Chan Choy Siong (Chinese: 陳翠嫦; pinyin: Chén Cuìcháng; 1931 – 11 February 1981) was a Singaporean politician and women's rights activist. Chan was one of the first women to be elected to the Parliament.
Chan grew up in Chinatown.[1] She attended Nanyang Girls' High School, but was unable to complete her studies due to financial constraints.[1] Her father supported her pursuit of an education.[2]
At the age of 20, Chan joined the People's Action Party (PAP),[3] and was committed to securing equal rights for women in Singapore, including equality in pay and for an end to legal polygamy.[4]
In 1956, along with Ho Puay Choo and Oh Siew Chen, Chan created the Women's League within the PAP.[5] She was subsequently co-opted into the party's Central Executive Committee (CEC) in 1957.[6] That same year, she was also elected to become a city councillor.[3]
Chan, and seven other women were elected to the Legislative Assembly in 1959.[5] Chan served as Assemblywoman and later Member of Parliament between 1959 and 1970. She was one of the first few women to be active in Singapore politics.[7]
Chan pushed for the passage of the Women's Charter and a monogamy proposal.[3] In 1961, she created and led the Women's Affairs Bureau of the PAP.[3] The Women's Charter Chan had pushed for, was passed in that same year.[5]
^Leong, Weng Kam (9 September 2001). "One Man, One Wife..."The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 31 December 2019. Retrieved 20 November 2017 – via LexisNexis.
Ho, Khai Leong (2012). "Chan Choy Siong". In Suryadinata, Leo (ed.). Southeast Asian Personalities of Chinese Descent: A Biographical Dictionary, Volume I &II. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. ISBN9789814345217.
