Singapore opposition veteran to form new party
Sun May 20, 2007 3:02 PM IST137
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By Sebastian Tong
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore's veteran opposition politician
J.B. Jeyaretnam said on Sunday he plans to form a new political
party to push for reform of the city-state's authoritarian
political system.
Jeyaretnam, who led the opposition Workers' Party until 2001, was
discharged from bankruptcy earlier this month after paying off
damages in defamation suits brought by government leaders.
He was declared bankrupt in 2001 after failing to pay S$265,000
($173,900) in defamation damages to plaintiffs that included then
Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong and then Foreign Affairs Minister S.
Jayakumar.
Jeyaretnam told a press briefing that he and a handful of
supporters had begun work to register the new party and would try
to attract support from Singaporeans eager for political
reform.
"(This is) a party which will have as its main objective a complete
and thorough change in the way this country is run -- no
tinkering," Jeyaretnam, 81, said.
"Reform will be the main plank -- reform the system of government,
all sectors of society," he said, adding that the group could be
named 'The Reform Party'.
Jeyaretnam, who had to have reporters' questions repeated to him
because of his poor hearing, said the new party would seek to
contest in the next general poll, scheduled in 2011.
"I don't see why not -- unless the government moves against me
again. I would like to be there," he said.
Jeyaretnam was the first opposition politician to win a seat in
parliament in 1981. An acerbic critic and fiery speaker, he has
long been a thorn in the side of the People's Action Party (PAP),
which has ruled uninterrupted since Singapore separated from
Malaysia in 1965 and dominates the country's parliament.
The PAP, which has never lost more than four seats in any poll
since 1965, won 82 out of the 84 seats in the last general election
in May 2006. As in several previous elections, many of the wards
were walkovers for the PAP because Singapore's tiny opposition
parties did not manage to field candidates.
PAP leaders have brought defamation lawsuits against Jeyaretnam and
several other opposition figures. After losing numerous libel
lawsuits, Jeyaretnam was bankrupted, which prevented him from
running for election and from practising as a lawyer.
Rights groups such as Amnesty International say the lawsuits are
designed to stifle dissent, but PAP leaders say they are necessary
to safeguard their reputation.
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