65 years ago, this very day, 15 February, was Day 1 of Chinese New Year. There should have been busy markets, like the ones you see today in Bugis or Chinatown. People should have been out on the streets, running about to prepare for the coming of Spring.

But no, the roads were deserted. The only men who were walking about were clearing the rubble left by the air raids days earlier. The Impregnable Fortress had fallen, barely less than a week after the Japanese had landed.

3 years and 8 months, we were called “Light of the South” – Syonan-To, but the light of humanity flickered here. Elizabeth Choy, Lim Bo Seng, Lieutenant Adnan and many unsung heroes buried with their untold stories of torture, hardship and pain.

Quoting Elie Wiesel, “To forget would be not only dangerous but offensive; to forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time.” We must not forget the atrocities of the Occupation.

Today, when most countries live peacefully with one another, we face one common insidious threat: terrorists – terrorists who deliver death sentences through mailbox, trash cans or the MRT.

We must stand together united to face the challenges in this dangerous world. We cannot run around like headless chickens when a crisis hits us. If chaos begets chaos, then Singapore will cease to exist, for you have chosen to abandon her.

This is the purpose of Total Defence Day: It’s not about propaganda; it’s about remembrance. We must not forget, and never forget the dead who sacrificed their lives in World War Two; and our duty as fellow countrymen to prevent more innocent people from dying simply by being vigilant and prepared.

Lest we forget.

Labels: ndp