Background

Ethnicity: Lee Kuan Yew was a fourth-generation Singaporean of ethnic Chinese ancestry of mostly Hakka and Peranakan descent.

Lee Kuan Yew was born on September 16, 1923, in Singapore. He was a son of Lee Chin Koon and Chua Jim Neo. The family had lived in the colony for more than half a century by the time of his birth, absorbing the culture of the indigenous Malays and the colonial British. Lee Kuan Yew also had three brothers and a sister.

Education

Lee Kuan Yew attended Telok Kurau English School from 1931 to 1935. Later he studied at Raffles Institution and stood first in Singapore and Malaysia in the Senior Cambridge exams. Awarded an Anderson Scholarship to Raffles College (now the National University of Singapore), he studied there between 1940 and 1942.

When the Japanese conquered Singapore in February 1942 his studies at Raffles College were interrupted. After the end of World War II, Lee Kuan Yew went to study in England. In 1946 he attended the London School of Economics and Political Science and in 1947 he enrolled in Fitzwilliam College. He received a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1949 and established an excellent academic record and won a star for special distinction by graduating with a "double first" – that is, first-class honors in his two crucial comprehensive examinations. Lee Kuan Yew was admitted to the English bar in 1950.

Career

Lee Kuan Yew started his career as a translator and English-language editor at the Japanese propaganda department during the Japanese occupation in World War II. Immediately after the war, Lee went to England where he studied law. After returning back to Singapore in 1951 Lee Kuan Yew worked as a lawyer at the law firm of Laycock and Ong. He also became the honorary legal adviser for several trade unions after being acquainted with their leaders. In 1955, he became the co-founder of Lee & Lee law firm and became a member of the Singaporean Parliament. However, he was no longer interested in a career as a lawyer, as in 1954 he formed the People's Action Party in the basement of his house and became its Secretary-General. He held this post until 1992. In the 1955 elections, Lee secured the Tanjong Pagar seat and became the Unofficial Leader of the Opposition of Singapore. In 1959 he was elected as the first Prime Minister of Singapore. Lee retained his position as Prime Minister, when Singapore joined Malaysia in September 1963, and also became a member of the Malaysian Parliament for Singapore and held this post until 1965. The People's Action Party government under Lee's leadership was in power for over a quarter-century.

During his time as Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew did much to achieve political stability and economic growth. In 1984 Lee announced that he would retire from public office in 1988, at the age of 65, following the practice of major U.S. corporations, although he held onto the position of Prime Minister until 1990. In 1990 Lee turned over the reins of government to Goh Chok Tong and became Senior Minister of Singapore. He held this post until 2004 when he was appointed Minister Mentor of Singapore, a position he held until 2011 when he finally stepped down from the cabinet.

Lee Kuan Yew also authored many books in his lifetime. These include The Singapore Story, From Third World to First, The Wit and Wisdom of Lee Kuan Yew, and One Man's View of the World.

Achievements

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  Lee Kuan Yew was a Singaporean politician, lawyer, and writer who was known as the founding father and the Prime Minister of Singapore for three decades that made his city-state from one of the poorest into one of the most sophisticated and prosperous places on the planet. He encouraged foreign investment, developed the necessary infrastructure, ensured racial harmony, and eliminated corruption. Lee was also responsible for grooming the people of Singapore as the most disciplined and hard-working people in the world.
  
  Lee Kuan Yew received numerous awards, including the Order of the Companions of Honour, the Order of St Michael and St George, the Order of the Rising Sun, and the Order of Friendship. In 1999, Lee was named one of Time's Most Influential People of the 20th Century and on April 29, 2010, Lee was named in the Time 100 list as one of those who most affected the world. On March 24, 2015, the National Parks Board named a Singapore Botanic Gardens orchid hybrid called the "Aranda Lee Kuan Yew" in honour of the late Mr. Lee. The Asian edition of Time Magazine featured the late Mr. Lee Kuan Yew on its cover, describing him as "The Founding Father of Singapore."

Works

More photos

• book

  • My Lifelong Challenge: Singapore's Bilingual Journey

    (In My Lifelong Challenge, the readers learn of the many p...)

    2011
  • The Singapore Story: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew

    (Singapore's former Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew provides ...)

    1998
  • The Wit and Wisdom of Lee Kuan Yew

    (Lee Kuan Yew played the pivotal role in Singapore's trans...)

    2013
  • From Third World to First: The Singapore Story - 1965-2000

    (For more than three decades, Lee Kuan Yew has been praise...)

    2000
  • Keeping My Mandarin Alive: Lee Kuan Yew's Language Learning Experience

    (For the first time, this towering figure of the island-st...)

    2005
  • One Man's View of the World

    (In this book, Lee draws on that wealth of experience and ...)

    2013
  • Lee Kuan Yew: Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going

    (Mr. Lee Kuan Yew described Hard Truths as his all-time "f...)

    2011

Religion

Lee Kuan Yew personally stated his agnosticism during an interview with The New York Times in 2010, but elaborated that he had practiced Chinese folk religion while growing up. Besides, in 2013 he identified himself as a "nominal Buddhist." Being a member of a multicultural society, he took part in a number of cultural events that might be of slight religious nature and to blend in, so he could be considered as agnostic with respect to all religions. Once he said that he neither denied nor accepted the fact that God exists.

Politics

Lee Kuan Yew founded the People's Action Party in 1955. Later he represented the Party in two discussions over the future constitutional status of Singapore, in London.

After Lee became Prime Minister of Singapore he faced serious problems of high unemployment, severe housing shortage, and widespread corruption. In 1960, he established the Housing and Development Board. The board undertook steps to provide affordable homes on a war footing. Lee supported Malaya Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman's proposal to form a federation consisting of Malaya, Singapore, Sabah, Sarawak, and Brunei. A referendum in 1962 validated the Federation and in 1963 Singapore declared complete independence from Britain to become part of the Federation. However, Lee made the mistake of entering his Party, 75 percent of whose members were Chinese, in the Malaysian national elections. Widespread racial riots between Chinese and Malays resulted in communal rioting in Singapore itself. In August 1965 Lee was told by his Malaysian colleagues in the federal government that Singapore must leave the Federation. On August 9, 1965, the Republic of Singapore was born.

Lee's government initiated an industrialization program and a low-cost public housing program. Besides, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau was strengthened by successive legislation and was given the power to make arrests, investigate bank accounts and income tax-related information of suspected individuals. Lee and his cabinet decided the best way to boost Singapore's economy was to attract foreign investments from multinational corporations. Singapore could woo American, Japanese, and European entrepreneurs and professionals to set up base there. Lee and his cabinet also worked to establish Singapore as an international financial center. He also took care of the international image of being a "Garden City," something that has been sustained to this day.

In the late 1960s, fearing that Singapore's growing population might overburden the developing economy, Lee started a "Stop at Two" family planning campaign. He sparked the "Great Marriage Debate" when he encouraged Singapore men to choose highly educated women as wives. A new program called the "Graduate Mothers Scheme" was created. According to this program tax rebates, schooling, and housing priorities were introduced for graduate mothers who had three or four children. However, this program ended an overly successful family planning campaign "Stop at Two." The quality of life in Singapore in the 1980s was much better as Singaporeans were not only better educated and informed, but also enjoyed a higher standard of living, better medical care and housing, and longer life. Besides, English, Malay, Chinese, and Tamil were accorded official language statuses. The "Speak Mandarin Campaign" was initiated in 1979 to promote Mandarin among Chinese-speaking people who spoke different Chinese dialects.

Lee Kuan Yew ensured that Singapore was accepted to the United Nations in 1965 and to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) two years later. He declared a policy of neutrality and non-alignment. He also assigned the task of creating the Singapore Armed Forces to then Deputy Prime Minister, Goh Keng Swee, which he did with international assistance. In 1967, compulsory military service was introduced.

Lee cultivated close relationships with presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. In 1985, he made a state visit to the United States on the invitation of President Reagan and appealed to Congress the importance of free trade and not to turn towards protectionism.

Lee also was very careful to avoid giving any impression of Singapore, which had a three-quarters ethnic Chinese population, being a Third China. Singapore did not establish diplomatic relations with China until the 1970s. In 1978, Deng Xiaoping visited Singapore and met Lee. As a result of the meeting, Deng Xiaoping, impressed with Singapore's economic development, greenery and housing, sent thousands of Chinese to Singapore and other countries in order to learn from their experiences and bring back their knowledge. Lee, on the other hand, advised Deng to stop exporting Communist ideologies to Southeast Asia, advice that Deng later followed.

It's also worth noting, that Lee Kuan Yew was known for curtailing civil liberties such as media control, limits on public protests, and bringing libel suits against some political opponents. He argued that such disciplinary measures were necessary for political stability which, together with the rule of law, were essential for economic progress.

Views

When Lee Kuan Yew was asked a question during a CNN interview in 1998 about LGBT rights in Singapore he said that it was not for the government to decide whether homosexuality was acceptable or not. He stated, that it was for the Singaporean society to decide. He also said he did not think an "aggressive gay rights movement" would change people's minds on the issue. Later Lee Kuan Yew was asked how he would react if one of his grandchildren turned out to be homosexual. He replied that he would accept his grandchild because homosexuality is a genetic code. However, he did not think LGBT people were suited to bringing up a child as they had no maternal instinct aroused by the process of pregnancy.

Quotations: "I did not enter politics. The Japanese brought politics to me. The Japanese occupying forces were blind and brutal and made me, and a whole generation like me, in Singapore and Malaya, work for freedom – freedom from servitude and foreign domination. We decided that from then on our lives should be ours to decide, that we should not be the pawn and playthings of foreign powers."

"We need the greenery of nature to lift our spirits."

"Green is soothing to the eyes. The more greenery you have, the more people are soothed and the cooler it is. So I said look, try to build it up every wall and every building – greenery, creepers, like the creeping ivy or put the framework over it."

"Without the greening effort, Singapore would have been a barren, ugly city."

"To the young and to the not so old, I say, look at that horizon, follow that rainbow, go ride it."

"A society to be successful must maintain a balance between nurturing excellence and encouraging the average to improve."

Membership

Lee Kuan Yew was a member of the Singapore Cricket Club, the Fondation Chirac, and David Rockefeller's International Council.

Personality

Lee Kuan Yew was not one for hobbies. He practiced golf but gave it up. He also said that he had no time for movies. His son Lee Hsien Yang said that material things never enticed or interested him. Moreover, Lee Kuan Yew had no concept of how much even basic items cost. He didn't go to the supermarket or the shops, he did not buy things, he used his clothes till they were old and was extremely thrifty, so he had no reference point.

Lee Kuan Yew was an honest person with a great sense of humor. He was known for a sharp tongue and he was fearless when speaking his mind. He also was an avid reader and liked to occasionally read Tom Clancy's novels.

Physical Characteristics: Lee Kuan Yew maintained a careful diet and did a lot of sports for most of his life.

Lee Kuan Yew died of pneumonia.

Quotes from others about the person

• John Kerry: "When Lee Kuan Yew became its first Prime Minister in 1959, Singapore was a newly independent nation with an uncertain future. By the time he left office 31 years later, the small island had been transformed into one of the most prosperous and dynamic countries in the world."
  
  Barack Obama: "He was a true giant of history who will be remembered for generations to come as the father of modern Singapore and as one of the great strategists of Asian affairs."

Interests

• Reading

• Writers

  Tom Clancy

• Sport & Clubs

  Bicycling, swimming

Connections

Lee Kuan Yew met his future wife, Kwa Geok Choo, at Raffles College. They got married in 1950. The marriage produced three children.

Father:

Lee Chin Koon

Lee Chin Koon (1903 – October 12, 1997) was a manager of an oil depot for Shell Oil Company.

Mother:

Chua Jim Neo

(1907 – August 8, 1980)

Brother:

Freddy Lee

Freddy Lee (1927 – 2012) was former Chairman of the stockbroking firm J. Ballas and Company.

Brother:

Lee Suan Yew

Lee Suan Yew (born 1933) is a Singaporean doctor who served as President of Singapore Medical Council.

Brother:

Dennis Lee

Dennis Lee (1925 – 2003) was a lawyer and member of Lee & Lee company.

Sister:

Monica Lee

(born 1934)

late wife:

Kwa Geok Choo

Kwa Geok Choo (December 21, 1920 – October 2, 2010) was a Singaporean lawyer.

Son:

Lee Hsien Loong

Lee Hsien Loong (born February 10, 1952) is a Singaporean politician who has served as Prime Minister of Singapore and secretary-general of the People's Action Party since 2004.

Son:

Lee Hsien Yang

Lee Hsien Yang (born September 24, 1957) is a Singaporean business executive. He served as Chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore from 2009 to 2018.

Daughter:

Lee Wei Ling

Lee Wei Ling (born 1955) is a Singaporean neurologist.

colleague:

Lim Kim San

Lim Kim San (November 30, 1916 – July 20, 2006) was a Singaporean politician who served as Minister for the Environment and Minister for Communications.

References

• Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master's Insights on China, the United States, and the World Lee offers his assessment of China's future, asserting, among other things, that "China will want to share this century as co-equals with the U.S." He affirms the United States' position as the world's sole superpower but expresses dismay at the vagaries of its political system. He offers strategic advice for dealing with China and goes on to discuss India's future, Islamic terrorism, economic growth, geopolitics and globalization, and democracy.
  2012
• Lee Kuan Yew: The Unofficial Biography This is the biography of the great Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, whom Mr. Obama has mentioned to be one of the greatest men in the 20th and 21st centuries.
  2015
• Lee Kuan Yew: The Man and His Ideas Lee Kuan Yew passed away on March 23, 2015, at the age of 92. This book tells the story of his life from when the Japanese occupied Singapore in 1941 until 1998 when he was Senior Minister.
  1998
• Lee Kuan Yew Through the Eyes of Chinese Scholars Lee Kuan Yew through the Eyes of Chinese Scholars is a compilation of essays by highly-respected Chinese scholars in which they evaluate the life, work, and philosophy of Lee Kuan Yew, founding Prime Minister of Singapore. Presenting a range of views from a uniquely Chinese/Asian perspective, this book provides valuable insights for those who wish to gain a fuller and deeper understanding of Lee Kuan Yew - the man, as well as Singapore - his nation.
  2016