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Chee Soon Juan is a Singaporean politician, activist and former lecturer who has been serving as Secretary-General of the
Singapore Democratic Party The Singapore Democratic Party (abbreviation: SDP) is a politcal party in Singapore. The party was founded on 6 August 1980 by Chiam See Tong. During the 1991 general election, Ling How Doong and Cheo Chai Chen won Bukit Gombak SMC and Ne ...
since 1993. Prior to entering politics in 1992, upon
Chiam See Tong Chiam See Tong (; born 12 March 1935) is a Singaporean retired politician and lawyer who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Potong Pasir SMC between 1984 and 2011. He was one of the two opposition MPs in Parliament. Lawyer by profess ...
's invitation to join the
Singapore Democratic Party The Singapore Democratic Party (abbreviation: SDP) is a politcal party in Singapore. The party was founded on 6 August 1980 by Chiam See Tong. During the 1991 general election, Ling How Doong and Cheo Chai Chen won Bukit Gombak SMC and Ne ...
(SDP), Chee was a lecturer at the
National 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 th ...
. Chee subsequently succeeded Chiam as the party's
secretary-general Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...
after Chiam, whom Chee and the rest of the party's leadership have had a number of disagreements, left the party. The party had three
Members of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MPs) at the time Chee took over as secretary-general, but lost all its seats at the 1997 general election and has not had any elected members since. Chee was arrested and jailed several times for his unconventional political activities, mainly for making unauthorised public speeches as well as staging demonstrations without a police permit. He was also found guilty of
defamation Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
on multiple occasions for comments he has made about members of the country's governing
People's Action Party The People's Action Party (abbreviation: PAP) is a major conservative centre-right political party in Singapore and is one of the three contemporary political parties represented in Parliament, alongside the opposition Workers' Party (WP) and ...
(PAP). He was previously barred from standing in parliamentary elections because he was declared bankrupt in 2006, after failing to pay damages from a lawsuit owed to Prime Ministers
Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...
and
Goh Chok Tong Goh Chok Tong (; born 20 May 1941) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1990 and 2004, and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party between 1992 and 2004. He was the Member of Parliament (M ...
. On 24 September 2012, Chee announced that he had raised the reduced sum of $30,000 which was accepted by Lee and Goh to annul his bankruptcy, which enabled him to contest in the
2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...
and 2020 general elections. However, Chee has been considered to be a
perennial candidate A perennial candidate is a political candidate who frequently runs for elected office and rarely, if ever, wins. Perennial candidates' existence lies in the fact that in some countries, there are no laws that limit a number of times a person can ...
, and has never won an election ever since he first contested in 1992.


Early life

Chee attended
Anglo-Chinese School Anglo-Chinese School (ACS) is a family of Methodist schools in Singapore and Indonesia. It was founded in 1886 by Bishop William Fitzjames Oldham as an extension of the Methodist Church. Anglo-Chinese School is usually abbreviated as "ACS", wi ...
and
National Junior College National Junior College (NJC) is a government junior college located in Bukit Timah, Singapore. Established in 1969, it was the first government junior college in Singapore. NJC offers a two-year course for pre-university students and a six-year ...
before graduating from
Mansfield University Mansfield University of Pennsylvania is a campus of Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania and it is located it in Mansfield, Pennsylvania. Part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE), the campus' total enrollment is 1,63 ...
with a
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...
degree in
psychology Psychology is the science, scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immens ...
. He subsequently went on to complete a
PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * '' Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. al ...
at the
University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...
in 1990. Upon graduation, Chee returned to Singapore to take up a teaching position in the Department of Psychology at the
National 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 th ...
.


Political career

In 1992, Chee was recruited to join the
Singapore Democratic Party The Singapore Democratic Party (abbreviation: SDP) is a politcal party in Singapore. The party was founded on 6 August 1980 by Chiam See Tong. During the 1991 general election, Ling How Doong and Cheo Chai Chen won Bukit Gombak SMC and Ne ...
(SDP) by the party's founder and secretary-general,
Chiam See Tong Chiam See Tong (; born 12 March 1935) is a Singaporean retired politician and lawyer who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Potong Pasir SMC between 1984 and 2011. He was one of the two opposition MPs in Parliament. Lawyer by profess ...
. Chee was first introduced to the public as a member of the SDP's team to stand in a by-election in the
Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency The Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency is a five-member Group Representation Constituency (GRC) located in the central, eastern and north-eastern areas of Singapore. The constituency consists of a section of Bedok, Chai Chee, Geyl ...
in 1992. His candidacy attracted considerable public interest as it was the first time that an academic from a state-run university had stood against the governing People's Action Party in an election. However, the SDP team was unsuccessful in the election, with the PAP winning 72.94% of the votes, the SDP 24.50%, and other parties 2.56%. Shortly after the Marine Parade by-election, Chee became the SDP's assistant secretary-general. In 1993, a few months after Chee joined the SDP, he was dismissed from NUS by the Head of the Psychology Department, S. Vasoo, who was also a PAP MP at the time, for allegedly using research funds to send his wife's doctoral thesis to the United States and making false transport claims. Chee denied that he had misused university funds and claimed that he was the victim of a political vendetta. He staged a five-day
hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...
to protest his sacking.


Leadership of the SDP

Although Chiam initially backed Chee, he became critical of Chee's hunger strike and his public comments condemning the PAP for his dismissal from NUS. Chiam wanted to censure Chee for his comments, but the party's Central Executive Committee (CEC) backed Chee. Chiam then resigned as secretary-general of the party. Chee, as the assistant secretary-general, then became the party's acting secretary-general and was subsequently elected as secretary-general in 1993. After Chiam publicly criticised the CEC, they attempted to expel him from the party—an act which would have forced him to vacate his seat in Parliament—but Chiam won a court case to prevent them from doing so on procedural grounds. Chiam remained an SDP member and MP until shortly before the 1997 general election, when he left to join the
Singapore People's Party The Singapore People's Party (abbreviation: SPP) is a political party in Singapore. History SPP was founded on 21 November 1994 by Sin Kek Tong, who led a pro- Chiam See Tong faction out of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP). Over two years ...
, a party founded in 1994 by ex-SDP members who supported him. After taking over as the SDP's secretary-general, Chee began regularly travelling abroad and to talk about his views on how "democracy is limited" in Singapore to the foreign media, especially in the
Western countries The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.
. He also published his second political book, ''Dare to Change: An Alternative Vision for Singapore''. In 1994, in response to criticisms of the book made by then Deputy Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong Lee Hsien Loong (; born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former brigadier-general who has been serving as Prime Minister of Singapore and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party since 2004. He has been the Member of Par ...
, Chee wrote a letter to ''
The Straits Times ''The Straits Times'' is an English-language daily broadsheet newspaper based in Singapore and currently owned by SPH Media Trust (previously Singapore Press Holdings). ''The Sunday Times'' is its Sunday edition. The newspaper was establish ...
''. The PAP's Second Organising Secretary, Matthias Yao, then wrote to the newspaper to reply to Chee's comments. This led to a two-month-long exchange of letters between Chee and Yao in the newspaper that ended with Chee issuing a challenge to Yao to stand against him in a single member constituency at the next general election. At Yao's request, Prime Minister
Goh Chok Tong Goh Chok Tong (; born 20 May 1941) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1990 and 2004, and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party between 1992 and 2004. He was the Member of Parliament (M ...
agreed to separate Yao's MacPherson ward from the rest of Marine Parade GRC at the next general election so that he could take up Chee's challenge. Chee lost the election, gandering only 34.86% of the vote to Yao's 65.14%.


1997 general election

The SDP's first general election under Chee's leadership in 1997 proved to be a major setback for the party as they failed to win any seats in Parliament. Ling How Doong and
Cheo Chai Chen Cheo Chai Chen ( zh, s=蒋才正, p=Jiǎng Cáizhèng) is a Singaporean former politician and businessman. He won the constituency of Nee Soon Central and served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency from 1991 to 1997, when he ...
were defeated in their bids to be re-elected as MPs, while Chee lost the high-profile contest in MacPherson to Matthias Yao by 6,713 (34.86%) votes to 12,546 (65.14%). Meanwhile, Chiam See Tong was re-elected as the MP for Potong Pasir, representing his new party.


2001 general election

At the 2001 general election, Chee stood as one of the SDP's candidates in the
Jurong Group Representation Constituency The Jurong Group Representation Constituency is a five-member Group Representation Constituency located in the western area of Singapore. The GRC consists of a large section of Jurong, sections of Bukit Batok and areas near Upper Bukit Timah Ro ...
. The SDP's team lost to the PAP team, winning only 20.25% of the votes while the PAP won 79.75%. The SDP's candidates were also unsuccessful in all the other constituencies in which they stood. During the run-up to the election, Chee attracted attention in the media when he encountered Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong while campaigning at a
hawker centre A hawker centre or cooked food centre is an open-air complex commonly found in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. They were built to provide a more sanitary alternative to mobile hawker carts and contain many stalls that sell different variet ...
. He used a megaphone to ask the Prime Minister, "Where is the $18 billion that you have lent to (
Indonesian President The President of the Republic of Indonesia ( id, Presiden Republik Indonesia) is both the head of state and the head of government of the Republic of Indonesia. The president leads the executive branch of the Indonesian government and is ...
)
Suharto Suharto (; ; 8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian army officer and politician, who served as the second and the longest serving president of Indonesia. Widely regarded as a military dictator by international observers, Suharto l ...
?" The PAP took Chee to task for this, claiming that any accusation that Parliament had been misled about an alleged loan to Suharto was untrue, and demanding that he either apologise or face a defamation lawsuit. Although Chee apologised a day later, he subsequently retracted his apology.


2002–2008, defamation suit and bankruptcy

On 15 February 2002, Chee made a public speech concerning the ban of Muslim headscarfs in schools at the
Speakers' Corner A Speakers' Corner is an area where open-air public speaking, debate, and discussion are allowed. The original and best known is in the northeast corner of Hyde Park in London, England. Historically there were a number of other areas desig ...
. For this, he was fined $3,000 because even though he was registered to speak at the Speakers' Corner, he did not have an additional police permit required for almost all public events, including concerts and political rallies. On 1 May 2002, Chee staged a rally in front of The Istana, the official residence and office of the
President of Singapore The president of Singapore is the head of state of the Republic of Singapore. The role of the president is to safeguard the reserves and the integrity of the public service. The presidency is largely ceremonial, with the Cabinet led by the prime ...
, even though his application to the police for a licence to hold the assembly had been denied. Chee was later charged for trespassing and for attempting to hold a rally without a police permit, for which he was sentenced to five weeks in jail. After the 2001 general election, Chee was sued for
defamation Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
by Prime Minister
Goh Chok Tong Goh Chok Tong (; born 20 May 1941) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1990 and 2004, and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party between 1992 and 2004. He was the Member of Parliament (M ...
and former Prime Minister
Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...
for remarks he had made during the campaign about an alleged loan to
Indonesian President The President of the Republic of Indonesia ( id, Presiden Republik Indonesia) is both the head of state and the head of government of the Republic of Indonesia. The president leads the executive branch of the Indonesian government and is ...
Suharto Suharto (; ; 8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian army officer and politician, who served as the second and the longest serving president of Indonesia. Widely regarded as a military dictator by international observers, Suharto l ...
. Chee lost the lawsuits and was ordered to pay
damages At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury. To warrant the award, the claimant must show that a breach of duty has caused foreseeable loss. To be recognised at ...
of $300,000 to Goh and $200,000 to Lee. On 10 February 2006, Chee was declared bankrupt by the High Court after failing to pay the damages owed to Goh and Lee. As an undischarged bankrupt, Chee became ineligible to stand in general elections and was required to seek a court-appointed Official Assignee's permission before making any trips abroad. In April, Chee was stopped at
Changi Airport Singapore Changi Airport, commonly known as Changi Airport , is a major civilian international airport that serves Singapore, and is one of the largest transportation hubs in Asia. As one of the world's busiest airports by international passe ...
as he was preparing to board a flight to
Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...
because, as an undischarged bankrupt, he could not leave Singapore without his court-appointed Official Assignee's approval, which he had not obtained. On 24 February 2006,
Chan Sek Keong Chan Sek Keong (born 5 November 1937) is a Malayan-born Singaporean retired judge who served as the third chief justice of Singapore between 2006 and 2012, appointed by President S. R. Nathan. Prior to his appointment as chief justice, he ser ...
, the
Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
, filed
contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...
charges against Chee for refusing to answer the court's questions and scandalising the Singapore judiciary during the bankruptcy petition hearing on 10 February 2006. As a result, Chee was sentenced to one day in jail and a fine of $6,000, but he failed to pay the fine and was thus jailed for an additional seven days. He was released on 24 March 2006. On 20 June 2006, Chee was charged in court for eight counts of speaking in public without a licence between 13 November 2005 and 22 April 2006 in violation of the Public Entertainments and Meeting Act. Two other SDP members were also charged. On 22 August 2006, Chee announced that he was planning to hold protests in Singapore during 61st Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the
International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...
(IMF) and
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...
in September 2006 (as part of
Singapore 2006 Singapore 2006 was a group of several concurrent events that were held in Singapore in support of the 61st Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group. The opening ceremony and plenary s ...
) to protest against the rising income gap and raise awareness of the hardships of working-class people in Singapore. His application for a police permit for the protest was rejected on 30 August 2006. Even without a permit, Chee still used the SDP website to continue urging people to participate in the protest. On 9 September 2006, Chee was distributing leaflets for an upcoming "Empower Singaporeans Rally and March" when he was stopped by the police. The police warned the public that anyone participating in Chee's planned rally and march would be committing an offence under the Public Order Act. On 13 September 2006, Chee invited both World Bank President
Paul Wolfowitz Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (born December 22, 1943) is an American political scientist and diplomat who served as the 10th President of the World Bank, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, and former dean of Johns Hopkins ...
and IMF managing director
Rodrigo Rato Rodrigo de Rato y Figaredo (born 18 March 1949) is a Spanish politician who served in the Council of Ministers from 1996 to 2004. He also served as the ninth managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from 2004 to 2007 and the p ...
to his planned rally. At a press conference the next day, Chee announced that his application to be a civil society representative to Singapore 2006 as a representative of the Open Singapore Centre was rejected by the IMF and World Bank. An application by his sister, Chee Siok Chin, to represent the "Alliance for Reform and Democracy in Asia" was approved by the IMF and World Bank but was rejected by the Singapore government. On 15 September 2006, Chee released a podcast that warned Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong Lee Hsien Loong (; born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former brigadier-general who has been serving as Prime Minister of Singapore and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party since 2004. He has been the Member of Par ...
that the Singapore 2006 event was a "public relations disaster" for Singapore. On 16 September 2006, Chee started off the "Empower Singaporeans Rally and March" at 11am at the
Speakers' Corner A Speakers' Corner is an area where open-air public speaking, debate, and discussion are allowed. The original and best known is in the northeast corner of Hyde Park in London, England. Historically there were a number of other areas desig ...
in Hong Lim Park, but was stopped by the police who formed a human barricade around him. He then announced that there would be a rally the following day in front of Parliament House but the police refused to let him leave the park until he called off the protest, so he remained in the park with his supporters. On 17 September 2006, Chee announced his plan to continue his protest by remaining in Hong Lim Park until the start of the IMF and World Bank meetings, which were two days away. The following day, after hours of negotiations with police, Chee went to Raffles City to hand out pamphlets to the public and then returned to the park. He stopped the protest at noon on 19 September and proclaimed that the protest had achieved its purpose. He further announced that the 72-hour protest was just a start, and that over the next few months he intended to recruit and train more activists for a campaign to bring pressure on the Singapore government to reform. Despite a rule in Singapore that bans podcasting during elections, Chee released a political podcast on 23 April 2006. However, on the order of the Elections Department, it was taken down by 25 April 2006. Another defamation lawsuit was brought against Chee following an article published in the SDP's party newspaper, ''The New Democrat'', which questioned the role of the Singapore government in the 2005 National Kidney Foundation scandal. Chee was ordered to pay damages to Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong Lee Hsien Loong (; born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former brigadier-general who has been serving as Prime Minister of Singapore and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party since 2004. He has been the Member of Par ...
and former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew as a result of this. Chee was fined $5,000. On 23 November 2006, he was jailed for five weeks for failing to pay the fine. Two other SDP members, Gandhi Ambalam and Yap Keng Ho, were also imprisoned. While in prison in November 2006, Chee reportedly became ill, leading to speculation from the SDP that he had been poisoned. A statement released by the SDP noted that Chee was feeling nauseous and dizzy, and was unable to sleep. Four days later, the Ministry for Home Affairs (MHA) asserted that Chee was treated the "same as other prisoners", and that the SDP's claims were "baseless, malicious and seek to undermine the reputation of the Singapore Prison Service". On 3 December 2006, after the doctor at the Queenstown Remand Prison had found traces of blood in Chee's urine, he was admitted under guard to
Changi General Hospital Changi General Hospital (abbreviation: CGH) is a 1000-bed hospital located in Simei, eastern Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lie ...
. On 10 December, about a dozen of Chee's supporters, including members of his family, held a protest march starting at the Speakers' Corner and ending at Queenstown Remand Prison, where Chee was incarcerated. Several foreign
non-government organisation A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in ...
s released statements expressing concerns about Chee's health and treatment in prison. Chee was released on 16 December 2006, two weeks short of his full sentence as a result of good behaviour in jail. Two days later, he published a statement on what happened during his stint in prison. He claimed that his food tray was marked, and that the light in his cell had remained on during the night, causing sleep deprivation. Two days later, the MHA replied to this, claiming "Chee's insinuations about being the victim of a food conspiracy are ridiculous and a product of his own mischief...", and that "Chee's purported 'ailment' in prison served only to provide an expedient story for his associates and foreign supporters to faithfully distort and exploit for political mileage". Chee immediately released another statement rebutting this, claiming "the MHA's statement is riddled with inconsistencies, contradictions and outright lies". On 8 January 2007, a hearing began for charges that Chee had attempted to leave the country without a permit despite being a bankrupt. On 15 March 2008, the SDP decided to stage the "''Tak Boleh Tahan''" (Malay for "can't take it anymore") protests. On 15 March 2008, Chee and 17 others were arrested at a demonstration held outside Parliament House and later charged with unlawful assembly. The trial began on 23 October 2008.


2011 general election

At the 2011 general election, Chee led the SDP into the contest. Although he was barred from standing due to his undischarged bankruptcy, he assembled a team of individuals to stand as candidates. The party had envisioned its best team to stand in Holland-Bukit Timah GRC. Its candidates included
Tan Jee Say Tan Jee Say (; born 12 February 1954) is a Singaporean politician and former civil servant who stood for the 2011 presidential election. He also founded the defunct political party, Singaporeans First. Education Tan graduated from University C ...
,
Ang Yong Guan Ang Yong Guan (; born 24 January 1955) is a Singaporean politician, psychiatrist and former colonel. He is the Progress Singapore Party Head of Training and Development since 2020. Early life Ang graduated from the National University of Sing ...
,
Vincent Wijeysingha Dr. Vincent Wijeysingha (born 2 May 1970) is an academic, civil activist and politician from Singapore. He was a member of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) 2010 to 2013. He served as the party's Treasurer and stood as a parlia ...
and Michelle Lee Juen. The team lost, attaining 39.92% of the vote. On 11 September 2012, former prime ministers
Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...
and
Goh Chok Tong Goh Chok Tong (; born 20 May 1941) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1990 and 2004, and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party between 1992 and 2004. He was the Member of Parliament (M ...
said they had no objection to accepting Chee's offer to pay the reduced sum of $30,000 to annul his bankruptcy. On 24 September 2012, Chee announced that he has raised the $30,000 from the sale of his latest book, ''Democratically Speaking'', and will be making payment to the Official Assignee in the course of that week. On 23 November 2012, Chee was formally cleared of bankruptcy upon being issued a Certificate of Annulment by the Official Assignee. This allowed him to travel freely outside of Singapore, as well as stand in future General Elections.


2015 general election

Chee contested as a candidate of
Singapore Democratic Party The Singapore Democratic Party (abbreviation: SDP) is a politcal party in Singapore. The party was founded on 6 August 1980 by Chiam See Tong. During the 1991 general election, Ling How Doong and Cheo Chai Chen won Bukit Gombak SMC and Ne ...
along with Prof
Paul Tambyah Paul Anantharajah Tambyah (born 5 February 1965), is a Singaporean doctor and professor of infectious diseases, a politician, and a writer. He is President of the Asia Pacific Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infection and also President of t ...
, Sidek Mallek and Chong Wai Fung for the Holland-Bukit Timah GRC for the 2015 general elections. He began his campaign by raising the issue of the high
cost of living Cost of living is the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living. Changes in the cost of living over time can be operationalized in a cost-of-living index. Cost of living calculations are also used to compare the cost of maintaining a cer ...
in Singapore, stressing that there was a need for Singaporeans to have an alternative voice in Parliament. In subsequent election rallies, Chee unveiled the SDP's proposals, which included the raising of personal income taxes on the top 1% of taxpayers to the year-2000 level, the introduction of a minimum wage, as well as the creation of a national healthcare plan to be funded by cutting the defence budget by 40%. In response, the People's Action Party (PAP) team described the proposals as "unrealistic", saying that the SDP's policies involved "tax-and-spend" programmes that would set Singapore "on the road to (debt-stricken) Greece". Chee responded by saying the PAP had previously criticised the SDP's ideas, only to adopt them later. According to Chee, the SDP had in the past proposed pooling individual healthcare risks, an idea that has been adopted by the Government, through the implementation of the MediShield Life universal healthcare insurance scheme, as well as the Government's Fair Consideration Framework, which he stated was an adoption of the SDP's proposal that employers must try hiring Singaporeans first before considering foreigners. At a PAP rally on 7 September 2015,
Vivian Balakrishnan Vivian Balakrishnan ( ta, விவியன் பாலகிருஷ்ணன்; born 1961) is a Singaporean politician, diplomat and former ophthalmologist who has been serving in the Cabinet as Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2015. A m ...
also called to attention Chee's role in ousting
Chiam See Tong Chiam See Tong (; born 12 March 1935) is a Singaporean retired politician and lawyer who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Potong Pasir SMC between 1984 and 2011. He was one of the two opposition MPs in Parliament. Lawyer by profess ...
as secretary-general of SDP in 1993, saying that the PAP "did not have a tradition of "backstabbing" its mentors". In response, Chee, as well as the SDP's Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC candidate Bryan Lim, provided an account of the incidents that led to Chiam's resignation on the party's website, saying that Chiam resigned on his own accord. Lina Chiam, Chiam's wife and the chairperson of Singapore People's Party (SPP), confirmed that the two sides had held "friendly talk" on the issue. At the same PAP rally,
Sim Ann Sim Ann ( zh, s=沈颖, p=Shěn Yíng; born 1975) is a Singaporean politician and former civil servant who has been serving as Senior Minister of State for National Development since 2020 and Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs since ...
accused Chee of being adept at "chut pattern", a
Singlish Singlish (a portmanteau of ''Singapore'' and ''English'') is an English-based creole language spoken in Singapore. Singlish arose out of a situation of prolonged language contact between speakers of many different languages in Singapore, inc ...
phrase meaning being full of antics. Chee responded the following day at a SDP rally by stating that he would not respond to personal attacks and would stay focused on policy issues during the election season, saying, "If you attack, you attack the policy, not the person... In football terms, you play the ball, not the man." Chee also addressed the different target population figures cited by government officials in the past, including the much debated 6.9 million figure in the Population White Paper, asking if the PAP would consider the SDP's proposal to base the optimal population on the happiness of residents, and a point system when bringing in foreigners for skilled jobs. At a rally at UOB Plaza, Chee spoke about income inequality and said that the SDP was "not against wealth, but wealth inequality as the widening income gap harms the common good, erodes cohesiveness and corrodes the values that fosters social cohesiveness." Chee also called for checks on the Government and raised what he described as "failed or questionable decisions" by sovereign wealth fund GIC and investment company
Temasek Holdings Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited, or simply Temasek, is a Singaporean state holding company owned by the Government of Singapore. Incorporated on 25 June 1974, Temasek owns and manages a total of US$496.59 billion (S$671 billion) in assets u ...
, implying that the money would have been better used on healthcare as "our hospitals face repeated shortage of beds and have to put patients along hospital corridors and makeshift tents." Chee also explained his decision to stand in Holland-Bukit Timah GRC, which includes wealthy private housing estates, saying that "the wealthy segment of our society cares - and cares deeply - about what is happening around them. I believe that compassion is innate in all of us." Local media reported the popularity Chee had garnered during the election, stating that Chee's "more moderate image" and "articulate speeches proved to be a big draw," adding that "If the buzz on social media and the queues of people that have formed after the Singapore Democratic Party's (SDP) rallies to have their books signed are any indication, there is considerable interest in SDP chief Chee Soon Juan this General Election." Observers attributed Chee's improved public image to a greater level of transparency and accessibility to information than in the past, as a result of technology like social media. Despite expectations of a close result, Chee was unsuccessful with his team winning 33.38% of the votes, losing to the incumbent PAP team. Despite his participation, the SDP fared worse in the Holland-Bukit Timah Group Representation Constituency (GRC) than in the 2011 election. Chee described the result in as "hugely disappointing", but also noted the swing against the Opposition in every other constituency. Chee also raised the possibility of his party "working closer together" with the Workers' Party at the next general election.


2016 Bukit Batok by-election

Chee contested in the 2016 Bukit Batok by-election. He garnered 38.8% of the total votes cast, with a big decrease of 11.78% to PAP's votes compared to the 2015 general elections result.


2020 general election

Chee contested in the 2020 general elections at the same Bukit Batok ward. He managed to garner 45.2% of the total votes cast, his best electoral result, an increase of 6.4% of votes compared to the 2016 Bukit Batok by-election results.


International activities

Chee is the Chairman of the Asian Alliance for Reforms and Democracy, and has been engaged by the
National Endowment for Democracy The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) is an organization in the United States that was founded in 1983 for promoting democracy in other countries by promoting political and economic institutions such as political groups, trade unions, ...
(NED), a U.S. agency. Chee's party has been granted observer status to
Liberal International Liberal International (LI) is a worldwide organization of liberal political parties - a political international. It was founded in Oxford in 1947 and has become the pre-eminent network for liberal parties, aiming to strengthen liberalism aroun ...
, a world federation of liberal political parties. "SDP has signed an agreement with the Commonwealth countries, where Singapore is a party, to include respect for fundamental human rights and civil liberties," said Chee, who had also hired Amsterdam & Peroff to take up his case against the government, whose members have filed lawsuits against news publications that have run Chee's critical comments. Chee has since served as a research fellow at the Monash Asia Institute (1997), the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
(2001), the Reagan-Fascell Democracy Program at the
National Endowment for Democracy The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) is an organization in the United States that was founded in 1983 for promoting democracy in other countries by promoting political and economic institutions such as political groups, trade unions, ...
(2004), and as a visiting fellow at the
University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...
(2014). In an
op-ed An op-ed, short for "opposite the editorial page", is a written prose piece, typically published by a North-American newspaper or magazine, which expresses the opinion of an author usually not affiliated with the publication's editorial board. ...
, Chee stated that "free trade agreements cannot continue to ignore
human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...
."


Awards

* Hellman/Hammett Writers Grant (2003),
Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human ...
* Defender of Democracy (2003),
Parliamentarians for Global Action Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) is a non-profit, non-partisan international network of committed legislators, that informs and mobilizes parliamentarians in all regions of the world to advocate for human rights and the rule of law, democr ...
*
Prize for Freedom The Prize For Freedom is an annual prize presented by the Liberal International since 1985. With the prize the organization honors an individual which has made an outstanding contribution to human rights and political freedom Political freedom ...
2011 (2011),
Liberal International Liberal International (LI) is a worldwide organization of liberal political parties - a political international. It was founded in Oxford in 1947 and has become the pre-eminent network for liberal parties, aiming to strengthen liberalism aroun ...


Personal life

Chee is married to Huang Chih-mei (黄智美), a psychologist from Taiwan who emigrated to Singapore. The couple have three daughters, Chee An Lyn, Chee E Lyn and Chee Shaw Hur. They live in a three-room
public housing Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, de ...
apartment in Toa Payoh. Chee's younger sister, Chee Siok Chin, is also a member of the Singapore Democratic Party. Chee’s mother died in the morning on 21 August 2020. On 25 June 2021, Chee and Huang's cafe ''Orange & Teal'' was officially opened at Rochester Mall in
Buona Vista Buona Vista is a housing estate located in the subzones of one-north and Holland Drive in the residential township of Queenstown in Singapore. The housing estate is served by the Buona Vista MRT station which links it up with the MRT system. It ...
. Their second cafe was opened at
Marina Square Marina Square is a shopping mall in Singapore which opened in the late 1980s. It is part of the first building complex built on the reclaimed land at Marina Centre, and was the largest shopping mall in the country at the time. The complex also hou ...
on 20 August 2022.


Documentary

In 2004,
Martyn See Martyn See is a Singaporean filmmaker and the former Executive Secretary of the now defunct Singaporeans for Democracy. Life and career Martyn See has been a feature editor for local Singapore films, some of which include ''Mee Pok Man'' (1994, ...
directed a documentary on Chee called '' Singapore Rebel''. It was supposed to be screened at the
Singapore International Film Festival The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) (Chinese: 新加坡国际电影节) is the longest-running film festival in Singapore. Founded in 1987, the festival has a focus on showcasing international films and providing a global platform fo ...
, but was withdrawn from the festival and later banned by the Singapore government because of its political content. Singapore's Films Act forbids the production and distribution of "party political" films, which are defined as films "made by any person and directed towards any political ends in Singapore". This ban was temporary however, and was ultimately lifted on 11 September 2009.


Bibliography


Works

* * * ''Singapore, My Home Too'' (1995) ''Out of Print'' * ''To Be Free: Stories from Asia's Struggle Against Oppression'' (Monash Asia Institute: 1998) ''Out of Print'' * ''Your Future, My Faith, Our Freedom: A Democratic Blueprint for Singapore'' (Singapore Open Centre: 2001) ''Out of Print'' * ''The Power of Courage: Effecting Political Change in Singapore Through Nonviolence'' (2005) * ''A Nation Cheated'' (2008) * ''Democratically Speaking'' (2012) *


Biographies

*


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chee, Soon Juan 1962 births Living people Singapore Democratic Party politicians Singaporean democracy activists Singaporean people of Hokkien descent University of Georgia alumni Anglo-Chinese School alumni National University of Singapore faculty Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows Members of the International Steering Committee of the Community of Democracies Singaporean prisoners and detainees Amnesty International prisoners of conscience held by Singapore