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e-mail this to a friendHometown Heroes
As part of Time Out’s 40th birthday celebration, TOS joins a global salute to individuals who’ve made a difference in their city.
Sadly, one of our heroes died on 30 September 2008 of heart failure. He was 82.
The only man whose initials are as well known as LKY’s, Joshua Benjamin Jeyaratnam has earned his place in Singapore’s history books for his tireless crusade on behalf of civil liberties and freedom of the press. In 1981, the former Workers’ Party leader became Singapore’s first opposition party candidate to be elected a Member of Parliament (MP) when he defeated the People's Action Party's Pang Kim Him with a 51.9% to 47.1% vote. Far from being a flash in a pan, JBJ went on to be re-elected to the same seat in 1984. Since then, he’s been embroiled in a series of political controversies. He’s been disbarred, sued for libel, made bankrupt and even jailed. A lesser man would have given up, but Jeyaratnam continued the fight.
JBJ (photo by Lester Ledesma)
Like a thorn in the People’s Action Party’s (PAP) side, Jeyaratnam had re-entered the political sphere by forming the Reform Party in July 2008. True to form, the elderly gent greeted the press sporting a polo shirt with the words ‘The Truth Will Set You Free’ and an agenda to reform weighty matters such as the rule of law and the election process. While the party is bound to encounter resistance, we salute JBJ’s tireless efforts –– which were heroic, to say the least.
Asked by a reporter if he would run for office in the next round of elections in 2011, he replied: ‘Well, I don’t know. It’s in the hands of the man above there, whether I will have the strength and the health. But even if I can’t, I hope to be able to get others who share the same ideals to run.’
See also our Hot Seat interview with JBJ from October 2007.
Check back to find out about more of our Hometown Heroes.
I have lived in Singapore for nearly 5 years and was fortunate to encounter JBJ on a few occasions. He truly was a remarkable human being. In the face of almost insurmountable odds he displayed true grit and unwavering adherence to democratic ideals. He survived and fought on in an environment where concepts of democracy are often condemned and ridiculed and where the chase for the dollar at times appears to define the human condition. He will be remembered by many for his strength and perserverance.
Too much of the rest of them just talk business and money over and over. This was a real man.
Considering the poor excuse for an obituary the Straits Times ran today (with the hideous last line 'Yet, the old warhorse refuses to believe that he is irrelevant to Singaporeans'), it's refreshing to read something balanced on JBJ.