1971 in Singapore

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← 1970 1969 1968 1971 in Singapore → 1972 1973 1974
Decades:	1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s
See also:	Other events of 1971 Timeline of Singaporean history

The following lists events that happened during 1971 in Singapore.

Incumbents

• President: Yeoh Ghim Seng (Acting) (23 November 1970 to 2 January), Benjamin Henry Sheares (starting 2 January)
• Prime Minister: Lee Kuan Yew

Events

January

• 1 January – The Monetary Authority of Singapore was established to regulate the financial sector and as Singapore's central bank. ^[1]
• 2 January – Dr Benjamin Henry Sheares becomes the second President of Singapore. ^[2]
• 3 January – Jurong Bird Park opens to the public. ^[3]
• 14–22 January - Singapore hosts the 18th Conference of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
• 29 January – The Preservation of Monuments Board was established to identify and safeguard buildings of great historical value and recommend as national monuments. ^[4]

February

• 1 February – The National Sports Promotion Board is formed to promote and develop sports in Singapore. ^[5]

March

• 15 March – The Staff Training Institute (now the Civil Service College) is established to train civil servants. ^[6]

April

• 15–16 April – Singapore, United Kingdom, Malaysia, Australia, and New Zealand sign the Five Power Defence Arrangements. The agreement comes into effect on 1 November the same year. ^[7]
• 23 April –
  • The Shangri-La Hotel Singapore is opened.
  • The first Concept Plan is unveiled, which proposes a 'Ring Plan'. ^[8]

May

• 11 May – Local newspapers Eastern Sun and the Singapore Herald were accused by then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of having been involved in "black operations". ^[9] They later shut down on 18 May and 28 May respectively. ^{[9] [10]}

July

• 14 July – The Jurong Drive-in Cinema is opened as Singapore's first and only open-air drive-in cinema. The cinema operated for 15 years until its closure on 30 September 1985. ^[11]
• 30 July – Singapore's first sex reassignment surgery is performed on a 24-year-old who becomes a woman after the surgery, led by Dr S. S. Ratnam. The surgery is declared a success. ^[12]

October

• 23 October – The Sentosa Satellite Earth Station is officially launched, making it Singapore's first Satellite Earth Station. ^[13]
• 31 October – The last British military forces withdraws from Singapore. ^[14]

November

• 2 November – The Central Narcotics Bureau is set up to tackle the problem of drugs in Singapore.
• 7 November – The first Tree Planting Day is launched by Dr Goh Keng Swee in Mount Faber. ^[15]

December

• 1 December – The Singapore Traction Company ceases operations.
• 2 December – The Clean Air Act is passed to deal with pollution caused by early industrialisation. ^[16]
• 29 December – The Gold Bars triple murders saw a gold merchant and his two employees robbed and killed by a group of 10 men. Seven of the 10 men were sentenced to death for the crime; the remaining three were indefinitely detained for lengthy periods before their release. ^[17]

Date unknown

• Tower 1 of Mandarin Orchard Singapore is opened.

Births

• 27 January – Fann Wong, actress.
• 30 January – Bryan Wong, actor.
• 23 July – Christopher Lee, Malaysia-born Singaporean actor.
• 29 July – Selena Tan, producer, director, writer and actress.
• 13 October – Chia Shi-Lu, medical practitioner and former politician.
• 1 December – Patrick Tay, politician and lawyer.
• Daren Shiau, writer, lawyer, and environmental activist. ^[18]

Deaths

• 7 February – Chen Yoh Shoo, former chairman of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (b. 1900). ^[19]
• 25 June – Goh Chew Chua, former Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and former legislative assemblyman for Tampines Constituency (b. 1897). ^[20]
• 22 August – Aw Cheng Chye, millionaire, businessman, company director and philanthropist (b. 1924). ^[21]
• 21 September – Tan Chor Lam, businessman and 1st chairman of the Nanyang Branch of the Tongmenghui (b. 1884). ^{[22] [23]}

References

1. "Establishment of the Monetary Authority of Singapore". NLB. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
2. "Benjamin Sheares becomes second president of Singapore". NLB. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
3. "Dr. Goh Opens Park". The Straits Times. 4 January 1971. p. 1. Retrieved 1 June 2016– via NewspaperSG.
4. "Preservation of Monuments Board is established". NLB. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
5. "National Sports Promotion Board is established". NLB. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
6. "Staff Training Institute (Civil Service College) opens". NLB. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
7. "The Five Power Defence Arrangement comes into force". NLB. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
8. "Singapore's first concept plan is completed". NLB. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
9. Cheng Tong, Yap (17 May 1971). "Walk-out at the Sun". The Straits Times . p. 1. Retrieved 26 October 2023– via NewspaperSG.
10. "Opposition Paper in Singapore Is Closed on Government Order". The New York Times . 29 May 1971. p. 5.
11. "Opening of Jurong Drive-in Cinema". NLB. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
12. "First sex reassignment surgery". NLB. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
13. "Connecting Singapore to the World - From Submarine Cables To Satellite Earth Stations". NAS. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
14. "Ceremonial parades for British military withdrawal are held". NLB. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
15. "Tree Planting Day". NLB. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
16. "Clean Air Act of 1971". NLB. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
17. "Gold Bar Murders". NLB. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
18. "Daren Shiau". NLB. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
19. "陳岳書先生逝世十一日擧行火化". Nanyang Siang Pau . 9 February 1971. p. 4. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
20. "Goh Chew Chua dies at the age of 78". NewspaperSG . 26 June 1971. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
21. "拿督胡淸才博士逝世 體育界與宗敎團體 咸認係社會大損失". NewspaperSG . 27 August 1971. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
22. "Tan Chor Lam". reference.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
23. "陳楚楠老先生逝世定廿六日舉行出殯". Nanyang Siang Pau . 23 September 1971. p. 15. Retrieved 30 June 2025.