That, and the the fear (for lack of a better word) of not going out of the country because getting back in would be impossible. As far as I understand that was

That, and the the fear (for lack of a better word) of not going out of the country because getting back in would be impossible. As far as I understand that was the feeling of many of the expats living in Singapore, had they decided to get out of the city they couldn't have come back (and hence they would have lost their lucrative job, most probably).