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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 May 2017
THE ALTERNATE HISTORY OF LIM CHIN SIONG
To recapitulate, the titular leader of the BSS and the central figure in the ambitious Alternate attempt to construct a New Singapore History — with Coldstore as its point of departure — has been the enigmatic Lim Chin Siong. It is worth reiterating how Lim has become almost a mythical symbol amongst the Alternate community. One former Coldstore detainee, Dr Lim Hock Siew, on the occasion of Lim's passing on 5 February 1996, declared:
His ability to communicate with the common man, his ability to explain complex political issues in simple layman's language, his complete identification with the oppressed and downtrodden — these were the hallmarks of Chin Siong's political leadership — a leader whose ability, sincerity and dedication aroused the people to free themselves from colonial domination.
Lim's long-time friend and comrade Fong Swee Suan recalled that people who listened to the former's speeches likened his performance to “watching a classic drama”, while the PAP's Toh Chin Chye marvelled at how “huge crowds” used to greet him at PAP rallies. Even Lee Kuan Yew admitted that Lim's speeches had a “hypnotic effect”. Lim Chin Siong's personal charisma always seemed to make an impression. When the Australian journalist Peter Hastings interviewed him in September 1961, he made the following observation:
Lim is youthful, firm and good-looking. His manners are quiet. He is polite but his essential toughness shows through. He has a sense of humour and laughs quite readily although sometimes out of politeness. His English is rapid, fluent and at times hard to follow …
To be sure, a great deal has been made of one major Path Not Taken by Singaporeans: having Lim Chin Siong instead of Lee Kuan Yew as independent Singapore's first Prime Minister. The following anecdote related by David Marshall when he was Chief Minister in the mid-1950s has been well trodden in accounts sympathetic to the Alternate perspective:
Chin Siong was introduced to me by Lee Kuan Yew [LKY]. Kuan Yew came to visit me in my little office underneath the stairs and said, “Meet the future Prime Minister of Singapore!” I looked at Lim Chin Siong and I laughed.
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