Singapore's celebrated former opposition leader JB Jeyaretnam has become the first person honoured by the Think Centre's 'Human Rights Defenders Award', for his "significant contributions to the promotion and protection of human rights in Singapore."

The man who finally broke the ruling People's Action Party's (PAP) sixteen years' monopoly in the Singaporean Parliament in 1981, Jeyaretnam, 78 was credited for building the Workers' Party into the island republic's leading opposition party.

In 2001, he lost his parliamentary seat after being declared a bankrupt for failing to pay the massive damages awarded to PAP members in a series of defamation suits.

Jeyaretnam believes the defamation suits against him were politically motivated to remove him from parliament.

As a result, he was barred from standing in future elections, and could no longer practise law.

His most recent book, The Hatchet Man of Singapore , talks in detail of the attempts by Singaporean leader and former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew to destroy the political careers of key Singaporean opposition leaders, including Jeyaretnam among them.

Wants the best for people

In a press statement released yesterday, Singapore's media watch organisation Think Centre said it will taking today to honour Jeyaretnam for his "fearless and tireless" advocacy of human rights.

"The Singaporean government has a history of using civil defamation suits to stifle political opposition. Such defamation suits place unreasonable restrictions on the right of Singaporeans to peacefully express their opinions and to participate freely in public life," Think Centre said.

"JB Jeyaretnam wants the best for his people and he was brave and critical of the government in parliament.

"He never succumbed to the pressures of being an opposition politician and many call him the lion of Singapore politics.

"For many people who were disaffected by PAP policies that meant a lot."

The organisation has also taken the opportunity to declare Dec 6 as Human Right's Day, which will be celebrated with a public forum, with speakers such as Think Centre president Sinapan Samydorai, media critic James Gomez, and Jeyaretnam.