Lee Kuan Yew Order: 1st Prime Minister Term of Office: August 9, 1965 - November 26, 1990 Succeeded by: Goh Chok Tong Date of Birth September 16, 1923 Place of Birth: Singapore Wife: Kwa Geok Choo Occupation: lawyer Political Party: People's Action Party Deputy PM : Toh Chin Chye (1959 - 1965) Goh Keng Swee (1965 - 1985) S Rajaratnam (2nd DPM) (1980 - 1985) Goh Chok Tong (1985 - 1990) Ong Teng Cheong (2nd DPM) (1985 - 1990)

Lee Kuan Yew (born September 16, 1923) (Chinese: 李光耀, Pinyin: Lǐ Guāng Yào), also known as Lee Kwan-Yew or Harry Lee, was the first Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. He has remained the most influential politician in Singapore since his retirement as Prime Minister. Under the administration of Singapore's second prime minister, Goh Chok Tong, he served as Senior Minister. He currently serves in the newly-created post of Minister Mentor under his son Lee Hsien Loong, who became the nation's third prime minister on August 12, 2004.

Lee Kuan Yew was born in Singapore, where he was educated at Telok Kurau Primary School, Raffles Institution and Raffles College. His university education was delayed by World War II and the 1942—1945 Japanese Occupation of Singapore. During the Occupation, he operated a successful black market business selling a tapioca-based glue called Stikfas¹. Having taken up Chinese and Japanese language lessons since 1942, he was able to work as a transcriber of Allied wire reports for the Japanese, as well as an English-language editor for the Japanese Hobudu (an information or propaganda department) from 1943 to 1944².

After the war, he (and his future wife) studied law at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge in Britain and both graduated with first class honors degrees. Upon return to Singapore in 1949, he worked as a lawyer in Laycock and Ong, the legal practice of John Laycock, a pioneer of multiracialism who, together with A.P. Rajah and C.C. Tan, had founded Singapore's first multiracial club open to Asians.

In 1954, Lee and a group of fellow English-educated, middle-class men formed the socialist People's Action Party (PAP) to agitate for self-government for Singapore and an end to British colonialism. Five years later, in 1959, Lee was elected as the first Prime Minister of Singapore, replacing the former Chief Minister of Singapore, David Saul Marshall. He was re-elected seven times in Singapore's limited democracy (in 1963, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1984 and 1988), until he stepped down in November 1990 and assumed the post of "Senior Minister" in the Goh Chok Tong cabinet. In August 2004, when Goh Chok Tong stood down in favour of Lee's son, Lee Hsien Loong, Goh was in turn appointed Senior Minister, and Lee was appointed to the new role of "Minister Mentor" by the new Prime Minister.

During the three decades in which Lee was in office, Singapore grew from a Third World country to one of the most developed nations in the world, despite its small population and lack of natural resources. Lee has often stated that Singapore's only natural resources are its people and their strong work ethic. He is widely respected by Singaporeans and many others in Southeast Asia particularly the older generation, who remember his inspiring leadership during independence and the separation from Malaysia. He has often been credited as the architect of Singapore's present prosperity (although a significant role was also played by his Deputy Prime Minister, Dr. Goh Keng Swee, who was in charge of the economy.)

On the other hand, many Singaporeans have criticized Lee as an elitist authoritarian, and even a dictator. He was reported as saying that he preferred to be feared than loved. He has implemented many harsh measures to suppress political opposition, such as the use of defamation lawsuits (which, according to his critics, have little merit) to bankrupt political opponents. On one occasion, after a court ruling in favour of Lee was overturned by the Privy Council, the right of appeal to the Council was abolished. During his premiership from 1965 to 1990, he incarcerated Chia Thye Poh , a former MP of an opposition party, the Barisan Socialis, for 22 years under the Internal Security Act, only to be released in 1989³.

Several members of Lee's family hold prominent positions in Singaporean society. Lee's wife Kwa Geok Choo used to be a partner of the prominent legal firm Lee & Lee. His sons and daughter hold government and government-linked posts. His son Lee Hsien Loong is currently the Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Singapore, as well as Vice-Chairman of the Government Investment Company (GIC) of Singapore (Lee is the Chairman.) His daughter Lee Wei Ling runs the National Neurological Institute, while his other son Lee Hsien Yang manages the recently privatised telecommunications company SingTel. His daughter-in-law Ho Ching (Lee Hsien Loong's wife) runs Temasek Holdings, a prominent holding company with controlling stakes in a variety of government-linked companies. However, Lee has consistently denied charges of nepotism, arguing that his family members' privileged positions are based on personal merit. It should be noted that Lee is a strong supporter of eugenics.

Lee was one of the leading advocates of Asian values, though his interpretation of Asian values is open to debate.

In an interview with the pro-government Straits Times, Lee said that he is an agnostic.

Lee has received a number of state decorations, including the Order of the Companions of Honour (1970), Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St. Michael and St. George (1972), the Freedom of the City of London (1982), the Order of the Crown of Johore First Class (1984), and the Order of the Rising Sun (1967).

Lee Kuan Yew has written a two-volume set of memoirs: The Singapore Story (ISBN 0130208035), which covers his view of Singapore's history until its separation from Malaysia in 1965, and (ISBN 0060197764), which gives his account of Singapore's subsequent transformation into a prosperous first-world nation.

Notes

1. War of Words Alejandro Reyes, Asiaweek.com, September 25, 1998. Retrieved 2004-12-08
2. Lee Kuan Yew: A Chronology, 1923-1965 Largely based on Lee Kuan Yew. The Singapore Story: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew. Singapore: Times, 1998. Retrieved 2004-12-08
3. Free After 32 Lost Years Chia Thye Poh interview with Newsweek magazine. Retrieved 2004-12-12

External links

• http://www.time.com/time/asia/asia/magazine/1999/990823/lee1.html. Lee was chosen as Asia's 100 most influential persons of the century by TIMEAsia magazine.