Mr JB Jeyaratnam has passed away
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He is a man who stood up for his believe and spent his entire life fighting for it, regardless of the odds. For this alone he had earned my utmost respect. Truly a great lost for the nation.
My sincere condolences to his family.
My sincere condolences to his family.
word, word.
more than what we could say for the numerous armchair critics that pepper society today. here is a man who walked the talk. i do not understand his ideologies, nor why he believed what he believed in.. but i can understand his sacrifice to stand by himself. and that.. deserves everyone's respect.
A fairly recent interview he did....
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/7/27/focus/20080727081041&sec=focus
when asked if he had any regrets...
"Some people say I was a fool. All I can say is I do not regret it because, to me, life is not all about making money and acquiring wealth. Life is doing something for the people around you."
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/7/27/focus/20080727081041&sec=focus
when asked if he had any regrets...
"Some people say I was a fool. All I can say is I do not regret it because, to me, life is not all about making money and acquiring wealth. Life is doing something for the people around you."
A lot of Singaporeans will say he is a good man for standing up for his cause, he is a never-say-die warrior willing to do battle to the end...etc etc...
But let's face it - when u saw him peddling books at Raffles Place when he was down and out, how many of you stopped to chat with him or asked how he's doing? How many of you, upon seeing him from afar, chose to cross the road instead to avoid him?
It's time for self-reflection, I guess. :cry:
But let's face it - when u saw him peddling books at Raffles Place when he was down and out, how many of you stopped to chat with him or asked how he's doing? How many of you, upon seeing him from afar, chose to cross the road instead to avoid him?
It's time for self-reflection, I guess. :cry:
Condolence to Mr Jeyaratnam and family.
May he rest in peace now that the burden is lifted off his soul.
May he rest in peace now that the burden is lifted off his soul.
His Character:
"Aren't you a bit annoyed because I don't crawl to you?" he asked Lee during a parliamentary committee meeting in 1985.
His Belief:
"All I want to do is to give the people a chance to live their own lives ... and not have everything dictated to them."
His sacrifices:
Over the years, Jeyaretnam paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in defamation damages to *** leaders. In June this year, he won approval to set up the Reform Party after paying off S$265,000 ($184,900) in defamation damages.
The greatest political battle he had fought:
Anson 1981 : He Won.
Chang San 1997 : He forced the ruling party to break up the Chang San GRC in the next election..
A true son of Singapore is few and far in between. When will Singapore have another son like JBJ .
"Aren't you a bit annoyed because I don't crawl to you?" he asked Lee during a parliamentary committee meeting in 1985.
His Belief:
"All I want to do is to give the people a chance to live their own lives ... and not have everything dictated to them."
His sacrifices:
Over the years, Jeyaretnam paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in defamation damages to *** leaders. In June this year, he won approval to set up the Reform Party after paying off S$265,000 ($184,900) in defamation damages.
The greatest political battle he had fought:
Anson 1981 : He Won.
Chang San 1997 : He forced the ruling party to break up the Chang San GRC in the next election..
A true son of Singapore is few and far in between. When will Singapore have another son like JBJ .
haagen_dazs
New Member
i dont have access to the local news papers
can someone verify?
i am curious if ST(and the govt) said anything, and if so to what extent in publicity...
SM Goh recalls his encounters with JBJ
He 'did not allow the ***'s fight with Mr Jeyaretnam to affect his sons' place in society'. -AsiaOne
Wed, Oct 01, 2008
AsiaOne
I was taken aback when I learnt this morning that Mr J B Jeyaretnam had passed away. I did not expect it as I had recently read of his formation of a new political party and his interest in contesting in the next General Elections. I send my condolences to his two sons, Kenneth and Philip.
My first encounter with Mr Jeyaretnam was in the 1981 Anson by-election, which he won. I was then the ***'s Organising Secretary. His victory showed that it was possible for opposition MPs to be elected into Parliament.
We had many more encounters later, in Parliament, during elections and in the Courts. Politically, we were on different sides of the fence. I did not believe his brand of politics was good for Singapore. *** leaders and he had many heated exchanges. But despite this, we kept up our personal relationship.
As Prime Minister, I did not allow the ***'s fight with Mr Jeyaretnam to affect his sons' place in society. In reply to a letter from Kenneth, I assured him that we valued talent, regardless of his father's stand in politics and determination to oppose us. I had invited Philip for lunch, to tell him the same thing.
What do I remember or respect most about Mr J B Jeyaretnam? Even though I did not agree with his political cause, I respect his fighting spirit to advance it and his willingness to pay a price for it.
Prime Minister's Office
http://news.asiaone.com/print/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20081001-90988.html
He 'did not allow the ***'s fight with Mr Jeyaretnam to affect his sons' place in society'. -AsiaOne
Wed, Oct 01, 2008
AsiaOne
I was taken aback when I learnt this morning that Mr J B Jeyaretnam had passed away. I did not expect it as I had recently read of his formation of a new political party and his interest in contesting in the next General Elections. I send my condolences to his two sons, Kenneth and Philip.
My first encounter with Mr Jeyaretnam was in the 1981 Anson by-election, which he won. I was then the ***'s Organising Secretary. His victory showed that it was possible for opposition MPs to be elected into Parliament.
We had many more encounters later, in Parliament, during elections and in the Courts. Politically, we were on different sides of the fence. I did not believe his brand of politics was good for Singapore. *** leaders and he had many heated exchanges. But despite this, we kept up our personal relationship.
As Prime Minister, I did not allow the ***'s fight with Mr Jeyaretnam to affect his sons' place in society. In reply to a letter from Kenneth, I assured him that we valued talent, regardless of his father's stand in politics and determination to oppose us. I had invited Philip for lunch, to tell him the same thing.
What do I remember or respect most about Mr J B Jeyaretnam? Even though I did not agree with his political cause, I respect his fighting spirit to advance it and his willingness to pay a price for it.
Prime Minister's Office
http://news.asiaone.com/print/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20081001-90988.html
He 'faced prison with courage'
'He was like the Chinese doll, the bu dao weng - you knock him down, he comes back, you knock him down, he comes back again.' -ST
Wed, Oct 01, 2008
The Straits Times
HOUGANG MP Low Thia Khiang fought to hold back tears yesterday as he remembered the scene the day Mr Jeyaretnam had lost in court and was back in his office.
'The way he took off his bow tie, slowly taking off his coat, the man showed resolve to fight on even if he had to go to jail,' Mr Low told reporters at his Hougang Town Council office.
Mr Jeyaretnam, then the WP secretary-general, was sentenced to one month's jail and a $5,000 fine for making a false declaration about WP accounts.
For more The Straits Times stories, click here.
http://news.asiaone.com/print/News/the+Straits+Times/Story/A1Story20081001-90985.html
'He was like the Chinese doll, the bu dao weng - you knock him down, he comes back, you knock him down, he comes back again.' -ST
Wed, Oct 01, 2008
The Straits Times
HOUGANG MP Low Thia Khiang fought to hold back tears yesterday as he remembered the scene the day Mr Jeyaretnam had lost in court and was back in his office.
'The way he took off his bow tie, slowly taking off his coat, the man showed resolve to fight on even if he had to go to jail,' Mr Low told reporters at his Hougang Town Council office.
Mr Jeyaretnam, then the WP secretary-general, was sentenced to one month's jail and a $5,000 fine for making a false declaration about WP accounts.
For more The Straits Times stories, click here.
http://news.asiaone.com/print/News/the+Straits+Times/Story/A1Story20081001-90985.html
Condolences from PM Lee
PM: Our differences were not personal. -AsiaOne
Wed, Oct 01, 2008
AsiaOne
Dear Kenneth and Philip Jeyaretnam
I was sad to learn that your father, Mr Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam, has passed away.
Mr JB Jeyaretnam was a Member of Parliament for Anson constituency from 1981 till 1986, and a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament from 1997 till 2001. He used to engage in heated debates in the House. Perhaps it was because he and the *** never saw eye to eye on any major political issue and he sought by all means to demolish the *** and our system of government. Unfortunately, this helped neither to build up a constructive opposition nor our Parliamentary tradition. Nevertheless, one had to respect Mr JB Jeyaretnam's dogged tenacity to be active in politics at his age.
However, our differences were not personal.In 1993, one of you (Kenneth) wrote to Mr Goh Chok Tong, who was then Prime Minister, to say that you found employers in Singapore reluctant to offer you a job, and your only explanation was that the employers felt the authorities would not welcome your employment because of your name. Mr Goh replied with a letter which could be shown to prospective employers, to say that the government did not hold anything against you, and that employers should evaluate you fairly on your own merits, like any other candidate, because Singapore needed every talented person that it could find. Mr Goh had previously made the same point to your brother Philip, whom he had invited to lunch. I am therefore happy that both of you have established yourselves in Singapore.
Please accept my deepest condolences.
Yours sincerely
Lee Hsien Loong
http://news.asiaone.com/print/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20081001-90991.html
PM: Our differences were not personal. -AsiaOne
Wed, Oct 01, 2008
AsiaOne
Dear Kenneth and Philip Jeyaretnam
I was sad to learn that your father, Mr Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam, has passed away.
Mr JB Jeyaretnam was a Member of Parliament for Anson constituency from 1981 till 1986, and a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament from 1997 till 2001. He used to engage in heated debates in the House. Perhaps it was because he and the *** never saw eye to eye on any major political issue and he sought by all means to demolish the *** and our system of government. Unfortunately, this helped neither to build up a constructive opposition nor our Parliamentary tradition. Nevertheless, one had to respect Mr JB Jeyaretnam's dogged tenacity to be active in politics at his age.
However, our differences were not personal.In 1993, one of you (Kenneth) wrote to Mr Goh Chok Tong, who was then Prime Minister, to say that you found employers in Singapore reluctant to offer you a job, and your only explanation was that the employers felt the authorities would not welcome your employment because of your name. Mr Goh replied with a letter which could be shown to prospective employers, to say that the government did not hold anything against you, and that employers should evaluate you fairly on your own merits, like any other candidate, because Singapore needed every talented person that it could find. Mr Goh had previously made the same point to your brother Philip, whom he had invited to lunch. I am therefore happy that both of you have established yourselves in Singapore.
Please accept my deepest condolences.
Yours sincerely
Lee Hsien Loong
http://news.asiaone.com/print/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20081001-90991.html
There was no Speaker's Corner in those days.
Showing support to JBJ is one thing.
Being potentially filmed or video-taped with JBJ in a group of more than 3 (or 5 , can't remember) persons in a public place without police permit is another thing.
Besides self-reflection, what else to reflect on?
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What does it say of a country when employers are afraid to hire sons of opposition politicians?
Reflect on the correctness of your beliefs.
a. That gathering around JBJ is an offence
b. That he is somehow under surveillance all the time.
What does it say about a country whose people are so afraid?
a. That gathering around JBJ is an offence
b. That he is somehow under surveillance all the time.
What does it say about a country whose people are so afraid?
Well, it would appear some other people had personal differences, and they chose not to visit the wake, write any letters or make any eulogies to JBJ.
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To correct your political understanding:
One does not form "Opposition". Only political parties are formed.
A party that wins the majority of seats (or cobbles together a majority of seats through coalition partners) gets to form the govt. The parties that do not form the govt are in opposition.
Today in the UK, you have Labour, who are now in power, and you also have the Conservatives and the Social Democrats who are now in opposition.
But they certainly don't call themselves "opposition parties, and they do not wish to remain in opposition for long.
Just 10 years ago, the Conservatives were in power while Labour and the Social Democrats were in opposition.
Gordon Brown is today looking increasingly shaky, and thus it's possible the Conservatives could be in power after the next General Election two years from now.
So the wheels of fortune do turn. Thus do not label any party as an "opposition" party or a "ruling" party, as though they are forever destined to be in power or in opposition.
One does not form "Opposition". Only political parties are formed.
A party that wins the majority of seats (or cobbles together a majority of seats through coalition partners) gets to form the govt. The parties that do not form the govt are in opposition.
Today in the UK, you have Labour, who are now in power, and you also have the Conservatives and the Social Democrats who are now in opposition.
But they certainly don't call themselves "opposition parties, and they do not wish to remain in opposition for long.
Just 10 years ago, the Conservatives were in power while Labour and the Social Democrats were in opposition.
Gordon Brown is today looking increasingly shaky, and thus it's possible the Conservatives could be in power after the next General Election two years from now.
So the wheels of fortune do turn. Thus do not label any party as an "opposition" party or a "ruling" party, as though they are forever destined to be in power or in opposition.
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