8/31/2023 0 Comments Economic freedom definition simpleIn Singapore, property rights are recognized and forcefully guarded. If people are going to make voluntary, well-informed economic choices, then there must be laws against stealing and cheating others.” 5 Further, they must also have laws that promote good business practices. “The very idea of a free-market system carries with it the need for some laws to prevent crime. Singapore has an effective rule of law, which lays the foundation for a free market. When Singapore began to participate in the free-market system, it soon became an example of good development. 4 As will be seen in the Singaporean example, this economic prosperity alleviates poverty, promotes social progress, and leads to human flourishing. ![]() 3 The countries with the best rule of law, limited government, regulatory efficiency, and open markets also have the highest per-capita incomes. Rather, as Adam Smith said, every man “shall enjoy the fruits of his own labor” this freedom is “alone sufficient to make any country flourish.” 2 The free market system can quickly and almost comprehensively alleviate poverty when it is adopted, as evidenced by its success in countries like South Korea, Chile, and Singapore. The Economist Magazine defines capitalism as “a free-market system built on private ownership, in particular, the idea that owners of capital have property rights that entitle them to earn a profit as a reward for putting their capital at risk in some economic activity.” 1 The beauty of this system is that it does not compel citizens to work. History makes a compelling case that human flourishing happens best in the free market. Singapore is a good, but not perfect, example of a flourishing country while the country’s promotion of economic freedom has led to rapid development, citizens lack many basic political freedoms and civil liberties. In their process of evaluating economic freedom, the Heritage Foundation considers a nation’s rule of law, government size, regulatory efficiency, and openness of markets. Today, Singapore is ranked first in the Heritage Foundation 2020 Index of Economic Freedom and identified as the country with the freest economy in the world. ![]() The country’s Prime Minister at the time, Lee Kuan Yew, chose to turn the country toward export-led development. When it became the Republic of Singapore, the country faced a lack of self-sufficiency, significant poverty, and a poor endowment of natural resources. In 1965, Singapore was forced to declare independence after its ties to Malaysia were suddenly and unceremoniously cut. Singapore set a new precedent for national development when it transitioned from a third to first world country in just one generation.
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