Chew Hoong Ling

Chew Hoong Ling (Chinese: 周虹伶) (born 25 December 1980) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is an author,^[1] professional master of ceremonies, inspirational speaker and social activist.^[2] She was a former TV presenter^[3] for a Malay talk show Selamat Pagi Malaysia (translated as "Good Morning Malaysia") on Malaysia's national TV channel, Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM). Currently she is a host for an online radio station.^[4] In 2009, she came to prominence when she donated part of her liver to a stranger.^[5]

Early life

Hoong Ling's parents divorced when she was 5 years old^[6] and was brought up in a small town called Teluk Intan, Perak.^[7] She was raised in a strict disciplinarian style and in school, semi-military trained under one of the school's uniform units, St. John Ambulance.^[8]
Her early education was in Convent schools.^[9] She graduated with an honours degree in Information Systems from the Thames Valley University, UK.^[10]

Organ donation

After reading an article in a book called Life's Great Gifts^[11] about an eleven-year-old girl who pledged her organs,^[12] she was inspired to sign an organ donation pledge at the age of 13. Since then, she promoted organ donation and later in 2009, donated 60% of her liver to a Malaysian teenage girl, Lee An Qi, at Gleneagles Hospital, Singapore.

She wrote a book about the experience, I Don't Know You but Let Me Save You^[13] and its Chinese translation 我把肝脏给了一位陌生人 (literally translated as "I gave my liver to a stranger").^[14]

In 2010, she was appointed the committee member of the Public Awareness Action Committee for Organ and Tissue Donation under the Ministry of Health Malaysia^[15] and in 2013, appointed one of the Organ Donation Ambassadors to promote organ donation in Malaysia which registers only about 200,000 people.^[16]

Social activism

Hoong Ling started active in school, idolising a local social activist, Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye and always wanted to be like her idol. She was active in the St. John Ambulance of Malaysia since school days. After leaving school she was promoted to Divisional Officer and last held National Staff Officer before she resigned in 2009.

In her neighbourhood, she actively participated in and organised crime prevention programs^[17] and was the founder of the Pandan Jaya Neighbourhood Watch.^[18]

She is the founder of Voice of Women, a platform for other young women who want to contribute to society.^[15] Through the organisation she "convinced Sunlight Radio Taxi to get 100 taxi drivers to fly green ribbons and give out flyers to passengers to promote organ donation. Through the association, other women have also come forward to do other meaningful activities for various sections of the community."^[15]

Politics

In 2013, she was selected as a candidate for Barisan Nasional (BN) at Petaling Jaya Utara (PJU) during Malaysia's 13th General Election, against the incumbent Tony Pua from DAP.^[19][20][21] DAP's Tony Pua wins PJU with a 44,672 majority. He received 57,407 votes, beating BN's Chew Hoong Ling who won 12,735.^[22]

Awards

• 2011 – 2013 National Youth Icon awarded by the Ministry of Youth and Sports^[23]
• 2011 National Premier Youth Award (Extraordinary Achievement Category) awarded by the Ministry of Youth and Sports and presented by the Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Dato' Sri Najib Tun Razak^[24]
• 2009 Lions District 308-B1, District Governor's Distinguished Service Award awarded by the Lions Clubs International District 308B1, presented by the then District Governor Dr. JP Kamalanathan^[25]
• 2008 Great Women of Our Time Award (Education and Public Services) awarded by The Women's Weekly, presented by the Ke Bawah Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Tengku Puan Pahang Tunku Hajjah Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah Binti Al-Marhum Sultan Iskandar Al- Haj
• 2006 Selangor Youth Award (Volunteerism) awarded by the Ministry of Youth and Sports
• 2003 – Youth Ambassador on board the Ship of Southeast Asian Youths Program (SSEAYP)

References