For half a century, Singapore has cultivated a reputation as a business-friendly nanny state that overcame its tight confines and dearth of natural resources to become one of the quintessential Asian Tiger economies. The government saw regulating its citizens' behavior and marginalizing critics as essential to its success.
But the fear of losing Asia's battle for tourism — and the prospect of creating thousands of local jobs — spurred Singapore to reconsider. The island nation has seen rising regional competition for its pillar industries, such as high-tech manufacturing and financial services, and has felt a need to diversify its economy.
To that end, the nation's 87-year-old founding father, Lee Kuan Yew, and his son, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, began championing the idea of casinos and an image makeover for uptight Singapore.
The city-state then lifted a decades-old ban on gambling and opened two sparkling new casinos last year — one operated by Las Vegas Sands Corp. and the other by Malaysian-owned Resorts World Sentosa — at a combined cost of more than $10 billion.
"The government is trying to make a virtue out of a vice," said Eugene Tan, an assistant professor of law at Singapore Management University. "They're trying to say, 'This is not the Singapore of old, it's a happening place with a bit of raciness.' ". Full story
