Lim Han Hoe

Sir Han Hoe Lim CBE JP (Chinese: 林汉河; pinyin: Lín Hànhé; 27 April 1894 – 23 March 1983)[1] was a Singaporean physician and politician.


Han Hoe Lim

林汉河
Born27 April 1894
Died23 March 1983(1983-03-23) (aged 88)
NationalitySingaporean
Alma materKing Edward VII College of Medicine
University of Edinburgh
Occupation(s)Physician, Politician
SpouseChua Seng Neo
Children4
Parents
  • Lim Cheng Sah (father)
  • Chew Eu Neo (mother)
Lim Han Hoe
Traditional Chinese林漢河
Simplified Chinese林汉河

Education

Lim was educated at Chung Cheng High School, St Andrew's School, Raffles Institution before enrolling into King Edward VII College of Medicine.[1]

He subsequently went to study medicine in the United Kingdom, graduating from the University of Edinburgh in 1918.

Career

After graduation, Lim worked at St Andrew's Hospital in Scotland for a year.[1] He was subsequently appointed as ship's surgeon by the China Mutual Steamship Company before returning to Singapore,[1] to start his general practice.[2]

Lim was the chairman of the city's Straits Chinese British Association from 1930 to 1932, municipal commissioner of the Municipal Commission, a Justice of the Peace,[3] as well as a member of numeral public bodies like the Chinese Advisory Board and the Education Committee.

Lim was appointed as an unofficial member of the Legislative Council of the Straits Settlements in 1933,[1] becoming the council's senior Chinese unofficial member the next year, and was appointed as an unofficial member of the Executive Council of the Straits Settlements in 1940.

Lim was arrested after the fall of Singapore to the Japanese Empire in 1942. During the Japanese occupation, he was imprisoned for being accused of secretly listening to the broadcasting of the Allied nations.[4] He was not released until the end of the Second World War in 1945.

After the war, he was appointed to the Singapore Advisory Council in June 1946 after the resignation of Wee Swee Teow,[5] where served as an unofficial member from 1946 to 1948 and a senior unofficial member of the Executive Council of Singapore from 1948 to 1951.

In December 1947, the governor of Singapore decided to introduce income tax in Singapore, against the advice of the Singapore Advisory Council.[6] The unofficial members of the council, including Lim, decided to resign in protest of the decision.[7] Lim later decided not to resign and also proposed to ask the two resigned members to withdraw their resignations.[6]

In December 1951, Lim resigned from the Executive Council of Singapore due to his deteriorating health and was replaced by Rajabali Jumabhoy.[8]

After the war, he helped found the University of Malaya and was appointed a member of the Public Service Commission (PSC) from 1952 to 1956, serving as its chairman for less than a year in 1956.

Later in his life, he withdrew from politics as Singapore gradually gained self-governance and subsequently independence.

Honours

On 12 June 1941, Lim was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for public services in the Straits Settlements.[9]

In 1946, Lim became the second Malayan Chinese to receive the honour of knighthood for public services in the Straits Settlements.[4]

In 1951, Lim was conferred an honorary Doctor of Laws degree by the University of Malaya.[10]

References

  1. "DR. LIM HAN HOE'S APPOINTMENT". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  2. "DR. LIM HAN HOE". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  3. "SOCIAL AND PERSONAL". The Straits Times. 16 June 1931. p. 10. Retrieved 1 February 2023 via NewspaperSG.
  4. "Knighthood For Doctor Lim Han Hoe". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  5. "Untitled". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  6. "COUNCILLORS & TAX Plea to withdraw resignations". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  7. "More Councillors may resign". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  8. "New Executive Councillor". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  9. "SEVEN MALAYANS IN BIRTHDAY HONOURS LIST". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  10. "Honorary Degree Recipients". www.nus.edu.sg. Retrieved 6 December 2021.

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