TR EMERITUS

By Seth Mydans from New York Times IT is the dress, she said, that catches the eye, the long silk sheath with the slits in the sides that offers what she calls “a startling panorama of the entire landscape of the female form.” The dress is called a cheongsam, and the woman wearing it is Catherine Lim, 67, arguably the most vivid personality in strait-laced Singapore and, when she is not writing witty romantic novels or telling ghost stories, one of the government’s most acute critics. In a light, self-mocking, first-person novel called “Meet Me on the QE2!” she describes what she calls the strategic power of the dress, bright and playful to the eye but not as benign as it seems. “No other costume has quite managed this unique come hither/get lost blend,” she wrote in the 1993 book, which recounts her flirtations on a cruise ship with men who, in their masculine determination, look faintly silly. The subject of her humor, she said, was not only the shipboard story, but also the government of Singapore. Sometimes called a nanny state for its heavy-handed top-down control, Singapore might also be called a macho state, in which government warriors of social engineering and economic development command the citizenry. In Ms. Lim’s political analysis, these efficient, no-nonsense leaders are respected but not loved by their people, whose allegiance is to the good life the leaders provide, rather than to the leaders themselves. This “great affective divide,” as she calls it, could deepen as a younger generation demands what some might term the more feminine qualities of the heart, soul and spirit. That view, which she first put forward 15 years ago in a pair of newspaper columns, still rankles among Singapore’s leaders, and its concept and vocabulary remain a framework for political discourse here today. MS. LIM has established herself as a leading voice for liberalism, and when newspapers shy away from printing her more pointed views in this heavily censored and self-censoring society, she posts them on her Web site, Catherinelim.sg. She continues to say things few others dare to. On her Web site a year ago, she belittled new, looser regulations over Internet speech as “a shrewd balancing act, both to reassure the people and to warn off the critics.” “For the first time in its experience,” she wrote of the governing People’s Action Party, “it would seem that the powerful P.A.P. government stands nonplused by an adversary.” At a forum this month with Singapore’s most powerful man, Lee Kuan Yew, the former prime minister whose current title is minister mentor, she asked provocatively whether he would send in the army in the very unlikely event that the P.A.P. lost an election. (His long and intricate answer was that there were other ways to control an opposition government.) “They leave me alone,” she said in an interview. “They probably say, ‘Oh, this woman is no threat.’ Everyone knows that I am on my own, that ‘this is a very difficult person who needs to be on her own.’ ” She certainly does not behave like a threat. She arrived for afternoon tea not long ago dressed not in a cheongsam but in her workout clothes, elegant in black tights, a scoop-neck white T-shirt, a polka-dot scarf and a pert round cap. “So, what a world, what a world,” she said looking around, bright and wide-eyed. “But on balance, it’s a wonderful world. I’m so pleased to be alive at this stage.” And then, in an animated monologue, the variegated ensemble that is Catherine Lim came tumbling out. She talked of politics and science and mah-jongg and her adventures with men, of her atheism and her ruminations on death, which she said would bring perfect happiness through equilibrium and oblivion. She talked of her childhood in Malaysia in a superstitious Hokkien Chinese family — the source of the ghost stories she has turned into literature — and her anglicization by nuns in a Catholic school who taught her to love the English language as well as the strawberries and daffodils she had never seen. She talked of her grown daughter and son, a doctor and a journalist, and of her divorce in 1984 from a man who found her insufficiently submissive. “It’s the best thing that ever happened to me,” she said. She was reading up on science, she said — “I must be the only woman in Singapore who can discuss quantum physics a little bit convincingly” — when the idea for her next book came to her not long ago, a novel with existential undertones. “This is just to give you an idea of how volatile writers like myself are and how our minds go tuk-tuk-tuk-tuk like fireworks all the time,” she said.It was just before her divorce that Ms. Lim began writing fiction, and when it was a hit, she quit her job as a university lecturer in linguistics. The 18 books she has produced have been published in a dozen countries, including the United States. And then in 1994, a year after writing about her adventures on the Queen Elizabeth 2, she took Singapore by surprise with her hard-edged essays about the loveless relationship between the government and its people. The fuss that followed became known as the “Catherine Lim affair” and offered an object lesson in the brittleness and insecurity of the men, and just a few women, who hold power here. IN a study published in March titled “Who’s Afraid of Catherine Lim?” a political scientist at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Kenneth Paul Tan, cast Ms. Lim’s duel with the government in Freudian terms. An overbearing patriarchal leadership, he said, finds itself at odds with an outwardly benign, deferential woman whose feminine demeanor befuddles and unmans them. The government’s aggressive response to her essays about the “affective divide” seemed to confirm Ms. Lim’s assertion that it did not much care whether it was loved but was intent on being feared. Goh Chok Tong, who was prime minister in 1994, rose in Parliament then to defend his government’s honor, declaring, “If you land a blow on our jaw, you must expect a counterblow on your solar plexus.” In a speech a few months later, also quoted in the pro-government newspaper The Straits Times, he was even more expressive, saying, “If you hit us in the jaw, we hit you in the pelvis.” Really, Ms. Lim said in the interview, she likes men. But she seems to enjoy them in limited doses, as amusing playthings who must not be allowed to get out of line. “I would never remarry,” she said. “I will not even be in a commitment because I value my freedom so much.” She added, in a conspiratorial whisper: “So I have dates. Some of them are more special than others. But that’s it.” The flirtations and intrigues she described on the Queen Elizabeth 2 were mostly true, she said, “with a little bit of disguising.” Since then she has become a professional lecturer on cruise ships, dressing up in her cheongsam and telling her stories about men and women and ghosts. “In one of my last cruises — this is so funny, and I love to regale my friends,” she said. “I was wearing the cheongsam, and I saw a row of four old men sitting in front. “And later one of them came up to me and said, ‘You know, I wasn’t even following your lecture. I was only looking at your cheongsam legs.’ ” Many Western women might find that offensive, but Ms. Lim just laughed at the memory. “Don’t you think that was cute?” she said. “I thought that was cute.” IT is the dress, she said, that catches the eye, the long silk sheath with the slits in the sides that offers what she calls “a startling panorama of the entire landscape of the female form.” The dress is called a cheongsam, and the woman wearing it is Catherine Lim, 67, arguably the most vivid personality in strait-laced Singapore and, when she is not writing witty romantic novels or telling ghost stories, one of the government’s most acute critics. In a light, self-mocking, first-person novel called “Meet Me on the QE2!” she describes what she calls the strategic power of the dress, bright and playful to the eye but not as benign as it seems. “No other costume has quite managed this unique come hither/get lost blend,” she wrote in the 1993 book, which recounts her flirtations on a cruise ship with men who, in their masculine determination, look faintly silly. The subject of her humor, she said, was not only the shipboard story, but also the government of Singapore. Sometimes called a nanny state for its heavy-handed top-down control, Singapore might also be called a macho state, in which government warriors of social engineering and economic development command the citizenry. In Ms. Lim’s political analysis, these efficient, no-nonsense leaders are respected but not loved by their people, whose allegiance is to the good life the leaders provide, rather than to the leaders themselves. This “great affective divide,” as she calls it, could deepen as a younger generation demands what some might term the more feminine qualities of the heart, soul and spirit. That view, which she first put forward 15 years ago in a pair of newspaper columns, still rankles among Singapore’s leaders, and its concept and vocabulary remain a framework for political discourse here today. MS. LIM has established herself as a leading voice for liberalism, and when newspapers shy away from printing her more pointed views in this heavily censored and self-censoring society, she posts them on her Web site, Catherinelim.sg. She continues to say things few others dare to. On her Web site a year ago, she belittled new, looser regulations over Internet speech as “a shrewd balancing act, both to reassure the people and to warn off the critics.” “For the first time in its experience,” she wrote of the governing People’s Action Party, “it would seem that the powerful P.A.P. government stands nonplused by an adversary.” At a forum this month with Singapore’s most powerful man, Lee Kuan Yew, the former prime minister whose current title is minister mentor, she asked provocatively whether he would send in the army in the very unlikely event that the P.A.P. lost an election. (His long and intricate answer was that there were other ways to control an opposition government.) “They leave me alone,” she said in an interview. “They probably say, ‘Oh, this woman is no threat.’ Everyone knows that I am on my own, that ‘this is a very difficult person who needs to be on her own.’ ” She certainly does not behave like a threat. She arrived for afternoon tea not long ago dressed not in a cheongsam but in her workout clothes, elegant in black tights, a scoop-neck white T-shirt, a polka-dot scarf and a pert round cap. “So, what a world, what a world,” she said looking around, bright and wide-eyed. “But on balance, it’s a wonderful world. I’m so pleased to be alive at this stage.” And then, in an animated monologue, the variegated ensemble that is Catherine Lim came tumbling out. She talked of politics and science and mah-jongg and her adventures with men, of her atheism and her ruminations on death, which she said would bring perfect happiness through equilibrium and oblivion. She talked of her childhood in Malaysia in a superstitious Hokkien Chinese family — the source of the ghost stories she has turned into literature — and her anglicization by nuns in a Catholic school who taught her to love the English language as well as the strawberries and daffodils she had never seen. She talked of her grown daughter and son, a doctor and a journalist, and of her divorce in 1984 from a man who found her insufficiently submissive. “It’s the best thing that ever happened to me,” she said. She was reading up on science, she said — “I must be the only woman in Singapore who can discuss quantum physics a little bit convincingly” — when the idea for her next book came to her not long ago, a novel with existential undertones. “This is just to give you an idea of how volatile writers like myself are and how our minds go tuk-tuk-tuk-tuk like fireworks all the time,” she said. It was just before her divorce that Ms. Lim began writing fiction, and when it was a hit, she quit her job as a university lecturer in linguistics. The 18 books she has produced have been published in a dozen countries, including the United States. And then in 1994, a year after writing about her adventures on the Queen Elizabeth 2, she took Singapore by surprise with her hard-edged essays about the loveless relationship between the government and its people. The fuss that followed became known as the “Catherine Lim affair” and offered an object lesson in the brittleness and insecurity of the men, and just a few women, who hold power here. In a study published in March titled “Who’s Afraid of Catherine Lim?” a political scientist at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Kenneth Paul Tan, cast Ms. Lim’s duel with the government in Freudian terms. An overbearing patriarchal leadership, he said, finds itself at odds with an outwardly benign, deferential woman whose feminine demeanor befuddles and unmans them. The government’s aggressive response to her essays about the “affective divide” seemed to confirm Ms. Lim’s assertion that it did not much care whether it was loved but was intent on being feared. Goh Chok Tong, who was prime minister in 1994, rose in Parliament then to defend his government’s honor, declaring, “If you land a blow on our jaw, you must expect a counterblow on your solar plexus.” In a speech a few months later, also quoted in the pro-government newspaper The Straits Times, he was even more expressive, saying, “If you hit us in the jaw, we hit you in the pelvis.” Really, Ms. Lim said in the interview, she likes men. But she seems to enjoy them in limited doses, as amusing playthings who must not be allowed to get out of line. “I would never remarry,” she said. “I will not even be in a commitment because I value my freedom so much.” She added, in a conspiratorial whisper: “So I have dates. Some of them are more special than others. But that’s it.” The flirtations and intrigues she described on the Queen Elizabeth 2 were mostly true, she said, “with a little bit of disguising.” Since then she has become a professional lecturer on cruise ships, dressing up in her cheongsam and telling her stories about men and women and ghosts. “In one of my last cruises — this is so funny, and I love to regale my friends,” she said. “I was wearing the cheongsam, and I saw a row of four old men sitting in front. “And later one of them came up to me and said, ‘You know, I wasn’t even following your lecture. I was only looking at your cheongsam legs.’ ” Many Western women might find that offensive, but Ms. Lim just laughed at the memory. “Don’t you think that was cute?” she said. “I thought that was cute.” - NYT  Read More →

From our Correspondent Following last weekend publicity bonanza for the SPH publication on the PAP - "Men in white", one of its writer Straits Times Correspondent Leong Wing Kam wrote about his personal thoughts on his ST blog. Leong admitted that he was surprised that so many of the former leftists turned up at the book launch which he claimed is proof of "their true endorsement of this SPH publication which gave as balanced a view as possible to the PAP story by including many of their voices." He added that he was satisfied to see the "final closure" in the bitter rivalry between the two opposing sides in the PAP when they met again after nearly 50 years and to get the voices of the vanquished heard in the PAP story. Leong ended his blog posting with a wish that the younger generation today can also emulate some of the good qualities as shown by our past political leaders, including those of the leftist members, as portrayed in the book. Unfortunately, his views were not shared by many netizens who questioned his motives for co-authoring the book. foreigncitizen fired the first shot at him: "Hello..WK Leong....only if it is TRUE...to tell the whole truth and nothing but...and not fiction!! One wonders what made W K Leong and his cronies write this book? For money, did they want a medal from the President or did they do it to appease their lap-dog ST employers?" pimpmaster expressed his scepticism about the factual accuracy of the book after reading it: "....well, I have to say....it was a headache finishing that book. I can't wait for non-SPH journalists to deconstruct it. But here's what I thought it was - many of the so-called "untold stories" were actually already known to the Internet community. One can find them in blogs by opposition parties or past interviews given by Barisan Socialis member...of course, these never saw the light of day in Singapore's newspapers, and were still officially considered "untold". What is inside "Men in White" is essentially a retelling of what some opposition and Barisan Socialis politicians have disclosed in the internet....except re-imagined in a different perspective. I still feel that very important details were left out....either the writers think it was irrelevant, or it was just plainly edited out. But who are these men to say which part of our history is relevant or not? I wonder. And you know, this is my opinion. I can't wait for someone to give their take in what I firmly believe is the re-imagined version of our history." citizenlost slammed the writers for omitting crucial historical facts in the book: "Think about it for a moment. Where else but in Singapore would an" author" and that is using the word ..loosely... can get away with "writing" a book and purposely omitting some important facts about an issue? Which "author" will be crazy or stupid enough to try to tell events and purposely omit important points to suit his paymasters and be the lap-dog to the authoritries? Only in Singapore. Which proper publishing house would have taken it on? Did they not check that relevant facts were left out? Or were they told that gullible Singaporeans would read and buy anything. Only in Singapore. Mr Leong and his cronies will once again be laughing stocks of the overseas press media. They have again showed what they are to the worlds press. Stifled lap-dogs. Shame, shame, shame. But then, ST has no shame." Harry Lim asked why some key questions remained unanswered by the book: "How did the PAP get rid of all Opp MPs in the 60s?? Besides the break Away BS, how about the rest? Any behind the scene politicking to get them to resign? Why did Ong Eng Guan resign? DID the Leftist break away, did LKY conspire with the Bristish to arrest his comrades?? Are the above questions told in the untold story??" It appears that the SPH's reputation as a government mouthpiece has taken a toll on the credibility of the book. Despite repeated assertations in the press that the book is an "objective" account of the PAP's history, the fact remains that it was then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong who "requested" the three SPH journalists to write on the book and that MM Lee had read through the entire transcript before it had gone to publication. The scepticism was further fueled by the unashamed use of SPH by the PAP to keep itself a massive publicity boost before the next election when there are more pressing issues to deal with. As youth put it succinctly: "I find it so self-serving for the PAP to keep printing stuff about themselves in the papers and on TV - and for three whole weeks! C'mon, stop with the nostalgia and start working on solving our current problems la." The late David Marshall, Singapore's first Chief Minister once described Straits Times journalists as "running dogs and prostitutes" of the PAP. Singaporeans will have to read "Men in white" with a heavy dose of salt and a plastic bag on standby (in case they vomit). Related article: >> Publicity drive for PAP book at Kinokuniya Reference: http://blogs.straitstimes.com/2009/9/11/history-comes-together  Read More →

By Sanjana George, Lifestyle Correspondent The role of a woman in society changed so much over the centuries. Earlier, women were expected to bear children, raise them, and in general, take care of their home. Men on the other hand, were the breadwinners, and expected to provide for the family. With time, came change. History speaks highly of queens like Cleopatra and Queen Elizabeth, who wielded the batons of power firmly in a traditionally male dominated role. From the 18th century on wards, many women began to make a name for themselves in different fields. People began to read the works of a certain Jane Austen, Marie Curie won accolades for discovering radioactivity and Coco Chanel changed the face of fashion forever. Today, women have continued to write inspirational success stories by making a difference in whichever field they are in. However, for every successful Donatella Versace, Venus Williams or Julia Roberts in the world; there are also women who are paying a heavy price for their careers. It is believed that women are fantastic at multi tasking and are quick decision makers. We women are wired to believe that we can ‘have it all’, and that each one of us is capable of being a superwoman. Most of us try juggling multi roles together by doing our best to finish that urgent report on time, run a perfect home, wake up in the morning to make the kids waffles for breakfast and still look fit and gorgeous at the end of the day. What is important to understand is that while having a career is a personal choice, the life long responsibility of looking after the home and family comes with being a woman. If statistics are to be believed, the pressures of every day life are beginning to surface in a terrible way. Women with hectic jobs are most likely to suffer long-term effects of stress even though they may deny having any stress at all. In addition, they could face difficulty in conceiving a child, and are more likely to develop heart disease even before they reach menopause. According to studies, women in the age group of 25- 45 years have a 62% higher risk of developing breast cancer when compared to women who did not lead stressful lives. The decision made by many women to have a child after reaching a well paying position, also has its downside. More than 7.3 million women in America within the age group of 15- 44 years of age, are diagnosed with fertility problems. In Singapore alone, around 15% of couples are unable to get pregnant within a year of trying to conceive. Due to a hectic lifestyle, and fluctuating weight issues, around 5- 10 per cent of women globally suffer from hormonal imbalance problems such as polycystic ovary syndrome. The strain of being a superwoman at work and home, affects the harmony of a marriage too. Divorce rates are on the rise globally and in 2007, the rate was 2.02 per 1000 people in Singapore alone. Why is the happiness of a career-oriented woman suddenly on the decline? The first reason can be attributed to the constant pressures and competition faced at the workplace to go beyond the glass ceiling. Extra job demands like frequent travel, working late hours, or attending office parties puts extra pressure on a person. Even if a woman wants to quit her job for a more leisurely lifestyle, unpredictable events like the recent global recession, make them think twice. Even basic expenses are on the rise and it is getting harder to maintain a no frills lifestyle. Married women with children have other duties at home as well and stretch themselves to spend a bit of time with the family. Plagued by guilty feelings, many mothers give their children extra allowances in an attempt to make up for not spending enough time with them. In some households, nannies practically bring up the children themselves. It is not surprising then that such women are constantly fighting one battle or the other, no matter where the battlefield is. It is just a matter of time before they suffer a breakdown and the number of such women in such situations who contemplate suicide and substance abuse are on the rise. So what are the options before a woman who wants it all? Experts say that the first step women should take to withstand pressure on all fronts is to be kind to themselves. Self-criticism and unfair expectations do not make you stronger. They only leave you feeling weary and unappreciated. Learn not to listen to unwanted criticism from others and be honest with yourself about yourself. If you cannot work late to make those presentation slides, because you promised to watch your son perform in a play, ask your teammates to help you. Having a strong support system at home, can work wonders in easing the pressure off you. If you are married, chalk out a schedule with your husband whereby house duties are divided equally. If there are children involved, do an activity which involves everybody like having a family dinner everyday. Asking your partner for help in parental duties is not wrong but ensure you keep him informed about your whereabouts. If you can afford to keep a nanny, do so at all costs but make sure that one member of your family is always around for your children or look at good day care options. When you get a sinking feeling that your job has robbed you of all self-satisfaction, it is time to move on. Alternatives such as becoming an entrepreneur, working at a part time job, becoming a consultant and working flexi hours or even changing your profession are just a few of the options at hand. So, sit down and take a moment to reflect on what matters most to you. After all, life is short and happiness is your own responsibility. The role of a woman in society changed so much over the centuries. Earlier, women were expected to bear children, raise them, and in general, take care of their home. Men on the other hand, were the breadearner for the family. With time, things changed. History speaks highly of queens like Cleopatra and Queen Elizabeth, who wielded the batons of power firmly in a traditionally male dominated role. From the 18th century on wards, many women began to make a name for themselves in different fields. People began to read the works of  Jane Austen. Marie Curie won accolades for discovering radioactivity and Coco Chanel changed the face of fashion forever. Today, women have continued to write inspirational success stories by making a difference in whichever field they are in. However, for every successful Donatella Versace, Venus Williams or Julia Roberts in the world; there are also women who are paying a heavy price for their careers. It is believed that women are excellent at multi tasking and are quick decision makers. We women are wired to believe that we can ‘have it all’, and that each one of us is capable of being a superwoman. Most of us try juggling multi roles together by doing our best to finish that urgent report on time, run a perfect home, wake up in the morning to make the kids waffles for breakfast and still look fit and gorgeous at the end of the day. What is important to understand is that while having a career is a personal choice, the life long responsibility of looking after the home and family comes with being a woman. If statistics are to be believed, the pressures of every day life are beginning to surface in a terrible way. Women with hectic jobs are most likely to suffer long-term effects of stress even though they may deny having any stress at all. In addition, they could face difficulty in conceiving a child, and are more likely to develop heart disease even before they reach menopause. According to studies, women in the age group of 25- 45 years have a 62% higher risk of developing breast cancer when compared to women who did not lead stressful lives. The decision made by many women to have a child after reaching a well paying position, also has its downside. More than 7.3 million women in America within the age group of 15- 44 years of age, are diagnosed with fertility problems. In Singapore alone, around 15% of couples are unable to get pregnant within a year of trying to conceive. Due to a hectic lifestyle, and fluctuating weight issues, around 5- 10 per cent of women globally suffer from hormonal imbalance problems such as polycystic ovary syndrome. The strain of being a superwoman at work and home, affects the harmony of a marriage too. Divorce rates are on the rise globally and in 2007, the rate was 2.02 per 1000 people in Singapore alone. Why is the happiness of a career-oriented woman suddenly on the decline? The first reason can be attributed to the constant pressures and competition faced at the workplace to go beyond the glass ceiling. Extra job demands like frequent travel, working late hours, or attending office parties puts extra pressure on a person. Even if a woman wants to quit her job for a more leisurely lifestyle, unpredictable events like the recent global recession, make her think twice. Even basic expenses are on the rise and it is getting harder to maintain a no frills lifestyle. Married women with children have other duties at home as well. They stretch themselves to spend a bit of time with the family. Plagued by guilt feelings, many mothers give their children extra allowances in an attempt to make up for not spending enough time with them. In some households, nannies practically bring up the children themselves. It is not surprising then that such women are constantly fighting one battle or the other, no matter where the battlefield is. It is just a matter of time before they suffer a breakdown and the number of women in such situations who contemplate suicide and substance abuse are on the rise. So what are the options before a woman who wants it all? Experts say that the first step women should take to withstand pressure on all fronts is to be kind to themselves. Self-criticism and unfair expectations do not make you stronger. They only leave you feeling weary and unappreciated. Learn not to listen to unwanted criticism from others and be honest with yourself. If you cannot work late to make those presentation slides, because you promised to watch your son perform in a play, ask your teammates to help you. Having a strong support system at home, can work wonders in easing the pressure on you. If you are married, chalk out a schedule with your husband whereby house duties are divided equally. If there are children involved, do an activity which involves everybody like having a family dinner everyday. Asking your partner for help in parental duties is not wrong but ensure you keep him informed about your whereabouts. If you can afford to keep a nanny, do so at all costs but make sure that one member of your family is always around for your children or look at good day care options. When you get a sinking feeling that your job has robbed you of all self-satisfaction, it is time to move on. Alternatives such as becoming an entrepreneur, working at a part time job, becoming a consultant and working flexi hours or even changing your profession are just a few of the options at hand. So, sit down and take a moment to reflect on what matters most to you. After all, life is short and happiness is in your hand. About the Author: Sanjana George is a MBA holder, a HR Sr Executive and a freelance creative writer. She has developed and written content  for websites such as Finance Strategy, Travel guide 4 planet and a children’s website Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, among others. She has also published a book of poems – “As a candle flickered in the dark”.  Read More →