Speech by Minister for Law and Second Minister for Home Affairs, Mr Edwin Tong SC, at Jamiyah Singapore Free Legal Clinic’s Golden Jubilee Celebration
10 October 2026 Posted in Speeches
Mr Muhammad Khair Baharin, Secretary-General and Chief Corporate Officer of Jamiyah Singapore and all Executive Council members
Excellencies
Friends
Fellow lawyers
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Introduction
1. Good evening to all of you.
2. I want to start by thanking Jamiyah for inviting me here to share in your commemoration of 50 years – 50 years of service, 50 years of giving back, and 50 years of building a much stronger, cohesive, multicultural community in Singapore.
3. I have crossed paths with Jamiyah on several occasions over the years, mainly through its community work and the many programmes it supports.
4. Each time, I am reminded of just how much Jamiyah does – supporting families, caring for seniors, helping children and young people, and, of course, providing legal assistance.
5. Tonight, we celebrate 50 years of the Legal Clinic, and we celebrate the generations of lawyers, staff and volunteers who came together to make the vision possible.
A Tradition of Service
6. One thing I particularly value about the Legal Clinic is that its doors are open to everyone, regardless of race or religion.
7. That reflects something which has been very much a part of Jamiyah’s identity for a very long time. In January 1949, Jamiyah’s then-President, Syed Ibrahim Alsagoff, hosted a lunch for about 40 people of different faiths in honour of Jamiyah’s founder, Maulana Abdul Aleem Siddique. At that lunch, they discussed the idea of establishing an inter-religious body in Singapore. Just a few months later, the Inter-Religious Organisation was formally inaugurated before more than 2,000 people.
8. In other words, long before racial and religious harmony became part of our national vocabulary, Jamiyah was already bringing people of different faiths together. I think that is very much still a part of your DNA today in everything that you do.
9. That same spirit carried through when the Legal Clinic was established in 1976. Muslim and non-Muslim lawyers volunteered side by side, helping anyone who needed legal assistance, across boundaries and regardless of background.
10. I think there is something very special about that. It is a key part of how Singapore was built, and something which we treasure in nurturing our multicultural spirit. We all have our own faiths, we come from different backgrounds, and we have different ethnicities. We can be deeply rooted in our own faith and in our community, but at the same time, still reaching out beyond our own to serve others. Sometimes, one of the best ways to build trust across communities is to simply come together, to work together and to serve together, helping people who need it most.
A People-Centre Approach
11. That same spirit of inclusiveness is reflected not only in who it serves, but also in how it serves.
12. As lawyers, we all know that legal problem seldom comes in a neat package. It is seldom just one-dimensional. A family might require financial assistance, even as it navigates a dispute situation within the family. An employment problem may affect housing. Someone seeking legal advice may well need social or medical support, and we see that often.
13. That is why I am so grateful to the many pro bono lawyers who serve not just with their expertise, but with all their heart. Because more than just solving a legal problem, you also provide a listening ear, compassion, and empathy. That is a lot more than just dispensing legal advice. In many cases, the role you play expands to social, family, and other assistance.
14. I want to say a big thank you for that because I have never seen lawyers in pro bono service draw a line clearly and say, “I am only going to give you legal advice and serve you on the law. If you have other problems, go elsewhere.” I have almost never seen that happen.
15. That pro bono spirit of paying it forward and giving back is something that makes me very proud of being a fellow professional at the Bar, and that is why we call each other “our brothers” in the legal profession. Thank you very much.
16. In that spirit, the Legal Clinic of Jamiyah is all-encompassing in many ways. It may be able to advise on the legal issue, but oftentimes, it does not solve the problem that the individual is facing. Someone who comes through to the Legal Clinic to seek legal advice may find help through Jamiyah’s wider network of welfare and community services. So, we are not just looking at the legal problem, but also more importantly, looking at the person behind it – looking at who needs help rather than just what that help is.
17. Just last week, at Law Awareness Weeks @ CDC, I spoke about the importance of putting people at the centre of access to justice. We sometimes, as lawyers, focus a lot on the law and the process. But what about if we focus on the individual and look more at what that person needs rather than what we can do with our process? Good laws, strong courts, assistance schemes are all very important. But ultimately, what matters is whether people facing legal problems can understand their options, know where to seek help, and when they find that help, to find it in a way which allows them to not just solve the problem but to move forward.
18. That is where community legal clinics, like Jamiyah, come in. They offer a familiar, trusted place where people can seek advice, be heard, and find someone willing to go that extra mile.
19. Of course, none of this would be possible without the people who keep the Legal Clinic going, year in, year out, for 50 years.
Recognising the Volunteers
20. So I want to take a few moments to recognise the volunteers. The willingness to serve comes from within. It is not something that we teach in law schools. It is not something that can be imparted through education. It comes from mentorship. It comes from learning from others through action.
21. That willingness to serve has been part of Jamiyah’s DNA for decades. When Haji Abu Bakar Maidin became President in 1970, Jamiyah had just 190 members, and I am told, $5.60 in its bank account at that time – a very modest sum, even by the standards many years ago. It did not have much. But what it had was its people – people who were prepared to give their time, their energy and their commitment.
22. The Legal Clinic has been sustained in very much the same way. Lawyers offering their expertise, staff keeping things running, volunteers and partners stepping forward whenever help was needed, plugging the gap and offering well beyond just financial support. The moral support, the fact that you are there, the fact that you stand shoulder to shoulder, and your presence this evening, speak volumes.
23. Together, this group has helped more than 14,000 people over the past 50 years – a tremendous achievement.
24. I am told that several volunteer lawyers have served for close to 30 years or more. They include Mr Rajan Nair and Mr Abdul Hamid Sultan, who are here in the room with us.
25. To Mr Rajan Nair, Mr Abdul Hamid Sultan, and the many volunteers – thank you. Your work not just lifts lives, but helps us to strengthen the Singapore spirit. I have known Hamid for some years now, but mainly on the football field. I can tell you he is a ferocious football player, quite different from the compassionate, kind-hearted lawyer. Every year, Hamid and I come together with our fellow lawyers, to play Masters Football at the Singapore-Malaysia Bench and Bar Games. I also found out earlier this year that we did our practical law course (PLC) together, so we qualified in the law at the same time.
26. But all of you, whether it is Rajan or Hamid, you have given your time, patience, and compassion to people who often find themselves at one of the lowest points in their lives.
27. For us as lawyers, when we receive a lawyer’s letter, it is just another document. But to a layperson, especially one who is facing a lot of life’s pressures, getting a legal document is a tremendously stressful occasion. So just being there to be a guide, to help them overcome that uncertainty and anxiety is a real boost for all of them. Through your service, you help to make the law a lot more accessible.
28. We speak in government of access to justice, and we have programmes for that. We are very conscious of what we build up, what we strengthen, and how we deploy the resources to ensure that we have access to justice as an institution. But at the end of the day, when the rubber hits the road, it is the lawyers on the ground, week in, week out, often unseen, that delivers access to justice. So thank you very much to all of you for that.
Looking Ahead
29. Let me end with a little bit about looking ahead. As we celebrate what you have achieved tremendously over 50 years, we should also think about how we can carry this tradition forward. It is what has made Singapore what it is today, and it is important for us to think about what more we can do for the Singapore of tomorrow.
30. This is also an opportune time because this year, we commemorate SGLaw200. It is the bicentennial year, where we celebrate and commemorate the origins of our legal system, which we inherited from the British 200 years ago. We have of course made it our own and nuanced it to our own needs.
31. But as we look back on 200 years of the rule of law in Singapore, we are also thinking about how our own legal system can continue serving future generations – the Singaporeans of tomorrow – and the role that organisations like Jamiyah can continue to play.
32. The needs of people in 50 years’ time, in 2076, will be very different from what it was back in 1976, and may be even very different from what it is today.
33. But Jamiyah has already shown that it is quick to evolve and able to adapt. Legal advice can now be provided virtually, making it easier for people who find it difficult to make an actual visit to the Legal Clinic. Law students can also undertake approved pro bono work here, helping to bring a new generation into this tradition of service. And it is important to start our young lawyers at an early age – to be inculcated with a sense of pro bono and a spirit of paying it forward.
34. These are all very encouraging developments, and I hope the Legal Clinic can continue to build on them. By going upstream and reaching people earlier, before their problems become more serious. By connecting legal assistance more closely with Jamiyah’s wider welfare and community services, because we recognise that legal problems is not a one-dimensional issue, and we can solve the problem for a person better if we can connect them to the broader networks. And finally, by encouraging more lawyers and law students to experience the value of helping others.
35. Technology and AI will be important. They create even more opportunities to reach people and make information more accessible. But there is something that we must be careful not to lose. Even as we become more and more powerful with AI, with technology reaching further and further, information, we must remember, is not the same thing as understanding. You can have more information and more knowledge, but it does not make you more compassionate and more empathetic. People will still need someone they trust to listen, to appreciate their circumstances, and to give them advice and mentor them on what they can do next.
36. That is why, even as the Legal Clinic evolves, I hope it will continue to hold on to what has made it special for 50 years – and that is the care, the compassion and the willingness to help others.
Conclusion
37. Let me end with a little-known piece of Singapore’s history, which I think captures that spirit beautifully.
38. We all know Zubir Said, the composer of Majulah Singapura. When he composed the National Anthem, the original lyrics included these words: “Rukon damai dan bantu membantu” – to live in peace and help one another.
39. These words did not eventually make it into the National Anthem that we know today. But I think that these words beautifully capture what the Legal Clinic has stood for, for five decades now – bringing people together across communities, helping those in need. My hope is that it will continue to do so for the next five decades, and beyond.
40. On that note, my warmest congratulations once again to Jamiyah Free Legal Clinic, and especially to the generations of lawyers, staff, volunteers and partners who made all this possible.
41. I want to give a shout out to those volunteers who often work behind the scenes, unseen. The work that you do might be unseen, but it is never unappreciated. It is powerful that you are able to do this even when no one is looking. Tonight is a credit to all of you as well in building up Jamiyah, and long may this continue.
42. I wish you a happy 50th anniversary and many, many more years to come.
43. Thank you very much.
Last updated on 10 October 2026