Oasis

Jun 8, 2011

Pictures: Bukit Brown cemetery

Following the news earlier this week that Bukit Brown cemetery

has been gazetted for development by the URA, Straits Times

readers shared photos and memories of one of Singapore's oldest

Chinese burial grounds via Facebook.

-- PHOTO: LUKE CHUA

FOLLOWING the news earlier this week that Bukit Brown

cemetery has been gazetted for development by the

URA, Straits Times readers shared photos and memories

of one of Singapore's oldest Chinese burial grounds via

Facebook. A favourite haunt of heritage buffs and joggers,

the cemetery located off Lornie Road will be making way

to meet the country's housing needs. Many of the 80,000

tombstones there are weather-worn and covered by

undergrowth. But some draw attention with their size,

grand designs and famous names etched in stone.

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I have not been blogging for quite a while. thought I wanna

talk abit on this. I am pretty perturbed by the "convenient"

reason of scarcity of land being always used to explain the

conversion of our green pastures into housing and

commercial use. Yes, it is a fact that we are land scarce, but

does that mean we need to bull-doze the pastures to

make way for concrete jungles or for that matter, golf

courses?

The latest "victim" is the Bukit Brown Cemetery which will

make way for some "future housing development". This

piece of land is rich both in cultural, historical and natural

heritage. I have done quite a few runs through the place

(enroute to Bukit timah and botanic gardens) and it

is so refreshing in terms of the air quality and there is

this sense of peacefulness and tranquility. It might sound

strange that how can a cemetery be tranquil? well, just try

walking through it in the day or run through. you will get

what I mean.

i don't know man, but I am really disappointed with the

way in which our few pieces of Oasis are being lost through

the concrete "encroachment'; all in the name of development.

All those promises of listening and being more humanistic

seems to be mere lip service; giving way to economic benefits.

Such is the state of affairs. Change?

doubt so.