Chee Soon Juan

Who is Chee Soon Juan?

Chee Soon Juan is a Singaporean politician. He is currently the leader of the Singapore Democratic Party.

A prominent figure in Singapore's political opposition, Chee has been arrested and jailed several times for his political activities, mainly for making speeches and staging public demonstrations without a police permit. He has also been sued for defamation on multiple occasions for comments he has made about members of Singapore's governing People's Action Party. He was previously barred from standing in parliamentary elections because he was declared bankrupt in 2006 after failing to pay damages from a lawsuit owed to two former Singaporean prime ministers, Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong. However, on 24 September 2012, Chee announced that he had raised the sum of S$30,000 needed to pay Lee and Goh. His bankruptcy has been annulled, paving the way for him to contest the 2016 general election.

Chee joined the SDP in 1992, and became its Secretary-General following the resignation of the party's founder, Chiam See Tong.