Singapore Places its Bets :: Derek da Cunha

	About the Author Derek da Cunha is a Singapore national and an independent scholar. He is the author of Singapore Places its Bets: Casinos, Foreign Talent and Remaking a City-state (Straits Times Press, 192pp, 2010). The book provides an analysis of the remaking of Singapore society primarily through the lens of the highly controversial introduction of casino gambling to the city-state and, secondarily, through recent significant shifts in Singapore’s demographic profile via heavy inflows of immigrants even as some Singaporeans decide to leave their country for greener pastures. Singapore Places its Bets synthesizes social, economic and political elements in its treatment of the key issues that will likely define Singapore in the years to come. The book was published just ahead of the phased opening in the first quarter of 2010 of the initial casino resort in Singapore -- Resorts World Sentosa – developed by Genting Singapore PLC. Derek’s other single-authored work is the book The Price of Victory: The 1997 Singapore General Election and Beyond (1997). He is also the editor of the volumes Debating Singapore: Reflective Essays (1994), and Singapore in the New Millennium: Challenges Facing the City-State (2002). He has M.Phil. and Ph.D. degrees in the field of international relations from Cambridge University and the Australian National University respectively. His research interests are eclectic. Beyond political and social commentary, he has also written extensively on defence and security issues. He is currently working on two other books: one on a socio-political theme, and another related to an appraisal of the evolving geopolitical situation in Southeast Asia.