Diary of an Island

At 4.27pm today, the following article appeared on the Channel NewsAsia website: 'Former DPM Rajaratnam dies of heart failure at age 90'. According to the article, he passed away at 3.15pm, aged 90. Rajaratnam was born in Sri Lanka on 25 Feb 1915. A journalist before he became a politician, he was one of the founding PAP members.

Elected an MP by Kampong Glam in 1959 to the First Legislative Assembly, he served in Parliment for 29 years and retired from politics only in 1988. However, he continued with ISEAS until 1996.

One interesting bit about him was that after he left the Singapore Standard in Dec 1954, he started a weekly news magazine, Raayat. However, it never quite took off and ceased publication in 1955 after only seven issues. Here is an image of the cover of the first issue.

For more about the man, try the following:

1) Dialogues with S. Rajaratnam, Former Senior Minister in the Prime Minister's Office
Translated by Lee Seng Giap
Edited by Ang Hwee Suan
Singapore: Shin Min Daily News, 1991.
320.95957 RAJ

2) The Prophetic & the Political: Selected Speeches & Writings of S. Rajaratnam
Edited by Chan Heng Chee & Obaid ul Haq
Singapore: Graham Brash, 1987.
320.95957 RAJ

3) Raayat: The English Weekly for Thinking Malayans
Editor: S Raja Ratnam
Singapore: 1954-1955.
Microfilm NL11186

Channel NewsAsia will be telecasting a special one hour Tribute To S. Rajaratnam at 11.30pm followed by a half hour special Lee Kuan Yew Remembers S. Rajaratnam. That's in 10min so I'll have to sign off this blog entry now.