Tommy Koh

Tommy Koh Thong Bee (; born 12 November 1937) is a Singaporean diplomat, lawyer, professor and author who served as Singapore's Permanent Representative to the United Nations between 1968 and 1971.

Early life and education Koh, the eldest of three sons, was born in Singapore on 12 November 1937. His father was originally from Tong'an, Fujian and his mother was from Shanghai. He attended from Serangoon Secondary School and Raffles Institution and a Graduate Diploma in criminology at the University of Cambridge. Singapore’s United Nations delegation roster, 24 September 1975. Permanent Representative Tommy Koh is at center, with Foreign Minister S. Rajaratnam seated to his right.

Koh was conferred a full professorship in 1977. Koh was awarded honorary Doctor of Laws degrees from Yale University, Monash University, and the National University of Singapore. He has also received awards from Columbia University, Stanford University, Georgetown University, the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, and Curtin University.

Career

Koh is an international law professor, action and Ambassador-at-Large for the Singaporean government. He presently serves as Special Adviser at the Institute of Policy Studies, Chairman of the National Heritage Board, Chairman of the Governing Board of the Centre for International Law, and Rector of Tembusu College at the National University of Singapore. He is on secondment from the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law.

Koh was President of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, from 1980 to 1982. Lax and Sebenius present Koh's efforts in getting the Convention passed as an example of successful negotiating. From 1990 to 1992, he served as Chairman of the Main Committee of the UN Conference on Environment and Development, where he presided over the negotiations on Agenda 21. He has also served as Singapore's ambassador to the United Nations and the United States.

Koh was the first Executive Director of the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF), established in Singapore in 1997 by the countries of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).

On 9 August 2008, Koh was conferred with the Order of Nila Utama (First Class) by the Singaporean government for his outstanding contributions in the Singapore legislative team representing Singapore in the Pedra Branca dispute case with the Malaysian government.

In 2014, Koh received the Great Negotiator Award from Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School for his multiple contributions to diplomacy, most notably his work as chief negotiator for the United States–Singapore Free Trade Agreement, his work around developing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, his important efforts in resolving territorial and humanitarian disputes in the Baltics and Asia, and his success in leading both the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea and the UN Conference on Environment and Development (also known as the Rio Earth Summit).

In September 2018, via a Facebook post, Tommy Koh encouraged the LGBT communities of Singapore to challenge Section 377A of the Penal Code which criminalise same-sex intercourse between men.

Koh is on the panel of mediators for Singapore International Mediation Centre (SIMC).

Selected writings Tommy Koh, Constitution of the Oceans, UNCLOS December 1982, accessed 20 May 2017 Tommy Koh, Five Years After Rio:Some Personal Reflections, UN Chronicle 1997, accessed at Essay 29 August 2006 Tommy T.B. Koh and Amitav Acharya (ed.), The Quest for World Order: Perspectives of a Pragmatic Idealist, Times Academic Press, Singapore, 1997 Tommy Koh, Five Years After Rio:Some Personal Reflections, UN Chronicle 1997, accessed at Essay 29 August 2006

Tommy T.B. Koh & Hernaikh Singh (eds), India On Our Minds: Essays By Tharman Shanmugaratnam And 50 Singaporean Friends Of India, World Scientific Publishing, 2021. Tommy Koh, Lin Heng Lye and Shawn Lum (eds). Peace with Nature: 50 Inspiring Essays on Nature and the Environment. World Scientific, 2023.

Honours and awards 1961: Adrian Clarke Memorial Medal, University of Malaya (Singapore). 1961: Leow Chia Heng Prize, University of Malaya (Singapore). 1976: International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP), Washington DC. 1979: Meritorious Service Medal (Pingat Jasa Gemilang), Singapore. 1985: Jackson H. Ralston Prize, Stanford Law School, California. 2006: Build A Better World Award, CH2M Hill. 2007: Watermark Honorary Award, Public Utilities Board, Singapore. 2007: Tatler Leadership Award for Lifetime Achievement, Singapore Tatler magazine. 2008: Order of Nila Utama (First Class), Singapore. 2009: Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star, 2009 (Japan). 2014: Great Negotiator Award, 2014 (Harvard Law School/Harvard Kennedy School). 2017: Mochtar Kusumaatmadja Award (Inaugural), Indonesia. 2018: Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian honour. 2020: World Toilet Organization (WTO) Hall of Fame Award. 2022: Honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.D), National University of Singapore (NUS). 2023: ASIANSIL Paik Choong-Hyun Prize, Asian Society of International Law. 2024: Adinata Award, Indonesia. 2026: Ramon Magsaysay Award 2026

Lectures The Art and Science of Chairing Major Inter-governmental Conferences in the Lecture Series of the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law The Negotiating Process of UNCLOS III in the Lecture Series of the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law Straits Used for International Navigation in the Lecture Series of the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law

Personal life Tommy Koh is married to Poh Siew Aing. They have two sons, of which Wei Koh is a known publisher in modern horology media and Aun Koh is a well known blogger.