Singapore Democrats

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SDP Reports:

A Nation Cheated: A report on poverty and labour in Singapore
(2007) $10

This latest SDP report written by Dr Chee Soon Juan punctures the propaganda that Singapore is well-served by the PAP.

Available in electronic format, this 72-page Report on poverty and labour in Singapore traces developments over the last 10 years since the Asian crisis in 1997, and provides evidence – hard, irrefutable evidence – that Singapore is ailing from failed PAP policies.

A Nation Cheated pieces together an unmistakable picture of PAP's failure. It tells the real story of how our enormous reserves have been accumulated through forced savings under the CPF scheme as well as through the sale of HDB flats. The slew of taxes and fees designed to maximise the extraction of funds from the people is another avenue.

For Singaporeans, this Report is a must read. It informs, it rebukes, it persuades. It is a call for us to awake from our fearful slumber.

For the foreign observer, it is an opportunity to be disabused of the notion that the Singapore Way is a model.

Excerpts: Capitalism without democracy is exploitation

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First World...for Whom? SDP’s Report on Labour and Poverty
(2004) Out of Print

SDP’s Economic Report
(1995) Out of Print

SDP’s Singapore Land Transport Report
(1994) Out of Print

Books by Chee Soon Juan:
















A Nation Cheated
(2008) $12

Small as it is, Singapore has generated many headlines that have caught the attention of the world's biggest movers and shakers, especially in the area of trade and finance. Much is made about the country's economic leap, achieved within a single generation of workers. As a result, many tales that have been spun about it. Repeated over the years, these stories have developed into veritable myths, the most popular ones being that the Singapore economy is the freest in the world, that its people are rich and productive but uninterested in politics, that the legal sysem is the envy of the world, and so on.

A Nation Cheated explodes these myths and describes how the authoritarian system put together by Mr Lee Kuan Yew has de-politicised and silenced an entire generation of citizens, breeding a climate of fear and uncertainty. It shows how the PAP Government uses the political culture to ramp up economic gains at the expense of the people.

The book exposes the weakness of such a system, and outlines the dangers that await the city-state. It also relates how Singaporeans can overcome this problem and bring about genuine stability and progress for the country.

The Power of Courage: Effecting political change through Non-violence
(2005) S$10

In this brief but clearly written book Dr. Chee has outlined the methods of non-violent civil disobedience, or the moral imperative of breaking unjust laws to bring about social uplift, as was advocated by some of the greatest practitioners of nonviolence, MK Gandhi and Martin Luther King. Using examples from the histories of different civil movements for social change, and giving specific examples from contemporary Singapore, he reveals how the current government of Singapore pursues the selective use of legislation, which instead of promoting the rule of law, entrenches the current People’s Action Party regime’s ‘rule by law’. Read this book and pass it on, the democratic revolution has begun!

- Yeshua Moser-Puangsuwan, Nonviolence International

Your Future, My Faith, Our Freedom: A democratic blueprint for Singapore
(2001) S$15

Like all good fairy tales, the Singapore Story as narrated by the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) needs to be read with a generous measure of make-believe and fantasy. Touted as the 'Boston of the East', 'Intelligent Island', and a hub for everything from the liberal arts to the life sciences, Singapore is held up as the model for developing countries, especially autocratic ones. Singaporeans continue to be told that they can ride into a secure and prosperous future only if they stick with the PAP rule.

You Future, My Faith, Our Freedom scoops away the public-relations puff and examine the goings-on behind the facade. It finds a startling and disturbing reality. Questions about the sustainability of a system that exploits rather than inspires, subjugates rather than serves are beginning to surface. The economy, social security system, distribution of wealth, and society in general are staring to creak under the weight of four decades of authoritarian rule.

Why has Singapore's economy become so shaky? Why is the CPF system in such a mess? Is the problem of income disparity more serious than the PAP lets on? The book analyzes these questions and argues that without democratic reform, Singapore is headed for an increasingly troubled future. It calls for Singaporeans to heed the unmistakable signs of a weary and waning system, and makes vital proposals for an alternative, democratic one. It is essential reading not only for Singaporeans, but also for those who seek to understand better the Singapore system.

Fairy tales also make good bedtime stories. Unfortunately, this is not a time for Singaporeans to become somnolent.

To Be Free: Stories from Asia’s struggle against oppression
(1998) S$20

To Be Free tells the stories of some of Asia’s most significant activists in the fight for freedom. Each account explores the corruption of power and how governments can prey on their citizens. Many of these stories are disturbing, exposing in graphic detail the indignities and injustices which prevail throughout Asia.

Despite the unremitting bleakness, human courage shines through in this book. Each protagonist overcomes challenges, some by succeeding in spite of government oppression. In particular, this book refutes the idea that “Asian values” limits human rights. Rather, these stories show how that the fight against oppression is universal.

As the Secretary-General of the Singapore Democratic Party, Chee Soon Juan has himself been persecuted by the Singapore government. This book is, then, a testament to the author’s own fight against oppression.

Singapore, My Home Too
(1995) Out of print

Singapore is my home and a home is what one decides it should be – lpace, space and how things are arranged. It is not a place where one lives in fear.

I do not quarrel with efficiency nor with organization that provides the greatest good for the most number of people. But I do question that there is only one way to achieve this. The PAP does not have a monopoly of what’s best for Singapore. Only Singaporeans have. Singaporeans need alternatives, choices and the chance to shape their destiny. They do not want to have this dictated to them by a group of know-alls.

This book relates how the PAP has depoliticised an entire generation of Singaporeans, dispels the myth that the ruling party has all the answers and calls on Singaporeans to reclaim our home.

It is a book written by me for you and me.

Dare to Change: An alternative vision for Singapore
(1994) Out of print

“Dare To Change is no more than a rehash of some fashionable Western liberal ideas, welfare programmes. The are ideas which have already failed in Western societies, and Chee Soon Juan packaged them together, calls it a book.”
- Lee Hsien Loong, Deputy Prime Minister and assistant secretary-general, PAP

“Sugar-coated and nice-sounding alternatives.”
- Teo Chee Hean, Minister of State for Finance

“He may call his compilation a book, but the contents are stale.”
- Matthias Yao, Sr Parliamentary Secretary and 2nd Organising Secretary, PAP

This alternative is, in its essence, a belief that Singaporeans are an educated and intelligent people, able to make the right decisions for our nation, our families and ourselves.

It calls for a more open and human society where people participate in and are deeply involved with the nation’s interests and goals. Only when we become truly involved can we say that we have become a nation. This contrasts with the PAP who believes that they, and only they, know what is best for Singaporeans. This alternative vision is, I believe, the ‘second wind’ that will help Singaporeans run beyond The Next Lap.

Alliance for Reform and Democracy in Asia (ARDA) Publication:













Those Who Dare: A Book about Asia's democracy by Asian democrats [Hard cover]
(2006) S$35

Those Who Dare is an amazing collection of personal accounts by Asia's leading democracy advocates. Never before have Asian democracy luminaries like Anwar Ibrahim, Martin Lee, Thich Quang Do, and others come together in such a historic manner to voice their hopes for a free and democratic Asia. The book is also a remarkable documentation of the personal struggles by the authors including imprisonment, exile, beatings and torture.

Those who wish to know more about a region that increasingly demands attention, politically and economically, this book is a must-read.

Authors: Anwar Ibrahim (Malaysia), Sarwar Bari (Pakistan), Chee Soon Juan (Singapore), Tian Chua (Malaysia), Martin Lee (Hong Kong), Loretta Ann P Rosales (Philippines), Shih Ming-teh (Taiwan), Thich Quang Do (Vietnam), Wang Dan (China).

Open Singapore Centre (OSC) Report:

Elections in Singapore: Are they Free and Fair?
(2000) Out of Print