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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Spotlight Advanced. I'm Jillian Woodward.

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<v Speaker 2>And I'm Roger Basseig. Spotlight Advanced uses a special English

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<v Speaker 2>method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand

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<v Speaker 2>no matter where in the world they live.

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<v Speaker 1>Tall buildings reach to the sky. Crowds of people walk

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<v Speaker 1>past on their way to work. The roads are filled

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<v Speaker 1>with cars and other vehicles, and the whole area is

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<v Speaker 1>completely clean. It is the perfect example of modern city life.

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<v Speaker 2>This is Singapore today. This small island country is one

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<v Speaker 2>of the most modern in the world. Everybody here lives

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<v Speaker 2>in the city, well almost everybody. A small group of

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<v Speaker 2>about twenty five families do not. They live in a

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<v Speaker 2>place that many people from Singapore do not know exists.

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<v Speaker 2>It is the only remaining village in Singapore, Larang Bankok.

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<v Speaker 1>On today's Spotlight we hear about some of the people

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<v Speaker 1>still living in this village. They explain why they like

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<v Speaker 1>living in Singapore's last village. They tell us why it

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<v Speaker 1>is an important place to be.

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<v Speaker 2>Fatima lives in Lorng Bonkok. She is happy to live

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<v Speaker 2>in a part of Singapore's history. She said.

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<v Speaker 3>In this village, all of us are friendly towards each other.

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<v Speaker 3>We like to help each other. That is why we

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<v Speaker 3>like to stay in the village.

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<v Speaker 1>The village of Larong Buangkok was created in nineteen fifty six.

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<v Speaker 1>Over the past sixty years, the village has grown and changed,

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<v Speaker 1>but it has not changed as much as the rest

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<v Speaker 1>of Singapore. In the nineteen eighties, the country quickly expanded.

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<v Speaker 1>Its government wanted the country to become a center for

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<v Speaker 1>trade and industry. They succeeded. Today, Singapore's people are some

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<v Speaker 1>of the wealthiest in the world.

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<v Speaker 2>Over six million people live in Singapore. That may not

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<v Speaker 2>seem like a big number, but Singapore is very small.

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<v Speaker 2>It is the smallest country in Southeast Asia. On average,

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<v Speaker 2>eight two hundred and fifty people live in every square

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<v Speaker 2>kilometer of Singapore. That makes it about nineteen times more

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<v Speaker 2>crowded than India. It is the second most densely populated

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<v Speaker 2>place in the whole world.

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<v Speaker 1>Finding room for everyone to live in Singapore is an

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<v Speaker 1>important issue. That is why most people now live in

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<v Speaker 1>large buildings with many homes. These homes are apartments or flats.

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<v Speaker 1>These flats were built by the government's Housing and Development Board.

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<v Speaker 1>People call them HDB flats. HDB flats replaced all the

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<v Speaker 1>other villages, but not Larong Wangkok. Shinnifong owns this village.

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<v Speaker 1>She refuses to sell the land. She believes it is

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<v Speaker 1>important to keep a reminder of the country's rural past,

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<v Speaker 1>and people living in Larong Guangkok say life is better

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<v Speaker 1>in their village.

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<v Speaker 2>Ainoun has lived in both the Rang Bonkhak and an

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<v Speaker 2>HDB flat. She grew up in the village, now she

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<v Speaker 2>lives in the city with her husband. She says she

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<v Speaker 2>enjoyed living in the village because it is so friendly.

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<v Speaker 4>At the village, it is all about the relationships between people.

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<v Speaker 4>Gathering with other villagers and getting to know each other

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<v Speaker 4>is easy. If we need anything, it is easy to

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<v Speaker 4>meet them. But if you live in an HDB flat,

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<v Speaker 4>it is very difficult. You cannot just go to their door.

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<v Speaker 4>You have to call them first to tell them that

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<v Speaker 4>you are coming today.

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<v Speaker 1>Ann's husband, Ahmad, does not enjoy life in the village.

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<v Speaker 1>He is most happy in the city where he grew up.

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<v Speaker 5>I like staying in the city more than staying in

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<v Speaker 5>the village. I feel that it is more exciting in

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<v Speaker 5>the city. You get to meet a lot of different people.

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<v Speaker 5>In the village, it's just the same people so the

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<v Speaker 5>way you look at life may be a bit limited.

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<v Speaker 2>The city and village do have one thing in common.

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<v Speaker 2>They are full of people from many different ethnic groups.

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<v Speaker 2>Singapore grew rich by being a center of trade. People

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<v Speaker 2>from all over the world would come to the island

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<v Speaker 2>to buy and sell their goods. This has given Singapore

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<v Speaker 2>a rich mix of ethnic groups. The biggest ethnic group

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<v Speaker 2>is Chinese. Other Singaporeans are from the Malay ethnic group,

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<v Speaker 2>some are of Indian origin, and many come from other

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<v Speaker 2>parts of the world.

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<v Speaker 1>In the nineteen sixties, this mix created trouble between the

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<v Speaker 1>ethnic groups, but in lronge Bwangcok there was no such trouble.

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<v Speaker 1>People living in the village say that there was a

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<v Speaker 1>special feeling of togetherness there and that there still is.

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<v Speaker 6>In the village. Even though we are different races, we

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<v Speaker 6>are family. We mix around. Some of the grandmas and

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<v Speaker 6>grandpa's have watched me grow up, so I love these

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<v Speaker 6>old people. They have been almost like my own parents

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<v Speaker 6>because we are from the same village, so I do

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<v Speaker 6>not care if they are Malay or Chinese.

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<v Speaker 2>Today, the special qualities of Larang Bankok are finally being recognized.

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<v Speaker 2>Though the government once wanted to develop the land. There

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<v Speaker 2>are now no plans to do so. People visiting Singapore

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<v Speaker 2>take trips to the village. Runners and walkers pass through

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<v Speaker 2>every day to get out of the noise of the city.

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<v Speaker 2>In a place with little natural life, the village is

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<v Speaker 2>a good place to rest. Experts agree that living in

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<v Speaker 2>a city makes people tense. Being near a place with

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<v Speaker 2>plants and animals like Lorang Bankok reduces this tension. Nasim

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<v Speaker 2>lives in Singapore's Last village. He spoke to the British

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<v Speaker 2>Broadcasting Company, it.

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<v Speaker 7>Is good that the government now seeks the importance of

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<v Speaker 7>our village. You need to leave something behind, a reminder

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<v Speaker 7>to our young of how this country came about. We

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<v Speaker 7>came from these simple buildings. It is also good that

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<v Speaker 7>the public comes here. It helps them understand us. It

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<v Speaker 7>helps them understand why Loroong Buangkock needs to be saved.

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<v Speaker 1>The future of Loroong Buangcock is not sure. Singapore is

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<v Speaker 1>so small that it will always be difficult to know

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<v Speaker 1>what to do with land. But it seems that for now,

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<v Speaker 1>the last village of Singapore is safe. As long as

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<v Speaker 1>it exists, Loroong Buangcock will remain a powerful reminder of

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<v Speaker 1>the past, something that even a country as young as

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<v Speaker 1>Singapore needs.

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<v Speaker 2>What are the historic small communities in your area? Have

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<v Speaker 2>you visited or lived in a small town. You can

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<v Speaker 2>leave a comment at www dot Spotlight English dot com.

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<v Speaker 2>You can also find us on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, and x.

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<v Speaker 2>You can also get our programs delivered directly to your

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<v Speaker 2>Android or Apple device through our free official Spotlight English app.

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<v Speaker 1>Writer Dan Christman revised this script from an earlier version.

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<v Speaker 1>The producer was Dan Christman. The voices you heard were

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<v Speaker 1>from the United Kingdom and the United States. All quotes

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<v Speaker 1>were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. This

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<v Speaker 1>program is called Saving the Last Village.

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<v Speaker 2>We hope you can join us again for the next

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<v Speaker 2>Spotlight Advanced program. Goodbye,