Dr. Krish Sheri, a SOTA graduate and now a practicing doctor, defied conventional paths by blending his love for music with his medical career. Through his journey from playing the tabla in school, to providing holistic palliative care, Krish exemplifies how an arts education can enhance empathy and precision in medicine, proving that creativity and science can harmoniously coexist.
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00:00In the early 1950s, it was unheard of for a group of women
00:06to initiate legal reforms, especially on a subject like women's rights.
00:13She was actually being questioned by the women
00:17whether there was a need for us to do more for women in Singapore
00:19to which she replied, do not be fooled by what you see
00:22and with that she remained very much resolute in her push for equal status of women.
00:30CHECHA DEVIS, MALIBAR, INDIA
00:42We were always proud of our grandma, someone who wasn't scared to rock the boat,
00:47not scared to be different and stand up for what she believed in
00:50and to change things that she didn't feel were right.
00:54Checha Devis was born in 1898 in the Malabar region of Kerala, India.
01:00Now Checha was highly educated, she had a master's degree.
01:04If you have a master's degree before the war, that's somebody.
01:07In fact, I believe that she might have been the first woman
01:11to have graduated from Kerala with a master's degree.
01:16With her master's in economics and English history,
01:19Checha followed her father's footsteps and became an educator.
01:23My grandmother really admired her father.
01:28She called him a saintly man, a man of service
01:32and one who really wanted to make a difference with people around him.
01:36Checha joined the Young Women's Christian Association,
01:40known as the YWCA, in 1916 in India.
01:44She was a very keen Christian but very non-traditional.
01:48She really encouraged people to live by their beliefs
01:52rather than just go to church every day.
01:54It was about living the Christian life,
01:56of being able to make a difference in the betterment of the world.
02:00Checha was most interested in helping the less privileged.
02:06And most of the underprivileged at that time happened to be women.
02:12The YWCA, they championed things like adult education for girls,
02:19which were non-existent during that time,
02:22classes for children and hostels for young women
02:26who come to a big city to find work.
02:31In 1925, Grandma moved from Kerala to Singapore as a young bride
02:37after getting married because Grandpa, at birth,
02:39had a teaching post in Singapore.
02:43Despite having to adapt to her new surroundings,
02:46Checha's desire to help the underprivileged took precedence,
02:50and she remained active in church work and various voluntary sectors,
02:54such as the Singapore extension of the YWCA.
02:59She would always initiate things like earthquake relief, for instance,
03:04or the giving of food to needy families.
03:07She was also giving a lot of money to charity.
03:10Grandma lived a very simple life.
03:12She didn't believe in spending a lot on her own personal things,
03:16but she was generous, without a second thought.
03:19If someone needed something, she would be happy to help them.
03:23And many people would go to her and ask for money.
03:26Checha's kindness was, however, sometimes taken advantage of.
03:31Some people would come up to her with some sad stories
03:34and try to get some money out of her.
03:37And she would find a way to help them.
03:39And sometimes it was abused.
03:42And so friends would say,
03:44Checha, you know, some people are taking advantage of you.
03:47You shouldn't be so generous with your money.
03:50But Grandma would say, I can't stop being generous
03:53because of some people who take advantage of me.
03:55Because what would happen to those who genuinely need my help?
03:59And I would like to help them.
04:00That's what is most important.
04:03In the late 1960s, as the president of the YWCA,
04:07she spearheaded the fundraising for the YWCA six-story Fort Canning Hostel,
04:12which at that time was the largest hostel for female workers.
04:17The YWCA Fort Canning Hostel was very significant when it was built
04:23because at that time, lodgings were very unsafe for young women
04:27coming from rural areas to a big city to find work.
04:31So the YWCA provided much-needed safe space for young women.
04:38The hostel also provided vocational training skills
04:42which were useful for them to find jobs later on in their lives.
04:49My grandmother always had fun and unique ways to raise funds.
04:54And her idea to raise funds for the hostel extension
04:58was she decided to give a gold sovereign for each pound of weight that she had.
05:03And so, you know, she excitedly weighed herself and was happy to donate.
05:08This in turn inspired other women to follow suit
05:11and to donate their weight in money as well.
05:15When the YWCA was still short on funds to complete the hostel building,
05:20Chae Cha even sold her house that she inherited in Johor
05:24to help fund the lift for the hostel.
05:27We didn't get shocked.
05:28That was grandma.
05:29If she believed in something, she would do it.
05:33Beyond starting fundraisers and making donations,
05:36Chae Cha even co-founded various social organisations for women
05:40like the Inner Wheel Club and the Lotus Club.
05:43The Lotus Club was the first Indian women's association.
05:47And she got women a place to come to talk about social issues,
05:53to do some charitable work,
05:55to learn some useful skills,
05:57and also had a series of educational talks for Indian women.
06:02The idea was to create an organisation where Indian women of all creed,
06:07caste, culture and education could meet regularly,
06:11as the existing Indian association at that time mainly catered to men.
06:16So that was good because it gave women some friendship outside the home
06:20because women in those days just kept to their homes
06:23and were just looking after their children.
06:25In 1950, after the Japanese occupation,
06:29the Lotus Club merged with another Indian ladies' club then,
06:32the Ladies' Union, to form the Kamala Club,
06:35which still exists to this day.
06:39The success of the Lotus Club was merely a glimpse
06:42of the achievements that Chae Cha would go on to accomplish.
06:47Being leader of the Inner Wheel,
06:48she represented Singapore at a very historic conference
06:52called the Pan-Asian Conference, held in Delhi in 1947.
06:58This Pan-Asian Conference discussed many, many things,
07:02not just issues of independence,
07:05not just issues of economics or finance,
07:09but also about the status of women.
07:12She also met many Asian leaders there,
07:16like Shireen Foster,
07:17who was a prominent advocate of women's rights.
07:21This meeting with Shireen would eventually pave the way
07:25for something greater.
07:31In 1951, Chae Cha was approached by Shireen
07:34to form the Committee of the Singapore Council of Women,
07:38SCW, alongside several other women.
07:41There were already many women's organisations,
07:45many of them,
07:46but this one, Singapore Council of Women, was different.
07:51It was not just a social help or mutual help group,
07:56like many of the women's associations of that time.
07:59It was an advocacy group for women's rights.
08:03It's going to unite all the different women's organisations
08:07into a united front,
08:09because unity is strength,
08:11and it is going to fight to push for legislative changes.
08:18The first of the legislative changes will be
08:21One Man, One Wife.
08:23At that point in time,
08:25it was a society where men could have many wives,
08:30and they could also divorce their wives very easily.
08:33There was actually no legal obligation for them
08:35to care for the wife and the children after divorce,
08:39so that actually led to a lot of social issues.
08:42You have a lot of women who were not able to support themselves
08:45without the security and the provisions from the husband,
08:49which is why the SCW wanted to push for the end of polygamous marriages.
08:54The SCW was the city's first female civil rights group
08:59that took bold steps to champion legal reforms
09:02that addressed gender disparity.
09:05In the early 1950s,
09:08it was unheard of for a group of women to initiate legal reforms,
09:15especially on a subject like women's rights.
09:19The media mocked these women.
09:21They had a fun time with them
09:24because they found their agenda rather far-fetched,
09:28rather idealistic.
09:30Chetcha had the momentous task of recruiting more women in Singapore
09:34to the women's rights cause,
09:36which ironically proved challenging.
09:39Recruitment was difficult
09:41because at that time, in the 1950s,
09:45there was a stigma to the women's cause
09:49and many women were afraid to sign.
09:53Many of them felt they had to ask their husbands' permission.
09:58Chetcha, in fact, was even being questioned by the women in the society at that point
10:04whether there was a need for an organisation like SCW.
10:07To which she replied,
10:08do not be fooled by what you see
10:10and that there is actually no equal status for women at all.
10:14And with that, she remained very, very much resolute in her push
10:18for equal status of women.
10:20By 1955, SCW's membership peaked at 2,000 members,
10:26making it the largest group of its kind for the next 50 years.
10:31Where did the 2,000 women members come from?
10:34Thanks to Chetcha.
10:35Chetcha had a very wide connection.
10:37She had been working for a few decades before
10:40on the Lotus Club, on the International Women's Club,
10:43the Innerview, the YWCA.
10:45And she was able to get them and say,
10:47come, come and join us.
10:48Let's get together.
10:50Let's forget our differences.
10:51Let's fight for equality.
10:55Chetcha and the Singapore Council of Women
10:59had to plan their movements with precision
11:03to bring forward their agenda.
11:06And they wrote letters to the press.
11:08They gave talks.
11:10They went out and distributed flyers, and so forth.
11:15They even drafted, with Chetcha's help,
11:18because she had a master's degree, with Chetcha's help,
11:21a bill for the Legislative Council
11:24demanding equal rights, equal status for women,
11:28demanding one man, one wife, the abolition of polygamy.
11:33And this was sent to the Legislative Council in 1954.
11:39Unfortunately, it failed to be moved.
11:42This setback, however, did not faze Chetcha and the SCW.
11:46These women summoned their courage and their fortitude
11:52and prayers on.
11:53Between 1955 and 1959, Chetcha and the SCW
11:58lobbied various political parties in Singapore
12:01to address women's injustices.
12:04The People's Action Party, influenced by its Women's League
12:07led by Chan Choi-sung, took a strong stand on women's rights
12:12and adopted the SCW's one man, one wife slogan
12:16for their campaign.
12:19In the 1959 general elections, the PAP's victory,
12:23with 43 out of 51 seats, led to their control
12:28of the Legislative Assembly.
12:31And in 1961, the Women's Charter Bill
12:34was finally passed, marking the culmination of Chetcha
12:38and the SCW's decade-long fight for women's rights.
12:43For women, it was definitely a landmark bill,
12:47and it changed Singapore society forever.
12:54The Women's Charter meant that women were now
12:57protected by marriage, that their husband cannot just
13:02divorce them at will.
13:04Their husband cannot just take a second wife,
13:07and their husband has to pay them some alimony
13:10if they actually want to get a divorce.
13:13It also recognises the rights of women
13:16to contribute to the economic fibre of society
13:20and not just the family.
13:23So this set the foundation for the future prosperity
13:28and progress of Singapore as a modern nation.
13:34Beyond the Women's Charter, Chetcha and the SCW
13:39have left behind an unforgettable legacy,
13:43and they blaze an entirely new path for future organisations
13:50in championing gender equality and women's rights,
13:55like the SCWO, Singapore Council Women's Organisation, today.
14:01SCWO's key focus is on changing mindsets,
14:06because that is crucial to eliminating and breaking down
14:09the gender stereotypes that still exist today.
14:11And we do this through the various programmes that we have,
14:14like outreach programmes, educational programmes,
14:17that bring stories of women like Chetcha to the community,
14:20including our younger generation, both boys and girls.
14:23The ultimate aim is really to have a society
14:27where both men and women play equal roles at all levels,
14:31whether it's at home, at work, or in the community.
14:36Chetcha was awarded the Bintang Bakti Masyarakat,
14:39or Public Service Star, in the 1970 National Day Honours,
14:44and in 2014, she was inducted into the Singapore Women's Hall of Fame.
14:49Grandma was absolutely a role model to us.
14:52And I'd like to think that in many ways, me, my mother,
14:56and each of my sisters have followed in her footsteps.
15:00Sushil and her sisters are all involved in various forms
15:04of social action and community building,
15:07focusing on children, youth, women's empowerment, and equality.
15:12The last time I saw Grandma was at her 80th birthday celebration in 1978.
15:20I remember I was in Fiji by then,
15:23and my husband and I came from Fiji for this gathering.
15:27We sang, we celebrated, we had so much fun.
15:32Lots of people that knew her were at this event,
15:35and it was a wonderful occasion.
15:39And in 1979, my grandmother passed away.
15:44Chetcha was a leader.
15:46She had the vision, and the audacity, and the courage
15:50to dream of a better world,
15:53and a better future for all Singaporeans.
15:58I hope for my grandma to be remembered as a trailblazer,
16:02as someone who wasn't scared to rock the boat,
16:05to do what she can for the betterment of those around her.
16:09I'm truly thankful for what women like Chetcha did for Singapore.
16:12She fought tirelessly for the rights of women,
16:16and she never gave up.
16:19If not for women like Chetcha,
16:23Singapore might not be what it is today.
16:49For more UN videos visit www.un.org