Asia Weekly

Asian Obituaries

The man Singapore politicians loved to hate

Unrelenting Singaporean opposition politician Joshua B Jeyaretnam died before he had the chance to "fulfill his greatest dream of returning to parliament," writes Meera Vijayan in The Star (Malaysia). Faced with countless defamation lawsuits mounted by Singapore's undefeated People's Action Party, his life was a "gargantuan struggle" that continued well into his "twilight years." Politics was "his life, his every breath," so much so that, despite being unwell, just a week before his death Jeyaretnam spent his last Sunday with a family who needed his legal expertise in reclaiming property they allegedly lost to the government. He was also a patient man and spent three hours a day in prayer, according to family members.

The PAP liked to "paint him as a communist," says The Wall Street Journal Asia, but Jeyaretnam was more of a "moderate social democrat" who favoured a welfare state. He was the man Singapore's ruling party loved to hate, and yet he "reflected the best of the city-state." He endured Japanese occupation during World War II, earned recognition and title at the British bar and gave up a comfortable life as a lawyer "to fight for democratic ideals in public office." For this, Jeyaretnam faced numerous defamation charges filed by his PAP opponents that he was forced to battle for much of his life. He filed for bankruptcy in 2001 and was forced to forfeit his newly elected seat in parliament. He returned to politics again last year to start a new Reform Party. Always hopeful, he "never cowed to a fight."

The city-state of Singapore has "lost its most iconic political maverick," says Alex Kennedy for The Associated Press. His socialist ideals were not accepted in Singapore, and late in his life he resorted to "peddling" his politics books on the street because shopkeepers and store owners refused to stock them. He will be "remembered as the man who ended the PAP monopoly," former opposition legislator Simon Tay said, but his life story also remains a "cautionary tale" for other politicians brave enough to challenge the all-powerful PAP. Jeyaretnam died at the age of 82.

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