Linda Chen | |
|---|---|
陳蒙鶴 | |
 Linda Chen | |
| Born | Chen Mong Hock 1928 |
| Died | 29 December 2002 (aged 73–74) |
| Nationality | Singaporean |
| Other names |
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| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1950–2002 |
| Known for | being accused of communist insurrection |
| Spouse |
Tan Seng Huat (m. 1958–2002) |
| Children | 3 |
Linda Chen (Chinese: 陳蒙鶴; also known as Linda Chen Mock Hock or Linda Chen Mong Hock; 1928 – 29 December 2002) was a Chinese-born, Singaporean linguist, writer, feminist and businesswoman. Having immigrated from China as a young child, Chen learned Chinese, English, and Malay and used her linguistic talent to write a Malay-Chinese dictionary that became widely used to teach Malay in the 1950s and 1960s. During her student days, she became active in the anti-colonial and women's rights movement. Because of her activism and heritage, she was seen as a threat and a ring-leader of communist infiltration into the country. Despite her denying that she was a communist, she was arrested in 1956 and jailed for 20 months, detained and kept under surveillance for four years between 1959 and 1963, and rearrested in 1963 as part of Operation Coldstore. After her release from prison, she lived in London for four years and then returned to Singapore, where she managed her family's multi-national book store until her death.