Chee Soon Juan's views on homosexuality

Dr Chee Soon Juan, Secretary-General of the Singapore Democratic Party, has accepted Singapore's pioneering LGBT advocacy group People Like Us' (PLU) invitation to several IndigNation events where he has spoken up for LGBT equality. He has also attended Pink Dot SG with his wife and children.

2006

During the IndigNation 2006 event entitled, 'The 2006 General Election and the Gay Issue' held at Theatreworks' 72-13 along Mohamed Sultan Road on 1 August 2006 at 7:30pm, Chee made the following speech in support of LGBT equality.

In response to a joint letter signed by 7 members of the LGBT community several months before the 2011 General Elections querying Singapore's political parties' views on various issues of concern to the community (see main article: Singapore political parties’ positions on LGBT concerns – General election 2011), Chee sent an e-mail reply on 2 November 2010:

"Rather than respond to the questionnaire, the Singapore Democratic Party would like to reiterate its stand:

We support the repeal of Section 377A. We made our stand clear in 2007 here [1] and defended it here [2]. We have embedded in our website the following statement: “As a nation, we must not only show tolerance but also acceptance of our fellow citizens regardless of their race, religion, sexual orientation, or political persuasion.” (see here [3]).

Thank you.

Chee Soon Juan

Secretary-General

Singapore Democratic Party"

2011

Chee also made a speech in support of fellow SDP candidate, Vincent Wijeysingha, during the 2011 General Elections, saying that his party does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation (see main article: Vivian Balakrishnan attacks Vincent Wijeysingha for having alleged gay agenda during 2011 General Elections).

Dr Chee Soon Juan and his family at Pink Dot 2011. (Photo source: [4])

2020

On Wednesday, 8 July 2020, one day before Cooling Off Day during the 2020 General Elections, social media celebrity Preetipls interviewed Chee regarding his life and views. His response to her question about when Singapore would be ready to repeal Section 377A was that the issue was a divisive one and that the people would have to decide.

Chee Soon Juan - 377A divisive, the people will have to decide

Transcript:

Preeti: So, I have many fans from the LGBTQ+ community and I'm really sure they will want me to ask you, "When do you think Singapore will finally be able to repeal 377A?".

Chee: You know, I think this is something that the people will have to answer. Right now, I'll be very honest with you, it's still a very divisive situation. The time when the society is ready is, I think, for Singaporeans to answer at some point, you know, people will have to decide.

See also

• Singapore Democratic Party politicians' views on homosexuality
• Singapore politicians' views on homosexuality

Acknowledgements

This article was written by Roy Tan.