SINGAPORE, Aug 9 — Today , as Singapore celebrates its 57th year of independence, the Padang will become the first green, open space to be officially gazetted, to become the country's 75th national monument.
Speaking yesterday at an event ahead of the gazette, Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, said that the Padang, along with the 74 other national monuments, “preserves and celebrates the stories that define Singapore and our people”. Following the gazette of the Padang, the National Heritage Board will be launching initiatives from this month to promote greater awareness and appreciation of the site's significance in Singapore's history., which is a Minecraft game for upper primary school students and would transport them to an underground maze beneath the Padang.
Jean Wee, director of the Preservation of Sites and Monuments division at NHB, said that the gazette of the Padang is a reflection of the board's efforts to enhance the preservation and promotion of sites of national significance.