Trace S'pore's history through the lenses of ST photojournalists

Exhibition revisits key moments in the journey from colony to independent nation

- Shintaro Tay Photojournalist

A line of riot police stands guard near a raging fire from a burning ambulance and a crowd of angry men.

With adrenaline running through his veins, Straits Times photojournalist Mark Cheong raises his camera and captures scenes of carnage during the Little India riot on Dec 8, 2013.

Seeing the fire turn into an explosion, Mr Cheong turns to a fellow photojournalist and says: "This is not any normal day."

Mr Cheong's photos of the riot are among more than 200 images from The Straits Times' archives that will go on display at the exhibition Singapore Stories: The Heart of a Nation, at the Selegie Arts Centre, over more than two weeks in November.

"It was important to cover this because it is a history-defining moment. Our work as news photographers becomes part of Singapore's archives, something people can study in the future. So it's always part of our job to document moments like these as fully and best as we can," said Mr Cheong, now 37 and an executive photojournalist at ST.

Jointly organised by ST and The Photographic Society of Singapore (PSS), the exhibition revisits key moments in Singapore's journey from a British colony to an independent, thriving nation.

Admission is free to the event, which is held as part of celebrations to mark ST's 180th anniversary.