Tag Archives: Singapore Kelongs

I REFER to yesterday’s report, ‘Kelongs vanishing fast’.

I am upset that the kelong in Singapore is vanishing fast. This shows that Singapore is losing its ‘pioneer culture’. Why?

According to history books, Singapore started as a Malay fishing village. Fisherman plied their trade at sea, rearing fish. That is what I learnt from history books when I was a student some years ago.

I have yet to see what a kelong looks like.

School outings take students to places such as City Hall, Chinatown, Little India and Kampong Glam as part of the learning journey covering Singapore’s history.

These feature buildings which will stay as they are part of Singapore’s heritage, but what about the kelong?

I urge the authorities to work together to enable students to catch a glimpse of the kelong before it vanishes altogether.

Tan Shao Ken

Source : Straits Times – 29 Sep 2009

From a high of 45, there are only 14 now due to increasing costs, the lack of new licences and more fish farms

By Jessica Lim
		Mrs Maureen Ng, 61, and her husband Timothy, 62, owners of a kelong off Pulau Ubin, are looking into fish farming, but want to keep their kelong for as long as possible. — ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM

THE kelongs that once dotted the coastline of Singapore are becoming a rare sight.

Once numbering 45, these offshore fishing platforms anchored into the seabed on long wooden poles have dwindled to just 14 in the last 30 years.

And the kelong population is likely to sink further, said a spokesman for the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA), which administers Singapore’s kelong community. Continue reading →