Escape from Paradise

"Escape from Paradise: From Third World to First" is a 2001 non-fiction book written by John Harding and May Chu Harding [May is the great-granddaughter of Aw Boon Par, who with his brother developed the formula for Tiger Balm medicated oil. [http://www.escapefromparadise.com/NewFiles/auth.html] ] set in Singapore, Brunei, Australia, England, and the United States. It documents May’s struggle to divorce her ex-husband, Hin Chew Chung, whom she married in an arranged marriage in Singapore. She encountered difficulties with Singapore's lawyers and judges which made the divorce difficult. Her husband hiring noted Queen's Counsel Alexander Irvine to assist him in the case did not help either.

Circulation restrictions and critical reviews

Due to a chapter in the book which unfavourably mentions the former law firm of Helen Yeo, wife of Singapore's former Minister for Transport Yeo Cheow Tong, "Escape from Paradise" was removed from the shelves of all Singapore book stores and libraries in 2002. [One copy of "Escape from Paradise" is still in circulation at the National Library but cannot be borrowed, as can be seen from [http://vistaweb.nlb.gov.sg/cgi-bin/cw_cgi?fullRecord+11566+3002+11002871+1+2 the book's record] in the NLB catalogue.] cite web | url=http://www.escapefromparadise.com/NewFiles/bc.html | title=The banning of "Escape from Paradise" (from book's website) | accessdate=2006-05-03] [cite web | url=http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA374952.html | title=A Day in the Life of International Libraries: Ambitious Meets Audacious | publisher=Library Journal | accessdate=2006-05-03]

Nevertheless, the book has been reviewed by several publications both inside and outside Singapore. These include "The Singapore Women's Weekly", [cite news | url=http://www.escapefromparadise.com/PDF/tsww.pdf | title=Tiger Lady: Tiger Balm heiress Lee May Chu reveals her family scandal in a scathing autobiography | publisher=The Singapore Women's Weekly | date=October 2002 | accessdate=2006-05-03|format=PDF] "Today", [cite news | url=http://www.escapefromparadise.com/NewFiles/today.html | title=Tiger Balm’s poor old lady | publisher=Today (Singapore) | date=2002-12-02 | accessdate=2006-05-03] and an arts magazine. [cite web | url=http://www.rambles.net/harding_escapepara01.html | title=Review of "Escape from Paradise" | publisher=Rambles | accessdate=2006-05-03]

Role in X10 Wireless Technology's IPO

After Hin Chew Chung's company, X10 Wireless Technology had filed its initial public offering registration with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in 2000, a copy of "Escape from Paradise" was sent to the SEC on 6 August 2001. In the book, Hin says in a sworn statement, "My passport was impounded for a year by the authorities in Brunei pending investigation into allegations of corruption involving my family company, incorporated in Brunei: Chung Pah Hing (B) Sdn Bhd." Soon after, on 26 September 2001, X10 withdrew its IPO application. [cite web | url=http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ID=101796&ipage=1501823&doc=1 | title=The letter that X10 wrote to the SEC withdrawing its IPO application | accessdate=2006-05-03.]

In 2003, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after it lost a US$4.3 million lawsuit, and the authors of "Escape from Paradise" have speculated that the cancellation of X10's IPO deprived the company of funds that could have paid for the legal costs incurred in the lawsuit. [cite web | url=http://www.escapefromparadise.com/NewFiles/chc.html | title=Hin Chew (the groom & Mr. X-10) | accessdate=2006-05-03]

References

External links

* [http://www.escapefromparadise.com Escape from Paradise book website]