Say NO to Posthumous Demotion of National Hero Major-General Lim Bo Seng

We refer to the theft of the storyboard at the memorial of WWII War Hero Major-General Lim Bo Seng and his subsequent demotion to the rank of Major by the Singapore Government in the replacement storyboard (see letter dated 19 May 07 in the Straits Times below). We find the reason given for the demotion to be unacceptable and insulting as it is worldwide practice (including that in Singapore) to address fallen uniformed officers with their posthumous rank. This is to show respect and gratitude to the sacrifices they made for the people.

Till death, Major-General Lim did not yield to the enemy after being captured and tortured while many took the rewarding way out to collaborate and conspire with the enemy. Major-General Lim was himself sold out to the enemy by traitors (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lim_Bo_Seng). The readiness by Major-General Lim to serve and lay down his life for his people in an age in which ministers and elite civil servants need to be paid tens of millions to prevent corruption should be held as a shining example for the current and future generations of Singaporeans to follow.

We, citizens of Singapore and concerned individuals, reject the frivolous demotion of Major-General Lim Bo Seng to the rank of Major by the Singapore Government. Not only is this an act of gross disrespect towards a national hero, it is also a blatant attempt to rewrite history. We insist that posthumous rank of Major-General be restored in the storyboard at the memorial for Major-General Lim Bo Seng.

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May 19, 2007
Lim Bo Seng a major when he led Force 136

I REFER to the letter, 'WWII hero Lim Bo Seng 'demoted'' (ST, May 15), by Mr Nicholas Joshua Law.
The information on the storyboard erected near the Lim Bo Seng Memorial reads: 'The memorial was built in 1954 in memory of Major Lim Bo Seng who led Force 136, an anti-Japanese resistance movement.'

When war hero Lim Bo Seng led Force 136, he was then a major in rank. It was only posthumously that he was accorded the rank of major-general by the nationalist government in China in 1946.

Seen in this context, the statement is factually accurate.

The storyboard is part of the Civic District Trail, which was officially launched in 1999 to allow participants to learn more about the area's historic landmarks. The information was verified by a working committee comprising historians from the former Singapore History Museum (now known as the National Museum of Singapore), archivists from the National Archives of Singapore and other government officials.

We hope we have addressed Mr Law's concern. We thank him for his feedback and hope to see more members of the public embark on our Civic District Trail.

Walter Lim
Director
Corporate Communications & Industry Promotion
National Heritage Board

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