I met Chee Soon Juan two years ago at a barbeque organised by The Online Citizen in East Coast Park. He brought his wife and three daughters with him. I had a friendly chat with him.
I met him on a few subsequent occasions. I gave some puzzles, quizzes and my books to him to give to his daughters. I have always wondered about how difficult life must be for his daughers in school.
I have spoken to Chee Soon Juan spoke on a few occasions and heard him speak at public meetings. He came across as being a sensible person and has some views about what is good for Singapore. I agree with his views on the need to have to promote democracy and to have a government that reflects the aspirations of the people and is accountable to the people.
The mainstream media has painted a negative picture of Chee Soon Juan. Many Singaporeans perceive him in a negative light, which I believe is a wrong perception. I hope that they will have the chance to meet him and listen to him, or read his views in this blog.
I met a friend at a coffee shop this morning. I told him about my views of Chee Soon Juan and his family. He agreed with me. He had heard a story that Soon Juan's daughter had to speak up in class and tell her classmates, "My father did not commit any crime". He was emotional; tears came down from his eyes when he said, "I wonder how any parent would feel if our own daughter had to face this kind of difficulty in the class".
I like to wish Chee Soon Juan, his wife and three daughters all the best as they face the difficulty of life in Singapore. I hope that more Singaporeans will come forward to express their support to him and his family.
Tan Kin Lian
In other countries, the opposition, especially the more formidable ones, are also persecuted by the ruling party. It happens all over the world. But at least the opposition can still win a number of seats at elections or even form the govt.
ReplyDeleteBut in Singapore, it is a double whammy for the more “formidable” opposition. Not only persecuted but also cannot win at elections.
No wonder few want to be in opposition and it is a vicious cycle.
In America, politicians treat each other with respect and graciousness. What how President Obama praised Senator McCain on his proposal regarding health care. It builds a positive culture and is good for the fabric of the nation.
ReplyDeleteMr. Tan,
ReplyDeleteI share your thoughts about Mr.Chee. In the beginning, I believed what our "leaders" and the press had reported about him and did not have a good impression of Mr.Chee. After reading the various reports in the internet (TKL's Blog, Temasek Review, TOC etc.)and having seen the various video clips found in Youtube etc, I now have a total different opinion of Mr. Chee and truly admire his courage and determination. I hope that he will be able to stand for election in the comming GE and am confident that he will make an excellent opposition member in Parliament. If there is a campaign to help discharge him from bankruptcy, I would be most happy to help in my limited capacity with a small contribution, and I am sure there will be many others who will also do likewise. I wish Mr.Chee and his family all the very best.
After the MB saga, I am more open to the Opposition. Regretted believing the local media too much.
ReplyDeleteIf you wish to donate, there is a button in the SDP blog, www.yoursdp.org. But the money probably goes to the SDP party and not the Dr. Chee. Still, it is helpful to him.
ReplyDeleteI will ask my friends to read Mr. Tan's blog and also to express my support to Dr. Chee and his wonderful family. Wish them all th ebest.
As a netural citizen, I am not linked to any political parties.
ReplyDeleteI have read many negative reportings about Chee SJ on the mainsteam medias, as well as listening to speeches by Chee Soon Juan in some of the public engagement exercise.
We can judge for ourselves that Chee is not a negative person as projected.
Indeed, Singapore at this moment urgently needs capable and courages people like Chee to speak up and act for a just society for its people.
We all need to vote wisely in the next election, as the present govt has sadly becomes less caring for its people, but leaders more interested in enriching themselves with $$$...at the expense of its own citizen.
This is PAP tactic to eliminate all opposition at ALL EXPENSE!
ReplyDeleteI wish to make a correction. My friend reminded me that Chee Soon Juan and I served in the committee of the Singapore Professional Center some 20 years ago. I forgot about the earlier event as it was a large committee. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteI was at the East Coast BBQ with T.K.L. and C.S.J., and some months later at the Hong Lim New Year countdown. While I agree with mostly with C.S.J. ideology, I don't quite agree with his methodology. It seems that he's only interested in the means, not the ends. However, means without direction towards ends in view achieve nothing and arrive nowhere.
ReplyDeleteQuite a few people have expressed similar views to Vincent Sear. They said that Chee Soon Juan should respect the law and not act in defiance of the law on the freedom of assembly and freedom of speech.
ReplyDeleteCSJ has been forced to break these laws as he the law is quite restrictive and he has been unfairly treated. When he applied for a permit, he was rejected or unfairly delayed. He had no choice.
I hope that the unfairness can be corrected, so that CSJ can keep within the law.
I also met Chee Soon Juan few days ago. He was selling his papers at the hawker centre.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if he's fighting the correct battle at all. In Sun Tzu's Art of War, there's a stratagem that says to choose your own battlefield.
If he really wants to benefit the citizens. My advice is for him to start a company and give people jobs. That's the most direct contribution, undeniable value to the society.
Some of CSJ's ideas are great and wonderful. But I dislike his methods. Mass media said that he spoke ill of our country when overseas which is really a big no-no, no matter how much we (citizens) dislike our current governing party.
ReplyDeleteHi 6:04 PM
ReplyDeleteThe image of Singapore does not depend on what CSJ says. It depends on the truth.
If CSJ says bad about Singapore which is untrue, the facts will speak for themselves. Some people will present the other side, and the thinking people can make their own judgement.
If we have basic flaws in our society, e.g. undemocratic, unjust or unequal (hypothetically speaking), there is no way of hiding the truth among the citizens or outside of the country.
We have to recognize our flaws and correct them. We should aspire to be more democratic, more just, and more equal. This will be for the good of our future.
Anyway, the foreign countries have their embassies in Singapore and they send back reports about what is happening here. So, it does not really depend on any one person's views.
Parka 5.20 pm
ReplyDeleteYour last sentence should be meant for businessmen, entrepreneurs and even the govt, not necessarily politicians.
But in other countries, politicians are also businessmen and entrepreneurs and even from the opposition too.
In Singapore if you are a "somebody" businessman or entrepreneur who create a lot of jobs, you dare to identify with and support the opposition?
Unless you are telling CSJ to stop being an opposition.
Even though CSJ is passionate about what he believes, I think he's not really smart about what how he's going about his activities.
ReplyDeleteHow many times does he has to break the law in order to achieve his goal? Being forced to break the law is not an excuse unless there's no other option. There's always another option. He should at least study basic law which will no doubt benefit him greatly.
Perhaps he's not really a good politician.
Parka,
ReplyDeleteI dont see any other 'legal' way that an opposition can do as you suggest. Maybe you can give some ideas instead. In Malaysia, the opposition won because of the freedom allowed over the internet. This is not allowed in Singapore.
The law was created for a certain reason...can't you see through that illusion?
No matter how smart a person can be. He just can't play a game starting with only the King and a few pawns.
ReplyDeleteIt's absolutely okay for people to have different opinions about Dr Chee may it be good or bad.
ReplyDeleteWhy? Because that's DEMOCRACY and FREEDOM OF SPEECH.
However, the mainstream media always has a one-sided opinion of him which is always negative. How is that even fair? Give him enough unbiased airtime on MSM and let the people judge him for who he is and what he stands for.
People that do not read the alternative news or media available will always associate him as a "gangster" or a "liar". He speaks the truth and he seeks to find out the truth.
CSJ challenged PM Lee to a televised debate which was declined. He challenged George Yeo to an online debate, which was again declined.
I've seen countless of times on ABC news where Australian PM Kevin Rudd has to appear on TV to argue his case on certain national policies against newscasters/journalists who always gives him a tough time.
Why can't our PM do the same? If the policies are beneficial to the country, defend it, prove it and debate it on national TV. It's not the same as reading off a pre-written script about how well and far we've progressed in the last 50 years because anyone could do that.
We've already lost J.B Jeyaretnam (God bless his soul), a true-blue Singaporean. We can't afford and we cannot afford to lose Dr Chee.
CSJ cetainly knows the law. Afterall, he is an Asst Superintendent of Police. He has no choice but to break those laws if he wants to reach out to Singaporeans. At least now we know something about what he is trying to do. He has bigger aspirations than to just create a few jobs for Singaporeans. He wanted to do much more and that is why he has chosen to go into politics. The bottom line is, with his good connections to the foreign countries, he could have easily migrated and enjoy a good life there. I do not think they will stop him from migrating, on the contrary, they will wish he has migrated, just like Francis Seow. The fact that he has chosen to stay in a HDB flat and do what he does, is testimonial to the grit and determination of this man in wanting to create a fair and just society for us.
ReplyDeleteMy salute to CSJ. He is determined and passionate about his mission. Though I previously have negative opinion about him I am starting to admire. He has my support from this day onwards.
ReplyDeleteThe local media has never been fair to CSJ.
ReplyDeleteMy sincere well wishes to the family of CSJ. I admire the daughters of CSJ. What will not break them will make them stronger.
ReplyDeleteI have been following SDP / Dr Chee news since the last election.
ReplyDeleteBefore that, I, like many here, thinks that SDP / Dr Chee are trouble maker who like to break the law.
After following SDP / Dr Chee and some of the supporters blogs, I begin to realise that SDP / Dr Chee did not deliberately break the laws. In fact, it is the Ruling Party who amend / change the laws just to 'do them in'.
For some of you here who mentioned that they agree with Dr Chee's ideals but not his method, let me ask you this, what method you are disagreeing with? If you seen how other opposition parties can go around with their groundwork without much of a 'disturbance' by the police and SDP was place under police investigations for theirs, ask yourself this, what went wrong?
SDP / Dr Chee's methods? Or is it the case of rule by law?
I've respected Mr Tan Kin Lian for his sharp and honest views on Singapore society and politics.
ReplyDeleteAnd this article only proves his wise and mature understanding of REAL politics - something that doesn't happen in Singapore
As a father, I emphathised with the stress that his daughters had to go through.
ReplyDeleteHe "broke the law" seemed like a big thing until you realised that he is only doing something to raise public awareness of the plight of the underdog, giving an alternative view.
The media is controlled by PAP - can anyone dispute this fact? So with no media support, how can the public know about what he has to say? If PAP play this game fairly, then Dr. Chee has no need to resort to all the media-grabbing tactics.
Singapore can benefit if everyone play the game fairly. IF the ruling party can't even handle some opposition in the parliament, and they need to crack their brains to "fix" the opposition, then what good are the PAP people?
“Cowardice asks the question, Is it safe? Expediency asks the question, Is it politic? But conscience asks the question, Is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but because conscience tells one it is right.”
ReplyDeleteMartin Luther King, Jr
Thank you Dr Chee for reminding us to stand up & do the right thing.
I heard some people saying, incumbent opposition MPs Chiam See Tong and Low Thia Khiang, and opposition NCMP Sylvia Lim are to weak and mild against the PAP with their voices inside Parliament, compared to the voice of Chee Soon Juan outside Parliament. I wonder what's the general opinion here.
ReplyDeleteI am not against CSJ BUT I don't agree to "CSJ has been forced to break these laws" or "He has no choice but to break those laws if he wants to reach out to Singaporeans". Nobody is above whatever law. If you cannot work within the law, then you are not going to make it, whatever you want to do. His daughter said: "My father did not commit any crime" but you people also said "he break the laws", right? Good Luck! Mr Chee! Good Luck! Mr Tan.
ReplyDeleteThere is a general feeling now that our PAP Govt has no guts to face opposition politicians in a debate on national TV, as many of them are getting on in years and are not so nimble in speech and thinking, and are therefore afraid of losing face on the stage.
ReplyDeleteIn public they could not hide behind a curtain of silence, as they are forced to make a response under questioning.
The question of CSJ and opposition parties in Singapore remain part of a larger historical question:
ReplyDeleteWho guards the guardians? Who regulates the regulators?
History (Source: Wikipedia)
========================= http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quis_custodiet_ipsos_custodes%3F
The essential problem was posed by Plato in The Republic, his work on government and morality.
The perfect society as described by Socrates, the main character of the work (see Socratic dialogue), relies on laborers, slaves and tradesmen.
The guardian class is to protect the city. The question is put to Socrates, "Who will guard the guardians?" or, "Who will protect us against the protectors?"
Plato's answer to this is that they will guard themselves against themselves. We must tell the guardians a "noble lie".[1]
The noble lie will assure them that they are better than those they serve and it is therefore their responsibility to guard and protect those lesser than themselves.
We will instill in them a distaste for power or privilege; they will rule because they believe it right, not because they desire it.
Vincent Sear 3.00pm
ReplyDeleteIn parliament it is the number of party seats that count, not mild or loud voices.
Loud and strong voices on blogs, big rallies in Hong Lim Park, 1000 strong petitions or huge election rallies also don't count, as had happened before.
I respectfully disagree with Vincent Sear.
ReplyDelete"Loud and strong voices on blogs, big rallies in Hong Lim Park, 1000 strong petitions or huge election rallies" are what I call a good start.
The protest called "The Boston Tea Party" in 1773 gave rise to a democratic, rich and powerful nation called USA.
Source: Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Tea_Party
I respectfully take note of the point made by Anonymous 7:56PM.
ReplyDeleteReference Anonymous (7.56pm).
ReplyDeleteThe Boston Tea Party very much defines America's unique brand of democracy.
America was founded by political protesters and dissenters.
That is why most Americans regard the act of political protests and dissent as acts of loyal citizens who care enough about their country to take action.
If Chee Soon Juan were an American, Americans would probably say, "while I do not agree with him, I will defend his right to have a different opinion."
How many PAP plants are here? :)
ReplyDeleteMr Tan, would you consider putting yourself up for this coming elections? :)
ReplyDeleteSo the Mynamar lady AungSan has broken the law there and therefore has to forego her right to lead the nation that elected her?
ReplyDeletequoting anonymous, October 05, 2009 3:00 PM
ReplyDelete[[[I am not against CSJ BUT I don't agree to "CSJ has been forced to break these laws" or "He has no choice but to break those laws if he wants to reach out to Singaporeans". Nobody is above whatever law. If you cannot work within the law, then you are not going to make it, whatever you want to do. His daughter said: "My father did not commit any crime" but you people also said "he break the laws", right? Good Luck! Mr Chee! Good Luck! Mr Tan.]]]
you said nobody is above the law. when there is no rule of law or a standard to the rule of law, then certain laws and legislations passed down from the house could highly questionable and contentious. To be ruled by laws which are questionable laws, there should be civic space allowed for lobbying and action to take place such that doubtful laws can be challenged and repealed. No one should be above the RULE OF LAW, including the law makers, legislators, parliamentarians and court officials!! =)
I am also one of those who was previously brainwashed by state controlled media into thinking bad about CSJ. But now after reading various sites and listening to the man himself, I am very thankful and appreciative that singapore still have a CSJ willing to sacrifice himself for the future good of our country, by showing to us the ridiculousness of the situation here.
ReplyDeleteThe "laws" now seems getting more and more oppressive and fear inducing. Speaking against injustice means you may become bankrupt or jailed without trial. Voting against ruling party means you could be traced. Wearing a t-shirt could land you in trouble. One man protest is now illegal. Any recording you make may be judged as political. Even voicing out in "anonymous" internet is fearful because you can ultimately be traced.
To those who disagree with CSJ methods, could you suggest more effective methods? Could you name some examples in history where dictators are thrown out simply by keeping totally quiet and doing nothing?
If in the future the law says any talking in public could be judged as political and illegal are you going to stop talking completely?
Comparing the methods of CSJ vs the methods employed by the ruling party, I would disagree with the methods of the ruling party even more.
I just made a small donation to SDP via credit card (foreign bank as I don't have trust in local banks). If using internet banking fund transfer to SDP, PAP can trace who you are. PAP is very smart but you got to be smarter to stay away from "trouble".
ReplyDeleteIt can be quite stressful here to make a political donation especially to an alternative party that our "old man" dislike the most.
Chee Soon Juan is Singapore's Barack Obama. Hope, we need. Change, Yes we can!!!!
ReplyDeleteWith all the odds against him, I must say that he has my respect.
ReplyDeleteIt's about time now that we Singaporeans think for ourselves whether we need an effective opposition against the People's Arrogant Party.
Even the Japanese has abandoned their political party LDP. The Malaysians has done it at state level and it's a matter of time that BN will be voted out.
If we cannot vote PAP out, the least we can do is do vote more of the opposition candidates in to send a message to our PAP leaders starting from our PM Lee, Lee KY, Goh CT, Mah BT, Wong KS, Khaw, Tharman, Vivian that we have had enough of their arrogance towards we lesser mortals!
Guys, I think you are all misleading the issue. There is a law and there is no excuse to break it. If you break the law and you are caught, then you have expected punishment.
ReplyDeleteWe have been fools to put people into power to put up and carry out laws based to their advantage.
The law says you need a permit to hold such a gathering. But we put in people into power, that say no to the permit.
See, it is our own folly that we are in this deep shit.
In the next election, the same people who complained like hell will vote these people back into power. And they will screw you again. This time tighter. Bodoh!!!
Thank you for the insightful blogpost. The Singapore Democrats have featured your post in their blogs of the week section – http://yoursdp.org/index.php/news/blogs-of-the-week
ReplyDeletePAP's dominance is a simple story. It is the continual growth of the economy. If people in China has a chance to vote today, or any time in the past 10 years, the CCP will win. "It is the economy, stupid!" said ex-President Cl on.
ReplyDeleteSo, when the CCP rules, you obey CCP laws. Otherwise, stay out or stay away (exile). The masses' primary concern is always $$$. Not abstract ideas which rich people like you guys love to indulge in.
Chee deliberately chose to break law. He is calling out to everybody who are unhappy about law to break law by his actions. And I think he wrote a book on "civil disobedience". He is on very dangerous ground. The result for the society will be that civil servants and company employees will break company's rules and regulations. Drivers will ignore traffic rules. There will be sure and gradual breakdown of the civil and social order. There will be no respect for the laws and authorities. No wonder Chee - and his men - has been so disrespectful to the Lee's, GCT, the courts, and Chiam See Tong. Even opposition party leaders do not want to be seemed to be associated with him.
Civil disobedience is not to be encouraged in a functioning society. It should be used only for very grave and horrendous offences or situations such as when there is genocide, mass poverty, starvation, foreign occupation, etc. Not for painless things like Western "freedoms" and "human rights".
Certainly, Chee can speak and write very well and argue his case cogently and coherently - even winning over audience sympathetic to his ideology or his personal circumstances - and appear like a upright good Christian. But he has no feel and sensitivity for the ground. And he has learned the wrong thing, i.e. civil disobedience. Singaporeans are not people who love to see protests in the streets, and those so-called Western "freedoms" and "human rights".
Civil disobedience is a methodology adopted and refined by the West to wage colour revolutions in communist countries. It is associated with the US organisation called the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), which is a reincarnation of old-time CIA. And Chee himself has worked for the NED. This matter alone can be exploited politically against him if the PAP wishes to. And he will be dead politically. Why does Chee has to appeal to or depend on foreigners? The other opposition party leaders have mentioned something like "Singaporeans are capable of solving things ourselves." These are the opposition people I will consider giving my votes.
If Chee chooses to take a chance playing with the reputation of PAP leaders, he should expect that they will do the same to him. If he seeks to destroy the PAP, the PAP will seek to destroy his SDP. He insinuated that the whole Government was corrupt - and by that insinuation and by extension even civil servants in the system were corrupt, and the judges and the press spineless if not corrupt. He should expect to receive what he has been receiving - negative court judgements and press coverage.
HE MAKES ENEMIES!!!
HE MAKES ENEMIES!!!
HE MAKES ENEMIES!!!
Frankly, Chee has no political future in Singapore, unless he reforms himself. He is a political clown in the eyes of the masses.
I am sorry that I am very harsh against him. I hope he reforms himself before he talks about reforming anything. He is still young enough for political life.
Mr. Tan Kin Lian: If you ever choose to enter politics, I hope you will not follow his footsteps and repeat his mistakes.
Mr. Tan is an accomplished person who has already established a good reputation for himself. This is the reason why I bother to spend so much time writing on his blog.
Mr Tan: This piece is pretty long. Would you consider publish it as one page on your blog?
The Straits Times reported on the "White Paper" released by robert amsterdam to many news outlets on the internet and the government's response on it. The paper has chosen not to talk much about Chee Soon Juan, saving him from further embarassments.
ReplyDeleteThis is most probably another clownist behavior initiated by Chee. The paper by robert amsterdam smears the international reputation of Singapore and it is intended to embarass the PAP Government on the occasion of the APEC meeting held recently in Singapore. This is like the Dalai Lama trying to tarnish Beijing's international by organising the Lhasa Riots and the "Tibetan People's Uprising Movment" on the year Beijing Olympics were held.
http://www.robertamsterdam.com/2009/11/obamas_human_rights_opportunity_in_singapore.htm
Obama's Human Rights Opportunity in Singapore
SINGAPORE GOVERNMENT RESPONDS TO THE “WHITE PAPER ON THE REPRESSION OF POLITICAL FREEDOM IN SINGAPORE” BY CANANDIAN LAW FIRM
http://www.news.gov.sg/public/sgpc/en/media_releases/agencies/pmo/press_release/P-20091111-1
[texts from Singapore Chinese newspaper lianhezaobao; English comments mine]
ReplyDelete许多重要反对党人物都缺席
Do I need to say more?
许多重要反对党人物都缺席
约170人参加民主党在凯煌酒店举办的党庆晚宴，但许多重要反对党人物都缺席，包括创立民主党后另起炉灶的新加坡人民党秘书长詹时中、工人党秘书长刘程强、党主席林瑞莲、革新党秘书长肯尼思和国民团结党主席张培源。
往年反对党设党庆晚宴时，都会邀请其他反对党领袖一起上台敬酒。昨晚的民主党党庆，并没有出现这样的场面。
Do you think he is honest with himself?
尽管徐顺全如今这么解释，但不争的事实是民主党中委当时却做出了比接受詹时中辞去秘书长职位更为严重的决定——投票将他逐出党。詹时中一旦失去党籍，也将丧失国会议席，反对党在国会里也将少一把声音。我国宪法不允许议员在任内跨党。詹时中尽力保留党籍，直到1997年大选才离开民主党，转以新加坡人民党秘书长的身份竞选。
拿了外国机构的资金
Do you think he is honest with himself?
坊间流传他是拿了外国机构的资金，所以才能继续在新加坡无后顾之忧地进行公民抗争式的斗争。左问右问，他回答说：“我是学者，偶尔也领一些外国的研究基金。我的著作有时获奖，有时也参加海外的研究计划。”
哪方面的研究，是有关民主的研究吗？他含糊地说：“嗯，或者是人类行为之类的。”
I seen some political forum on Youtube conducted. Chee is gaining ground. The Internet video exposure is giving him a neutral publicity. It showm his passion, love and believe.
ReplyDeleteOn the contrary, PAP team represented by Michael P insteady of the party chief gave me a poor impression of his "I attitude" and his complacency feel
I wish the opposition could work more closely since they have common objective, Their philosophy may be different and their strategy is different that's ok. But they must glued together..
I wish all the opposition all the best in upcoming election. Hope they can bring about a more stronger and effective alternative voice.
people forget the constitutional law is set by LKY and his MPs will not vote against him in parliament. He can say 10 yrs full time NS in parliament if it benefits to him and what can u do?
ReplyDeleteChee Soon Juan has very idealistic intentions. But incidents he cited about PAP leadership simply had no proof, which is why he was sued for libel. I admire his courage to speak up, but not his laziness in gathering proper facts first. Since he used to be a lecturer, he should be a role model for all young Singaporeans that when you speak up, your basic background facts must be solid and this requires skill, time and effort.
ReplyDelete