DR Lim Hock Siew:   The Role Model

by Lim Chin Joo

Among the tombs affected by the Government’s decision to exhume Bukit Brown Cemetery to make way for roadworks is that of See Tiong Wah, the  grandfather –in-law  of Dr. Lim Hock Siew.To find out more about the story,  Seah Shin Wong and I visited Dr. Lim at his new house in Joo Chiat Terrace on 12^th April without any inkling that it was to be our last meeting with him!

Their living room was still in a mess, yet Dr. Lim was glad to see us and , together with his wife Dr. Beatrice Chen , had a nice chat with us . See Tiong Wah was born to a prominent peranakan family in Malacca in 1885. He came to Singapore when he was six years old to study at St. Joseph’s Institute. After he started work as a bank officer, he rose through the ranks to become a comprador of HSBC. He was an active member of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce, was appointed as a Justice of Peace, and held the chairmanship of the Hokkien Huay Kuan and Thian Hock Keng Temple for several terms.

Dr Lim Hock Siew with wife Dr Beatrice Chen (photo courtesy of Lim Chin Joo)

See Tiong Wah’s daughter, Lucy Chen nee See, was the mother-in-law of Dr. Lim. Lucy studied law in England in her youth and it was then that she met a young engineering student from Hebei, Chen Xu, who was the son of a key Kuomintang military and political figure, Chen Tiao-yuan. Lucy beacme the first female in the history of Singapore and Malaya to be both raised to the bar as a solicitor in England as well as being accepted into the British Law Society. She married Chen Xu after graduating and returned to Nanjing with him. She gave birth to Beatrice and her two younger brothers soon after. At the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Lucy brought her children to seek refuge in Singapore and stayed with her grandfather, See Tiong Wah, at No. 23 Balmoral Road. The nearby Ewe Boon Road was in fact named after her great grandfather, See Ewe Boon. Beatrice was only 5 years old when she entered Primary One at Nanyang Girls’ Primary School. See Tiong Wah passed away before the fall of Singapore.

Back in China, the Nationalist government was forced to retreat to Chongqing then. Knowing that the  Japanese would advance into Southeast Asia (Nanyang), Beatrice, her brothers and their mother Lucy journeyed from Penang to Rangoon by boat, trekked along the Yunnan–Burma Road before reuniting with Chen Xu in Chongqing. At the end of World War II, the family moved back to Nanjing.

After the Chinese Communist Party got into power In 1949, Chen Xu followed the Kuomintang’ troops in their retreat to Taiwan, whereas Lucy would return to Singapore to practice law. Meanwhile, Beatrice entered Hong Kong University to read medicine and graduated in 1958 before coming back to Singapore to work in the Singapore General Hospital.

Beatrice met Dr. Lim Hock Siew at the Singapore General Hospital, and was deeply impressed with his selflessness, his  professionalism, gentlemanly demeanour, sense of humour, and firm conviction in his beliefs. On the other hand, Dr. Beatrice Chen cut an elegant figure with her solid bi-cultural background and striking charisma. It was therefore hardly surprising that they would soon be  attracted to each other.

Dr. Lim recalled that one day in October 1961, he gathered a dozen of his close friends, including Lim Chin Siong, S Woodhull, James Puthucheary, Poh Soo Kai, Lim She Ping DR Bakar and Fong Swee Suan at his home in Campbell Lane for a “meeting”. It was not until everyone’s  arrival that he disclosed  that the “meeting” was in fact called to announce his marriage with Beatrice!  Dr. Lim jokingly said to us that his mother in law was then not too happy to have a left-wing  politician as his son-in-law!  Soon  after that, their first and only child was born in 1962.

In February 1963, Dr. Lim was detained under the so-called  “Operation Coldstore” and was released  after nearly 20 years in captivity. Torn apart for decades not long after their marriage , the cruelty inflicted upon the young couple  is unspeakable  and the untold sufferings  would have  scarred them for life. Despite all these the couple remained undaunted and committed to each other. Together they went  through thick and thin. They are the role models. Their story will go down in history as one of the most glorious chapters in the fight for democracy and freedom in Singapore and Malaya.

At our meeting on the 12^th April , we made a date with Dr. Lim to have another chat , but, alas! it is now never to be.  What regrets!

This essay was published in the book “Remembering Dr. Lim Hock Siew – OUR FREEDOM FIGHTER” and is reproduced here with the kind permission of Lim Chin Joo

The tomb of See Tiong Wah which is” staked” and affected by the 8 lane highway to be built at Bukit Brown is a “must see” during public tours (photo: Claire Leow)

The tombstone is carved with exquisite craftsmanship (photo: Claire Leow)

For more on features of See Tiong Wah tomb  please click here

For location and more photos, please click here