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Chinese coolies

Chinese coolies formed the early backbone of Singapore's labour force, engaged mainly in hard physical labour. Coolie comes from the Chinese word ku-li meaning "hard labour". Ku also means "bitter". The coolie was thus, a picture of the hard and bitter life in early Singapore. They were mainly impoverished Chinese immigrants who came to Singapore in the later half of the 19th century, seeking their fortune but serving instead as indentured, unskilled labourers. Coolies were employed in almost every sector of work including construction work, plantation work, in ports and mines and as rickshaw pullers.

History
Chinese coolies were driven by poverty in China to seek a better life in Singapore. The immigration of Chinese coolies was high between the periods of 1823 to 1891 after Singapore became a free port, between 1910 to 1911 before the first world war and between 1926 to 1927, soon after the first world war. Coolie emigration decreased after 1927 because of economic depression, followed by the Japanese occupation and then the World War II. Coolie trade never peaked after this and most immigrants after World War II were skilled labour.

Jobscope
Coolies worked as rickshaw pullers, trishaw riders and farmers. They were employed in mines, ports, in rubber and other plantations, in clearing jungles and on construction sites. They did back-breaking tasks such as loading and unloading cargo and dulang washing or tin ore mining under the scorching sun. It was a common sight in early Singapore to see coolies carrying gunny sacks filled with commodities such as spices and sugar near the Singapore river.

Description
The majority of the early coolies were indentured to a kongsi, or a "clan association", and their services engaged through a coolie agent or headman. The kongsi was either an organisation, a group or a network of individuals. It acted as a contract or business agency that hired labour in China and supplied them to businesses in Singapore. The kongsi would pay for the passage of the coolies on the condition that the coolies worked for a designated length of time until all expenses incurred were duly paid off. Kongsis usually charged money either from the businesses to which they supplied labour or from the labourers themselves for their service of bringing them into Singapore from China. Most of the Chinese coolies usually were in different ways coerced and bonded into being coolies for the rest of their lives either before their arrival in China itself or soon after coming to Singapore. The newly arrived coolie recruit was called sin kheh which meant "new arrival" in Hokkien.

They were very poor and lived in cramped dwellings with no windows and light. They were given to opium inhaling to relieve their tired bodies of its soreness and to gambling in an attempt to escape from their misery. The whites and wealthy Chinese employed the coolies mainly because of their willingness to work hard for little money. The coolies were, in a way, the backbone of early Singapore's economy because they generated growth for the economy and caused the country to prosper. Few Chinese coolies went back to China later but most coolies settled down in Singapore doing other odd jobs.

Development
As Singapore developed economically, the need for coolies declined. With Singapore's independence in 1965, came new laws and radical economic restructuring. Modern technology was developed and incorporated at a fast pace which included use of machines in freight transport. The coolies in the harbour were no longer needed. Similarly the need for coolies in other areas of work too declined. This forced the coolies to look to other means of living. Coolies to on work as domestic servants, shop assistants and as helping hands in different areas of work. Some coolies even picked up some skills and found employment in shops such as that of shoe makers, blacksmiths and carpenters.



Author
Naidu Ratnala Thulaja



References 
Baker, H. (1987). The overseas Chinese (p. 26). London: R J Acford.
(Call no.: RSING 301.451951059 BAK)

Tan, T. T. (1986). Your Chinese roots: The overseas Chinese story (pp. 58-72). Singapore: Times books international.
(Call no.: RSING 301.451951 TAN)

The vanishing trades [CD-ROM]. (1997). Singapore: Daichi Media.
(Call no.: RAV 338.642095957 VAN)

Worksheet 3: Information on coolies, Heritage Hub. (n.d.). Retrieved on January 27, 2003, from www.heritagehub.com.sg/teachers/Chinatown/cwork03.htm 


Further Readings
Campbell, P. C. (1970). Chinese coolie emigration to countries within the British empire. Taipei: Cheng Wen.
(Call no.: RSING 325.251 CAM)

Tan, K. S. (1974). Son of Singapore: The autobiography of a coolie. Singapore: Heinemann Educational.
(Call no.: SING 920 TAN)

Smithies, M. (1987, September 16). Life and death of rickshaw coolies in Singapore. Bangkok Post, p. 34.

National heritage Board. (n.d.). Archives & Artefacts Online, Singapore. Retrieved on January 27, 2003, from www.a2o.com.sg/public/html/ 

The information in this article is valid as at 1998 and correct as far as we can ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

Subject
Commerce and Industry>>Labour and Employment>>Coolies
Unskilled labor--Singapore
Immigrants--Singapore
Business, finance and industry>>Career
People and communities>>Population and migration



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