1971 in Singapore
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- President: Yeoh Ghim Seng (Acting) (23 November 1970 to 2 January), Benjamin Henry Sheares (starting 2 January)
- Prime Minister: Lee Kuan Yew
Events
January
- 1 January – The Monetary Authority of Singapore was established to regulate the financial sector and as Singapore's central bank.[1]
- 2 January – Dr Benjamin Henry Sheares becomes the second President of Singapore.[2]
- 3 January – Jurong Bird Park opens to the public.[3]
- 14–22 January - Singapore hosts the 18th Conference of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
- 29 January – The Preservation of Monuments Board was established to identify and safeguard buildings of great historical value and recommend as national monuments.[4]
February
- 1 February – The National Sports Promotion Board is formed to promote and develop sports in Singapore.[5]
March
- 15 March – The Staff Training Institute (now the Civil Service College) is established to train civil servants.[6]
April
- 15–16 April – Singapore, United Kingdom, Malaysia, Australia, and New Zealand sign the Five Power Defence Arrangements. The agreement comes into effect on 1 November the same year.[7]
- 23 April –
- The Shangri-La Hotel Singapore is opened.
- The first Concept Plan is unveiled, which proposes a 'Ring Plan'.[8]
May
- 11 May – Local newspapers Eastern Sun and the Singapore Herald were accused by then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of having been involved in "black operations".[9] They later shut down on 18 May and 28 May respectively.[9][10]
July
- 14 July – The Jurong Drive-in Cinema is opened as Singapore's first and only open-air drive-in cinema. The cinema operated for 15 years until its closure on 30 September 1985.[11]
- 30 July – Singapore's first sex reassignment surgery is performed on a 24-year-old who becomes a woman after the surgery, led by Dr S. S. Ratnam. The surgery is declared a success.[12]
October
- 23 October – The Sentosa Satellite Earth Station is officially launched, making it Singapore's first Satellite Earth Station.[13]
- 31 October – The last British military forces withdraws from Singapore.[14]
November
- 2 November – The Central Narcotics Bureau is set up to tackle the problem of drugs in Singapore.
- 7 November – The first Tree Planting Day is launched by Dr Goh Keng Swee in Mount Faber.[15]
December
- 1 December – The Singapore Traction Company ceases operations.
- 2 December – The Clean Air Act is passed to deal with pollution caused by early industrialisation.[16]
- 29 December – The Gold Bars triple murders saw a gold merchant and his two employees robbed and killed by a group of 10 men. Seven of the 10 men were sentenced to death for the crime; the remaining three were indefinitely detained for lengthy periods before their release.[17]
Date unknown
- Tower 1 of Mandarin Orchard Singapore is opened.