest fires. We must end annual haze,” he added

Meanwhile, climatologists have warned that the decrease in rainfall, followed by lower humidity and higher temperatures in West Kali- from the beginning of this month, would increase the potential for forest fires in the province.

Head of the Climatology Station in Mempawah, Wandayantolis, said analysis of climate conditions in the province over the last five days showed that rainfall intensity had continued to decline, especially in the west coast all the way through to the north beach.

Air humidity has also decreased, due to the loss of vapour layers.

This has caused a rising intensity of sunlight reaching the ground, thus taking the temperatures higher.

“The increasing temperatures on the ground will make land and forests more prone to fires,” he stressed.

“The decrease in rainfall intensity is predicted to continue during the following week.

Midway through this month, the 10-day intensity of rainfall will only be between 21 to 100 milimeters, or categorized as low to medium intensity.”

Officers at the Meterology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency in Supadio, Pontianak, said that as of Jan. 12, monitoring through NOAA satellites showed 7 hot spots.

The hot spots are located in four regencies out of the total 14 regencies throughout West Kalimantan.

The four regencies are Pontianak, Kubu Raya, Mempawah and Sintang.

The West Kalimantan Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) recorded that the number of hot spots in 2015 reached 2,271.

The regency with the highest number of hot spots was Sintang with 778, said National Disaster Mitigation Agency head of emergency Bosman Hutahaean.

In 2016, the number of hot spots in the province decreased to 1,575, mostly located in Sanggau with 342.

In Pontianak, the BPBD and private firefighters conducted joint efforts to extinguish the fires.

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New town square in Punggol for community activities

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SINGAPORE: Residents in Punggol have a new community space that offers vantage views of Punggol Waterway.

Located near transport and shopping facilities, the new town square will be used for a variety of activities such as exercise, food and music events.

Speaking at the opening on Sunday (Jan 15) morning, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean said Punggol has seen a huge transformation, with over 30,000 housing units added in the past decade, as well as eco-friendly initiatives for clean energy and waste management.

DPM Teo, who is also MP for Pasir-Ris Punggol, said these developments have brought the estate closer to the vision of Punggol as a “sustainable and waterfront” town.

The new Punggol town square offers vantage views of Punggol Waterway. (Photo: Sara Victoria Grosse)

The town square is the latest project under the Remaking Our Heartland plan for Punggol, which aims to transform HDB estates into more vibrant homes.

Since the first public housing project in Punggol was completed in 2000, HDB has completed some 43,000 flats in the town as of the end of 2016.

Residents in Punggol can look forward to more facilities over the next few years with another 6,500 housing units to be added, along with more eating houses.

Upcoming developments include a sports centre and an intra-town cycling network, with more than 30km of cycling paths implemented.

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Man probed for locking elderly mother in pigsty

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A man in Fengshan county, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, is being probed for allegedly maltreating his 92-year-old mother by locking her up in a tiny room.

A video has gone viral on Chinese social media showing how the old woman, surnamed Yang, lived in a room measuring less than 10 square meters and containing only a wooden board covered by an old quilt for her to sleep on.

The video, believed to have been recorded by local media, showed that an iron gate outside the room was locked.

The local government sent a team to the house to free Yang.

“She was locked up when we found her, and her son and daughter-in-law were at home at that time,” said Huang Huaming, deputy chief of Jinya town.

The officials contacted Yang’s daughter to take care of her.

The couple said that the man’s mother had asked to live in the room, adding that Yang has suffered from incontinence for years and she asked to move into the room for fear she would contaminate the house her son lives in nearby.

Yang was later transported to the local hospital and after a thorough physical examination she was found to be fragile, but fit.

She has returned home and is now living in her son’s house.

Local police are conducting an investigation and collecting evidence.

“It is true that she has been abused, but the room was not fenced until a couple of days ago, so she wasn’t locked up for years (as the video claimed),” said the local police chief surnamed Wu.

“We doubt whether she lived in the room willingly because we are not sure whether she has a sound state of mind at the age of 92,” Wu added,

Yang’s four children signed an agreement to look after their mother, according to which Yang will continue to stay with her only son, but her daughters will take turns to look after her.

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Farewell, Serangoon Plaza – the palace of yore

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For the past 23 years, the Serangoon Plaza branch of Singapore’s famed Mustafa shopping centre has been Mr P. Mohamed Rafeek’s workplace.

“This was the biggest building in the area in the eighties and nineties. It was almost like a palace,” the 44-year-old said wistfully.

At night, as cars choke the main thoroughfare of Serangoon Road and spill over into neighbouring streets, fluorescent lights at the 24-hour shopping emporium flash across the road.

The green retro-styled signage, bearing the names of owners Mohamed Mustafa & Samsuddin Co, harks back to those halcyon times, beckoning travellers and sleepless Singaporeans to rove through aisles overflowing with clothes, household electronics and other trinkets.

But Mr Rafeek has now been displaced from his palace of yore.

Come next month, the five-storey Serangoon Plaza will be demolished.

In its place will rise a gleaming, new 19-storey building – Centrium Square, a mixed development property consisting of medical suites, retail stores and offices that will be completed in the third quarter of 2019.

Since early this month, the retail supervisor has been working at the Mustafa Centre building, where he gingerly squeezes his way past racks that have been crammed with even more dry-fit shirts and sports shoes – because of stock that has been moved over from the Serangoon Plaza branch.

“It’s a bit more packed here, but I’m passionate about the job. If the store moves, I will follow,” said Mr Rafeek, who has seen Mustafa’s staff strength grow from a few hundred in the early 1990s to about 1,700 now.

As the deadline for moving out looms, Mustafa, which has occupied the building since 1985 and now leases 65,000 sq ft of space on three floors – about 70 per cent of the total retail space in the building – has been clearing its shelves out and moving all merchandise next door to Mustafa Centre.

The other tenants, including offices and travel agencies, are also moving out of the building.

Mustafa retail supervisor P. Mohamed Rafeek (left) with his colleagues from the sportswear section at the Serangoon Plaza store in 1996. Beside him is Mr Abdul Rahman, 47, now a supervisor at the supermarket section in Mustafa Centre. The other two men are no longer with the retail giant.Photo: Courtesy of P.Mohamed Rafeek

Mustafa’s total retail space will be reduced by about a quarter, with the remaining store at Mustafa Centre building – owned by the company – having over 200,000 sq ft.

Some older stocks at the Serangoon Plaza branch have been cleared out, but most will be moved to the bigger building, which opened in 1995.

Mr Magendran, 37, an assistant supervisor at Mustafa’s electronics department, said that goods that cannot find space in Mustafa Centre can be kept in its Kallang warehouse.

This will help to alleviate the space crunch.

A Mustafa spokesman said that all of its staff are staying put, and that it has no plans to secure more retail space for now.

Tributes to Serangoon Plaza, which housed Mustafa’s flagship store, have poured in after the announcement of its demolition date last week.

Some, like operations manager Koh Wee Liang, 39, came with cameras to document a landmark that has been a favoured night-time haunt.

Others, like administrative worker Leslie Lauw, 59, would miss the easy navigation of the more spacious branch – “unlike Mustafa Centre, which is a huge congested maze”.

But most, like IT engineer Kulashree Phegade, 31, are glad the iconic Mustafa and its wide range of offerings are still around.

“As long as it has the goods I need, like Indian groceries and electronics, I will come back to Mustafa,” she said.

NOT LOSING THAT SPECIAL FEELING

The easy navigation of Mustafa’s more spacious Serangoon Plaza branch will be missed by some of its customers.Photo: The Straits Times

Questions still remain when it comes to the retail giant’s plans for the future.

Mr Magendran said it would have to find a way to contend with the weekend crowds now that all retail operations have moved to Mustafa Centre.

Ms Sarah Lim, a senior retail lecturer at Singapore Polytechnic, does not think that Mustafa’s customer base will be adversely affected by the closure of its branch.

But it may find itself in a dilemma when it comes to deciding whether to reduce its sales range for the sake of crowd control.

“(Cutting down on goods) may not be what the customer really wants.

People grumble, but they find a sense of familiarity in its packed layout and how it is brimming with goods.

“It’s a psychological attachment that benefits Mustafa, though, of course, safety and security are compromised,” said Ms Lim.

Retiree Chee Wai Khan, 60, who shops at Mustafa a few times a month, is unconcerned about the branch closure.

“They don’t bother you when you shop. There’s not much difference in both places.”

PRESIDENTIAL DAYS

Among those who remember the old-world offerings of Serangoon Plaza, however, a tinge of nostalgia remains.

First built in the 1960s as President Shopping Centre before being bought by Feature Development, a unit of Tong Eng Group, in 1984, it boasted Singing Palace, a theatre restaurant on the second level that played host to popular Taiwanese songbird Yao Su Rong in the 1970s.

Writer Boey Kim Cheng, 51, who frequented the area in his childhood in the early 1970s, recalled how the President Shopping Centre’s “clean, white and unfussy shape gave it a slightly dignified, even majestic, air, a dramatic contrast to the surrounding streets which teemed with hawkers and vendors”.

He added: “It’s sad that it is going to join the already long list of vanished sights in Singapore. It will no doubt add to the growing sense of absence and dislocation among older generations.”

yuensin@sph.com.sg


This article was first published on Jan 15, 2017.
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KTPH: 42% of injured bikers are Malaysians

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At high speed, the Malaysian motorcyclists zoom past traffic, weaving across lanes, squeezing between vehicles, even speeding on road shoulders.

Some of these reckless riders may have had to pay the price for their actions, judging by data which Khoo Teck Puat Hospital shared with The Sunday Times.

There were 865 seriously injured motorcyclists seen by the hospital between 2011 and 2015, said consultant surgeon Caroline Simon.

Slightly more than half of them, or 53.6 per cent, were Singaporeans.

Work permit holders made up the next biggest group, at 35.3 per cent, while 7.7 per cent were permanent residents.

Others made up the remaining 3.4 per cent.

“Overall, 42 per cent were Malaysians,” Dr Simon said.

Government figures show that as of November, there were 142,492 registered motorcycles and scooters here.

Some of them could be owned by Malaysians.

An estimated 40,000 Malaysian motorcyclists commute to Singapore daily.

Roughly half or 53.8 per cent of accidents involving Malaysian riders happened after office hours – between 6pm and 8am – Dr Simon said.

This is the time when most of them head home to Malaysia or come to work here.

National University Hospital (NUH) said the biker-related accidents it treats – there were 417 incidents involving moderately to severely injured motorcyclists and pillion riders from January 2014 to October last year – include some Malaysian riders.

Malaysian riders have come into the spotlight because of the handful of reported deaths from October to December last year.

On Dec 1, it was reported that Malaysian Ng Boon Kong, 51, was killed in a collision with a tipper truck in Woodlands.

Eight days earlier, Malaysian Loh Fook Siong, 42, died in an incident near Jalan Buroh; witnesses said the motorcyclist was squeezing his way between two heavy vehicles.

While deaths involving Malaysian riders are understood to be not a “significant” percentage of fatalities here, the injury figures acquired by ST are telling.

This is especially so when, on average, figures show that in 2015, 4,875 motorcyclists and their pillion riders were injured, a 5 per cent rise from 2014.

One biker, who gave his name only as Mr Koh, is among the Malaysian motorcyclists who commute to Singapore every day.

Mr Koh, who lives in Taman Johor Jaya in Johor Baru, said he wakes up at around 4.30am every day to get to work but would occasionally get caught in traffic at the Causeway.

The 50-year-old, who has been working in the construction industry for 20 years, said: “If we’re stuck in a Causeway jam, naturally some of us will speed up to make up for lost time.”

At a coffee shop near Woodlands Centre Road, he showed this reporter scars on his arms from three accidents he has had in Singapore.

He said he generally abides by the traffic laws.

In his last accident, three years ago, Mr Koh crashed his small-capacity motorcycle on the expressway while trying to avoid a car which had switched lanes.

Speaking in Malay, he said: “When I fell, three other Malaysian bikers behind me also fell as they swerved to avoid me.”

Another Malaysian, Mr Johnnie Koh, 28, said riding a little fast does not mean it is dangerous.

He added, in Malay: “I’m confident of my skills. We ride as fast as the situation permits.”

However, Mr Bernard Tay, chairman of the Singapore Road Safety Council, said earning a living each day in Singapore does not have to be a gamble.

“If you anticipate a jam, start your journey early,” he said.

“Malaysian riders need to understand that the terrain is different because Singapore is a city and not a small town.”

Failure to abide by road rules in faster-flowing traffic here can be dangerous to Malaysian riders, as well as other motorists, Mr Tay said.

Injuries suffered by bikers on Singapore roads include bleeding in the skull, bone fractures and multiple rib fractures.

Dr Jackson Jiang, an associate consultant at the department of hand surgery, Singapore General Hospital, said: “Motorcyclists get injured in traffic accidents due to collisions with the road surface, road barriers or other vehicles.”

Dr Victor Ong, senior consultant at NUH’s emergency medicine department, stressed that some of the external injuries and abrasions could be reduced if bikers were to wear “riding gear like jackets and appropriate footwear like riding boots”.

But changing a person’s riding style may be difficult, said Mr Ong Kim Hua, president of the Singapore Motorcycle Safety and Sports Club.

Mr Ong, 50, said: “These are not young Malaysian riders. The need to be first in line, the first to reach the checkpoints, the first to get home is a culture that needs to be replaced with safety in mind. But bad riding habits become entrenched if you do not address them early.”

As foreign motorists enter Singapore at the checkpoints, there are road safety messages to advise them on safer motoring.

While raising awareness to target Malaysian riders is vital, equally important are enforcement measures which penalise errant motorists for dangerous road behaviour.

Mr Tay said motorists learn quickly when they are given a summons.

zaihan@sph.com.sg


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Japan, Australia to strengthen defence ties, stress importance of TPP

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Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks, as his wife Akie (L) and Australia's Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull (R) listen, during a reception at Kirribilli House in Sydney on January 14, 2017. Japan and Australia will work together to ensure the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal comes into force, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on January 14, making no mention of strong US opposition. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Brook Mitchell

 

SYDNEY – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met his Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull in Sydney on Saturday where the pair agreed to deepen defence ties and stressed the importance of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

Abe’s visit comes amid heightened regional tension in the South China Sea and fears US President-elect Donald Trump will push ahead with his pledge to kill the trade agreement once he takes office on Jan. 20. “We have confirmed our commitment to the rule of law, free trade and open markets in our region,” Turnbull told reporters at a joint press conference.

Abe said the increasingly uncertain geopolitical landscape made the relationship between Japan and Australia more important than ever. “It is important to guard and increase the robustness of the free, open and rules-based international order,” Abe said.

Both leaders spoke of their desire to see the TPP ratified, despite opposition from Trump.

The 12-member pact aims to cut barriers in some of Asia’s fastest-growing economies, but it does not include China.

Without US approval the agreement cannot come to fruition.

Following bilateral talks, the two leaders announced the signing of an Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA), which will increase co-operation in combined military exercises, training and peace-keeping operations. The agreement is expected to be finalised by the end of 2017.

The announcement comes nearly nine months after Australia chose a French bid over a Japanese design for a new fleet of submarines.

The loss of the $40 billion contract was a major blow for Abe’s ambitions to develop Japan’s defence export capabilities as part of a more muscular security agenda.

Japan, as well as Australia, is looking to protect its strategic and trade interests in the Asia-Pacific region, especially as China becomes increasingly assertive in the South and East China Seas.

Both leaders also reaffirmed the importance of their respective security alliances with the United States.

China’s recent naval exercises in the South China Sea and the building of islands there, with military assets, have unnerved its neighbours and risk provoking a reaction from the United States.

Trump’s nominee for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, has said China should be denied access to islands it has built in the South China Sea.

China claims most of the resource-rich sea, through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. Neighbours Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims.

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On sensitive US stopover, Taiwan leader connects to Twitter

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SAN FRANCISCO – Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, carving a careful diplomatic path on her stopovers in the United States, visited the headquarters of micro-messaging service Twitter Inc on Saturday and created a new account.

A source with knowledge of the president’s travel through San Francisco told Reuters she opened a Twitter account in English. Tsai already has a Chinese language account which she has not used in a few years.

Another source at the meeting said Tsai met with Twitter General Counsel Vijaya Gadde and that CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey was not present.

Pictures of the visit posted online showed the president reactivating her presence on the messaging service and posing in front of the famous photo that crashed Twitter – 2014 Oscars host Ellen DeGeneres’ “selfie” with top Hollywood celebrities.

Tsai was returning from a week-long visit to Central America. But it was her stopovers in the United States that raised more interest after President-elect Donald Trump said last month he would reconsider the long-standing “one China”policy, whereby the United States acknowledges the Chinese position that there is only one China and that Taiwan is part of China.

He reiterated that possibility in an interview with the Wall Street Journal on Friday, a week before his inauguration. China responded that the “one China” principle was the non-negotiable political basis for China-US relations.

Trump took a congratulatory call from Tsai after his Nov. 8 victory, sparking outrage from China, which believes the Taiwanese leader wants to seek formal independence from the mainland.

Tsai made a stopover in Houston on Jan. 7 and 8 before heading to Central America and arrived Friday night in San Francisco on her way back home. She did not appear to have met with any representatives of the Trump team during her short US stays. But in Houston last Sunday, she met with Republican US Senator Ted Cruz and Texas Governor Greg Abbott and sparked more ire in Beijing.

China had asked the United States not to allow Tsai to enter or have formal government meetings under the one China policy.

Cruz was pointed in his criticism of the Chinese, saying they needed to “understand that in America we make decisions about meeting with visitors for ourselves.” Beijing considers self-governing Taiwan a renegade province ineligible for state-to-state relations. The subject is a sensitive one for China.

More than a hundred people were gathered outside the Hyatt Regency near San Francisco International Airport, some to protest and some to support the president.

Tsai wound up her trip with a lunch for 800 people from the Taiwanese community before her scheduled departure for Taiwan in the afternoon.

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Football: Man United look to exploit Liverpool wobble

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MANCHESTER, United Kingdom – Jose Mourinho’s resurgent Manchester United will attempt to reel in arch rivals Liverpool when Jurgen Klopp’s faltering side visit Old Trafford in Sunday’s Premier League headline clash.

United have won their last nine games in all competitions – their best run since an 11-match winning streak in early 2009 – while Liverpool are still to win a game in 2017.

Mourinho’s men needed an ultra-defensive performance to secure a 0-0 draw at Anfield when the teams last met in October, but three months on, his team are now firing on all cylinders.

“Because the results are better, that changes a lot of things,” the United manager said.

“You know, at that time I had less time of working together with my players. Now I have a little bit more.

“We know each other better, we have a certain way of thinking football, we have a certain way to play football.

“We don’t just have good performances, we have also the happiness of the good results.” United’s trip to Anfield fell during a troubling sequence that saw them win just twice in 11 league outings.

But although they have sat in sixth place for over two months, they have closed to within five points of Liverpool, who slipped to fourth after Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal overtook them on Saturday.

A key factor in United’s revival has been the improved form of record signing Paul Pogba, who has seemed liberated since Michael Carrick was brought into the team to anchor the midfield.

The France midfielder has scored three goals and supplied three assists in his last 10 games and credits Mourinho with giving him the freedom to play his natural game.

“He said, ‘You know how to play, do what you want,'” Pogba told the BBC. “He let me free on the pitch.

“He told me just to enjoy myself. That is it. That is all I need to hear from the manager.” .

Wayne Rooney would love to score the 250th goal he needs to surpass Bobby Charlton as United’s outright record scorer against Liverpool, but having started the last two games, he may drop to the bench.

Mourinho hopes to have 18-goal top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic back after he missed Tuesday’s 2-0 League Cup semi-final first-leg win over Hull City through illness.

Marcos Rojo, who missed that game with a muscle strain, is also due to be assessed, but fellow defender Eric Bailly is on Africa Cup of Nations duty with the Ivory Coast.

Liverpool established their credentials as leaders Chelsea’s closest rivals by beating Manchester City 1-0 on New Year’s Eve, only to then be held to a 2-2 draw at struggling Sunderland.

They followed it up by drawing 0-0 against fourth-tier minnows Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup and then losing 1-0 at Southampton in their own League Cup semi-final first leg.

Klopp conceded his side were fortunate not to have lost more heavily at St Mary’s, but he is confident they will rise to the occasion on Sunday.

“I hear it in your questions, I hear it when I talk to different people,” he told his pre-game press conference.

“Because of our last game it is like, ‘Oh my God, and now it is Man United.’ But give me 11 players and we will be competitive.

“I know how they (players) react to not-that-good performances. It is not about being confident before the game.

“It is about getting confidence in the game with the right kind of movements, right kind of defending.

“They (United) are better, more used to each other (than in October). They are more confident. It is a different side.” Klopp has been lifted by the return to fitness of Brazilian playmaker Philippe Coutinho, who returned from an ankle problem at Southampton.

Captain Jordan Henderson (heel) and centre-back Joel Matip (ankle) could feature after returning to training, but Sadio Mane is at the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal.

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Football: Wenger hails angry Alexis after Swansea rout

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SWANSEA, United Kingdom – Arsene Wenger lavished praise on Alexis Sanchez after Arsenal brushed aside Swansea 4-0 at the Liberty Stadium, despite the Chilean star’s anger at being substituted.

Sanchez scored the last of Arsenal’s four goals on a day when new manager Paul Clement saw precisely how big the job of keeping Swansea in the top flight is going to be.

The 28-year-old Sanchez was taken off in the final quarter as Wenger sought to give the returning Danny Welbeck some valuable game time.

Even though Sanchez appeared far from happy with the decision, Wenger brushed aside the incident.

“I thought he (Sanchez) was very sharp. I rested him for two weeks and gave him a little breather. I think he benefited from that,” said the Arsenal boss.

“I gave him another rest for today, so he will benefit from that as well. He’s hugely influential.

“When you look at the numbers, he’s been involved in about 25 goals in our team. But we also have players on the bench who are strikers who need competition. We were 4-0 up, he’s just come back from a good rest, Mesut Ozil as well comes back from sickness, so it was a good opportunity not to be stupid.

“All the players are frustrated when they come off, some show it, some not. I just make the decision I feel is right, that’s it.

“There’s no problem. In every culture it’s different. Some South Americans are a bit different to Europeans. Southern Europeans are more different to northern Europeans, you have to respect that.” Sanchez’s 14th goal of the season added the finishing touches to Arsenal’s convincing win as the Gunners moved to third in the table. They have 44 points but remain eight behind leaders Chelsea.

In-form France striker Olivier Giroud gave the visitors a first half lead before own goals from Jack Cork and Kyle Naughton made the outcome certain, paving the way for Sanchez to add his name to the scoresheet.

Wenger was pleased with the overall performance of his team, albeit after a slow start.

“We had some problems getting going, but I put that down to the fact that Swansea played very well in the the first half,” said Wenger.

“They were well organised and they put in an unbelievable amount of work. Certainly in the second half we took over and in the second half they couldn’t follow the pace any more. We were relentless until the end.” Swansea manager Clement said he saw enough to give him optimism that the Welsh side can stay up.

The defeat left Swansea at the foot of the table, but only six points separate the bottom six teams.

“In the first half the game was fairly even. Our defensive shape looked good and they weren’t producing clear cut opportunities,” said Clement, the club’s third manager of the season.

“Everyone knows the task at hand is a very hard one but we’re all up for it.

“There are games we will have to win. We have to make sure when those games come around we are in top form and ready to do that.”

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Little India’s chaos: Conservation that 'keeps it real'

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SINGAPORE: As dusk descends on Dunlop Street, this one-way road transforms into a riot of colour, smells and the blare of car horns amid the cacophony, as – like most of Little India’s streets – drivers, pedestrians and retailers battle for supremacy.

The wares displayed by garland shops, provision stores, mobile phone resellers and clothes outlets push foot traffic onto the street. “Messy”, is what one forum writer recently labelled Little India, calling for it to be “spruced up” like another of Singapore’s gazetted heritage districts, Chinatown.

But in developing such districts in the name of heritage conservation, is there too much tidying things up neatly for the tourist – with the result that locals, and particularly residents, lament the loss of authenticity? This dilemma was examined on a recent episode of Talking Point.

In the case of Little India, Mr Rajakumar Chandra, who has lived in Little India for 50 years, remembers how the old Tekka wet market was a thriving chaos every weekend when “the whole market was on the street”.

It was torn down in 1982 in a clean-up of the area, and the market moved to what was named Zhujiao Centre. “We saw a lot of disappearance of actual life which was very interesting,” said Mr Chandra, who chairs the Little India Shopkeepers and Heritage Association.

LITTLE INDIA KEEPS IT “REAL”

Nonetheless, he thinks that Little India has largely managed to retain its “natural setting”. Conservation guidelines put in place by the Urban Redevelopment Authority helped, he says. “A lot of shophouses were preserved and residents were made to stay, (so) the authenticity of Little India stayed on.

“Every Indian in Singapore or every Singaporean who wants to buy spices or go to the temple, they still have to come to Little India. And this is what is really keeping this place vibrant.”

A boy and his dad sharing a moment at a bazaar in Little India. (Photo: Ngau Kai Yan)

Dr Yeo Kang Shua agrees. Little India’s “social fabric is very much intact, (and) there is a continuity of community”, noted the Assistant Professor of architectural history, theory and criticism at the Singapore University of Technology and Design.

“It is real Singapore, real life, real people conducting their business in their everyday lives within the district,” he said.

This clearly appeals to foreign visitors – Little India ranks third behind Chinatown and Orchard Road as a tourist hotspot.

DANGER OF “DISNEYFICATION”

But while Little India may be a good example of how conservation has worked for a cultural district catering to locals and tourists alike, some don’t feel the same about districts like Chinatown, or Kreta Ayer as it’s known in the vernacular.

Watch: Mixed feelings over conservation

Dr Yeo said that much of its social fabric is gone, with its residents moving out or resettled, and replaced with tourist attractions and eateries.

“For a social fabric that is largely emptied out, whatever you put in would be rather… ‘alien’ to the space, and that has resulted in a whole lot of criticism of Chinatown solely catering to the tourists.

“Some even use the word ‘Disneyfication’ of the place… (where) it is almost like a theme park that is make-believe,” he said.

LOCALS LOVE NOSTALGIA

The development or refurbishing of areas for cultural preservation is done in consultation with the community, noted Mr Kenneth Lim, director of Cultural Precincts Development at the Singapore Tourism Board.

Citing Chinatown’s food street as an example, Mr Lim said that the statutory board had held a public engagement drive and received 3,000 submissions of views and feedback from the public.

The Chinatown Food Street. (Photo: Angela Lim)

When it comes to conservation, he observed, Singaporeans tend to look for elements of “nostalgia”. Mr Lim said: “We want to ensure that each cultural precinct actually develops in a very organic manner (with) their own identity, their own character, and continue to appeal to both visitors and tourists alike.”

As for Mr Chandra, he hopes his neighbourhood stays as it is. “I think the shops (spilling) out of their shops… all this adds colour to Little India, and that is what Little India is,” he said.

“I think I’ve seen Little India change for the last 50 years, and I love what Little India is now.”

Talking Point explores what it takes to authentically preserve Singapore’s heritage in Kampong Glam, Little India and Chinatown. Watch the episode here.

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