Cecil Rajendra (born 1941) is a

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

n poet and lawyer. His poems have been published in more than 50 countries and translated into several languages."BC 2009/2010 Candidate: Cecil Rajendra"
, The Malaysian Bar.

Early life and education

Born in

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...

, Rajendra completed his education at

St. Xavier's Institution , motto_translation = Labour Conquers All , streetaddress = Farquhar Street, , city = George Town , state = Penang , postcode = 10200 , country = Ma ...

(elementary), the

University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...

(undergraduate), and

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

(legal,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Career

Rajendra, nicknamed 'The Lawyer-Poet', writes controversial poems that address human rights and environmental problems. As an attorney, his work has focused on helping poorer people who are in need of

legal aid Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right to co ...

. He is a co-founder of Penang Legal Aid Centre (PLAC). Working with photographer Ismail Hasim, Rajendra explored the backstreets of the island of Penang before the pair compiled and published ''Scent of an Island'', a collection of poetry and black-and-white photographs of Penang. In 1993 he had his passport taken from him by the Malaysian government, to prevent him from traveling. A Malaysian High Commission spokesman stated, "Mr Rajendra's passport was retained for his anti-

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars. Logging is the beginning of a supply chain ...

activities, which it was felt could damage the country's image overseas".

Recognition

In 2005, Rajendra was awarded the first Malaysian Lifetime Humanitarian Award "in recognition of his pioneering legal aid work and exemplary poetry". Also in 2005 he was nominated for the

Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 , ...

, which went to

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramatists with a writing career that spanne ...

Published works

Poetry

* ''Embryo'' (Regency, 1965) * ''Bones and Feathers'' (Heinemann,

Writing in Asia Series Writing in Asia Series was a series of books of Asian writing published from 1966 to 1996 by Heinemann Educational Books (Asia) Ltd (often referred to as Heinemann Asia), a subsidiary of Heinemann, London. Initiated and mainly edited by Leon Comber ...

, 1978, ) * ''Refugees & Other Despairs'' (Choice Books, 1980) * ''Hour of Assassins'' (1983;

Bogle-L'Ouverture Press Bogle-L'Ouverture Publications (BLP) is a radical London-based publishing company founded by Guyanese activists Jessica Huntley (23 February 1927 – 13 October 2013)Margaret Busby"Jessica Huntley obituary" ''The Guardian'', 27 October 2013. and ...

, 1993, ) * ''Songs for the Unsung... Poems on Unpoetic Issues like War and Want, and Refugees'' (

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most juri ...

, 1983, ) * ''Child of the Sun'' (Bogle-L'Ouverture Publications, 1986; Bogle-L'Ouverture Press, 1993, ) * ''Dove on Fire: Poems on Peace, Justice and Ecology'' (World Council of Churches, 1986, ) * ''Lovers, Lunatics & Lallang'' (Bogle-L'Ouverture Publications, 1989, ) * ''Broken Buds'' (Friends of Bogle istributor 1994, ) * ''Personal & Profane'' * ''Leave-taking''

Books

*''No Bed of Roses: The Rose Chan Story'' (Marshall Cavendish International Asia, 2013, )

References

External links

"Cecil Rajendra @ culture, futures"
YouTube video. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rajendra, Cecil 1941 births Living people People from Penang Malaysian human rights activists Malaysian environmentalists Malaysian poets Malaysian people of Indian descent