It was February, 1998. Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's iconic leader, was quoted as saying that financial markets were "disturbed" by the criteria used for selecting a vice president by President Suharto of Indonesia. His judgement indirectly pointed at B.J. Habibie, who according to a close aide was "hurt" by the comment.

Later that year, after B.J. Habibie became President himself, he was interviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Gesturing across the wood-paneled office, he points to a relief map of Indonesia and the surrounding region mounted on the far wall. "It's OK with me, but there are 211 million people [in Indonesia]," he says. "Look at that map. All the green [area] is Indonesia. And that red dot is Singapore. Look at that." President B.J. Habibie of Indonesia

No gun was ever fired. Since this duel of words, the "little red dot" has become embraced by Singapore and is today used as a loving nickname of the city-state.

This work is made up by the native Indonesia's cherry called Flacourtia inermis (Rukam Masam) which has been used extensively as a roadside and park tree in Singapore. These cherries are picked from the grounds of Istana Park, Orchard Road.