Singorei Water Issues

Review: Malaysian and Singapore water dispute

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBbK9oFlOpA

The Malaysian and Singapore water dispute is a short documentary film which looks at the challenges that Singapore has faced to secure clean water for its residents. It shows how Malaysia‘s control on Singapore‘s water supply has forced the Singaporean government to seek for other alternative sources. The documentary was produced by Susan Yu, a reporter for Star TV Focus Asia, April 2013.

The film features a television reporter who provides a brief overview of the water crises in Asia. He describes water as a precious commodity that Southeast Asian countries are dying for. The reasons for this shortage include overuse, pollution and poor resource management. His tone induces a sense of hopelessness and desperation to the audience. He further shows data from various experts who have failed to find a solution to this problem. The reporter switches to Susan Yu, who presents various clips of Asians struggling to collect water on their donkeys .She shows the simplicity and importance of the resource by describing it as a something that is essential yet “tasteless and odorless.” She provides an interview of a Singaporean dairy farmer who explains how the resource has been important for his household and farm. She then switches to her main theme, which describes the efforts made by Singapore to create self-dependency on this precious resource.

Singapore is a portrayed as a huge city state with a population over four million inhabitants. It depends on outside help for half of its water supply, receiving millions of litres each day from the Malaysian Causeway. This country is a small island with a small area of land that has limited its water cat...

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...t begins with an intense, desperate tone which is useful in describing the water shortage problem that Asia is facing with its growing population. It then shifts to a vibrant and encouraging tone by appreciating the efforts done by Singapore in reclaiming its used water. This effective variation of tone makes the film entertaining, implanting strong lessons and ideas that are difficult for the viewers to miss out or forget. The film has some weaknesses in quality and sound but it’s overally excellent.

In a nutshell, the Malaysian and Singapore water dispute shows how a country of limited natural resources can overcome its problems through innovation and sustainability (recycling and desalinization) to reach self-sufficiency. It holds greater lessons for larger populated countries which will face the same constraints that Singapore has faced in the past four decades.