Dr Janil Arusha Puthucheary (ஜனில் புதுச்சேரி; born 6 November 1972) is a Malaysian-born Singaporean politician and paediatrician who has been serving as Minister of State for Communications and Information since 2018 and Minister of State for Health since 2020. He has also been serving as Party Whip of the People's Action Party since 2019. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Punggol Coast division of Pasir Ris–Punggol GRC since 2015. Born in Malaysia, Janil had worked as a paediatrician at hospitals in the United Kingdom, Australia and Singapore before he became a Singapore citizen in 2008.
Hosting TV documentary on LGBT Singaporeans[]
In 2013, Dr Janil hosted a Channel NewsAsia production which dealt with the issue, four months after the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code which criminalised sex between men. However, he remained neutral during the entire programme and refrained from providing his personal views on LGBT rights.
Can Singapore Reconcile Sexuality, Family & Faith? | Regardless Of Sexuality | LGBTs In Singapore
25 April 2023[1]
Video caption:
"For the first time on national TV, LGBT individuals, their parents, and religious leaders get personal for a frank discussion on the rift that divides them. Join Janil Puthucheary, chairman of OnePeople.sg as he gets them to open up on how LGBT issues have deeply affected their lives and lives of people they care for. Through these candid conversations, Janil hopes to answer: what does it take for LGBT individuals to reconcile their sexuality with family, faith and community – in a society that is just beginning to find its footing in accommodating them?"
Advice to LGBT youths thinking of leaving Singapore[]
At the youth-themed Singapore Perspectives 2024 conference held on Monday, 29 January 2024 which was organised by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Dr Janil, then Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information and for Health, responded to Pink Dot spokesman Clement Tan who asked what his message was to Singapore’s LGBTQ youth who “do not believe that there is a future for them here” because of certain “barriers to inclusion” — which include home ownership and family formation. Tan mentioned a personal anecdote where his mother had “counselled” him that he needed to emigrate from Singapore in order to have a happy future[2],[3],[4].
Dr Janil replied: “My message is stay, fight, stand up for what you believe in — in a way that brings inclusion, brings every Singaporean with you on that journey, and to make our society better for your community.” He acknowledged that not all Singaporeans agreed on what a “better” society entailed, but added that the country did “need to have discourse and engagement about how we move forward”. Referring to Tan's anecdote, he commented: “When your mum pulled you aside and told you that, neither you nor her, nor me nor many other people would imagine that last year, we would have repealed (Section) 377A (of the Penal Code). “Our society changes — just as our aspirations change. Our view on how we might deal with people in society who have different views from us will also change. If you want to make a difference, leaving is not going to help you,” he advised, adding that Tan and the Pink Dot community had “successfully" spoken up about LGBTQ issues.
The following is the full transcript of the exchange between Tan and Janil provided by Pink Dot on 30 January 2024[5]:
Pink Dot spokesperson: Hi, my name is Clement and I’m from Pink Dot I just want to start off by saying how heartened I am by the number of young people who are here in attendance speaking so vocally about the issues that matter to them, claiming space and asking questions about LGBTQ+ inclusion unprompted. I don’t think I had that bravery when I was at that age so I’m very humbled.
To me, in the work I’ve done at Pink Dot, I’m not surprised LGBTQ+ inclusion as a topic is at the forefront of young people and in the work that we’ve done, we’ve seen that the young have a stronger belief in LGBTQ+ acceptance. Around 70% of the people who attended our event last year are below the age of 30. We know that more and more LGBTQ+ youth are coming out and they are coming out at younger and younger ages. They are also becoming more articulate about the issues that matter to them. When we polled them last year post-repeal, we know that on top of bullying and harassment, they also care a lot about barriers to homeownership and barriers to family formation.
To me, there’s a bit of deja vu... When I came out to my parents 12 years ago, my mother pulled me aside and she counselled me to say that I needed to migrate out of Singapore to have a future that was full of happiness. She said that I should break my bond, stay overseas and then I can settle down and raise kids if I wanted to because that’s not a possibility here in Singapore. Now 12 years on, I guess I’m facing the same conversations with youths of today. So my question to you is: What is your message to LGBTQ+ youth? You are a father, you work with young people. Can you tell them - will it get better and what hope should they have for the future? What can they hold on to?
Minister Janil Puthucheary: Thank you, Clement. Excellent question. My message is - Stay, fight, stand up for what you believe in, in a way that brings in inclusion and brings every Singaporean with you on that journey and make our society better from your point of view. The problem we have is not all of us agree on what ‘better’ is but we do need to have the discussions around that. We do need to have the discourse and the engagement about how we go forward. If you leave, you take your ideas and your views with you, and that’s not going to help your cause.
When your mum took you aside and told you that, neither you nor her nor me nor many other people would imagine that last year we would have repealed 377A. Our society changes, just as our aspirations change, our view of how we might deal with people in society who have a different view from us also change, and if you want to make a difference, leaving isn’t going to help. I’ve had the privilege of studying and working overseas and some of that have been with youth who have had challenges, and some of those challenges in adolescence have been with LGBTQ-related issues.
We shouldn’t have a rose-tinted view that in societies where perhaps the social mores are different or the legal structures are different, or the espoused centrist standard view is different, that young people are not facing challenges or being discriminated against They are. Grass isn’t always automatically greener on the other side. But that’s not my central point.
My central point is: You’re Singaporean, you care about Singapore, you want Singapore to be inclusive in a certain way. Not everybody will agree with you but you’re not going to engage with the matter and make things better from your point of view unless you stay, stand up and speak up, which you and your colleagues have done successfully.
Guest of Honour at 14th Singapore AIDS Conference[]
On 30 November 2024, Dr Janil, as Senior Minister of State for the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) and the Ministry of Health (MOH), graced the 14th Singapore AIDS Conference whose theme was "Communities in Action". The meeting highlighted how communities, healthcare providers, researchers and policymakers could work together to end HIV and STI transmission in Singapore. Janil announced the national rollout of HIV self-testing kits at selected retail pharmacies by end-January 2025, augmenting existing screening programmes and making HIV services testing more accessible.
On 2 December 2024, he made the following post on his Facebook[6]:
"HIV prevention and treatment have come a long way over the past few decades. With the remarkable advancements in antiretroviral therapy, those living with HIV on regular treatment can lead lives no different from others. The key is early detection and treatment. To further reduce barriers and make regular testing more accessible for all, HIV self-testing kits will soon be available at selected retail pharmacies nationwide by end-January next year. We hope this will empower individuals to take charge of their personal health by providing a simple and private way to know one's HIV status. Let’s continue building a society where everyone can live with dignity and without fear of discrimination."
Drag queen Victoria Wondersnatch uploaded the following video to Facebook of herself being presented with the Red Ribbon Award by Dr Janil[7]:
See also[]
References[]
- https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/lgbtq-youth-singapore-ips-conference-2351821
- https://mothership.sg/2024/01/janil-puthucheary-polarisation/
- https://www.instagram.com/p/C2uAdqOrmvD/
Acknowledgements[]
This article was written by Roy Tan.