LEAD: Firecrackers greet Lunar New Year for 1st time in 32 yrs in Singapore

Asian Economic News, Jan 26, 2004

SINGAPORE, Jan. 22 Kyodo

(EDS: RECASTS HEADLINE, LEAD TO MAKE CLEAR PUBLIC FIREWORKS DISPLAYS HAVE BEEN ALLOWED IN SINGAPORE, BUT NOISE-MAKING FIRECRACKERS HAD BEEN BANNED)

Singapore ushered in the Lunar New Year at midnight Wednesday with fireworks and the first allowed use of ear-splitting firecrackers in more than three decades.

Thousands of firecrackers -- believed by many Chinese to ward off evil with their deafening bangs and bring good fortune for the year -- were set off at a huge Lunar New Year's eve street party in Singapore's Chinatown commercial district that attracted almost 100,000 revelers.

Officials hope the pyrotechnics will add festive cheer to the holiday and help Singaporeans leave behind the gloom of the previous year when the country was hit hard by the SARS epidemic.

About three-quarters of Singapore's 3.4 million people are ethnic Chinese, and the Lunar New Year, which falls on Thursday, is their most important annual festival.

The government banned firecrackers in 1972 to prevent possible fire hazards and injuries, but Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said earlier this month that firecrackers might be just what Singapore needed to scare off the severe acute respiratory virus and ensure it will never come back.

As the number eight is regarded as a lucky in Chinese traditions, 88 strings of fireworks, each with 400 individual firecrackers, were ignited at the party at midnight to welcome the Year of the Monkey.

The move is in line with the government's attempt in recent years to soften Singapore's straitlaced and overly regulated image by easing censorship rules, a ban on chewing gum, allowing bar-top dancing and bungee-jumping and taking a more flexible stance on hiring for senior and sensitive civil service posts.

The government said that despite the move to allow firecrackers at certain public events with prior police approval and safety precautions, restrictions on general use of firecrackers are likely to remain.

Goh said he would not legalize the widespread use of firecrackers or allow them to be used in residential districts because the loud cracks could be a nuisance for non-Chinese.

Firefighters, paramedics and about 200 security personnel were deployed at the party to ensure safety and security.

The grassroots organizer of the party said about S$800,000 (US$473,372) was splurged on pyrotechnics and decorative lighting -- the biggest amount ever spent for Lunar New Year celebrations.

Sponsors included the Singapore Tourism Board and several corporate bigwigs.

Firecrackers were also allowed on a smaller scale at another event in Chinatown on Jan. 3.

''We are very happy that after 30 over years, this is the first time we will be hearing firecrackers on New Year's eve. Until the early 1970s firecrackers used to be a big thing to celebrate the Lunar New Year in Singapore. You could hear them from dawn to dusk,'' said Philip Loh, a spokesman for the organizer.

For the merchants of Chinatown, they hope the sharp bangs of the firecrackers will speed up business.

Singapore is showing signs of an economic recovery with reports of a rush for big-ticket items such as cars.

Many Singaporeans have also taken the opportunity of the extended public holidays on Thursday and Friday to travel overseas.

Official estimates show Singapore's economy managed to grew 0.8% last year after fighting against SARS and the global economic slump amid the Iraq war.

The government is setting a 3-5% growth target for this year.