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Worker's Party (Singapore)
The Workers' Party (WP) is a major social democratic political party in Singapore and one of the two contemporary political parties represented in Parliament, alongside the governing People's Action Party (PAP). The WP sits on the centre-left of the political spectrum and is currently the largest and oldest opposition party in Parliament, having contested every parliamentary election since 1959 against the dominant PAP. Since the 2011 general election, the WP has been the only political party, other than the PAP, with elected Members of Parliament (MPs). The WP was founded in 1957 by David Marshall, having previously led the more left-wing Labour Front (LF) to victory in 1955, forming a minority government and becoming the first Chief Minister of Singapore. After the British initially rejected his proposal for home rule, he resigned as leader of the LF and from his seat in 1957. After creating the WP, Marshall returned as its first representative in the Legislative Assembly a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sylvia Lim Swee Lian
Sylvia Lim Swee Lian (; born 28 March 1965) is a Singaporean politician, lawyer, former police officer and former Temasek Polytechnic law lecturer. She has been the chairperson of the Workers' Party (WP) since 2003 and the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Paya Lebar division of Aljunied GRC since 2020. Having been a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament between 2006 and 2011 of the 11th Parliament of Singapore, Lim represented the Serangoon division of Aljunied GRC between 2011 and 2020. Before entering politics, Lim had served in the Singapore Police Force and worked in Temasek Polytechnic as a law lecturer. One week after the 2011 general election, she announced that she would be resigning from her job at Temasek Polytechnic after 12 years by what she anticipated to be an increased workload after being elected as part of the Workers' Party team for Aljunied GRC. During the same year, Lim also re-entered the legal sector. She is currently serving as counsel at Peter L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Home Rule
Home rule is the government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been decentralized to it by the central government. Home rule may govern in an autonomous administrative division; in contrast, though, there is no sovereignty separate from that of the parent state, and thus no separate chief military command nor separate foreign policy and diplomacy. In the British Isles, it traditionally referred to self-government, devolution or independence of the countries of the United Kingdom—initially Ireland, and later Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. In the United States and other countries organised as federations of states, the term usually refers to the process and mechanisms of self-government as exercised by municipalities, counties, or other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Teochew People
The Teochew (), Teo-Swa, or Chaoshanese are an ethnic group historically native to the Chaoshan region in south China who speak the Teochew language. Today, most ethnic Teochew people live throughout Chaoshan and Hong Kong, and also outside China in Southeast Asia, including in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. The community can also be found in diasporas around the world, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and France. Names The ancestral homeland of the Teochew people is now known in China as Teo-Swa or Chaoshan (; Peng'im: ; ). This whole region was historically known as Teochew (; Peng'im: ; ), and this term continues to be used by the Teochew diaspora in Southeast Asia. In referring to themselves as Sinitic people, Teochew people generally use (), as opposed to (). Teochew people also commonly refer to each other as (). History The ancestors of the Teochew people moved to present-day Chaosha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Low Thia Khiang
Low Thia Khiang (; born 5 September 1956) is a Singaporean former politician and the secretary-general of the Workers' Party (WP) between 2001 and 2018. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Hougang Single Member Constituency (SMC) between 1991 and 2011, and the Bedok Reservoir–Punggol division of Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC) between 2011 and 2020. Low was one of the two opposition MPs in Parliament between 1997 and 2011. Low made his political debut in the 1991 general election where he contested in Hougang SMC as a WP candidate. He was appointed secretary-general of the Workers' Party on 27 May 2001. During the 2011 general election, Low decided not to seek re-election in Hougang SMC and instead contested in Aljunied GRC, leading a team of five to win the first Group Representation Constituency (GRC) in opposition history and unseating the People's Action Party (PAP). Low became one of five elected opposition MPs for Aljunied GRC in the 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hougang Single Member Constituency
The Hougang Single Member Constituency is a single member constituency (SMC) located in the north-eastern area of Singapore. The current Member of Parliament is Dennis Tan from the Workers' Party (WP). History The constituency was first formed prior to the 1988 general election and was won by the People's Action Party (PAP) in its debut. However, PAP's representation of Hougang SMC would only last three years, when it lost the seat to the Workers' Party (WP) candidate Low Thia Khiang after an almost 12% swing during the 1991 general election. In the 2006 general election, then- Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong was tasked with helping the PAP to win back the two opposition wards of Hougang SMC and Potong Pasir SMC, the former of which was promised a $100 million upgrading plan. However, Low retained the seat with an increased vote of 62.7% compared to 2001. From 1991 to 2011, it was one of only two opposition-held (i.e. non-PAP) seats in Parliament. During the 2011 gene ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Safe Seats
A safe seat is an electoral district which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combination of both. With such seats, there is very little chance of a seat changing hands because of the political leanings of the electorate in the constituency concerned or the popularity of the incumbent member. This contrasts with a marginal seat in which a defeat for the seat holder is considered possible. In systems where candidates must first win the party's primary election or preselection, the phrase "tantamount to election" is often used to describe winning the dominant party's nomination for a safe seat. Definition There is a spectrum between safe and marginal seats. Supposedly safe seats can still change hands in a landslide election, such as Enfield Southgate being lost by the Conservatives (and then-potential future party leader Michael Portillo) to Labour at the 1997 UK general election, whilst other sea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1991 Singaporean General Election
The 1991 Singaporean general election was held on 31 August 1991 to elect all 81 members of the Parliament of Singapore across 36 constituencies. Parliament was dissolved by President Wee Kim Wee on 14 August 1991, upon the advice of Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong. This election was the first to be called under Goh's premiership after succeeding Lee Kuan Yew in 1990. Voting took place in only 25 constituencies, accounting for 40 seats, as the remaining 11 constituencies, comprising 41 seats, were uncontested, with People's Action Party (PAP) candidates returning unopposed. The election resulted in a decisive landslide victory for the PAP, which secured 77 out of 81 seats, and another supermajority. However, the opposition made historic gains. The Workers' Party (WP), led by J.B. Jeyaretnam, won Hougang Single Member Constituency (SMC), while the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), under the leadership of Chiam See Tong, retained Potong Pasir SMC and captured Nee Soon Central a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lee Siew Choh
Lee Siew Choh (; 1 November 1917 – 18 July 2002) was a Singaporean politician and physician. A former member of the opposition Workers' Party (WP), he was the Member of Parliament for Queenstown from 1959 to 1963 and served as the NCMP from September 1988 to August 1991 of the 7th Parliament of Singapore. Initially a member of the People's Action Party (PAP), he became a leader of the breakaway faction of Barisan Sosialis (BS) in 1961. After the BS merged with the Workers' Party (WP) in 1988, Lee stood as a WP candidate in the 1988 election and became Singapore's first Non-constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) due to his best performance among the opposition candidates. He served as the NCMP from September 1988 to August 1991. Biography Lee was born in Kuala Lumpur (hitherto located in pre-1974 undivided Selangor state of present-day Malaysia, then the Federated Malay States) to Chinese parents of Cantonese descent and was educated at Victoria Institution, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Francis Seow
Francis Seow Tiang Siew ( zh, s=萧添寿, p=Xiāo Tiānshòu; 11 October 1928 – 21 January 2016), was a Singaporean lawyer who was Solicitor-General of Singapore and later the President of the Law Society of Singapore. Seow started his legal career in 1956 in the Singapore Legal Service, becoming Solicitor-General in 1969 before entering private practice in 1972. During his legal career, he was known for having both prosecuted and defended murderers such as Sunny Ang, Mimi Wong and Tan Mui Choo. After he was elected president of the Law Society of Singapore in 1986, he had a falling-out with Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew over the Law Society's role in commenting on legislation. In the 1988 general election, Seow contested in Eunos GRC as a candidate of the opposition Workers' Party, against the governing People's Action Party. He lost with 49.11% of the vote. Before the election, Seow he been detained for 72 days without trial under the Internal Security Act. After ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Law Society Of Singapore
The Law Society of Singapore is an organisation which represents all lawyers in Singapore. The Law Society of Singapore is a law society and is analogous to what is called a Bar Association in many countries and should not be confused with the Singapore Academy of Law. The society's motto is ''"An Advocate for the Profession, An Advocate for the Community."'' The Law Society moved its premises from South Bridge Road to Maxwell Chambers in 2019. Activities The society provides services and support to lawyers in Singapore, does advocacy for issues affecting its members, publishes the ''Law Gazette'', and operates a pro bono scheme to provide access to justice for those who may not be able to afford it. Other services that it offers include: * Providing an announcement/notice dissemination service for members' notices, such as notices of a change in the name of a law practice, a change in the composition of the partners/directors in a law practice, change in contact details, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1984 Singaporean General Election
Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). * January 9 – Van Halen releases their sixth studio album '' 1984'' (''MCMLXXXIV''), which debuts at number 2 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, and will go to sell over 10 million copies in the United States. * January 10 ** The United States and the Vatican (Holy See) restore full diplomatic relations. ** The Victoria Agreement is signed, institutionalising the Indian Ocean Commission. * January 24 – Steve Jobs launches the Macintosh personal computer in the United States. *January 27 – American singer Michael Jackson's hair caught on fire during the making of the Pepsi commercial. February * February 3 ** John Buster and the research team at Harbor–UCLA Medical Center announce history's first ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1981 Anson By-election
The 1981 Anson by-election was a parliamentary by-election held in Singapore on 31 October 1981 for the Anson Constituency. It was called following the resignation of Devan Nair, the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) from the People's Action Party (PAP), who had vacated the seat to become the third President of Singapore. The by-election marked a pivotal moment in Singapore's political history, as it resulted in the first opposition victory in Parliament since independence in 1965. The by-election was contested by three candidates: Pang Kim Hin of the PAP, J.B. Jeyaretnam of the Workers' Party (Singapore), Workers' Party (WP), and Harbans Singh of the United People's Front (Singapore), United People's Front (UPF). Jeyaretnam won with 51.9% of the vote, defeating the PAP candidate with a significant swing. His victory ended the PAP's unbroken control of all parliamentary seats since 1968 and marked the return of an opposition voice to the legislature. The result was seen as a b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
