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MARCH 29, 2015 92 PAGES IN FIVE PARTS MCI (P) 031/02/2015

ST PHOTO: CHEW SENG KIM A vigil orderly helping to wipe the tears of one of the vigil guards for Mr Lee Kuan Yew at Parliament House yesterday. Over the past four days, about 450,000 people queued for up to 10 hours to pay their respects to Mr Lee.

“The response from all segments of our society, everybody, has been overwhelming. It’s extraordinary. Deeply moving. It’s a tremendous, unique experience for Singaporeans.”

PM LEE, on the outpouring of tributes for his late father, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, in Singapore and abroad Final journey through Singapore for Mr Lee today

Zakir Hussain Mr Lee himself was instrumen- Two navy patrol vessels will con- funeral service, which top leaders Deputy Political Editor tal in those moments. Crowds gone, Padang cleared duct a ceremonial sailpast at sea off from more than 20 countries will Over the past four days, some Marina Barrage and sound three attend alongside family members The endless queue of visitors lining 450,000 people queued for up to 10 last night for funeral procession prolonged horn blasts as the proces- and 2,000 invited guests. up to pay their respects to the hours to pay their respects in per- sion passes the Padang. Mr Lee’s son, Prime Minister Lee country’s founding Prime Minister son to Mr Lee. The cortege will then travel past Hsien Loong, will be the first of 10 was finally closed last night, setting Another million people had the new and old National Trades people who will deliver eulogies. At the stage for Singapore to give Mr visited 18 community tribute sites Union Congress buildings, where the end of the service, the Singa- Lee Kuan Yew a final farewell to- islandwide by 9pm yesterday. thousands of workers will gather to pore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) day. Today, many will line the streets bid farewell to Mr Lee, who began will sound a siren islandwide for Some 1,000 Singapore Armed around the Padang and down Shen- his career fighting for trade unions. everyone to observe a minute of si- Forces servicemen were deployed ton Way to Tanjong Pagar, Bukit Mr Gary Haris, 40, of the Union lence, before the pledge is recited to clear the Padang. Their task was Merah, Queenstown and Common- of Security Employees, plans to line and the national anthem sung. to work through the night to dis- wealth as a ceremonial gun carriage the route alongside other unionists “This rallying call is befitting of mantle 360 tents and shift 2,000 makes its journey to the University from 9am. “Mr Lee’s leadership and members of the public to mark our barricades so that four ceremonial Cultural Centre (UCC) in Clementi dedication have touched many of deepest respect for a remarkable 25-pounder Howitzer guns can be for Mr Lee’s state funeral service. us and given us better living and leader,” said Colonel Abdul Razak moved onto the Padang for a Mr Lee’s funeral will also be working conditions. This is the Raheem of the SCDF. 21-gun salute. marked abroad, with India and least we can do for him,” he said. The one-minute silence will also The Padang and City Hall pro- New Zealand flying their flags at Many in Mr Lee’s Tanjong Pagar be observed at border checkpoints, vide a fitting stage for the nation to half-mast today. constituency plan to line the streets and on departing buses and trains. give a solemn send-off to Mr Lee, The state funeral procession will there, and Singapore Police Force PM Lee yesterday thanked the who died on Monday, aged 91. begin at 12.30pm, when Mr Lee’s bagpipers will play Auld Lang Syne last visitors queueing at the Padang It is the site of many a historic casket will be carried onto a ceremo- as the procession passes by the Po- and said of today’s procession and event in this nation’s past – the nial gun carriage and transported lice Cantonment Complex. service: “We have a ceremony declaration of self-government in out of Parliament House in a sol- The 15.4km procession is expect- which will be a fitting tribute and a 1959, the introduction of the na- emn procession. ST PHOTO: LIM SIN THAI ed to take under an hour, and will fitting mourning and celebration tional flag, anthem and state crest The cortege will make its way to Madam Eliza Wong, in her 50s, was one of the last visitors to make it to the be broadcast live on national TV, of Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s life.” later that year, the announcement Parliament Place, and as it journeys queue to Parliament House when the entrance was sealed at 8pm yesterday. online, as well as at all community of Singapore’s independence in around the Padang, the Republic of She said: “Mr Lee means so much to all of us. He is the father of Singapore.” centres and tribute sites. [email protected] 1965 and the first National Day Singapore Air Force’s Black Knights The procession will arrive at the Additional reporting by Parade a year later. will do an aerial salute. More reports and pictures >>Pages 2-24 UCC shortly before 2pm for the Tham Yuen-C HE CHANGED MY LIFE Chua Mui Hoong S Rajagopal Nadrah Sadali Patrick Daniel Ow Yong Weng Kok Wong Lee Jeng Hawker’s daughter I saw chaos Equal opportunities From rented Water from taps, Bilingualism who went to changed to law to pursue shophouse to instead of wells opened doors Cambridge PAGE14 and order PAGE17 ambitions PAGE18 top editor PAGE19 PAGE17 for me PAGE17

Singaporeans reflect on how Mr Lee Kuan Yew shaped their lives PAGES12-24 2 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 3

QUEUES TO PAY TRIBUTE 1923 - 2015

Staying put “We stood there for a good two hours. Didn’t know what was happening until the police said the queue was closed. But we still decided to stay since we are already here. We came to pay our last respects. It is the least we can do for so much he has done. We want to do it regardless of how long it will take. We are relieved that, at least, we are walking and getting closer.” MR YAP WEI JIE, 32, who joined the line at 2am at Singapore Recreation ST PHOTO: ALPHONSUS CHERN Club and was relieved when the 6.20PM AT THE PADANG: The scene throughout yesterday was calm compared to the night before when organisers had line started moving at 6am. to abruptly suspend the queue at 10pm as crowds had swelled beyond safety limits. Mentally prepared “We came in thinking, ‘No matter how long, even 10 hours, we are prepared to wait.’ This man is a legend. This is the simplest way to show our respect. We are not frustrated with the line. We know it would be something like this. We made the choice to come even though we knew there would be so many people.” MR SAJAN CHRISTY PEREIRA, 30, a project coordinator, who was queueing with his sister Susan Christy Pereira, 34, a housewife, since 1am. They started queueing at City Hall. Mr Sajan is an Indian national who has lived here for more than eight years. Way to show respect “We came out of respect. Without him, ST PHOTO: ALPHONSUS CHERN ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM we would not have 7.30PM: The crowd started thinning as the 8pm cut-off neared. Throughout the past four days, neither heat, rain, crowd nor confusion did anything to dispel a collective sense of unity among the hundreds of thousands who went. 10.20PM: Almost all clear now at the Padang, where the 21-gun salute will take place today for Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s state funeral. Speaking to reporters at the Padang last night, PM Lee said the past week of public mourning for Mr Lee has been “a tremendous, unique experience for Singaporeans”. Singapore today. MR CHNG SHENG, 18, a part-time guest relations officer, who started queueing at 3am outside Raffles City. Persistence “We won’t leave until we see him. We don’t mind waiting the Sprinting to whole day. But even if I don’t get to see him today, at least I tried my best.” MS JUNE THENG, 19, a Temasek the Padang for Polytechnic student. Perfect location “We were going to (sketch) at the Botanic a last farewell Gardens at first, but we purposely chose this place today. You Some could not make the queue as it had to be closed as scheduled can get a good view for the Padang to be prepped for the state funeral’s 21-gun salute of the skyline and celebrate the success Rachel Chang Speaking to reporters at the Pa- just the huge outpouring of emo- of Singapore.” dang last night, PM Lee said the tion from Singapore people for Mr Assistant Political Editor MADAM TIA BOON SIM, Urban past week of public mourning for Lee,” DPM Teo said at the Padang. Sketchers Singapore founder. The It has been a four-day marathon Mr Lee has been “a tremendous, “We want to thank everyone who group of sketch artists had their monthly meeting in the area that closed with a sprint. unique experience for Singapore- came for their patience and under- ans”. standing, and their spirit was really yesterday, which they chose With the queue to bid a final ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM specifically to pay tribute to the farewell to founding Prime Minis- But he said that the line had to a Singapore spirit.” late Mr Lee. Many of the sketches Singapore’s ever-reliable army of cleaners getting a headstart on the clean-up even as the queues of depict people showing up to pay ter Lee Kuan Yew set to close at end because the Padang needed to The scene throughout yesterday was calm compared to the night be- people wait patiently to enter Parliament House last night. their respects. 8pm last night, hundreds of people be prepped for a 21-gun salute to- fore when organisers had to abrupt- literally ran the distance between day to honour Mr Lee. ly suspend the queue at 10pm as City Hall MRT and the Padang in “I hope that we will focus our- Last farewell crowds swelled beyond safety lim- the minutes leading up to the its. “I am very cut-off. A missed chance Ms Zhou Xin Jie, a marketing ex- disappointed that I Some slid past the start point in ecutive, arrived at 2am with boy- the nick of time, while others missed my chance (to friend Yap Wei Jie, both 32, while pay my final respects found themselves pleading with “I was overseas till the queue was still suspended. marshals to let them join family today. But I got here They waited until 6.15am when to Mr Lee). But I am members in line who were just a just two or three the suspension was lifted and trying to stay positive few steps quicker. reached Parliament House at 9am. – I can just go down “I was overseas till today,” said minutes late and it was “We wanted to do it regardless 42-year-old sales manager Susan closed. I wanted to be of how long it would take,” she and wait along the Lee. “But I got here just two or there in front of the said. street for him three minutes late and it was Those who came subsequently tomorrow. I don’t closed. I wanted to be there in front man.” reported eased queue times of three of the man.” to five hours through the day. But know where yet, I will But given the substantial prepa- Sales manager SUSAN LEE, 42 as the cut-off approached, the go home now and rations needed for today’s proces- crowd swelled and by 6pm, the esti- think (laughs) but, of sion and state funeral, organisers selves on the (funeral) ceremony, mated queueing time had risen to could not afford to close the line course, it is different which is a very important one, and eight hours. inside Parliament any later than scheduled. I hope that we will share the mo- “Throughout the last four days, At the hour of closing, Prime ment together,” he said. neither heat, rain, crowd nor confu- House. That was Minister Lee Hsien Loong walked sion did anything to dispel a collec- where he worked. I around the Padang, thanking peo- Earlier in the day, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean said that tive sense of unity and historical ple for braving the waits that purpose among the hundreds of wanted to say ‘bye’ to all the 18 community tribute sites stretched up to 10 hours at times. thousands who came. him there.” across the island will be open 24 After four days, 442,297 people “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime event, MRS CHARMAINE TAN, 54, a hours to accommodate those who had filed past Mr Lee’s casket as of so there was no stopping me,” said housewife, who did not meet the missed their chance to join the cut-off time of 8pm to join the 10pm last night, in scenes PM Lee 62-year-old retiree Sam Yan. Padang queue. called “extraordinary and deeply queue. moving”. More than a million have visited [email protected] Mr Lee, who was Singapore’s the tribute sites in the past week. Additional reporting by ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN Prime Minister from 1959 to 1990, “This is a number which we nev- Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh ST PHOTO: LIM SIN THAI Packing away the thousands of umbrellas used by those waiting in the queue. After four days, died on Monday, aged 91. er really expected to be so large, and Yeo Sam Jo 10PM: Army personnel taking down and packing the tents which had been used to shelter members of the public waiting to pay their respects over the past four days. 442,297 people had filed past Mr Lee’s casket as of 10 o’clock last night. 4 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 5

LYING IN STATE 1923 - 2015

ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM FROM THE NETHERLANDS: Saying a final farewell to Mr Lee are Mrs Aeyelts Averink-Winsemius and Professor Pieter Winsemius (above), close contacts of the former Prime Minister. They are the children of the late Dr Albert Winsemius who was economic adviser to Singapore for about 20 years.

ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM ST PHOTO: JAMIE KOH Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger, with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his wife Ho Ching, paying his last respects to Mr Lee at Parliament FROM MALAYSIA: Datuk Kadir Jasin (left) and former finance minister Daim Zainuddin paying their respects to Mr Lee. FROM CHINA: Alibaba executive chairman Jack Ma (right) bowing before Mr Lee’s casket. House yesterday. Dr Kissinger acknowledged Mr Lee’s role in helping to shape the US approach to China and said his advice was “extremely helpful”. ST PHOTO: JAMIE KOH Mr Lee Dignitaries pay He made the fostered region’s their respects, hail world a better ties with Mr Lee’s legacies place: Kissinger world: Xi Esther Teo They praise the Govt’s He said he was confident noth- pore president Tan Chorh Chuan, China Correspondent ing would change. He and the oth- who was part of a vigil group at Mr Ex-top US diplomat Describing Mr Lee as “an amaz- khstan and the First Deputy Prime In Beijing succession planning, er Indonesian leaders were all ac- Lee’s lying in state yesterday, paid ing phenomenon”, Dr Kissinger Minister of Russia. quainted with the current genera- tribute to his contributions to edu- says his friend of more said theirs was not a friendship Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Nam- education system and Chinese President Xi Jinping yes- tion of Singapore leaders so “there’s cation and talent development. than 40 years was an based on doing things for each gyel Wangchuck paid his respects corruption-free society terday credited Singapore found- nothing to worry about”. Mr Lee believed that every stu- other, but one based on learning to Mr Lee at the wake yesterday, amazing phenomenon ing Prime Minister Lee Kuan He added: “I admire Mr Lee dent should be given a chance to from each other. accompanied by his wife, Queen develop to his full potential, includ- Yew for his “outstanding contri- Tham Yuen-C Kuan Yew and I think he was a There, he acknowledged Mr Jetsun Pema. great leader of South-east Asia. He ing the personal aspect, he said. butions” to peace and develop- Charissa Yong Ravi Velloor Lee’s role in helping to shape the Other rulers who will be at the was a good friend of Indonesia, he “Over time he’s spoken about funeral include Malaysia’s mon- ment in Asia, and for fostering character, resilience, ability to over- Associate Editor US approach to China, which con- was a tough leader, and I think that arch, Yang di-Pertuan Agong the region’s ties with the rest of Dignitaries singled out Singapore’s we have a lot to learn from his lead- come. It’s shaped the thinking and tinues to evolve. the world. Prime ministers and potentates Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu’adzam corruption-free society, education ership style and from his thinking.” culture of our educational institu- “He never came and said, ‘You “Mr Lee Kuan Yew is a strate- system and the Government’s suc- tions,” Professor Tan said. from some two dozen nations, Shah, Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bol- Afghanistan’s Deputy Foreign have to do this or that.’ He was gist and statesman who has the cession planning for praise yester- Other dignitaries who paid their joined by close friends of Mr Lee kiah and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Minister Hekmat Karzai, who was never a lobbyist,” said Dr Kissinger. Tamim bin Hamad al Thani. respect of the international socie- day, saying these were the legacies also at Parliament House, said: “A respects were former US president Kuan Yew, gathered last night to of founding Prime Minister Lee Bill Clinton, former US national “He would say, ‘Here is a situa- Every Asean head of govern- ty,” Mr Xi said in a keynote country like Afghanistan which has bid a final farewell to the man who Kuan Yew. security adviser Tom Donilon, tion and you have to understand it ment or state is also here, with the speech at the annual Boao Fo- gone through so much conflict and often was called upon to step in to They were speaking to reporters former US secretary of state Henry if you want to succeed.’ He ex- exception of the Philippines, rum for Asia in southern Hainan (faces) a lot of the problems... there explain Asia to a global audience at Parliament House, after paying Kissinger, former US ambassador to confounded by its complexities. plained what the Chinese were do- which sent President of the Senate province. their respects to Mr Lee yesterday, are so many lessons Afghanistan Singapore Steven Green, former Tai- ing in their internal politics, their Franklin Drilon. Of Asia’s big pow- “He has made outstanding can take from his vision, his ideas.” “The world is a better place be- the last day of the lying in state. wanese leader Hau Pei-tsun, former economic policies. I found his ad- ers – China, Japan and India – the contributions to peace and devel- Quoting from Mr Lee’s books, cause of Lee Kuan Yew,” said Dr Mr Lee, 91, died last Monday at Malaysian finance minister Daim latter two are represented by their opment in Asia, and to fostering he said Singapore’s first Prime Min- Henry Kissinger, former United vice extremely helpful and so did a the Singapore General Hospital, af- Zainuddin, Bhutanese King Jigme prime ministers, while China sent ister had brought Singapore from States secretary of state and Mr succession of presidents and others the region’s ties and coopera- ter 47 days in intensive care. Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, Phil- Lee’s friend of more than four dec- in practically every American ad- Vice-President Li Yuanchao. tion with the rest of the world. Third World to First in 50 years, ippines Foreign Secretary Albert del Yesterday, former Indonesian ades. ministration.” A stream of other dignitaries “I would like to take this op- general Prabowo Subianto said Mr and Afghanistan could try to Rosario and Philippines Finance “reach similar success”, through “He taught us about the way The 91-year-old Dr Kissinger is have also paid respects at Mr Lee’s portunity to express my highest Lee had left behind a country that Secretary Cesar Purisima, and bier. Yesterday, they included learning from Singapore’s and Mr former Indonesian coordinating Asians think about problems and in Singapore as part of the US presi- respect to all the distinguished would thrive even without him. former Malaysian finance minister Lee’s experiences. minister for People’s Welfare explained to us what development dential delegation led by former people who have come before “His greatest legacy... was creat- Daim Zainuddin, a man respected ing a system that had succeeded in The most important lesson for Agung Laksono. meant in a practical sense. But he president Bill Clinton, the popular us, including Mr Lee Kuan Yew, by Mr Lee for his savvy. creating a meritocracy, and in him, he said, is the need to stamp The list also includes Mr Jack also told us, ‘We can do that much, elder statesman of the Democratic who have made contributions and beyond that, somebody else Condolences from global lead- grooming two, three generations of out corruption. Ma, head of Chinese e-commerce Party. Dr Kissinger is the oldest to the peaceful development of has to do certain things.’” ers have also poured in. Egyptian good leaders. So that’s his great lega- “He created a society, a country, giant Alibaba, Professor Pieter Win- among the overseas dignitaries at- Asia.” that is corruption-free. And corrup- The former Harvard professor, President Fattah al-Sisi called Prime cy, and Singapore will thrive with semius and Mrs Aeyelts Averink tending the funeral. The two men met in Novem- what he had achieved,” he said. tion is a problem that is a major is- Winsemius – children of the late Dr four months older than Mr Lee, Minister Lee Hsien Loong last Fri- Whether from tiny Bhutan, ber 2007 in the Great Hall of the Mr Prabowo was replying to sue for the people and the govern- Albert Winsemius who was eco- fashioned late US president Richard day to offer condolences, paying with a population of less than a mil- People when Mr Lee was on a questions from Indonesian journal- ment, and... the mechanism that nomic adviser to Singapore for Nixon’s diplomatic breakthrough tribute to the “architect of visit to Beijing. about 20 years. with China. He was speaking to lion, or China, the world’s biggest Singapore’s economy”, according ists, who had asked if Singapore he established, the initiative that In his book, One Man’s View he embarked on, is something we local media about his long friend- nation by population, leaders of 24 to his spokesman Alaa Youssef. would survive without Mr Lee. Of The World, Mr Lee had said He was also asked about Singa- can truly benefit from,” he added. [email protected] ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE ship with Mr Lee, whom he first nations have travelled to the Repub- that while he had not asked to pore-Indonesia relations. National University of Singa- [email protected] met in 1967. lic, including the President of Kaza- [email protected] FROM THE UNITED STATES: Former president Bill Clinton, who led a US delegation that included former secretary of state Henry Kissinger and former national security adviser Tom Donilon. see Mr Xi, Chinese officials ar- ranged for him to meet Mr Xi anyway – a sign that he was con- FROM BHUTAN: FROM THE sidered high on the priority list. King Jigme Khesar PHILIPPINES: It was Mr Xi’s first meeting Namgyel Wangchuck. Foreign Secretary with any foreign leader after be- Albert del Rosario (in ST PHOTO: JAMIE KOH front) and Finance ing promoted to the Politburo Secretary Cesar Standing Committee, China’s Purisima. apex decision-making body, a move that indicated to the ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM world he had been slated to take over from then President Hu Jin- tao, Mr Lee wrote. Mr Xi struck him as a man of great breadth, he added. “He is not narrow-minded. He thinks through a problem deeply and does not want to show off his knowledge. He lacks the bonhomie of Jiang Zemin and is not as formalistic as Hu Jintao. But he has gravitas. That was my first impression,” Mr Lee said. China is sending Vice-Presi- dent Li Yuanchao to attend today’s funeral service for Mr Lee. Many Chinese leaders, includ- ing Executive Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli and State Council- lor Yang Jiechi, have paid tribute to Mr Lee over the past few days.

[email protected] 6 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 7

LYING IN STATE 1923 - 2015 SELETAR EXPRESSWAY The procession starts at 12.30pm and members of the public are invited to line the route. Big crowds STATE FUNERAL PROCESSION are expected nearer Parliament and in town.

12.45pm NAVY SAILPAST Patrol vessels RSS Dauntless and RSS Resilience will sail from both ends of the Singapore Strait along the southern coastline past key BUKIT TIMAH Upper Peirce coastal landmarks, before meeting and sailing in EXPRESSWAY Reservoir formation towards Marina Bay. With the state flag at half-mast, they will fly a 12.45pm black flag used for 12.45pm mourning with signal flags THE PROCESSION 12.45pm representing the letters L, The gun carriage and escorting vehicles will travel a RSAF BLACK KNIGHTS K and Y. As the procession passes the Padang, the distance of 15.4km from the Padang to the University When the procession passes City Hall, ARMY 21-GUN SALUTE ST PHOTO: NEO XIAOBIN ST PHOTO: NEO XIAOBIN ships will sound three CulturalBukit Centre atTimah a speed of 25kmh. the air force’s Black Knights will fly a Four ceremonial 25-pounder howitzers will A steady stream of people were at Parliament House to pay their respects to Mr Lee, saying goodbye in their own way. Personnel from the armed forces giving Mr Lee a last salute before Parliament House was closed to the public. prolonged horn blasts of Missing Man Formation, where one F-16 fire a 21-gun salute as the gun carriage They will passNature through Shenton Way and HDB estates in 10 seconds each. Tanjong Pagar, Bukit Merah, Queenstown and aircraft will peel away from the group of bearing Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s casket makes its Reserve way around the Padang. A true son Commonwealth. four as an aerial salute. of the soil, BRAS BASAH ROAD Raffles City Tower says Tan CHJIMES War Memorial Park City Hall Esplanade WHERE TO WATCH station station Cheng Bock PAN-ISLAND Fort St Andrew’s Cathedral ■ Those who want a clearer view of the procession Canning should standPromenade on the left side of the road along the route. EXPRESSWAY Park City Hall station Former Prime Minister Lee Kuan RIVER VALLEY ROAD STAMFORD ■ There are five CCs close to the procession route for Yew was “a true son of the soil” PARLIAMENT PLACE ROAD PAN-ISLAND those who want to line the route and also catch the who was driven by his love for Sin- DUNEARN ROAD NORTH BRIDGE Padang RAFFLES AVENUE gapore, former MP and presidential EXPRESSWAY ROAD funeral immediately after. candidate Tan Cheng Bock wrote in a Facebook post yesterday, after BUKIT TIMAH PARLIAMENT HOUSE ■ These are: Tanjong Pagar CC, Bukit Merah CC, ST ANDREW’S ROAD TEMASEKAVENUE paying his last respects to Mr Lee at Singapore ROAD Clarke Quay Queenstown CC, Buona Vista CC and Ulu Pandan CC. Tanjong Pagar Community Club. Flyer station Marina Promenade In his post, Dr Tan recalled his CONNAUGHT DRIVE Esplanade - The Float■ Members@ of the public can watch the state funeral encounters with Mr Lee, who had 12.30pm PARLIAMENT HOUSE Theatres On Marinaprocession Bay and state funeral at all community centres interviewed him to be a candidate ESPLANADE DRIVE The Bay for the 1980 General Election. The Singapore Armed Forces band and four guard-of-honour NEW BRIDGE ROAD Singapore and clubs, as well as all community tribute sites. “I was only a village doctor with contingents from the SAF and police will be assembled for River Merlion

■ Live coverageEAST COAST PARKWAY of the funeral procession and service will a rebellious streak,” he said. “But the start of the state funeral procession. When the procession The Fullerton Hotel FULLERTON one striking thing he said was, ‘We ROAD be available on www.straitstimes.com, on TV and radio

begins, a fleet of 10 bumboats berthed near Elgin Bridge BAYFRONT AVENUE are not looking for yes men.’” will sound three prolonged horn blasts of 10 seconds each and BATTERY Fullerton Marinaand Bayat www.rememberingleekuanyew.sgE and In his Facebook post, he also dis- ROAD U Y Square Raffles Place Sands N A closed how Mr Lee “wasn’t happy” make a special tribute procession down the Singapore River. www.facebook.com/rememberingleekuanyewE U station Clifford V Q A that people misunderstood his CROSS STREET Gardens R Pier E S intentions in creating the post of Y E By The Bay Telok Ayer L R L an elected president, who would O Marina A station C E Marina have custodial powers over the Reservoir Bayfront H Reservoir nation’s reserves and key appoint- COMMONWEALTH station S EU TONG SEN STREET ments, in 1991. AVENUE WEST Lau MARINA BOULEVARD Pa Sat One Marina It was one of the issues that Mr BOON TAT STREET Boulevard MARINA ISTER Outram ParkNEW BRIDGE ROAD MAXWELL ROAD BARRAGE Lee raised during his lunch meet- Kim Tian Y L RO A CA AD COMMONWEALTH *estimated times ARINA GARD KIM TIAN ROAD W A station M EN ings with MPs, said Dr Tan, who Vista S CLEMENTI Singapore Police RAFFLES QUAY S S M One Raffles The Sail DR E AVENUE IV narrowly lost during his own bid to R General Cantonment Quay @Marina Bay E P ROAD NORTH X D Hospital Complex Procession turns into become president in 2011. E A O MCCALLUM BUONA VISTA Downtown 12:45 St Andrew’s Road* R “At that time, many thought E NEIL ROAD STREET L G station MARINA COASTAL EXPRESSWAY A LE ROAD that he was doing this for himself. R L T O Queenstown N C He was visibly disturbed (and said) E The C Estate Pinnacle ‘I am doing this for Singapore, I SILAT Tanjong Pagar 5 ROAD University Cultural Centre, ROAD NEIL ROAD ROBINSON @Duxton D station don’t want to be president,’” Dr D A DUXTON ROAD City Hall and KENT National University Of A O 1:30 R Tan said. O C R QUEENSWAY T SHENTON WAY Old NTUC Headquarters the Padang Singapore A I Procession turns from RIDGE K K U N Another controversial issue A R MAXWELL (Presently the Singapore CENTRAL BOULEVARD M N TANJONGQueensway PAGAR ROAD into Ceremony begins at H T P A raised by Mr Lee during the lunch CRESCENT O AYERA RAJAH EXPRESSWAY O 6 Conference Hall) NG B PORTSDOWNCantonment Y Commonwealth Avenue* ROAD 12:30 Parliament House N meetings was the hubbub over AVENUEPrimary M PRINCE EDWARD ROAD STAMFORD E Tanjong Pagar Plaza Marina Bay property bought by the Lee family School N T Neighbourhood ROAD at a discounted price in 1995. 1:40 Parliament

R HOE CHIANG Police Centre “The first question he shot at me Procession O ROAD House CANTONMENT A PALMER was, ‘Cheng Bock, am I a crook?’ I arrives at UCC D Singapore River LINK ANSON ROAD ROAD told him if he was a crook, I would Bukit Merah Shenton Way not have served him in the first AYER RAJAH EXPRESSWAY Estate place. Mr Lee embodied the virtues KEPPEL ROAD Bus Terminal Procession enters junction of 1:15 Jalan Bukit Merah and Lower of integrity and incorruptibility, J A L A without which Singapore could N B Delta Road* ST PHOTO: NEO XIAOBIN U K never have succeeded.” I T After four days, 442,297 people had filed past Mr Lee’s casket as of 10pm last night, in scenes PM Lee called “extraordinary and deeply moving”. M E Marina Barrage Lim Yan Liang RA NEW H BRIDGE CANTONMENT and Gardens ROAD ROAD by the Bay Tanjong Pagar RAFFLES QUAY Those who S’poreans in HK SHENTON WAY made it fly home to 1:00 Procession turns into in the nick Cantonment Road* KEPPEL ROAD of time pay last respects High demand for seats on Singa- went up to between HK$6,000 and pore Airlines Flight SQ865 from HK$9,000 on Friday night. Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh Hong Kong bound for Singapore Analyst Francis Phuang, 27, paid last Friday night prompted the carri- more to get back yesterday morn- STATE FUNERAL SERVICE er to use a 409-seater Airbus A380 ing. He took a quick shower at the 1.40pm University Cultural Centre As the minutes ticked towards 8pm superjumbo instead of its usual airport and went straight to join ■ The funeral service at UCC will begin at 2pm. ■ At the end of the service, at around yesterday, Ms Lyn Eliza Wong The cortege is expected to arrive here at 1.40pm, and will be received by Prime Minister Lee 278-seater B777 aircraft. the queue at Parliament House. ■ It will be attended by Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s family 4pm, PM Lee and President Tan will lay broke into a sprint towards the Hsien Loong and family members, and 16 pallbearers. Airfares from Hong Kong to Sin- “I know at least 40 Singaporean members, President Tony Tan Keng Yam, Cabinet two wreaths. Padang. gapore on SIA and Cathay Pacific bankers and lawyers working in They include Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam and ministers, judges, MPs and foreign dignitaries ■ The SCDF public warning system siren The queue for paying final also surged three to four times be- Hong Kong who had rushed back Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and labour chief Lim Swee Say. from over 20 countries, as well as invited will sound nationwide for 15 seconds to respects to founding Prime Minis- cause of the demand, as Singapore- home to do the same,” he said. Singaporeans from all walks of life. rally everyone to observe a minute of ter Lee Kuan Yew was drawing to a “This is a critical moment for ans headed home to pay their last ■ Head of the civil service Peter Ong will be the silence. It will be sounded again at the end close, and the 55-year-old was the country and we want to be to- respects to Mr Lee Kuan Yew. master of ceremony. of the one minute. determined not to miss her chance. A ticket usually costs HK$1,700 gether with the rest of Singapore.” As the clock struck 8pm, she ran ■ There will be 10 eulogies, delivered in order by: ■ Prior to the one minute, all MRT trains (S$300) to HK$2,000, but fares Janice Tai ROAD CLOSURES will pull to a stop at stations and open past the start point and marshals Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong cut the line off behind her. their doors. Buses about to depart from PERIOD LANES & ROADS AFFECTED President Tony Tan Keng Yam interchanges will also be held back. “This is the best feeling,” Ms Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong Wong said jubilantly, safely in line. 11.30am to 2pm Upper Circular Road and Supreme Court Lane, and sections of North Bridge Road, ■ Announcements will be made at stations It would be another six to eight High Street, Parliament Place, Saint Andrew’s Road, Coleman Street, Fullerton Road, Former Cabinet Minister Ong Pang Boon and on trains. hours before she reached Parlia- Stamford Road, Esplanade Drive and Nicoll Highway will be closed. Former Cabinet Minister S. Dhanabalan ■ The National Pledge will be recited and ment House, but “I can wait as long 11.30am to 3pm National Anthem will be sung, and all ST PHOTO: LIM SIN THAI Connaught Drive will be closed. Former Senior Minister of State Sidek Saniff as it takes to see him,” she said. Singaporeans are encouraged to join in. The Tan family, (from left) Mr Sam Tan, his son Pierre, wife Tan Hwee Ping, daughter Rei Tan and baby Luke, were 12pm to 3pm Stretch of Clementi Road between Dover Road and Kent Ridge Crescent Also making it by the skin of her the last in the priority queue to make it to Parliament House before barricades sealed the entrance at 8pm. Trade unionist G. Muthukumarasamy The Straits Times will have live coverage of the state funeral will be closed. ■ The casket will then be carried out of the teeth was sales executive Nur Liya- Tanjong Pagar community leader UCC hall. na, 26, who was on her second try. Others went away disappointed. wait along the street for him Siblings Ng Jun Jie, 25, and procession and funeral of Mr Lee Kuan Yew on Sunday. 12.30pm to 2pm Traffic is expected to be heavy along the procession route. Leong Chun Loong ■ The procession will leave the UCC tomorrow.” Tiffany Ng, 24, pleaded with mar- 4pm to 6pm As the procession makes its way from UCC to Mandai Crematorium, traffic is On Friday, she left the queue Housewife Charmaine Tan, 54, Follow our reports on straitstimes.com from 8am Former Straits Times journalist Cassandra Chew, for Mandai Crematorium for a private owing to nausea. arrived at the queue a few minutes There was mild confusion at the shals that they had left the queue expected to be heavy along the following roads: Clementi Road, Commonwealth now a civil servant to buy dinner for their mother, funeral service. “I haven’t run so fast since late: “I’m very disappointed, but start point of the queue just after You can also get links to stories, photos and videos on Avenue West, Commonwealth Avenue, Queensway, Farrer Road, Adam Road, who was still in line. Twitter@stcom and on our Facebook page, Lornie Road, Upper Thomson Road, Sembawang Road and Mandai Avenue. The late Mr Lee’s second son Lee Hsien Yang doing PE (physical education) in JC I’m trying to stay positive.” 8pm yesterday, as some among the They were let back in. (junior college),” she said with a Referring to the 15.4km funeral crowd said they had just stepped www.facebook.com/TheStraitsTimes NOTE: Police officers will be stationed at all affected road junctions to direct traffic. Sources: STATE FUNERAL ORGANISING COMMITTEE, TRAFFIC POLICE ST GRAPHICS laugh. procession today, she added: “I can out for a break. [email protected] 8 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 9

TRIBUTES: A NATION GRIEVES 1923 - 2015 By gum, the West is wrong about Singapore

Joyce Hooi roads are not paved and you get tions of your own mind? What diarrhoea from the ice cubes. books have you been unable to gain Freedom’s just another word If this is what “charm” is, Singa- access to, what TV shows have you for nothing left to lose pore does not need it. And if it is been unable to BitTorrent and what – Me & Bobby McGee, handwoven baskets and barefoot poorly informed, anonymous com- Kris Kristofferson children you want to see, go to an- ments on the Internet have you other country that was not farsight- been unable to write? It must be nice to be Western and ed nor fortunate enough to avoid If any party is censorious and for- superior. It must be nice to judge being charming. bidding, it is the society we have al- from afar a grieving and poorly un- For a long time, Singapore has lowed ourselves to become, one derstood nation that is often con- been denied the gloss treatment that drives people into hiding in fused with China. As Singapore other cosmopolitan cities get. Fifth Perth when they have done some- came to terms this week with the Avenue is worshipped as a glamor- thing we find unacceptable. loss of a titan, the country also ous shrine to shopping, but Or- Today, the prevailing attitude is came under scrutiny, a great deal of chard Road is frequently portrayed miles away from Mr Lee’s hard-driv- which was admiring in a back-hand- as soulless. ing, survivalist one. Now, people ed way. When outsiders report on Singa- want to trade a few percentage After Mr Lee Kuan Yew died, The pore, words like “gleaming” and points of GDP growth for the bal- Guardian devoted an entire article “spotless” are used as though they ance of work and life, as though to his policy on chewing gum. Dec- were epithets. work were not part of life. They ades of phenomenal GDP growth, Once in New York City, thanks want a softer approach to this idea the lowest crime rate in the region to my dithering, my husband took of competition or betterment, a and top-notch healthcare, and too long to order a sandwich at more consensual form of govern- Westerners are still talking about Katz’s Deli and got snapped at by ance. the friggin’ chewing gum. This is one of the legendarily ornery serv- What the people want, the peo- like being complimented on your ers. “This is Noo Yawk,” the server ple will eventually get – that is both English. said, as if that explained every- the beauty and horror of democra- The day Mr Lee’s body was thing, and it did. cy. And such has been the earlier success of Singapore that its people moved from the Istana to Parlia- Likewise, this is Singapore. Every- have the middle-class wherewithal ment House, a wire agency article one is in a hurry and they will hold to demand change, and the Govern- concluded by saying that the pro- pre-briefings for briefings, a ment has the resources to provide ceedings felt “almost too well organ- post-briefing after and a break for a it. ised” to some Singaporeans. This is cost-benefit analysis. This is Singa- Like many other immigrants, I like being told your English sounds pore, this is what makes it great. came here to escape corruption, in- – almost – too polished. This is also why I became a citizen justice and water that came out of And this week, a Telegraph piece of this country – because I got tired taps brown in colour. I came here called Singapore “proud and pros- of “charm”. because I understood this to be a perous”, but could not resist throw- Besides, if anyone has the right place that rewarded industry and ing in “somewhat antiseptic”. This to complain about Singapore, it is ability while tolerating – if not wel- almost made me regret learning the Singaporeans. This right, they coming – extreme dorkiness. English. have exercised as though it were I’ve had the luxury of being able These articles share a churlish the Second Amendment and they to mind my own business, largely and tired subtext, that Singapore is were Americans. because the Government had mind- somehow less of a country because According to Mr Lee, the Singa- ed everyone’s. This is not for every- it lacks some kind of personality porean is a “champion grumbler”. one, I’m sure, and as Singaporeans that foreigners expect this part of He said this in 1977, so citizens clamour for more self-determina- the world to have. have been practising for at least 38 tion, they will get it, if only because The Western lexicon for Asia is a years. tempora mutantur, nos et mutamur in funny thing, and I have a real estate These days, the complaining is illis (The times change, and we agent’s relationship with it. When a the loudest it has ever been, and change with them). house is advertised as having some of it doesn’t even make sense. I have my reservations about “charm”, it means that its toilet Mr Lee’s passing has unearthed old what this country will become, but doesn’t work. When a country in chestnuts about the stifling of crea- as for how it came to be, my appreci- this region is lauded for its tivity and freedoms. This grousing ation is unequivocal, without quali- “charm”, it usually means that its was understandable 15 years ago, fication and unreserved. Thank people have a touch-and-go rela- but who is stopping you from being you, Mr Lee, for Singapore. There tionship with indoor plumbing. creative now? was nothing more you could have “Quaint” means paddy fields For how long do you intend to done. where white-collar jobs should be. blame the spectre of a man before This commentary appeared in “Plenty of character” means the taking responsibility for the limita- The Business Times yesterday 20 hours of visiting, and Tribute events I didn’t get to see Mr Lee held on eve Tong Ming Chien I was at Parliament House and the Istana for more than 20 hours last week and did not get to see Mr Lee Kuan Yew lying in state. Then again, that is because I did of state funeral not try. I was at the tribute areas of both places, but never found the need to Grassroots groups and She said she was touched by his had shown to one another over the join the long queues to Parliament move to not disappoint a young past few days as they stood in line House. business communities MP. She had been elected in 2001. for hours to pay their final respects Instead, I designed a poster with hold ceremonies After eulogies, including from to Mr Lee, whose body has been ly- a photo of Mr Lee smiling broadly to remember Mr Lee People’s Action Party Tanjong Pa- ing in state at Parliament House and added the words: gar-Tiong Bahru branch secretary since Wednesday. A nation stands humbled by such Freddy Ang, those present observed “I hope that what we have seen a lifetime of courage and dedication. Chong Zi Liang a minute of silence. They also took in these past days will continue to The people of Singapore owe a turns to bow before his portrait and linger, will continue to deepen, be- debt of gratitude that can never be On the eve of the state funeral of wrote condolence messages. cause that is the best way to hon- fully repaid, only honoured. our Mr Lee,” he said. Last Monday night, I placed a the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew, groups “I am very sad I could not see Mr ST PHOTO: CHEW SENG KIM black-and-white one outside the Is- gathered at ceremonies across the is- Lee in person, so I’ve tried to make Whampoa MP Heng Chee How The writer Tong Ming Chien’s poster of Mr Lee Kuan Yew is among the tana gate and a colour version at land for a common purpose: to pay it up by paying my respects to him sang verses from the Mandarin love bouquets at the tribute area outside the Istana gate. the tribute area at Parliament tribute to Singapore’s first Prime here every day,” said long-time resi- duet Xuan Ze, which means “choice”, as he had earlier spoken House. Minister. dent Wong Ah Mui, 79. about how Mr Lee chose a life in Over the next few days, I re- brightly coloured in pink and yel- As we neared the Fullerton Ho- At Tampines Community Plaza, Ministers eulogised him and Sin- politics to serve Singapore and nev- turned to both places to check on low. tel, just outside the Bank of China gaporeans placed flowers at his por- where about 9,000 residents gath- er gave up despite setbacks such as the posters, spending about five I assured them it was perfectly building, there was a narrow, tem- porary low bridge placed over un- traits as the country continued to ered for a memorial, Education the separation from Malaysia. hours each time for a total of more all right. mourn Mr Lee, who died on Mon- Minister Heng Swee Keat spoke of Indian community than 20 hours throughout the Unofficial tribute corners have finished road works. At the end of the event, many of We were about to cross it when day at the age of 91. his personal dealings with Mr Lee. the 1,000 who were present went week. I replaced the posters when also popped up. At High Street Cen- tre just opposite the main entrance we spied a small group at the other At the Tanjong Pagar Communi- He recounted his days as Mr on stage to lay flowers at Mr Lee’s they got torn and helped to lauds racial tolerance of Parliament House, flowers and end. Because the bridge was so nar- ty Club, Mr Chan Chun Sing, an Lee’s principal private secretary portrait while a lone bagpiper straighten the bouquets or cards cards were left below a giant row, we stayed back to allow the MP in the Tanjong Pagar GRC, from 1997 to 2000, and his interac- played Auld Lang Syne. that had tipped over. black-and-white image of Mr Lee, other party to cross first. where Mr Lee served for 60 years, tions with him after becoming Edu- Not all the tributes yesterday Lim Yan Liang sense of tolerance for other cul- In between, I also spoke to the which the building management It was quite dark and they were said that building on the solid foun- cation Minister in 2011. were at grassroots events. tures,” he said. ushers and the people who came by had installed over a display win- already halfway across the bridge dation that Mr Lee laid would be a Mr Heng said that a few months Sinda life trustee Sat Pal Khattar to place tributes, sometimes acting Some 1,500 members of the busi- Indian Singaporeans gathered to dow. when my sister exclaimed in sur- good way to honour him. ago, he showed Mr Lee the ness community paid tribute to Mr recalled a lunch where Mr Lee ex- as a guide of sorts to those who pay tribute to former Prime Minis- asked for directions. If you had wanted to go to Parlia- prise and excitement: “Oh, Fighting back tears, Mr Chan, ministry’s work on bilingualism, Lee at a memorial event at the Raf- pressed doubts as to whether India Mr Lee!” ter Lee Kuan Yew yesterday, high- I quietly observed as people ment House to have a last look at and Mr Lee asked many questions fles City Convention Centre, would succeed. And there in the dim glow of who is Minister for Social and Fami- lighting his steadfast belief in meri- craned to look at hand-written Mr Lee but could not, take heart about the materials and whether which was attended by Trade and “Fifteen years later, he was not street lamps he was, dressed in a ly Development, said the last time tocracy and multiculturalism. cards placed on the tribute walls that many others did not either. he cried was some years ago, in they were effective for students and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang afraid to say he was wrong about In- white shirt and dark pants. Six community leaders spoke at and knelt down to read the fine And not because they did not care, 2013, at a National Day dinner, teachers. and leaders of different chambers dia,” he said. “This is the firma- they simply could not. He was surrounded by a few the event organised by self-help handwriting on the bouquets as members of his security detail. which Mr Lee attended despite fall- “At the end of it, I was about to of commerce. ment of Mr Lee Kuan Yew.” Among them would be the hard- the heady scent of roses and lilies One of them said as the group ing ill. take the materials back, and he said Mr Lim reminded the audience group Sinda and held at the P. Sikh community leader Charan- working men and women at the drifted in and out with the night approached: “No handshakes, ‘Leave it there. I will read it again.’” that Mr Lee often said that no one Govindasamy Pillai Hall in Seran- jit Singh thanked Mr Lee for his un- various tribute centres – many of “He was very frail. But not only breeze. please.” did he keep his promise to turn up, Mr Heng, who could not hold owed Singapore a living, and that goon. flinching belief in equality, which When they chanced on my post- which have been open round the he was confident the Republic Mr Lee was soon almost within he delivered a speech – not just back tears when he spoke, said Mr Ambassador-at-large Gopinath translated into policies that en- er tributes, some would linger a lit- clock all over Singapore. But they touching distance. He was looking from where he was seated, but up Lee’s death was “especially painful” would survive “on our resourceful- Pillai, who lived in Malaysia in the sured that even the Sikhs – a “mi- tle longer while others would clasp soldiered on just so that those who ness and hard work of our people”. hard at the ground – the bridge was on the stage... (where he) ran up for him as the chairman of the 1960s, recalled the 1969 race riots nority within a minority” – would their hands in prayer or bow. wanted to pay their last respects Mr Lee also had faith in smaller uneven and shrouded in semi-dark- the stairs, stood there unaided and SG50 Steering Committee. feel every bit a part of Singapore. Then there were the staff who could. groups such as the Malay business in Kuala Lumpur that proved to be ness – seemingly deep in thought. delivered a speech. And not just in “I wanted Mr Lee to see for him- PHOTOS: LIM SIN THAI, CHEW SENG KIM “As a result of this, the Sikhs went through the floral arrange- My sister went to the tribute cen- His group passed us in silence. community, noted Mr Zahidi Ab- “one of the most traumatic events” English, but also in Chinese.” self how we are able to come togeth- (Clockwise from above) A corkboard have always felt at home in Singa- ments to cart away the wilted ones, tre next to the Jurong Regional Li- That was in 2009, just a year be- dul Rahman, president of the Singa- collection of snapshots of Mr Lee lies of his life. brary. When she teared up, she was Fellow Tanjong Pagar GRC MP er after all his hard work,” he said. Mandai Crematorium closed this afternoon pore,” said the president of the Sin- but not before carefully placing fore Mrs Lee died on Oct 2, 2010, af- pore Malay Chamber of Commerce among bouquets at the Tanjong It was a turning point that saw cards and soft toys attached to the thoughtfully and immediately of- ter being bedridden for a few years. Indranee Rajah recounted how she “I think many Singaporeans Pagar Community Club; gapore Khalsa Association. and Industry. him return to Singapore, a place bouquets into brown paper cartons fered a piece of tissue paper by an A colleague remarked that if made matching batik shirts for Tan- wanted to see Mr Lee at the Nation- The Mandai Crematorium and Co- It also noted that the annual ernment columbariums at Mandai, members of the public paying their About 650 people from 150 In- “As an example, Mr Lee said we where his family would be judged for safekeeping. usher. Mr Lee were alive and saw the long jong Pagar GRC MPs to wear on al Day Parade this year.” lumbarium will be closed this after- Qing Ming Festival, where Chinese Yishun, Mount Vernon and Choa last respects to Mr Lee at Tanjong dian organisations attended the are the chilli padi of the business on merit, not race. There were also tourists who For me, I came close to Mr Lee lines going to Parliament House, he Tree Planting Day in 2004. At Hong Lim Park, Transport world – small but super spicy,” Mr noon for the cremation service of families pay respects to their Chu Kang during the expected Pagar CC yesterday; and Education event. Deputy Prime Minister Thar- Minister Heng Swee Keat breaking “Mr Lee was not oblivious to the wanted to join the queue, but were only briefly six years ago in the would probably say: “No need for But Mr Lee had forgotten and ar- Minister Lui Tuck Yew said that Mr Zahidi said. the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew. departed loved ones, starts this peak periods. man Shanmugaratnam and Minis- crestfallen to learn it would be an most unexpected fashion. down in tears at the memorial event racial differences of the people of all this sentimentality, please get rived in a white shirt. Upon seeing Lee’s illness and death had “drawn The crematorium will shut its weekend. These are the Good Friday holi- ter in the Prime Minister’s Office S. eight-hour wait. My family had just finished din- back to work and build a better Sin- in Tampines as Mr Mah Bow Tan Singapore. He understood them. his fellow MPs all dressed in the us together in a way that nobody, [email protected] doors to the public from 1pm while To minimise congestion during day on Friday, the Qing Ming festi- offers comfort. Iswaran, as well as current and On Thursday night, a pair of ner at Boat Quay and decided to gapore.” pre-arranged attire, he immediately alive or dead, can ever do”. Additional reporting by Rachel the columbarium will be closed the festival, the agency advised the val date next Sunday, and the other All he wanted was the different rac- former MPs, were also present. schoolgirls said they had a plastic walk along the Singapore River to I tend to agree. sent a security officer on motorcy- He lauded the patience, gracious- Au Yong, Amelia Teng and from 3pm, the National Environ- public to avoid visiting the Choa Sundays during the festival period es to keep their culture, build on windmill, but asked if it was appro- enjoy the cool breeze and night cle to fetch his shirt from his home. ness and care that Singaporeans Rachael Boon ment Agency (NEA) said on Friday. Chu Kang Cemetery and the gov- that lasts from today to April 19. their culture, but develop a strong [email protected] priate to leave it there since it was lights. [email protected] 10 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 11

TRIBUTES: A NATION GRIEVES 1923 - 2015 ‘Carry on forging Three vital racial harmony’ lessons Religious groups offer Banglar Kantha editor A.K.M Prayers were also said at Sikh Mohsin, 52, said many Bangladesh- temples across Singapore in Mr prayers and foreign is have a deep respect for Mr Lee. Lee’s honour and Central Sikh in leadership workers pay respects He developed Singapore, which in Gurdwara Board president Gurcha- at various locations turn provided them with jobs. ran Singh offered a eulogy at the Shipyard worker Rajib Shil Ji- Central Sikh Temple. A video of Mr Jeremy Schwarz cure Singapore’s national identity Lead people from the front, bon, 29, penned his own poem sim- Lee’s visits to Sikh institutions over as a multiracial society. He combat- don’t follow them from behind Amelia Tan ply called Lee Kuan Yew. the years was also screened. They expected him to fail. But 50 ed racism by addressing access to Mr Lee was fundamentally shaped “I was filled with so much emo- Yesterday, 5,000 students, teach- years later, while we remember the education, employment and social by the brutality of the Japanese Oc- Singapore’s special brand of reli- tion as I thought of him. He has ers, parents and alumni from the man Harry Lee Kuan Yew, who integration as key planks in build- cupation of Singapore. For Mr Lee, gious and racial harmony owes made Singapore successful and Methodist Schools’ Foundation transformed Singapore from a Brit- ing a cohesive nation composed of politics was about ensuring the sur- much to the vision of the late Mr helped foreign workers get good dedicated a 4km walk to Mr Lee. ish colonial outpost into a prosper- multiple races, ethnicities and reli- vival of his country – his home and Lee Kuan Yew. jobs and improved our lives. I will The biennial event is part of a ous, global city-state, we must not gions. The commitment to meritoc- family – in an uncertain world. Sim- fund-raising drive for the 16 ply put: You adapt or become irrele- And Singaporeans must now en- be thankful forever,” he said. overlook some of his key lessons in racy and a commitment to address- schools under the foundation. Or- vant. sure that even greater understand- At the Tuas View Dormitory for leadership. ing the underlying economic and ganisers decided to use the walk to He chose his battles wisely, but ing is forged through education foreign workers, a tribute corner After separation from Malaysia, social challenges remain as consist- pay tribute to Mr Lee’s memory. once chosen, he broke his oppo- and continuing dialogue between was set up in Mr Lee’s memory. the future of Singapore looked ent parts of Singapore’s approach nents before they could break him. the different groups. Around 3,000 foreign workers visit- “My parents tell me Mr Lee was bleak. Mr Lee inherited a toxic mix towards maintaining a cohesive so- ed the site, signed a condolence an influential leader and a good He ordered mass arrests to combat This was the call from religious of racial unrest, an unemployment ciety. book and observed a few moments role model. He believed a lot in edu- a nascent communist insurgency. leaders who attended yesterday’s rate of 30 per cent, domestic insta- of silence as a mark of respect. cation. It is thanks to him that I He established universal military memorial service organised by the bility and economic uncertainty. Invest in people, not axioms At another event, leaders and have such good teachers,” said Fair- training for all males after inde- Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO). Singapore could have followed the members of Sikh institutions visit- field Methodist School (Secondary) Mr Lee based his entire economic pendence. And he pursued tough IRO president Gurmit Singh said path of some of its neighbours: in- ed the Ang Mo Kio community trib- student Joshua Ho, 13. creasing nationalist rhetoric, racial development plan on a simple ques- and invasive policies in transform- Mr Lee had long encouraged reli- ute site and were received by Ang This morning, the Singapore tion: Does it work? If something ing the personal habits of his own gious groups to interact with one division, economic instability, com- Mo Kio GRC MP Inderjit Singh. Jain Religious Society will hold a munist insurgency and continued worked, it was continued or im- people in order to transform Singa- another, since Singapore became in- The group, who was accompanied prayer meeting in memory of Mr proved upon. If something failed, it pore into a “First World nation in a dependent in 1965. unrest. Mr Lee could have followed by a priest, offered a prayer. Lee on its Jalan Yasin premises. the path of Mr Sukarno, Mr Ferdi- was scrapped and a new idea was Third World region”. “By constantly communicating nand Marcos or even Mr Ngo Dinh employed. As such, he invested in Even in his final years, he tack- and working together, the different Diem. infrastructure and national institu- led controversial subjects such as groups have developed close ties. Mr Lee concluded otherwise. tions, ranging from building family planning, immigration and We must continue to educate the He fundamentally understood Changi International Airport and population growth. young and build on these ties,” he that people are everything. Long be- the world’s largest container port The final chapter on Mr Lee said. fore the era of corporate strategists, to establishing the Biopolis and Fu- Kuan Yew’s legacy will remain un- At the service at the IRO’s Palm- new-age gurus, or smooth-talking sionopolis parks, and the research written for some time. It is complex er Road office, Chua Chu Kang politicos, he saw that the develop- hubs at the National University of and controversial. GRC MP Zaqy Mohamad said Mr ment of the people of Singapore – Singapore. But whatever it may be, the fact Lee’s emphasis on treating Singapo- its core natural resource – was the In turn, Singapore maintained it- remains that his leadership has sig- reans fairly regardless of race and re- key to long-term economic growth, self as a free port city while running nificantly and substantially im- ligion was key to nation-building. social development and national one of the most highly successful proved the lives of the people of The service was attended by prosperity. publicly owned airlines in the Singapore and, along the way, in- about 300 members of the public It helped that Singapore was lo- world. Home ownership soared spired other national leaders to do and representatives of the 10 major cated in one of the key global mari- and led to the stability of the same for their own people. And religions. They observed a minute time choke points, but its Singapore’s middle class through that is a legacy worth remember- of silence and penned tributes in a long-term ability to seize such op- the sale of public housing to new ing. book – just one of a host of events portunities rested on the skills of its families. Corruption was met Jeremy Schwarz is an Ernest for Singapore’s founding father. labour force and ambition of its nas- head-on through a combination of May Fellow in history and Separately, some 30 Bangladeshi cent middle class. Mr Lee and his tough penalties and highly compet- policy with the International workers chose to show their respect ministers carried it out by follow- itive salaries for the civil service. Security Programme at Harvard by reciting poems and singing ing three general principles. Government and corporate Kennedy School’s Belfer Centre songs in his memory yesterday scholarships cemented a growing, for Science and International evening. They gathered in a Little See people, not racial groups well-educated middle class. Mr Lee Affairs. He was a visiting fellow India shophouse which serves as PHOTOS: COORDINATING COUNCIL OF SIKH INSTITUTIONS SINGAPORE, TUAS VIEW DORMITORY Mr Lee respected racial identity but was neither a neo-liberal nor a so- at the Lee Kuan Yew School of the office of the Bangladeshi news- (Right) Sikhs offering prayers and thanks at the Ang Mo Kio tribute site. would not be intimidated by it. He cialist; he was a pragmatist. He em- Public Policy in 2008-2009. This paper, Banglar Kantha, which or- (Above) Some 3,000 foreign workers visited a tribute corner in Tuas View acknowledged race as a dimension braced ideas to the extent that such article was originally published ganised the hour-long service. Dormitory to sign a condolence book and observe a few moments of silence. of one’s identity but sought to se- ideas yielded positive results. by The National Interest. 15 police reports filed Retired Gurkhas An astute observer who over teen’s online video honour Mr Lee Joyce Lim lice report – said: “This is not a mindless rant. It is a well-consid- Chong Zi Liang to serve in foreign militaries. In Sin- could make things happen At least 15 police reports have been ered campaign backed by graphics gapore, they belong to the police and statistics to defame Mr Lee and made against a teenager for posting About 150 retired Gurkhas and force’s Gurkha Contingent, which our government. It cannot go un- US frequently to meet presidents a video online allegedly celebrating their family members (right) paid was formed in 1949. Jeremy Au Yong challenged. He has to take responsi- and lawmakers. On those visits, he Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s death and criti- homage to the late Mr Lee Kuan “Lee Kuan Yew’s hard work was US Bureau Chief cising his political career. bility for his social media posting enjoyed not just by Singaporeans, was unlike any diplomat. For one that was calculated to provoke the Yew in Kathmandu on Friday at a In Washington Police said they are looking into but also by all of us who have lived thing, he had seemingly little pa- public’s response.” ceremony where they garlanded a the matter. in Singapore. He was like a father to tience for the niceties and small His online report included signa- portrait of Singapore’s founding One of the abiding memories The video, called Lee Kuan Yew us all,” the statement added. talk of diplomacy. tures from 11 other complainants. Prime Minister and observed a former US diplomat Jeffrey Bader Is Finally Dead!, was posted on Fri- The Gurkhas also gave their con- In a 2009 meeting with Presi- One of them, businessman Timo- minute’s silence in honour of him. has of Mr Lee Kuan Yew is a 1997 day and has been viewed more dolences to Mr Lee’s three children dent Obama, he launched into a thy Wimala, 34, said: “No Singapo- The ceremony was organised by meeting in Singapore where the than 270,000 times. and “to the nation of Singapore”. scathing critique of the US fiscal rean can deny the benefits we have the Singapore Gurkha Pensioners’ then Senior Minister captivated the It has been slammed by neti- The association’s chairman Bho- and trade deficits seconds after the got from Mr Lee’s service to our na- Association, which noted Mr Lee’s Americans, including Secretary of zens, though some defended him. gendra Gurung, who retired as an two leaders sat down. tion. He has only just left us and yet contributions to Singapore in a State Madeleine Albright. In the video, 16-year-old Amos inspector in 2005, said he would sa- And as US statesman Henry Kiss- we have a beneficiary of his legacy statement: “All of us – as members “I remember on the way out, she Yee, who once played a minor role barely of adolescence but sparing lute Mr Lee when he left or re- inger notes, Mr Lee did not go to of the Gurkha Contingent serving was dazzled,” said Dr Bader. “She in one of local filmmaker Jack no insult against the man who put turned home by car. Having spent Washington to lobby for assistance in Singapore, as wives who in daily was dazzled by the strategic narra- Neo’s movies, also challenged this country on the world map.” many years standing guard at the for Singapore. life exchanged chit-chat with Singa- tive, the adroitness and deftness of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to Filmmaker Jack Neo told The Sun- Oxley Road residence, Mr Gurung “His theme was the indispensa- poreans and as school children what she heard about China.” sue him. day Times that Amos had played a observed: “The light in his study ble US contribution to the defence who learnt of Lee Kuan Yew in To top it off, Mr Lee had the an- Amos, who wrote in his latest minor role in his film We Not room was always on until 2am or and growth of a peaceful world. His school – know Lee Kuan Yew as the swer to a question the US officials blogpost his intention to pursue a Naughty. “When I first met him, he even 3am. He was a very hard-work- interlocutors attended not to be pe- career in film and YouTube, could man who made Singapore the coun- ing man who worked late into the had been grappling with. was only 13,” he said. “ We no long- titioned but to learn from one of not be reached for comment. er have contact with each other.” try it is today.” night for Singapore.” “At the time, nobody knew who the truly profound global thinkers Yesterday, lawyer Chia Boon The Gurkhas are an elite force the next premier of China was go- of our time,” said Dr Kissinger. Teck – one of those who made a po- [email protected] plucked from the foothills of Nepal [email protected] ing to be. There was just a lot of ru- PHOTO: COURTESY OF SINGAPORE GURKHAS PENSIONERS' ASSOCIATION Any discussion about Mr Lee’s mours and a lot of speculation,” legacy in the US would not be com- said Dr Bader, now a senior fellow The contrasting economic and hoped to do, which is to relive his plete, however, without consider- at the Brookings Institution. social paths taken by the two neigh- experiences.” ing his hardline policies. Overseas citizens prepare to watch live telecast of funeral Malaysians bours since 1965 is often the sub- To be sure, not all share these “But he just said flat out during Mention Singapore and the ject of comparison in salons in Kua- rosy memories of Mr Lee, who was the meeting that the next premier BT FILE PHOTO image that comes to mind for the was going to be Mr Zhu Rongji, just Tan Dawn Wei famed Hyde Park. The Singapore yearn la Lumpur and around the country. often portrayed in Malaysia as a bo- Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew being welcomed to the White House by then ordinary American is the caning of said it, like a matter of fact.” In London UK Association and the UK-Singa- There is also talk about Mr Lee’s fa- geyman whose continued presence US President Ronald Reagan during his 1985 visit. Mr Lee later addressed a US teenager Michael Fay for vandal- Talk to any American leader or pore Students’ Council had organ- mous spats with Tun Dr Mahathir in the country would have caused joint session of Congress. ism in Singapore, and the ban on ised the walk, SG50 March for Char- senior official who had met Mr Lee, Singaporeans around the world for a Malay Mohamad. instability. chewing gum. The US media has al- ity, in aid of the Community Chest and he or she will have similar anec- braced themselves to watch their In their nine overlapping years as Still, even critics have a grudg- so spent some of the days since Mr in Singapore. ing respect for the man. During a dotes to tell. After all, as astute as his analysis relations will be strong and normal founding father pass into history, prime ministers, they bickered over Lee’s death going over the Since Mr Lee’s passing last version week-long whirlwind tour in 2009, Mr Lee is known in this part of of Asia was, Mr Lee’s intention was now, not as illuminated by the calling loved ones at home and numerous issues such as the pur- instances when political oppo- Monday, the number of people he saw Tun Abdullah Badawi – who the world as an unparalleled observ- not to be simply wise counsel for bright star of Mr Lee’s towering arranging community gatherings chase of water from Malaysia, rekin- nents or newspapers were sued. who registered had surged from dling their fierce debates from when had just resigned as prime minister er of China, and every US president the US or a voice of reason for the genius, may be just what is needed to watch the live telecast of today’s of Mr Lee Indeed, those in policy circles 250 to more than 700. both were Malaysian MPs in 1964. two months before – party presi- since Richard Nixon (1969-1974) country to turn to. for both countries. funeral. Mr Bernard Sin, 47, a Singapo- who interacted with Mr Lee primari- “We crossed swords many times dents, chief ministers and even has sought his counsel at some Being a source of wisdom is of lit- “An enduring legacy of Lee The Singapore High Commis- rean based in Geneva, Switzerland, ly through the lens of governance sion in London had never seen so Shannon Teoh during the debates. He included me Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, son point during their tenure. tle value when one is no longer Kuan Yew will always be having took an early morning flight to Lon- around to dispense it – and Mr Lee helped reattach the United States – and policy would mainly see a many visitors at its Belgravia build- don with his wife and 16-year-old Malaysia Correspondent among the ultra Malays who were of long-time nemesis Dr Mahathir, Little surprise then that after a is not known as one for ephemeral strategically, economically and in- great statesman who built a coun- ing as yesterday morning, when son to join the 5km walk through responsible for the racial riots in clamour for his time. while, many of the tributes for Mr In Kuala Lumpur tellectually – to the vital centre of try where one should not exist. about 500 Singaporeans turned up Hyde Park. Mr Lee’s death has Singapore. Dr Mahathir – Malaysia’s longest- Lee emerging from the US started pursuits. Rather, he seemed to par- for a memorial service for Mr Lee serving prime minister – noted in his lay the trust he earned into a plat- the world’s most dynamic and im- Those who encountered Mr Lee pri- made the charity walk more poign- Now that he’s gone, Malaysians are “Actually, I never went to Singa- to strike very similar notes. Kuan Yew. Many could not enter blog that beyond matching time form for Singapore and Asia. In portant region in the 21st centu- marily in the human rights sphere ant, said Mr Sin. having another look at Mr Lee pore to stir up trouble,” Dr Ma- President Barack Obama hailed the building and had to stand out- zones, the two rarely agreed. Except, gaining the ear of the US, he gave ry... South-east Asia.” would invariably focus on the cost In Calgary, Canada, Mrs Kala Pil- Kuan Yew’s legacy, and some say hathir said in his blog after Mr Lee’s Mr Lee for “his insights on Asia, side as High Commissioner Foo perhaps, on their shared disgust for Singapore a voice much louder Mr Lee keenly understood that of that nation-building. lay said: “About 8,000 miles away I they want a similar version – in passing. “Somebody else whom I geopolitics, and economics, which Chi Hsia and six other Singapore- will be keeping vigil and following smoking. Dr Mahathir banned smok- have shaped the thinking of many than it would otherwise have had the fact the US was willing to listen Dr Bader puts it this way: “I their own country. would not name did,’’ he added. ans living in the United Kingdom the funeral of our beloved Singapo- Yet, some believe that Mr Lee re- ing at Cabinet meetings and gave his around the world”. and continually pushed the US to to a country like Singapore was an don’t think Mr Lee would have paid tribute to Mr Lee. rean. Engraved in my mind is the Struggling with perceptions of tained an attachment to Malaysia. children hell if he caught them Vice-President Joe Biden spoke engage in the region. artificial construct borne out of hu- been surprised by some of the reac- One of them, Ms Azra Moiz, 52, picture of him sweeping my class- rising corruption, and worried “People underestimate the at- smoking. about the “breadth and depth” of Long before Mr Obama’s man effort, and one that would re- tion, nor would he have cared.” who runs her own consultancy and room floor with us during the Use about rising sectarianism – such as tachment to Malaysia which Mr Datuk Seri Hishammuddin relat- Mr Lee’s understanding of the so-called “pivot to Asia” – a policy quire human effort to maintain. And perhaps former secretary of training company in London, Your Hands campaign in 1975.” Malay Muslim parties pushing for Lee had,” according to Defence ed: “He (Lee) had this hatred for world; Secretary of State John Kerry Mr Lee is also given credit for – the In October 1985, the Singapore state Colin Powell best sums it up spoke fondly of having found a In Seoul, Mr David Lim, 56, an Islamic criminal law this month, de- Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, people who smoke, and he had this said he was a “uniquely astute ana- Singaporean leader urged the US Prime Minister opened his address in his tribute to Mr Lee. For all of black-and-white photograph last adviser to a South Korean shipping spite protests from minorities – Ma- whose father Tun Hussein Onn was uncanny ability to detect people lyst and observer of Asia”; former not to turn its back on the region to a joint session of the US Con- Mr Lee’s vision and intellect, Mr year of her family and her with Mr company, planned to join 80 laysians are yearning for strong Malaysia’s third prime minister and who had just had a cigarette. I was president Bill Clinton brought up despite its trauma in the Vietnam gress by saying: “It cannot be often Powell said, the defining feature Lee and his family taken in 1964 at fellow nationals at Singapore Club 1 leadership that can take some of a smoker at one time, and I was real- War. 2 that made him great was the fact Mount Faber. Seoul. “As a young boy I witnessed has known the Lee family for six Mr Lee’s “brilliant analysis and that someone representing 2 / mil- the tough decisions they think will ly worried when I met him. that he was a do-er. Ms Foo said she believes “there the 1964 riots and had to hide in- decades. wise advice”; Assistant Secretary of Mr Ernie Bower, the Sumitro lion people from a small country in solve the woes of the country. is a bit of Mr Lee’s DNA in all of us”, doors. I cannot say how deeply in- “Not many people know his “I would get all my refresher for State for East Asian and Pacific Af- Chair for South-east Asia Studies at the Third World is offered the op- “Vision and determination are and encouraged Singaporeans to debted I am for the security he has “We need a Malay version,” fondness and experience with Ma- my mouth and perfume ready be- fairs Daniel Russel described him as the Centre for Strategic and Interna- portunity to address the representa- not as important as execution, mak- continue nurturing those qualities given me,” he said. former law minister Zaid Ibrahim laysia. He vividly remembered cause he made it very clear when a “lucid voice of reason America al- tional Studies in Washington, says: tives of 240 million people who ing something happen... Some will – among them, staying inclusive told The Sunday Times, referring to those experiences and had fond he smelled smoke in the air.” ways counted on”. “Mr Lee and Singapore helped deep- form the world’s most wealthy and say, maybe he was too tough, well and multiracial. [email protected] PHOTO: TAN DAWN WEI Mr Lee. “He made unpopular deci- memories of villages. I hope he [email protected] Still, their tributes capture but a en US engagement in Asean and most advanced nation.” maybe so, but the results show.” Yesterday’s memorial service pre- Additional reporting Ms Foo Chi Hsia paying tribute to Mr Lee at a memorial service at the Singapore High Commission in London yesterday. sions but stuck to his principles of managed to rekindle them in his Additional reporting small fraction of Mr Lee’s real Amer- get over the geopolitical hangover Before failing health curtailed ceded a charity walk at London’s by Chang May Choon She believes “there is a bit of Mr Lee’s DNA in all of us” and encourages Singaporeans to keep nurturing those qualities. good governance and integrity.” last few years and to do what he by Asrul Hadi Abdullah Sani ican legacy. of the Vietnam War. The fact that his travels, Mr Lee would visit the [email protected] 12 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 13

1923 - 2015 The SINGAPORE

that built Tourist spending Visitor arrivals Public flats Government LKY 1959: 22,975 (Singapore revenue 1960: $38m 1960: 0.1m “Once in a long while in the Improvement Trust) 1990: $6.4b 1990: 5.3m history of a people there comes 1990: 667,575 2013: $23.5b 2014: 15.1m a moment of great change.” 2013/2014: 1,062,153 1959: 1990: 2014: Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s victory speech in $300m $16.4b $61.4b 1959, after being elected Singapore’s Air links first Prime Minister, foretold the 1960: 125 weekly flights with transformation of the country from a 11 airlines tiny slum-ridden trading post into a Government global metropolis by the time he expenditure 1990: 1,900 weekly flights with stepped down in 1990. 52 airlines The Sunday Times looks at how Mr Lee 2014: 6,500 weekly flights with and his team changed the destiny of 1959: 1990: 2014: 100 airlines Singapore and Singaporeans. $243.3m $13.3b $57.2b

External trade 1959: $7.3b 1990: $205b 2014: $982.7b

Currency in circulation Pupils Economic 1960*: $1.1b in notes and 1959: 320,977 growth $52.2m in coins Unemployment Schools 1990: 460,000 1960: 5.2%* 1990: $7.2b in notes and 1959: 13.5% 1959: 718 $489.5m in coins 2013: 473,375 GDP per capita 1990: 8.3% Banks 1990: 1.7% 1990: 360 Hotel rooms 2014: 2014: $28b in notes and 1959 $1,240 (GNP) 2.9% 1959: 34 2014: 1.9% 2013: 365 1960: 1,310 “first-class” *Economic growth $1.1b in coins Teachers air-con or 1990 $18,437 (GNP) averaged 5.2% a year 1990: 137 *For Malaya, Singapore, Sarawak, 1959: 10,590 fan-ventilated rooms between 1960 and 1964 North Borneo and Brunei combined 2014 $71,318 2014: 127 1990: 20,000 1990: 23,807 rooms 2014: 32,779 2014: 57,172 rooms

Land size Life expectancy Infant mortality rate Persons FATAL ACCIDENT (sq km) at birth (per 1,000 live births) per doctor 1959: 581.5 1959: 1960: 65 years 36 1960: 2,283 1990: 633 1990: 1990: 74 years 11.7 1990: 753 2014: 718.3 2014: 1.8 2013: 82.5 years 2014: 470 National Library Road 1959: 149,537 books, Number of Persons fatalities Telephone lines Daily 30,923 members (per 100,000 (per 100 persons) Population live births per nurse persons) Post offices newspapers 1990: 2.4m books, Literacy rate Marriages 1959 1.6m 1959: 62,464 1960: 927 1959: 11.7 1960: 35 1960: 3 1960: 8 722,316 members 1957: 52% 1959: 5,185 1990 3m 1990: 50,985 1990: 282 1990: 6.7 1990: 67 1990: 38 1990: 8 2013: 8.1m books and materials, 1990: 90% 1990: 24,339 2014 5.5m 2014: 42,217 2014: 150 2014: 2.9 2014: 58 2014: 36 2014: 10 2.2m members 2014: 96.7% 2013: 26,254

SOURCES: State of Singapore annual report 1960, Singapore 1991, World Bank, Singapore Department of Statistics, Ministry of Health, Singapore Tourism Board, Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore, Singapore Post, Ministry of Communications and Information, Ministry of Education, National Arts Council, Land Transport Authority, Housing and Development Board TEXT: FIONA CHAN ST GRAPHICS: CHNG CHOON HIONG

FROM SLUMS TO HOMES CRITICAL EARLY BATTLES DEFENDING OURSELVES EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES GOING REGIONAL WOMEN’S RIGHTS “I was really scared of entering “There was never any active “I felt it was my duty at a time “I was one of the beneficiaries “He cautioned that not all of us “I was always financially the lift the first time. harassment, only this fear in when my country of the system, which lifted would succeed... The whole thing independent. With my extra Who knew what would happen everyone’s mind that ‘I don’t want needed me to do the right thing.” me from poverty to where I am was about encouragement. There money, I could give my four CONSULTANT PRASAD KUMAR MENON, 67, when the doors closed?” to be seen with this person.’” on signing up to join the air force when the British announced their military today.” was a risk but we needed to go.” children a more comfortable life.” MADAM HIAP CHENG LAY, 71, AUTHOR AND CARTOONIST OTTO FONG, 46, withdrawal from Singapore STARHUB CHIEF TAN TONG HAI, 51, DR ROBERT YAP, 62, EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN OF LOGISTICS FIRM YCH, PART-TIME TEACHER ER TECK GIN, 67, who runs a drink stall, on moving into her first Housing Board flat whose father Fong Swee Suan was detained for communist links on the sound education he received in Singapore schools recalling the late Mr Lee urging Singapore firms to expand abroad who went to school, unlike her older sister 14 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 15

THE SINGAPORE HE BUILT 1923 - 2015 My father and our HOUSING: The wonder He of taps, the fear of lifts changed Chong Zi Liang than its predecessor, the Singapore Candles were used at night. founding father Improvement Trust, had built in Water had to be fetched in pails 32 years. When Madam Hiap Cheng Lay from a well about 250m away from Mr Lee also pushed for home moved into a Housing Board rental the village. my ownership instead of rental, saying Over time, both distant, disapproving figures turned into real beings I could relate to flat in 1972, she felt a mixture of ex- “The streets were completely in his memoirs, From Third World citement and fear. dark at night. We had to carry can- To First, that during the riots in the dles shielded by newspapers in case The mother of two young boys 1950s and early 1960s, people suggestion to put the proposal to a of God changed from a punitive deity the flame went out,” she said. Chua Mui Hoong was eager to leave the attap house would destroy cars and other prop- referendum, Mr Lee rose and put an end to chalking up wrongdoings, to one who loved After she got married, life hardly Opinion Editor she had been sharing with another erty. it, saying: “I am pitting my judgment after 40 and sacrificed for humanity. family. But they acted differently dur- improved as she shared another at- years in politics, and I’ve been in this It was also after my own stern father When I was growing up, God, my father and However, there was just one ing riots in the mid-1960s after tap house with another family. chamber since 1955, against all the became an unlikely doting grandfather who Lee Kuan Yew all merged into one. problem: Her new home was on they owned homes and property. She still had to get water from a arguments on the other side... against all the chased after his crawling grandson, trying to I was the youngest child in a the 10th storey. Mr Lee saw young men carrying public tap by the roadside. arguments the doubters can muster.” feed him durian. God and my father were no Teochew-speaking, working-class Chinese their scooters to safety up the stairs All that changed in 1972, when Enough said. Done deal. longer distant, disapproving figures. They “I was really scared of entering household. My parents were immigrants of their HDB blocks. she moved into her first HDB flat In 1996, there were complaints about had become real beings I could relate to. the lift the first time. Who knew life from China, who ran a hawker stall for much what would happen when the “I believed that a deep sense of that was rented for about $70 a property purchases by Mr Lee and his son And so had Lee Kuan Yew. of my formative years. month. Hsien Loong, then the Deputy Prime A few incidents come to mind. doors closed?” she recalled. property was instinctive in a per- ‘It pained me to sit My father was a stern patriarch who was But taking the lift soon became son,” he wrote. “You can’t imagine what a differ- not averse to using the cane. My mother was Minister. Amid the unhappiness about In March 2003, I wrote a long, personal a routine, and she grew to enjoy be- “I was strengthened in my re- ence it makes to have water coming across the table over a traditional Chinese wife and self-sacrificing ministers having an “inside track” to VIP account of my battle with breast cancer. I priority bookings for condominiums, it took wanted to destigmatise it, and to encourage ing 10 floors up. solve to give every family solid as- out of a tap in your own home. Be- mother, with a twinkling sense of humour sets which I was confident they fore that, even something as simple several years and watch with those close to her. She tended to our Mr Lee to call a spade a spade. people going through terminal illness, and “It was breezy being that high Businesses want to get the best customers their caregivers, to talk about it, and not to would protect and defend, especial- as brushing your teeth was a household altar, placing platters of food up. I no longer had to live in a ST PHOTO: CHONG ZI LIANG Mr Lee weaken. He was to help sell and add value to their products, impose on those with serious illness the stuffy kampung house.” ly their home.” chore,” she said. there on religious or festive days. She prayed By the time Mr Lee stepped Madam Hiap Cheng Lay, 71, in her four-room Jurong West flat which she bought for $60,000 in 1982. It was a big the founding father of to the deity who I found out years later is he said, adding: “Let us be realistic... I ask all additional burden of secrecy. Madam Hiap, now 71, is among Meanwhile, she made a living improvement over the attap house with no running water which she shared with another family after getting married. of you to be honest, including Mr Chiam Mr Lee wrote to me a few days later, down as Prime Minister in 1990, selling kueh illegally until 1975, supposed to be the Kitchen God, assigned by hundreds of thousands of Singa- eight in 10 Singaporeans were liv- Singapore. I liked to (See Tong). All ministers who carry weight, wishing me good luck and good health, and pore families who have benefited when she rented a drinks stall at a the Emperor of Heaven to report on a ing in HDB flats. her businessman husband was a Her two sons, now 46 and 47, “I don’t have any education and family’s doings. The offerings were meant to all MPs who are popular, you go to a hawker saying he looked forward to reading my from the country’s public housing hawker centre. remember him as the Today, Madam Hiap is among gambler. completed their polytechnic stud- can’t even write my own name,” placate the deity and sweeten his tongue centre. If they gave the other customer one articles. programme. She worked from 6am to mid- 90 per cent of HDB dwellers who Her hard work and thrift en- ies and are doing well. They hold she said. vigorous Prime Minister when he delivered reports. egg, they’ll give you two. Count on it.” He also shared about the time his son When Mr Lee Kuan Yew became night almost daily. In words that entered the lexicon of Mr went through chemotherapy, 11 years earlier, own their homes. abled her to buy a $60,000 stable jobs, have their own families As for Lee Kuan Yew, he was just the man Prime Minister of self-governing “The other stallholders said, “But I have a home that belongs in television footage, or Lee’s hard truths, he thundered in the House, and how one lived with the uncertainty, Recalling her kampung days in four-room flat in Jurong West in and live in their own HDB flats. who founded the nation that I heard and Singapore in 1959, his Govern- ‘There’s only 24 hours a day and to me. The Government has been telling MPs to be realistic that some people even in remission, of whether the cancer Bukit Panjang, she said she shared a 1982, where she has been living Madam Hiap, whose husband at least as the still active read about. Like God, he was everywhere in ment embarked on a massive and you’re working 18 of them, don’t fair to people like me and I will al- would be given better treatment by would return. “The searing experience house with wooden walls and a since. died about four years ago, said she the ether. Like God, he was all-powerful and urgent building programme. zinc roof with about 30 people. be too hard on yourself,’” she re- These days, she works only in had a tough life, but she is con- ways be grateful.” Minister Mentor in 2009 all-knowing. Lee Kuan Yew didn’t affect my businesses than others: “Let’s grow up!” tempered his character and made him more Over the years, I came to know of his philosophical about his life. I think it has In three years, the newly formed There was no electricity or run- called. the morning, leaving a helper to vinced she would have been worse who told us no question family’s life much in a direct way, although HDB built about 26,000 flats, more ning water. But she had two young sons and run the stall till 9pm. off in another country. [email protected] his policies formed the arc within which reputation for imprisoning political similarly tempered you.” was off limits, and ordinary lives like ours were lived. opponents. I read critical biographies of him. I was touched by his good wishes for my hurried us to complete My parents were street hawkers who were I had even covered and written news articles health. fined repeatedly for peddling their wares. on some of the defamation suits he brought He also sent me a note in June 2010 to say our book, chiding us Unlike many hawkers grateful to be against his critics. he enjoyed reading my book Pioneers Once not to let the grass relocated, they resisted being put into a But when I covered him at a press More, a history of the Singapore public WOMEN’S EDUCATION: When centre for years. When the service. He offered some grow under our feet.’ frequency of fines grew too vignettes of senior civil CHUA MUI HOONG overwhelming, they gave up. servants that he said I doors to equality opened By then, choice sites like could include in future Newton were taken up; they editions. Again, I was were sent to Timbuktu – a touched by his generous dren a more comfortable life.” nomic, as the new and vulnerable small hawker centre off words, and that he Rachel Chang Assistant Political Editor More than that, Madam Er, in- nation needed to raise its national Alexandra Road, where they bothered. troduced to learning in those early output and boost its economy struggled to make enough to I began to see a lot years, never stopped going to class. quickly. Madam Er Teck Gin, 67, was a wom- raise three children. more of Mr Lee from She started working after second- So, Mr Lee and his colleagues an born at the right time. Apart from the way big December 2008 to ary school, helping out with her urged women to leave the kitchen policies of the day October 2009, when my Her older sister stayed at home friends’ businesses. for office desks or factory assembly intersected with our lives, colleagues and I in the 1950s while her brothers In the evenings, she went for lines – or at least bring up daugh- mine was not a political conducted 16 interviews went to school, as was the norm at English lessons. ters to fulfil that goal. family. The closest I came to with him for Hard the time. Soon, she was able to get better But the PAP also believed in gen- Lee Kuan Yew was hearing Truths. He was vigorous, But when Madam Er reached and better jobs, like being a cold der equality as a principle. Mr Lee’s my father tell the story of engaging, sometimes a school-going age, a man named chef preparing non-cooked food in party fielded women candidates for how he was standing close little testy, but never Lee Kuan Yew emerged as the Raffles Hotel. From there, she elections, such as Women’s League by and witnessed the (to rude or nasty. leader of the fledgling nation, then joined the Singapore Food Indus- founders Chan Choy Siong and Ho him) historic moment when I heard him speak of still seeking its independence from tries as an executive chef. Puay Choo. Mr Lee was pushed into a big his wife and his daily the British. He called on families to Her husband worked in a pawn Madam Er remembers well the monsoon drain at Towner ritual of reading to her send their children – both boys and shop, then later, for a transport late Madam Chan, who was mar- Road, while touring Kallang when she lay bedridden girls – to school, to forge the foun- company, so the family of six ried to former education minister constituency in 1963. after a stroke. Devoid of dation of an educated and effective thrived as a double-income house- Ong Pang Boon, now 85. “It was her company, he would workforce. hold. quite wonderful to see her in the pa- converse with the nurses Lee Kuan Yew Madam Er’s parents heeded the Today, Madam Er teaches cook- pers, in charge,” she said. “She al- during lunch. I heard the close up call. So, unlike her older sister, she ing classes part-time at community ways said women should come out stoic loneliness in his ST PHOTO: ONG WEE JIN I first watched Lee Kuan Yew and her younger sisters went to clubs under the People’s Associa- and support themselves.” close up in 1983, when I was voice after she died. I saw Madam Er Teck Gin’s parents heeded Mr Lee’s call to send their children – both boys and girls – to school. So, unlike school with their brothers. It tion. Gender equality also quickly be- her older sister, she and her younger sisters went to school with their brothers. It changed the course of their lives. 15. By then, my parents the indulgent changed the course of their lives. grandfather reluctant to “I followed Mr Lee’s advice,” she came enshrined in law. In 1961, could afford a second-hand “My older sister was a house- forbid his grandchildren said. “Education is everything.” the Women’s Charter Bill – then a black-and-white TV set. wife. But I’ve always worked, my trolled by the PAP, the Charter guar- maiden name, her right to own education, we could survive,” said to touch his things when Women of Madam Er’s age monumental, ahead-of-its-time Sitting in the living room, I whole adult life,” said Madam Er, anteed basic rights and protection, property and her right to be a Madam Er of herself and her sisters. they sniffled, but who gained from Mr Lee’s People’s Ac- piece of civil rights legislation – was watched his National Day who is now a grandmother of four. which women today take for grant- man’s sole legal wife. “And we had the same opportuni- would discreetly wipe tion Party (PAP) government aggres- passed. Rally speech live. “I was always financially sively promoting gender equality Crafted by then Labour and Law ed as the natural order of things. “It was very hard for Chinese-ed- ties as the men.” I didn’t know it then, but down his computer with disinfecting wipes after independent. With my extra in education and the workforce. Minister K. M. Byrne and ushered These protections included a ucated people like us to find jobs at this was his famous speech money, I could give my four chil- The impetus was largely eco- through a Legislative Assembly con- married woman’s right to use her the time. But because we had some [email protected] on graduate mothers. It went they left so as not to on into the night, and I catch their bug. remember I was riveted, Although he was reputed moving from the sofa to for having no small talk, toilet reluctantly for pee he sometimes told us about his ailments or his breaks. PHOTO: COURTESY OF CHUA MUI HOONG In junior college, we Ms Chua Mui Hoong with her parents at Changi Airport before she took her first plane ride day. CRITICAL BATTLES: Letting go would discuss Lee Kuan Yew – to Cambridge University to take up a government scholarship. I covered Mrs Lee’s and Singapore politics funeral in October 2010 incessantly. At 18, I won a at Mandai Crematorium. He walked up to her of past, but not forgetting it Public Service Commission Overseas Merit conference, or sat across a table from him in Scholarship to study English literature at an interview, I would put aside those coffin with a single red rose. His hand touched his lips, then her forehead, planting Cambridge University in England. thoughts and focus on the issue at hand. After his arrest, Mr Fong’s father ers-in-lawlessness”. a kiss there once, and then, as though he Ignatius Low Like hundreds of exam-smart In any case, I usually had my colleagues was placed under detention across “It was like that moment in Star could not bear to part, again. Managing Editor Singaporeans from poor families, who got around me. I wasn’t a political opponent. I the Causeway in Muar and banned Wars movie The Empire Strikes government scholarships that opened doors was a journalist, and I knew Mr Lee respected Somewhere along the line amid those incidents, I grew fond of the old man. from entering Singapore. Back when Luke discovers that to good careers, I am a beneficiary of the the role of journalists. Much as he might Author and cartoonist Otto Fong “It was difficult because the fami- Darth Vader is his father,” said Mr meritocratic scholarship system berate us or our editors when he disagreed In 2012, I was involved in another round did not join the thousands of Singa- of interviews for the book One Man’s View ly didn’t have much savings, so my Fong. “It created a lot of confusion Mr Lee created. with something we wrote, he knew our job poreans standing in line for hours Of The World. Last year, we interviewed him mum had to work in a stationery and I blamed my dad for wasting In my case, though I was contracted to was to ask honest, if difficult, and to him a few more times to update the book. to pay their last respects to Singa- shop and take care of my very his time in politics.” work in the civil service for eight years after annoying, questions. And while the He grew visibly more frail over the years. pore founding Prime Minister Lee young sister, while still finding The ban on his father entering my studies, I broke my bond. I approached Singapore Government can be authoritarian, From open-buttoned jackets, he moved on to Kuan Yew. ways to go visit my dad in Muar,” Singapore was eventually lifted in Singapore Press Holdings, which agreed to it respects the rule of law. buttoned up ones, sometimes with a scarf “When I was a kid, my dad was said Mr Fong. 1990, but it was only a few years hire me and buy out my bond. I remember I once asked if he was satisfied with the round the neck. From walking in his trainers, banned from entering Singapore. I He was born a year after his fa- ago, in their old age, that Mr Fong’s walking to the Public Service Commission level of political contest, or if he should have he had to be supported. had to live in Malaysia and study in ther was released in 1967. He said parents finally returned. with the SPH cheque for $140,000 that done more to create the conditions for an We once had to wait 30 minutes for him Singapore so I stood in line at the the family wanted to stay in Johor “My dad would not have been bought my freedom from the civil service. I alternative in Singapore. to rest and he apologised, saying he had not Customs for 10 years, back and Baru because his parents still want- able to do that if he had clung on have remained grateful to SPH ever since. His answer: “We’ll be quite happy if we been able to keep his food down. He had an forth daily,” he wrote in a Facebook ed their children to be educated in to the past,” said Mr Fong. After 24 years, I still love my job as a get a small group of equal calibre contesting injury once, and conducted the interview post last week. Singapore, but the older Mr Fong “In fact, my parents made it a journalist. against us. I mean you look at the NMPs, with a heat pad around his thigh. He was on “I think I’ve done enough queue- could not find a job there initially point to shield us from the past, so When I joined The Straits Times Political they talk more sense, right? Would they fight meal supplement Ensure and various ing for Lee Kuan Yew.” because of his reputation. that we could grow up with a clean Desk in 1991, Lee Kuan Yew became less of a an election? No. So? But they’ve got the medications his security officers would give Among the many stories of how That reputation also resulted in slate.” myth, and much more real. brain power, they’ve got the knowledge, but him. His speech got slurred towards the end. Singaporeans’ lives changed for the the family being shunned by every- He added: “My mum used to say Over the years, I would cover Mr Lee on they’re not prepared to jump into the sea.” From over two hours, the interviews went better as a result of Mr Lee’s politi- one here. Mr Fong said that when that when she was younger, she many more occasions, including in My counter: “That’s because many people down to 45 minutes or less. cal decisions, the 46-year-old’s he was growing up, he did not go was very angry and wanted to out- Singapore, at Tanjong Pagar and in are intimidated by the PAP, the climate of It pained me to sit across the table over stands in stark contrast. to any Chinese New Year or extend- live Lee Kuan Yew. But now, she PHOTO: COURTESY OF OTTO FONG Parliament, and overseas, in China and fear, crackdown on dissent and so on.” several years and watch Mr Lee weaken. He His father is Mr Fong Swee Suan, ed-family gathering. says that was such a meaningless Author and cartoonist Otto Fong with his father, former political detainee Fong Swee Suan, 84. Growing up was difficult Malaysia. Mr Lee: “No, no. Are you intimidated?” was the founding father of Singapore. I liked a former union leader who became “There was never any active har- thing to hold on to.” for Mr Fong because of his father’s reputation but he says there is no reason to feel resentful about the past. to remember him as the vigorous Prime Videos of him in the 1970s show a gruff, Me: “Well, asking you this question, a key member of the People’s Ac- assment, only this fear in The older Mr Fong eventually Minister in television footage, or at least as thuggish figure with an aggressive chin obviously I’m not. I just feel that there’s a tion Party, but left the party in everyone’s mind that I don’t want penned a memoir, which was re- gapore system,” added the Chinese ally had to be the strongman and a “We did not say anything. It the still active Minister Mentor in 2009, who thrust, given to raised arms, finger-pointing perception.” 1961 over differences in opinion to be seen with this person.” leased in 2009. A copy was sent to High School and Hwa Chong Jun- bigger, more unreasonable force. had all been said before,” said Mr told us no question was off limits, and and trouser-hiking. By the time I met him, Mr Lee went on to add that if a person about Singapore’s merger with Ma- The isolation spilled over into Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, ior College old boy. “It’s not a per- Even the gangsters will have to fear Fong. “But as I looked at everyone from the mid-1990s, he was already in his joined an opposition party, “he takes us on, hurried us to complete our book, chiding us not to let the grass grow under our feet. laya, Sabah and Sarawak. He was Mr Fong’s social life as a student in who thanked them for the book in fect system but it’s not a bad sys- you, in order to push things queueing up, I wondered how 70s and 80s, and had mellowed considerably. we’ll take him on. But you can’t join the But somewhere along the line, I came to subsequently branded a commu- Singapore. a letter that was signed personally. tem, and one that works better through peacefully,” he said. many of them would do the same Workers’ Party and we just let him lambast see him less as Lee Kuan Yew the mythic nist and arrested in 1963 as part of “Your friends would ask you to Mr Fong said that there is no rea- than many others.” “He may not have been the origi- thing for their loved ones while Fiery rhetoric us away. We’ll demolish him as hard as he figure, the great statesman, the fearsome Operation Cold Store, an anti-com- watch a movie and you have to say son to feel resentful about the past. And despite the history between nator of every idea and people may they were still alive. But when required, his oratory was just as tries to demolish us. That’s part of the game, political leader. I came to see him as a man, a munist sting. you can’t because you have to “It was not a bad life for me. I Mr Lee and his father, Mr Fong is not agree with him, but he was able “There is a difference between fiery as ever. right? I mean you say that’s intimidation?” flawed but still great mortal, a man who did The 1955 Hock Lee Bus riots catch the bus home to JB,” he said. am glad I did not have to share my full of admiration for the founding to stand there and say, ‘This is the forgiving and forgetting,” he Two parliamentary speeches in the last 20 his best for his country, for his time, the best were also allegedly instigated by his Mr Fong remembers that big mo- dad with a million other urgent na- Prime Minister. issue that I stand behind and if you added. “Forgiving is about letting years stood out for me. One was in Growing fond he knew how. father, together with fellow ment of realisation when he saw a tional issues, should history have “Don’t forget Singapore, at the have a problem, you deal with me.’ go, forgetting is not healthy for November 1994. After hours of debate on the I don’t remember when exactly I started to Luckily for all of us, his best was enough. left-wing unionist Lim Chin Siong, political cartoon by Singaporean turned out differently,” he told The time, was under the influence of I thought that was pretty cool.” history.” proposal to peg ministers’ pay to top get fond of him. It was certainly after my although the older Mr Fong has re- artist Morgan Chua depicting his fa- Sunday Times. many strong forces, so to make But what of his family’s reaction private-sector professionals’, including a conversion to Christianity, when my concept [email protected] peatedly denied this. ther and Mr Lim as crazed “broth- “I’m also a beneficiary of the Sin- things work in a short time, you re- to Mr Lee’s passing? [email protected] 16 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 17

THE SINGAPORE HE BUILT 1923 - 2015 CLEAN & GREEN CITY: CLEAN WATER: He The seed project that took root The big upgrade changed from wells to taps

my Charissa Yong Board flat which the older Mr Ow Yong moved into had multiple taps from which potable water flowed. When retired accounts clerk Ow The change from drawing water Yong Weng Kok, now 72, was a from common wells to potable tap teenager in the early 1960s, he water in every home was made lived in a kampung in Kim Keat. across Singapore as Mr Lee strove to The only source of fresh water improve standards of living. was a well in a village a kilometre Mr Lee also spearheaded the away – and Mr Ow Yong walked drive for Singapore to be self-suffi- there and back every day. On the cient in water. return trip he carried two full buck- This was born out of a sense of life ets of water on a pole balanced on vulnerability, intensified by a his shoulders. drought in1963 and Singapore’s Mr Ow Yong’s 39-year-old son, separation from Malaysia in 1965. ‘At my workplace we Chark Kan, said: “The roads were Two 50-year water pacts signed had a roof garden, and very muddy and there weren’t any in 1961 and 1962 that allowed Sin- street lamps. He was literally walk- gapore to buy water from Malaysia I would go there every ing in darkness.” Mr Ow Yong had were drafted into the Separation recounted his tough childhood last Agreement and later became part afternoon. My week to him, after the death of Mr of the Malaysian Constitution, colleagues laughed Lee Kuan Yew. guaranteeing Singapore’s water sup- He told how this changed when ply from Johor. because I seemed very Mr Lee visited the kampung in the Going a step further, Mr Lee set odd – the designers 1960s, and asked the villagers if up the Water Planning Unit in there was anything he could do for 1971 to coordinate Singapore’s wa- were all very indoor them. ter policy. The younger Mr Ow Yong, a Soon, Singapore also developed people.’ other ways to recycle water, such as private tutor, said his dad replied: ANUJ JAIN desalination and treating waste “Tap water would be great.” water. Within a month, there was a tap “The one thing that struck me for every two homes in the kam- about my father’s story was how pung. we always take what we have now Mr Ow Yong said: “That was for granted, such as running tap what I was amazed about – that Mr water,” said Mr Ow Yong. ST FILE PHOTO Lee took action straight away.” Villagers in Adam Park washing clothes near a well. In the early 1960s, people who lived in kampungs had to draw water from common wells. In an effort to Years later, the first Housing [email protected] improve standards of living across Singapore, Mr Lee ensured that homes had access to taps from which potable water flowed.

ST PHOTO: ONG WEE JIN When Mr Anuj Jain moved from his “concrete city” home town in India to Singapore to study engineering, he was so taken by the country’s greenery that he ended up joining the Nature Society full time and helping the authorities to protect the island’s flourishing greenery.

Feng Zengkun ries of green spaces along Napier, University (NTU) in 2003. walks on Pulau Ubin and in the Cen- PHOTO: COURTESY OF TAN TONG HAI PHOTOS: WALTER SIM, S. RAJAGOPAL ST PHOTO: AZIZ HUSSIN Environment Correspondent Tanglin and Orchard roads that He recalls: “Even though India tral Catchment and Bukit Timah na- Mr Tan Tong Hai receiving an NTUC Comfort bursary in 1984 from Mr Ong Mr S. Rajagopal rose through the ranks and retired as Superintendent of Ms Wong Lee Jeng is “enjoying my work as event host, translator and writer help butterflies spread their wings has amazing wildlife as a country, In- ture reserves, as well as helping with Teng Cheong, who was then NTUC’s secretary-general. Police in 1995. now, thanks to my good grasp of the two languages”. When you visit Orchard Road these through both leafy and glitzy areas dian cities are not very green. But biodiversity surveys and weed eradi- cation programmes at the reserves. days, you can enjoy a brush with a in the heart of the city. when I came to Singapore, there was Eventually, in 2010, he quit his butterfly along with your shopping. The spaces include green areas greenery everywhere.” job and joined the Nature Society. A 4km Butterfly Trail starts at the next to Somerset MRT station and He was inspired to join Earthlink, MERITOCRACY: LAW & ORDER: BILINGUALISM: behind Ngee Ann City, and Dhoby NTU’s environmental student socie- Mr Jain was one of the founding vol- gates of the Botanic Gardens, contin- unteers trained by Dr Ho Hua Chew, ues down the premier shopping belt Ghaut Green park. ty, and also to explore the nation’s The Nature Society spearheaded nature reserves and green spaces. vice-chairman of the society’s con- and ends at Fort Canning Park. servation committee, to carry out Glad gangsterism the project, which was sponsored by MacRitchie Reservoir Park remains a Poor boy grows up From hard slog to It was Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s guided walks in the Kranji Marsh. go-green campaign in 1963 – when property developer Far East Organi- favourite spot. zation. Mr Jain, 30, was one of the Although Mr Jain completed his In late 2010, Sentosa Develop- he planted a tree at Farrer Circus – ment Corporation hired the society lead project officers. engineering course, and started that started what was to become the for a botanical and zoological survey to be StarHub boss was curtailed rewarding career He says: “A lot of companies and work at an electronics design compa- City in a Garden concept which of the island. flourishes today. organisations such as Singapore Post ny, he yearned to be closer to green- Mr Jain was also in the plant sur- Decades after Mr Lee planted that and Ricoh (a Japanese electronics ery. “At my workplace we had a roof vey group that helped uncover tree At the start of every school store, which was a major crack- first tree, a young Indian who ar- firm) were willing to help financial- garden, and I would go there every Irene Tham Walter Sim schools, including Seh Chuan, species that are extinct on the main- down on leftists in 1963, racial Leong Weng Kam rived to study here was so inspired ly, in-kind or to give up some space afternoon. My colleagues laughed Technology Correspondent year, he had to borrow money. which was renamed Shuqun Sec- land, including the Syzygium griffit- riots in 1964, and the Laju ferry Senior Writer by Singapore’s rich fauna and flora on their property as a green area, because I seemed very odd – the de- “For the rest of the year, my fa- As a teenager in the 1950s, Mr S. ondary in 1986 when it moved hii, an evergreen tree. hijacking incident in 1973, that he went on to eventually work and Mr Lee’s policies over the years signers were all very indoor people.” He became a permanent resident Growing up, Mr Tan Tong Hai ther would slog to pay the debt, Rajagopal was struck by the force- from Upper Bukit Timah to Jurong only to start the process all over among others. Up till her Secondary One year, Street 21, became full-fledged na- for the Nature Society, with a partic- definitely helped foster that In 2008, he started volunteering in 2007, and is finishing a doctorate and his five siblings lived in a ful speeches of the politician who Ms Wong Lee Jeng’s school was a again in January the following Mr Rajagopal lauded Mr Lee tional schools by 1987. ular interest in butterflies and con- eco-friendly mindset.” with Team Seagrass, a group of peo- on wildlife ecology and conserva- one-room rental flat in Redhill would eventually become public Chinese-language institu- servation. It is a far cry from when Mr Jain ple who monitor the health of sea- tion at the National University of with their parents. year.” for his decisiveness in making They taught English at first lan- Singapore’s first Prime Minister, tion. Then, overnight, all the text- guage level, mother tongue lan- One of Mr Anuj Jain’s proudest moved from his self-described “con- grass, and the Nature Society. Singapore. The home was bare, furnished In 1976, Mr Tan started Second- Mr Lee Kuan Yew. pivotal decisions, saying that “he books – except those in the Chi- achievements is the Butterfly Trail – crete city” home town in India to He also volunteered with Nation- ary 1 in Gan Eng Seng School be- saved our lives” during the Laju guages at second language level. with just a table and some chairs. Listening to them, “you knew nese language – were changed in- The exceptions were nine a 2010 project which consists of a se- study at Nanyang Technological al Parks Board, carrying out guided [email protected] cause “I could use my older incident. But he said he could not They could not afford a TV set. that in his mind the safety of the to English. former Chinese-medium schools, brother’s uniform and books”. go into detail given the classified A typical meal was rice with people was paramount because This was in 1981, at the former which became Special Assistance He did well and got into Hwa nature of the operation. Seh Chuan High School. It was the black soya sauce. His clothes and gangsterism (then) was rife”, said Plan or SAP schools in 1978. Chong Junior College. transitional period when the Edu- school books were hand-me- Mr Rajagopal, who is now 75 and Another key move was the re- Ms Wong, who later completed cation Ministry was developing na- her A levels at the former Raffles downs from a neighbour or his With government bursaries honorary treasurer of the Singa- tention of the Internal Security brother. and scholarships available for tional schools with English as the Junior College, recalls taking the GOING REGIONAL: pore Police Retirees’ Association. Act – a legacy of British colonial The 1960s was a tumultuous pe- bright children from low-income rule – which quelled uprisings language of instruction. change at Seh Chuan in her stride, Around the same time, com- It was the brainchild of then riod in Singapore history, with a families, “I was even more moti- over the years. but some classmates “dropped out weak economy, very high unem- vated to study hard”, he said. munist activity was reaching a Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, an of school after failing to show up Pushing S’pore firms to expand overseas peak. Through it all, Mr Lee’s stand- advocate of bilingualism which for their O-level examinations”. ployment and widespread pover- Like many in his generation, ards of “hard work, discipline, Mr Rajagopal watched as Mr was introduced in the late 1970s. It was also hard on the teach- ty. he could also turn to community truth, no corruption” formed Mr Lee quelled the communists and The thinking behind it was that ing staff: Chinese-educated sci- Mr Tan remembers his mother, groups, unions and business or- Rajagopal’s credo. English would connect Singapore- ence teachers found themselves cannot ignore, because Singapore is and Bintan in Indonesia.” reduced gangsterism. Marissa Lee an illiterate, regularly exhorting ganisations for study grants. And he never faltered: “In my ans to the world and give all races having to teach complex chemis- too small,” said Dr Yap, 62. If Singaporeans are “contented to her six children: “Study hard and Having lived through the Mr Tan received his first schol- entire career, I’ve never touched an equal chance while knowing try theories in English. “But of course, he cautioned that be stuck at home” instead of interna- be successful. Don’t let people It took a trade mission led by then arship in 1980, when he was in Hock Lee bus riots in 1955, Mr Ra- 10 cents from anyone.” their mother tongue would keep Luckily for Ms Wong, her prin- not all of us would succeed... tionalising, warned Mr Lee, Singa- look down on you.” jagopal knew first-hand the chaos cipal engaged an American, Mr Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew to his first year at Hwa Chong. He rose through the ranks to re- them in touch with their culture. turn Dr Robert Yap’s company from “But the whole thing was about pore would be a “failed NIE (newly Now aged 51, he is the chief ex- of lawlessness. Ms Wong, now 47, struggled at Alan Smith, a staff member at the It came from the Singapore Chi- tire as Superintendent of Police in local to global. encouragement. There was a risk, industrialising economy)”. ecutive of StarHub. His home? A first, not knowing that the move US embassy, to give students Eng- Mr Lee threw his weight behind nese Chamber of Commerce and During the riots, “the police 1995. Such missions were “new and but we needed to go.” landed property in the high-end would pave the way for her career. lish enrichment lessons. the regionalisation drive. Industry. riot squad came and they chased few” in 1993. Mr Lee commanded a lot of re- Holland Road area. Today, 20 years after leaving She went on to become a Man- “He introduced us to English lit- He wanted Singapore firms to de- He subsequently received finan- everybody away. But I got kicked Dr Yap, executive chairman of lo- spect from the Chinese officials and Mr Tan credits his success story the police force, Mr Lee’s words darin radio DJ and television pre- erature, too, like the works of H.G. velop “guanxi”, or close relations, cial aid every year until he com- by one of the rioters because I was gistics giant YCH, was head of a built the Singapore brand by keep- to the “solid foundation” provid- are still a resounding “clarion senter, and is now a translator and Wells which I became very inter- with rising Chinese businesses. pleted his four-year electrical engi- just a young boy standing there”, ested in, and helped improve my homegrown company that had just ing promises and working hard, said ed by Singapore’s education sys- call”, said Mr Rajagopal. He cited trainer as well as bilingual host at Dr Yap first saw Mr Lee in action neering degree at the National he said. English further,” she says. made its first foray out of Singapore Dr Yap. tem. Mr Lee as saying: “I’ve worked all public events. in the 1960s, when he was just a lad University of Singapore. “After that I told myself, Although a science student, she with a warehouse in Penang. “Lee Kuan Yew didn’t say it that “I was one of the beneficiaries my life to protect the country and She hosted the ground-break- who went along with his father on a His first job was at multination- began her career as a Chinese copy But YCH’s multinational clients way; he acted that way.” of the system, which lifted me ‘Bloody hell, I’ll become a police- the people of Singapore.” ing ceremony of the China Cultur- job. al IBM, as a software engineer, man myself.’” al Centre in 2010 in Queen Street, writer at an advertising firm after like Compaq and Hewlett-Packard The Ningbo mission gave Dr Yap from poverty to where I am to- Mr Rajagopal added: “Now in The elder Mr Yap, who owned a and with his first pay, he helped officiated by then Senior Minister her A levels in 1987. were urging the firm to service the courage to take YCH global. day,” he said. Despite his father’s disapprov- Singapore we have rehabilitated lorry transport business, supplied ve- his parents buy an HDB flat in Bis- Goh Chok Tong and Mr Xi Jin- Her parents were construction them as they expanded into China. A year later, YCH opened a distri- The emphasis the late Mr Lee al, he went ahead and did so. workers and Ms Wong, the fourth hicles to the PAP during an election han in 1989. The entire family the communists, the criminals, ping, now China’s President. Dr Yap was hesitant. bution park in Shanghai. Kuan Yew placed on education is His resolve won over his taxi of six children, had to start work campaign. moved into the four-room flat. the Muslim fundamentalists. She did the same at the open- He recalled: “We knew China It now operates distribution hubs “My father had very, very high re- legendary as the Government saw driver father, who brought him That is why Singapore is such a and help support the family. in more than 100 cities worldwide. It has since been sold and his ing of the Confucius Institute at was going to be a growing market, spect for Mr Lee,” said Dr Yap. it as pivotal in creating a quality food, and drove him home after peaceful place with racial and reli- Nanyang Technological Universi- She went on to become a “Singapore is only 20 per cent of mother, now 80, lives with one of full-time DJ, radio producer and we just needed a sign that it was the PHOTO: YCH Later, when he took up the reins workforce to grow the country’s he took up night school. gious harmony. It is only due to ty in 2006. It was attended by Mr our business now,” Dr Yap said. his siblings. Chinese-English translator. In right thing to do. Because we were YCH executive chairman Robert Yap of his father’s business and began economy and improve people’s The 36-year veteran of the po- an effective leader.” Lee, then Minister Mentor. not a big company, we couldn’t af- “(Singapore’s) legacy of interna- says a trade mission led by Mr Lee Mr Tan credits his achieve- 2006, she and her musician hus- transforming it into what is now lives. lice force was involved in key mo- Should his services be re- Ms Wong says: “In my first two ford to make too many mistakes.” tionalisation – I would credit it to gave him courage to take YCH global. YCH, Dr Yap began to share his Mr Tan’s parents sent all their ments to Singapore’s meritocratic band Tan Tong Jen, 46, formed a ments of Singapore’s tumultuous quired, he remains ever prepared years in the school, our teachers media services company, Six De- The invitation to join the mis- Lee Kuan Yew.” father’s deep respect for Mr Lee. six children to Tiong Bahru Prima- education system. history. for the call of duty. were still teaching us in Mandarin grees Connection. They have two sion was just the sign he was look- In his role as Senior Minister, “I appreciated him better as a ry School. He wants his 19-year-old Taiwan and Hong Kong, which are He was part of the security though our textbooks, especially daughters, aged 14 and 11. ing for. Mr Lee dwelt extensively on the daughter and 17-year-old son to “We in the Police Retirees’ As- developing their external econo- businessman – when you look at the Though school fees were “af- those for science and mathemat- She declares: “I am enjoying Mr Lee had invited many busi- need for Singapore firms to venture team at Mr Lee’s Oxley Road sociation – and we’ve got 1,636 stability in Singapore, and take ad- fordable”, he said, his late father’s enter a local university – just as he ics, were in English.” my work as event host, translator abroad to grow and survive. mies. home from 1959 to 1960, at a members – will all respond if we nessmen to the trip to expose them vantage of the Singapore position,” earnings as a cabby were not did – though fees are no longer an The complete switch from Chi- and writer now, thanks to my “All we’ve got are a few enterpris- time when the communist move- get a call any time.” to the China market. He told a People’s Action Party he said. enough to buy new school text- issue. nese to English took place when good grasp of the two languages.” “We had a meeting, and Mr Lee (PAP) conference in 1992: “We are es in Malaysia, mostly in Johor, and books, uniforms and shoes for all ment was active. she was in Secondary Three. said that China is a big market we being left behind by (South) Korea, a few factories and hotels in Batam [email protected] his children. [email protected] Then came Operation Cold- [email protected] All vernacular language [email protected] 18 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 19

THE SINGAPORE HE BUILT 1923 - 2015 RACIAL EQUALITY: Meritocratic The unique blessing for He system gives everyone a chance

changed Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh “Today, as I train to be an educator, versity,” she added. I have neither been discriminated “It did not matter that I could not Singapore that is Mr Lee Charissa Yong against nor had to worry about possi- afford the fees, it did not matter that I ble discrimination.” was Malay, and it most definitely did my When she was a primary school pupil, The insistence by Mr Lee and the not matter that I was a woman,” said Ms Nadrah Sadali would often go Country may yet attain the new golden era that he wished for young Singaporeans down at night to the void deck of her Old Guard on equal opportunities in Ms Nadrah, who is second among six family’s Housing Board flat to study. education for all Singaporeans to children. She did so because her family could progress by dint of hard work and not She took a bank loan for her first Patrick Daniel hardly afford to pay their electricity by race, religion, descent or place of three years at Nanyang Technological Editor-in-Chief bills. birth, is enshrined in Singapore’s Con- University, where she majored in English/Malay/Tamil Media Group Her mother would also go to Beach stitution. sociology. Also, financial aid from the Govern- In her final year, she got a Mendaki Road to buy second-hand textbooks As the daily throngs of Singaporeans of for Ms Nadrah and her five brothers. ment and community groups is readi- scholarship that took care of her ly available for bright students from course fees. all races and ages paid their last respects The worn books were passed from to Mr Lee Kuan Yew last week, I found sibling to sibling until the school sylla- low-income households. Currently, she is studying for a post- myself counting the ways we’ve been bus changed and newer editions were Still, there was always the nagging graduate diploma in education (physi- life worry of whether her parents could af- cal education). The fees for the course blessed in Mr Lee’s Singapore. needed. Her mother, a nurse, and her fa- ford the school fees, she said. are fully paid by the National Institute The most profound is a blessing I ‘My Chinese ther, an Islamic finance business own- “It is a feeling I carried through my of Education. share with so many Singaporeans: In our Singaporean wife and er, worked hard to put all their six chil- school years, from Juying Primary to She said: “We reap what we sow, personal lives, and not just as a country, dren through school. Crescent Girls’ Secondary and St An- and the system of meritocracy pushes we each went from Third World to First our two happily But Ms Nadrah, 25, and a trainee drews Junior College. us along the way.” in a single generation. bi-cultural “Chindian” teacher, said she believes she owes part “It was always at the back on my She also acknowledged the value of In my case, I went from a rented, of her progress to the country’s merito- mind, especially in my JC years as the bilingual policy in schools, which wooden shophouse with communal cratic system, a pillar of Singapore soci- most of my classmates came from fami- is invariably associated with Mr Lee. kids are similarly PHOTO: COURTESY OF NADRAH SADALI toilets in Kampong Kembangan to a ety that founding Prime Minister Lee lies that could send them to an over- The policy requires each child to three-room HDB flat in Chai Chee, then blessed. So I give Kuan Yew and his team built and rein- seas university,” she said. learn his mother tongue as well as Eng- a five-room flat in Bedok South, a Pine tended as well as in university. Trainee teacher Nadrah guage but also retain the values that forced in education and employment. “But I remember my mother telling lish, and it is something Ms Nadrah Grove HUDC flat and now a landed thanks daily and can me that if I do well enough, the system said helped to remind her of her cultur- “The bilingual policy had plenty to Sadali (foreground, centre) come with it.” The former national hockey player property in Upper Thomson. say, with only a little said being a minority did not stand in will find a way to help me. al roots. do with it,” she added. “The emphasis with her family. Ms Nadrah the way for her to excel, whether in “True enough, with only my aca- She was an active member of the on our mother tongue encouraged me believes she owes part of [email protected] When we moved to Bedok South in her progress to Singapore’s exaggeration, I owe it her studies or sport. demic credentials, I qualified for uni- Malay Society in each school she at- to not just speak and learn the lan- [email protected] 1977, my sister recalls my mum saying: meritocratic system. “This new flat is thanks to Lee Kuan all to Mr Lee. Yew.”

But my personal My mum, who is 90 this year, ST FILE PHOTO blessings are just the brought up six children on her own, Mr Lee speaking at a seminar organised by EDB Society and The Straits Times at the Arts House with help from some uncles, when my in 2007. Mr Patrick Daniel (right) was the moderator. start of what I really NATIONAL SERVICE: Father, dad was taken ill and later died at age 51 want to say: the when I was 14. My dad came to Singapore in 1937 He knew too well the He knew too well the power a press biggest blessing is Mr from Kerala, India, when he was 20 – he baron could wield to make or break an son and nation’s defence couldn’t find a job there, he said – and power a press baron elected government, and he was Lee himself.’ never left, even when Singapore was determined to have none of it in PATRICK DANIEL about to fall to the Japanese. He went could wield to make or Singapore. He made sure that political Jermyn Chow become fit, to be garang (Malay for back only after the war to marry and leaders are never beholden to unelected tough), like what you see in the Ah break an elected Defence Correspondent bring my mum out in 1947. media owners, and wanted the media Boys to Men films,” said the government, and he out of the political process. Foreign 34-year-old, who went through basic What is it that made my Indian The father is the longest-serving staff Singaporean family’s success possible? I colleagues who have worked for member in the Republic of Singapore military training in 2000, before inter- was determined to capricious owners tell me how smart a rupting his NS stint to go to medical would cite the powerful combination of Air Force (RSAF). The son worked as a have none of it in move this was. medical officer in the RSAF. Neither school. two of Mr Lee’s core values: Reality hit when he returned to the multiracialism and meritocracy. Many foreign reports this past week knew, as young men, how meaningful Singapore. He made have cited these tough media strictures. they would find the experience. RSAF to serve as a medical officer in I managed to win government 2006. scholarships because I was never sure that political But an even bigger beef seems to be that Fate, and Mr Lee Kuan Yew, inter- he used defamation laws to silence and He helped evacuate servicemen discriminated against in getting access to vened. leaders are never even destroy his political opponents. Back in 1967, 19-year-old Prasad Ku- who were hurt in a fighter jet crash in opportunities, and I could compete This mis-characterises the man and his mar Menon had set his sights on get- Taiwan in 2007. purely on merit. I was incredibly Two died at the site, while another beholden to unelected methods. ting a law degree at the University of fortunate to go to two overseas died from severe burns 17 days later in Singapore, when the British an- media owners, and Mr Lee’s obsession – and he had Singapore. universities that I could otherwise only nounced they were withdrawing their many – was to ensure that both the Recalling the 20-minute journey to have dreamt of. wanted the media out military presence from Singapore by media and politics operate within the the hospital in an ambulance with one These same factors also explain how I 1971. of the political process. bounds of the law. So long as critics and of the burn victims airlifted back to got to be editor-in-chief, and why I’ve opponents avoid defamation and Mr Lee and his team decided the Re- PHOTO: MINDEF Singapore, Mr Raj said: “All the drills, stayed in the profession for close to 30 public should protect itself with its Mr Prasad Kumar Menon (seated, Foreign colleagues who contempt of our courts, they have the equipment checks, things that we years. considerable leeway to say what they own resources. An air force had to be centre), a trainee in 1969, assisting air used to do in the medical centre and have worked for built from scratch. traffic controllers at the Seletar Air Base My Chinese Singaporean wife and our want. Even a cursory look at the social control tower. His son Raj Kumar (above). training, were suddenly very real. two happily bi-cultural “Chindian” kids Mr Menon signed up as a trainee pi- “In front of you was someone who capricious owners tell media space will show this to be true. lot but ended up as an air traffic con- are similarly blessed. So I give thanks But that said, the combination of Mr had made a big sacrifice while serving daily and can say, with only a little me how smart a move troller. “I felt it was my duty at a time to “adapt and to adjust, without any the nation. You wanted to do your Lee’s unique media policies, and the exaggeration, I owe it all to Mr Lee. when my country needed me to do whimpering or wringing of hands” best to bring him home.’’ this was. robust application of defamation and the right thing,” he said. when British forces withdrew. Mr Raj is now a registrar at National But my personal blessings are just the contempt laws, has led to Singapore When he stopped at 52, he was im- Mr Menon said: “Being forced to University Hospital’s general surgery start of what I really want to say: the being ranked No. 150 (out of 179 mediately engaged as a consultant in department. But he often mentors jun- biggest blessing is Mr Lee himself. pressing for jail sentences. We went back countries) for press freedom by the the RSAF’s air operations department. start from scratch, and think out of to our jobs and our careers never the box so early on, made us mature ior SAF medical officers and medics. Had the stars not been aligned for us, advocacy group Reporters Without Today, he is the RSAF’s longest-serving He said: “NS is not lip-service. You a man so unique would not have been suffered. Borders. staff member. very quickly.” believe in your mission because you re- born in a small island one degree north But one important thing had In a 2010 open letter, the group urged He said the way in which the RSAF Interestingly, when his son Raj Ku- alise that this is not for show. This is es- of the Equator, and at precisely the right changed: Communicating information the Singapore Government to “put a has soared bore testament to the spirit mar was growing up, he did not take sential.’’ moment in our history. in breach of the OSA would henceforth which Mr Lee invoked in a 1967 parlia- national service seriously at first. stop to the libel actions... against Thus we’ve been blessed with a leader not require proof of mens rea, or Singaporean and foreign media... and mentary speech, asking Singaporeans “It’s something you just had to do – [email protected] PHOTO: MINDEF with the guile and guts to take on intention to commit the act. This was refrain from suing journalists over their colonialists, communists and what the AG argued and won. articles and comments”. communalists. Along with his Why was this such a big deal? Because Going by Mr Lee’s mantra – Do the like-minded team, he also had the sheer for several preceding years, Mr Lee had right thing, and never mind what people brass to build a conscript army, navy and seen how his good friend Margaret think! – that open letter must have been air force from scratch – imagine that – to Thatcher had lost case after case given very short shrift. HAWKER CENTRES: Dad gained involving breaches of the British OSA. make sure this city-state never gets seized The press freedom index is of course as a glittering prize by any captor. One infamous case was the patently wrong. It is a travesty that Of course there were some mis-steps Spycatcher affair, where a former MI5 Singapore is ranked one below Russia a livelihood and raised a family along the way, but that can’t take away spy, Peter Wright, published an and one above Libya, putting us in the his record of exceptional governance. autobiography in Australia spilling a load category where journalists get routinely All of this most people know, of explosive British secrets. The Thatcher murdered. when we first moved in,” recalled Ms his fare to include toast, boiled eggs Lim Yan Liang especially after the crash course in government failed in 1987 to persuade As Law Minister K. Shanmugam said Thian. “My mother said if we saved and a selection of cold drinks. Singapore history we’ve been given last an Australian court that the book should in a 2010 speech at Columbia University money, we could buy one chair every “He became a legal tenant, and no week. The only value I can add is to be barred from publication. The UK law that critiqued the ranking, the Growing up, Ms Thian Hwee Keong month. So they bought the chairs one longer had to hide from the inspec- lords later ruled that the British press methodology is suspect as the scores by one. That’s how poor we were.” tors. It was from here that my father recount some media-related episodes to used to sit by the Geylang River and illustrate Mr Lee’s unique skill in coming could publish extracts. depend crucially on who is chosen to be watch as her father roasted coffee Her parents also had to contend started to prosper,” said Ms Thian. asked, and how that selection is made. with the authorities, who did not look up with unique solutions. The ignominy was complete when the beans in a huge bronze drum. Mr Thian was among 18,000 street None of this is made transparent. kindly on street hawkers because of hy- hawkers licensed by the Government For six months from October 1993, I European Court of Human Rights found An itinerant hawker, her late father Obviously, the chosen ones are virulent giene and public order problems in in an islandwide hawker registration spent many days on a hard bench in a the UK government’s actions had Thian Oayin Mui was known around critics. the 1960s. exercise in 1968 and 1969. Singapore court fighting charges of violated the right to freedom of speech. the Kallang area in the 1960s for his It was a problem former Prime Min- They had to stick to rules such as breaching the Official Secrets Act (OSA). I Meantime, the book went on to become Besides, if indeed we are No. 150 for coffee beans, which he painstakingly ister Lee Kuan Yew recalled in his not smoking while preparing food, a best-seller – I still have my copy. press freedom, my colleagues and I must selected and processed. was then editor of The Business Times memoirs, From Third World To First. and not throwing water or rubbish The conclusion I came to was that our be superhuman to put out the This meant that large gunny sacks and was hauled up for publishing the “Thousands would sell cooked food into drains. For Mr Thian, it was the case had been used – brilliantly, I newspapers that we do. Whatever of green coffee beans were a constant “flash estimate” of quarterly economic on the pavements and streets in total end of his coffee roasting days, as the concede – to establish a local precedent Reporters Without Borders may think, I fixture in the living room of the growth ahead of its official release. disregard of traffic, health or other authorities deemed his bean roasting for a “strict liability” OSA offence. am proud of the editions we published family’s two-room rental flat in Like most people, I was initially last week, in all four languages, and I considerations,” said Mr Lee. pollutive. flummoxed by why the authorities Put simply, I now tell our journalists Dakota Crescent, she said. “The resulting litter and dirt, the But while business boomed for Mr dedicate them to Mr Lee. “Once every fortnight, he would would take five young professionals to that if the Singapore equivalent of the stench of rotting food and the clutter Thian, whose stall was located near a Pentagon papers were to fall off the back And to the noisy minority here who roll this heavy drum from our home to and obstructions turned many parts of bus stop used by Malaysian tourists, court over this. The then of a lorry, we the media cannot publish cannot see the travesty, I should at least the river, which was about a five- the city into slums.” many of his peers were reluctant to Attorney-General (AG) prosecuted the point out for the record this line in the them because we would have no defence minute walk away,” recalled Ms Thi- To clamp down on such hawking, move into permanent spaces. case himself, even though it was being group’s report: “The (press freedom) if taken to court. It’s similar to having an, who has three brothers. officers would conduct spot checks “Accustomed to doing business on heard in a subordinate court. index should in no way be taken as an sex with a minor and being inescapably “My brothers and I would pick up and street hawkers would be fined, the road rent-free and easily accessible In the midst of the long-running case, indication of the quality of the media in wooden planks for the fire, and I’d sit guilty of statutory rape. said Ms Thian. to customers, they resisted moving to I was one day invited by Mr Lee, then the countries concerned.” by the riverbank to watch him roast “My father had kakis (friends) who centres where they would have to pay Senior Minister, to lunch at the Istana, This move was also prescient as we are Talking of the noisy minority, I’m the coffee seeds. It was always a great kept an eye out, and when we heard rent and water and electricity charg- together with two other editors. If not now in the WikiLeaks era. Mr Lee could fire.” most proud too that Singapore’s silent the words ‘officers coming, faster es,” Mr Lee wrote in his memoirs. for the OSA case, this wouldn’t have see then that governments and majority has come out in force this past When the green coffee beans close’, we would pack up in a hurry Undeterred, the Government em- been unusual, as he occasionally invited diplomacy can’t function if everything turned brown, Mr Thian would stir week to show they have imbibed what and leave,” she said. “But sometimes, barked on an aggressive programme in editors to lunch, to discuss issues and can be leaked with impunity. Mr Lee stood for, and are hugely them in margarine and sugar, before he would be caught and fined.” 1971 to build permanent facilities to ST PHOTO: ONG WEE JIN float a kite or two. I can think of no better example of appreciative of what he’s done for them packing them in biscuit tins and send- After independence in 1965, Mr house hawkers. But that particular lunch was a touch how his unique practical intelligence and for this fortunate country, tiny ing them to a factory to be ground in- Lee’s Government made a clean and It also formed the Hawkers’ Depart- surreal for me. Mr Lee of course made no shaped particular aspects of public though we are. to powder. modern Singapore a priority, and relo- ment Special Squad, conducting multi- Mr Thian continued to sell coffee Ms Thian Hwee brothers still lives today. reference to my OSA case, and I resisted policy. The scent of roasted coffee meant cated hawkers like Mr Thian away ple raids daily to get rid of all illegal and toast at the same stall for the next Keong, seen here “Mr Lee Kuan Yew gave my parents So rest in peace, Mr Lee. Singapore all temptation to bring it up and was her father was known in their neigh- from the main streets. hawking. Within six months, the 15 years. with her brother a livelihood, an opportunity to make a Another example is the Newspaper may yet attain the new golden era you bourhood as “kopi-chek” (coffee un- He set up his first permanent stall illegal hawking situation was under On the back of coffee and toast, Ms Boon Leng, says decent living and to raise four chil- probably quieter than usual. Before we and Printing Presses Act, a piece of spoke of in 2007 when you were 84. You cle), laughed Ms Thian, 61, who works near Kallang Road, in a row of control. Thian said, her father was eventually Mr Lee took their dren,” she said. “No words can express left, I thanked him for lunch, he nodded legislation so canny that only Mr Lee told young Singaporeans: “You’re a in patient administration at the Singa- zinc-roofed hawker stalls built by the In 1973, Mr Thian became one of able to buy a whole coffee shop, as family “from poverty my gratitude to Mr Lee for taking us his acknowledgement. could have devised it. By limiting generation that is especially blessed... If to prosperity”. Their pore General Hospital. Government. Rent was heavily subsi- the first hawkers to move into the new- well their family’s first private apart- from poverty to prosperity. I will At the conclusion of the case, we were ownership of a newspaper company by there are no wars or oil crises, this hawker father was any one person or entity to no more golden period can stretch out over many While the drinks business had its dised and, for the first time, he had ac- ly built Old Airport Road Food Centre. ment in Joo Chiat in the 1970s. one of the first to forever remember him, and may he all found guilty and fined – I paid $4,000 share of loyal customers, Ms Thian re- cess to piped water, gas and electricity. The Government would build hawker He sold it and moved with the move into a rest in peace.” – not least because the AG told the judge than 3 per cent – it was later raised to 5 years.” members how poor her family was. This meant he could run his busi- centres at a breakneck pace, opening family into a semi-detached house in permanent hawker we were “honourable men with per cent – he made sure there would be “We had one table and one chair ness later into the night, and expand No. 103 in 1986. Tembeling Street, where one of her centre in 1973. [email protected] honourable careers” and he was not no Rupert Murdochs in Singapore. [email protected] 20 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 21

THE SINGAPORE HE BUILT 1923 - 2015

ST FILE PHOTO ST FILE PHOTO PHOTO: GEORGE GASCON BT FILE PHOTO 1963 1976 2001 2006 Mr Lee speaking at an election rally in Fullerton Square. Sitting behind him is then National Development Minister Lim Mr Lee tackled the topic of leadership succession during this election rally in Fullerton Square, saying the real issue Mr Lee, who had by this time become Senior Minister, speaking at an election rally at Block 503, Tampines Central, to Mr Lee celebrating after he and his team retained Tanjong Pagar GRC on Nomination Day following a walkover. With Kim San (centre). The PAP won a resounding victory in independent Singapore’s first elections held on Sept 21, 1963. facing Singapore was: What happens when the present leadership is gone? lend his support to the PAP team contesting in Tampines GRC. him are his fellow MPs (from left, in white) Baey Yam Keng, Indranee Rajah and Sam Tan.

“I prepared myself for the possi- The makings of a leader bility of failure, for the possibility of being able to live with failure. In Lee has strong views about what other words, if you want a soft life, makes a good and effective leader, better not get into this. what qualities are important and “So I led a pretty disciplined life; will make a difference to the way a if the worst came to the worst, I country is run. could survive. I don’t need caviar “You need, besides determina- for breakfast, or for dinner, or for tion, all the other attributes that supper. I can live on soya beans. I will push a project along. You must can live quite frugally if I need to. have application, you must be pre- “It became a way of remoulding pared to work hard, you must be my life in a direction or in a way prepared to get people to work with which would withstand a sharp at- you. tack on it. “Especially for political leaders, “Even today, I would still drive you’ve got to have people work for my car in the Istana grounds. If to- you and work with you. You’ve got morrow I have no driver, I can just to enthuse them with the same fire pick up my car and drive. Occasion- and the same eagerness that pushes ally, on a Sunday, I drive myself out- you along. side the Istana. “I think that’s a very big factor “I carry my own bag as a matter in leadership: At the end of the day, of principle, because otherwise, for you must also have idealism to suc- 30, 40 years, with everybody push- ceed, to make people come with ing chairs for you, your limbs will you. You must have that vision of atrophy. what is at the bottom of the rain- “And I was very keen that that bow you want to reach. shouldn’t happen to my children, “But you must have a sense of re- that nobody pushed chairs for ality... to feel when this vision is them. If a ball fell down and the Is- not practical, that it will ruin us. tana boy wanted to pick it up, I “But a leader without the vision, would stop him and say, ‘No, that’s the idea to strive to improve things, PHOTOS: COURTESY OF THE LEE FAMILY, GEORGE GASCON his ball. Ignore him. He will go to is no good. Then you’ll just stay A LIFE IN SERVICE the drain and pick it up.’ They had put, you won’t progress.” to learn that, and I think they have A young Mr Lee (above) at Assembly House, which is now known as Old Parliament House, in He also saw the importance of benefited from it.” December 1958, and nearly 40 years later, in his office (right) in the Istana Annexe in 1995, when he reading and exchanging views with Politics also meant he had to had become Senior Minister. experts. give up a potentially well-paying ca- “You must read. It’s one way of reer as a lawyer, which one of his getting information. But you’ve got to read what’s relevant, not only brothers went into. what you’re interested in. “When I decided to go into poli- “My wife reads Jane Austen. She tics, Bashir Mallal, the man who was a student of English language ran the Malayan Law Journal, came and literature so she likes to read to see me. He wasn’t a lawyer, but books in which she had found joy he was a lawyer’s clerk and he knew as a student. a lot about law. Had there been “I wouldn’t read Jane Austen, night courses, he would have been not because I don’t admire her a very good lawyer. His son and I style, but because I would not have were schoolmates, so he knew me the time. as a teenager. He liked me. “I suppose there are times when “I was doing well then as a law- I get so tired and browned off with yer in Laycock and Ong – ’54, ’55 – certain problems, I want to take my but I was getting involved in poli- ‘I did tics, all those unions and clan asso- mind off them, so I’ll read some- thing totally different, about South ciations. American tribes or whatever. “He said to me, ‘Make your “Occasionally, I would read lit- name at the law first and make tle biographies or autobiographies. your fortune, then go into politics’, There’s one about an English lady which was what people of his gener- in Kashgar. My wife would have ation did. That was conventional read it, she’d say, “Oh, this is inter- wisdom. You make a name at the esting!” It’s a totally different law, you make your fortune, then world. It transports me for one, two you go into Congress politics, as in my best’ hours to a different world. India. “Unless the book is riveting, I “He didn’t understand that don’t read it from cover to cover. something dramatic had happened I’ll read it and if I see something to my generation, that making a else, I’ll pick it up. fortune, playing safe, doesn’t add “You must not overlook the im- up when the system is wrong. The following is an extract from the book Lee portance of discussions with knowl- “I was dead set against the sys- edgeable people. I would say that is tem. But going into politics meant Kuan Yew: The Man And His Ideas, published in much more productive than absorb- a hazardous, peril-fraught career. ing or running through masses of “It’s not a career, it’s a vocation. 1998, in which Mr Lee reveals details about his documents. You’re taking a plunge, no return. “Because in a short exchange, And if you fail, you pay for it with personal life in his own words you can abstract from somebody your life. The communists, if they who has immense knowledge and fix you, they fix you good and prop- experience the essence of what he er.” had gained. But, he admits, he had the luxu- “In a one-hour exchange over ry of allowing his convictions to dinner with some people who are rule his decision as his wife, Kwa Han Fook Kwang, Warren One of them, Sri Temasek, is the tographs decorate his table, no per- His shirts are well-pressed history of modern Singapore? Who something is worth doing. If it’s What others think of him – “So when I say ‘please don’t do knowledgeable in certain fields, Geok Choo, was herself a successful Fernandez and Sumiko Tan official residence of the prime min- sonal mementoes line his walls. though well-worn, and he wears a is the person behind the personali- not worth doing, well, I’m not pre- many commentators have had a that’, you do it, I have to punish you get the hang of a particular lawyer. ister of Singapore, though no prime He sits behind a desk, his back to windbreaker, usually beige, when ty Singaporeans regard with awe, re- pared to spend the time over it, to field day writing about him, and you because I was not joking when I have never been problem.” “My great advantage was I have minister has ever lived in it. a computer. A low cabinet next to he is in the office. spect, love, fear or hate? make the effort. Then I just coast coffee-shop gossip about his life I said that. And when I punish, it’s Four thirty on a Saturday afternoon a wife who could be a sole bread- How would he describe himself? along, it doesn’t matter whether it constantly hovers in the air – is wa- to punish publicly. I can live frugally and the Istana is quiet, save for the There is also the Istana Annexe, it is stacked with books and files. At 74, his hair is white. overconcerned or obsessed with winner and bring the children up. How does he see his 40 years of po- succeeds or doesn’t succeed, it’s of ter off a duck’s back. steady, sleepy sound of cicadas Istana Villa and Istana Lodge. A wood-panelled wall camou- The once wiry black mop has “And people will know the next That was my insurance policy. litical life? What is his role now? no consequence. He has always relished a fight opinion polls or popularity When he decided to enter politics snuggled deep in the trees on the The main Istana building houses flages the door to the room where thinned considerably over the time, if you want to do that when “Without such a wife, I would the president’s office, while the Is- his two secretaries work. years, accentuating a broad, high What is his family life like? And “But if I decide that something with his critics. He puts it this way: he said ‘no, don’t do it’, you must in 1955, Lee knew that he had to have been hard-pressed. To be fair, sloping lawns. is worth doing, then I’ll put my “I have never been overconcerned polls. I think a leader who is, is prepare himself for a life of uncer- The Istana, Malay for “palace”, tana Annexe serves as the prime A teak table for eight stands 4m forehead under which small, pierc- what are his dreams and fears? be prepared for a brutal encounter. I was able to make these decisions minister’s office. from his desk, a jade dragon jar in ing eyes stare. Lee revealed his personal life in heart and soul into it. I’ll give every- or obsessed with opinion polls or “What the crowd thinks of me tainty. He set about this in a charac- because I had this fall-back posi- stands on what was once part of a thing I’ve got to make it succeed. popularity polls. I think a leader a weak leader. If you are On the second floor of the An- the middle. His face is pink in tone, the skin these interviews with the authors, from time to time, I consider total- teristically practical manner. tion, I was insured.” massive nutmeg estate belonging “So I would put my strength, de- who is, is a weak leader. nexe, all is busy on this humid after- Lee works in this office six days mostly unlined, though tiny creas- weaving in events that took place ly irrelevant... The whole ground “When I went in, I had to be to a British merchant named termination and willingness to see “If you are concerned with whe- concerned with whether your comfortable with my own self, that noon. a week, from about 10 in the morn- es criss-cross the skin on his eyelids. 40 years ago as if they had hap- can be against, but if I know this is I would do a lot for a Charles Robert Prinsep. my objective to its conclusion. ther your rating will go up or I can live with failure. And failure Plainclothes security officers ing to 6.30 in the evening, when he His nails are neatly trimmed. pened only yesterday. right, I set out to do it, and I am rating will go up or down, then In 1867, Governor Harry Ord, “Whether I can succeed or not, down, then you are not a leader. means it has failed, the commu- friend, but ... puts his work aside for his daily ex- who was in charge of Singapore tread the narrow carpeted corri- Even in a private setting, he is a that’s another matter – but I will You are just catching the wind... quite sure, given time, as events un- you are not a leader. You are nists have won and I’m in deep from 1867 to 1873, acquired the dors, buzzing each other periodical- ercise in the Istana grounds. forceful personality. His facial ex- I have to be taken give everything I’ve got to make “You will go where the wind is fold, I will win over the ground... trouble. As prime minister, he has had to land and built Government House ly over their walkie-talkies. He has been known to come pression changes quickly and his seriously sure it succeeds. blowing. And that’s not what I am “My job as a leader is to make just catching the wind... You “Either I have to flee, or they take tough action against friends. on it. In a brightly lit room, a secretary back to the office on Sundays and hands often chop the air to empha- “If I’ve got to get good people, I in this for. sure that before the next elections, will brainwash me, break me. I When President Devan Nair, a The stately white building, a works at her computer, one ear public holidays. sise a point. His voice rises and falls Asked to describe himself, Lee is get good people. If I’ve got to “Between being loved and being enough has developed and dis- “ don’t think they will just kill me be- long-time ally, was found misbe- will go where the wind is mix of Ionic, Doric and Corinthian peeled to an intercom linking her He is about 1.8m tall, and slim. according to his emotions. careful and takes his time to answer change tack, I will change tack. But feared, I have always believed closed itself to the people to make cause by that time, I would have be- having because of alcoholism in orders, was constructed by Indian to an adjoining office where Lee His trousers, which are usually in He is quick to show impatience, the question. the objective is the same. The pres- Machiavelli was right. If nobody is it possible for me to swing them blowing. And that’s not what I come a prominent fellow. They 1985, for example, he had to be re- convicts from Bencoolen in Sumat- Kuan Yew works. light hues, are loose, and he tugs at and slow to smile. He has never suf- “I would say that I’m very deter- entation may change... If you have afraid of me, I’m meaningless. around. That’s the business of a want to use me like they used Hen- moved from office. ra. It is an L-shaped room with an the waistband frequently. fered fools lightly. mined when I set out to do some- decided something is worth doing, When I say something, to make it leader – not to follow the crowd. am in this for. ry Pu Yi, the last emperor. They Then, in 1986, he let the law Over the years, other structures attached bathroom. It is free of per- He is at least 10kg lighter than Who is this man who, more thing. you’ve got to remove all obstacles easier for me to govern, I have to be That’s a washout. The country will brainwash you and break you. And were added to the grounds. sonal paraphernalia. No family pho- when he was in his 40s. than anyone else, has shaped the “First, I’ve got to decide whether to get there.” taken very seriously. go down the drain!” MR LEE KUAN YEW, on public opinion I knew all that! Continued on >>Page 22 22 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times the sunday times SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 23

THE SINGAPORE HE BUILT 1923 - 2015

From >>Page 21 pointed him and they disagreed, MEETING they could withhold support and take its course when National De- he would not succeed... THE PEOPLE velopment Minister Teh Cheang “Having seen what went wrong, Mr Lee greeting the crowd at the Wan was discovered to be accept- particularly in the communist University Cultural ing bribes. countries, and even in Britain, Centre of the “Let me put it in a simple way. I where Churchill handed over to An- National University would do a lot personally for a thony Eden, Eden failed and Mac- of Singapore before friend, provided what we set out to- millan picked it up. the National Day gether to do is not sacrificed. We “I did not believe that if I ap- Rally speech set out to get this place up. pointed the leader, they would give delivered by then “If I sacrifice that now, we are do- him the same wholehearted sup- Prime Minister Goh ing harm to what we’ve been trying port. So I forced them to decide Chok Tong on Aug to do; that cannot be done. amongst themselves. I had said to 19, 2001. “But if you need a hundred thou- them, ‘Look, my assessment is as sand dollars, I’ll sign it out of my follows.’ own resources or raise the money. “This was after the 1984 elec- Good luck to you. tions. I watched them run the elec- “And that’s a different matter, tions and I watched their press con- that’s a personal relationship. But ferences. I said the most decisive that personal relationship cannot leader was Tony Tan. He would say be transmuted into a concession ‘yes or no’ and he would stick to it. that will jeopardise state interests. “Goh Chok Tong would try to “That cannot be done because please you. You can see him in a that’s what we’re trying to establish press conference, even today. If he – a system where people act in ac- sits back and talks to his Cabinet, cordance with certain principles. then he comes out with a firm posi- “The purpose is not just to be tion, after long discussion. But if righteous. The purpose is to create a you engage him in a press confer- system which will carry on because ence, you might get him to make it has not been compromised. I some concessions. didn’t do that just to be righteous “You will never get Tony Tan to about Teh Cheang Wan. But if I do that. You won’t get me to do had compromised, that is the end that. You can talk to me till the of the system.” cows come home; if I have decided that this is no go, it is no go. Stepping aside “You may be unhappy, but I am quite convinced, after six months, On Nov 28, 1990, Lee handed over maybe after six years, you will the reins of government to Goh know that I was right. Chok Tong. The event was tele- “But he (Goh) has one advan- vised, and many observed that he tage – he has their support. They’ve looked emotional. got to support him because they Since then, there has also been elected him. And I think that that talk about whether he has really re- was a wise move. I made it public to linquished power and whether his let people know that the choice influence behind the scenes has di- was that of his colleagues. minished. “There was a reason and method To him, all this misses the mark behind what people thought was a completely. Those who indulge in casual passing of judgment. I was se- such idle speculation, he said, do riously placing the weight on the not understand what his stepping shoulders of his colleagues. They aside as prime minister meant to have worked with me, I have point- him and the country. ed out this is right, that is wrong. “I had prepared for it for a long “I thought at that time that time, so I was impatient for it to Deng Xiaoping made a mistake get- take place... The Western press, ting rid of Zhao Ziyang. Maybe he they write up these things project- had compelling reasons, I don’t ing their reactions into me, that to know... must have been powerful give up power was a disastrous loss reasons. After working with a man of authority and so on. Whereas for 30, 40 years, why knock him my approach was totally different. down like that?” “I had a job to do. I had come to Does he miss being the prime the conclusion by about ’76 that minister? my most important job was to get a “Frankly no. Supposing I’m team that could carry on the work, prime minister, I have to attend to otherwise we would fail... all the day-to-day problems, I’ve “So I spent a long time hunting got to go to all these conferences, for good men, working out a sys- Asean summit, Apec, visit so many tem that will produce a team of countries. good men, comparable, at least as “I have done all that for so long. competent as what I had in place. What’s the point of it? I have out- “They may not be as tough and grown it. I don’t hanker to go to an tough-minded, or as imaginative or Asean summit or an Apec summit, ST FILE PHOTOS creative because that’s in the luck or to have a state visit to America or of the draw. But they must be able Britain. to run the place. They must first “I’ve been through all that. I know the problems. So we set out have been the guest of honour at headhunting. formal dinners, state visits – from “I set the target at 1988, when I President Johnson to Nixon, to would be 65, believing that the Ford to Reagan and Bush. Well, sooner I give up, the younger I will that’s enough! be and the more active I can be to “The prime minister has to work make sure that the team succeeds. with Clinton. It’s not my job. He’s I’ll be around to make sure that the a younger man. Supposing I were team can succeed. The later I give the prime minister and I had to up, the older and slower I will be, deal with Clinton, I would find it the more risky its success. quite an effort dealing with a Viet- “When ’88 came, Chok Tong nam War generation, a man who wasn’t confident of taking over was against the Vietnam War. from me and dealing with our im- “I was for the Vietnam War and mediate neighbours, Suharto and had encouraged the President of Mahathir. He felt he would be at a the United States, both Johnson disadvantage. and then Nixon.” “So he said, ‘Better give me two On his role as senior minister years; meanwhile I can get a feel of and his life now, Lee sees himself as the job.’ Meanwhile, I had been a guardian to the younger team run- passing over more and more of the ning Singapore. work to him. And I said, ‘What do “At 70-plus, what do I need? PHOTO COURTESY OF THE LEE FAMILY you think? What’s your view?’, Time to reflect. I need enough to WHEN IN ROME... pushing him to make decisions and keep me engaged and interested in Mr Lee watching his wife, Madam Kwa Geok Choo, tossing a coin into the then supporting him. Or if I dis- life. Trevi Fountain in Rome, Italy, in April 1988. agreed, I would explain the rea- “What is it I want to do? What sons. can I best do with the balance of “So when 1990 came, he wanted my time? I don’t know how much me to stay on for the 25th anniver- time I’ve got left. If, let’s say, I have sary of Singapore’s independence, another five or 10 years – if I am for a sentimental reason, 1965 to lucky, and am like my father more there now. There was a deep ravine Would he live life differently if 1990. So I finished my term in Au- than like my mother, who died on the side with iron waterpipes. he had to do it all over? gust and he was ready to take over when she was 74. But it’s 10 years And on a very rainy day – this was “Among those of my genera- by November, after I’d tidied up in which my energy levels will be in ’51 – I was going to play golf at tion, very few are alive, very few the Island Club. some odds and ends. declining, year by year. have been as fortunate as I have “The car just skidded and then “My job after that was to make “What I’d like to do now is to been, very few have taken the risks rolled over two times, but landed sure that an error which is avoida- give this Government the benefit I have taken and survived. Why do on soft grass and soft earth! ble because of my experience of my experience in avoiding mis- I want to live my life all over again? “If I had hit that pipe, that takes. “A golf pro once demonstrated a should not be committed if I can TAKING A BACK SEAT AT THE PARADE would have been the end of both of help it. I think the team in place is “I can’t tell them what to do as trick shot. He took an egg, put it on Then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, Deputy Prime Ministers Lee Hsien Loong and Tony Tan Keng Yam, and ministers of state lining up to take Then Senior Minister Lee watching the 2001 National Day Parade from the VIP lounge in the National Stadium. us, and my wife was expecting her a tee and he took a sand wedge. functioning. And I believe, without their great achievements, their photographs as Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew watches from a corner. first child then. So I think it was de- me, it can function as well. That is a great breakthroughs. That’s for And he said, ‘I’ll hit that tee, snap it liverance. and the egg will drop on the grass triumph! them to work out with younger Sin- “Life has an unfair, unpredicta- “The Western correspondents gaporeans. But I know that certain unbroken.’ And he did it. ble quality about it and you must “He snapped a tall wooden tee don’t understand that this is a com- things are sure paths to trouble, so – they derive great strength and nothing to do with God. It is a ques- comfort from their religion. take it as it comes. and the egg dropped down unbro- pletely different approach to the avoid them. I’ve been a lucky man Lee Kuan Yew: The Man And His Ideas tion of faith, the belief that some- “But then, that’s not what I problem of succession. For him and “It’s not by accident that we got “They do not believe that this is ken. I wanted to see how actually it thing is right and they’re going to would have thought if you had was done. I thought he turned the his team to fail, it’s my failure. here. Every possible thing that Lee describes himself as an agnos- the end of the world. Their behav- was the first book that tried to capture do it. asked me when I was 30 years old. blade, so the blade snapped the tee, “I brought this team together. If could have gone wrong, we had tic, but he appreciates that there are iour and their hopes do not end “So if you ask me, what is my the essence of Mr Lee and his ideas Now it’s a different perspective. and did not touch the egg. they succeed, it is I who brought tried to pre-empt. That’s how we those who regard religion as a main with this life. That gives them enor- faith, I’ll say, well, I believe certain All I can say is, I did my best. How many of my generation are “So I said, ‘Do that again.’ He about the success. It’s a very serious got here, that’s why we have sub- pillar of life. Others, like himself, mous reserves of stamina and seren- things are worth doing and let’s do that shaped Singapore. alive, never mind being fit and mo- said, ‘No, I may not be as lucky the business, of ensuring the continua- stantial reserves. are guided by certain personal be- ity of mind. it... People are made that way.” This was the job I undertook, I bile and still compos mentis?” second time.’ tion of good government.” “Because if we don’t have re- liefs. “I would not dismiss religion as Would he describe himself as a An e-book extracting parts of the book Lee said his greatest personal “I think I will give you that an- It was for this reason, he says, serves, the moment we run into “I was brought up as an ancestor so much superstition. The commu- happy man? did my best and I could not achievement is his family. swer. I may not be as lucky a sec- that he went public in 1988 to give trouble, who will lend you money worshipper, Taoist, Buddhist – the nists have failed in stamping out re- is now out on The Straits Times “Ask a man in his 70s like me “I’m very happy that I’ve got a ond time in so many things... All I an assessment of whom he thought when you’ve got no gold mines or have done more in the traditional Chinese family. If I visit- ligion because it is part of human what is happiness, and I would say, good, happy family. I’ve got a hap- could best take over from him. He oil fields? We’ve got nothing. ed a funeral wake of a Chinese fami- nature. Star E-books app. a certain serenity of mind, a certain can say is, I did my best. py marriage, I’ve got three children “This was the job I undertook, I had rated Tony Tan his first choice, “All we have is this functioning circumstances. What people ly, I would perform the necessary “I don’t think I have ever, in satisfaction with having done I’m very proud of, I can’t ask for It is FREE FOR DOWNLOAD did my best and I could not have even though Goh Chok Tong was organism which requires brains, rituals with joss sticks in respect. times of great danger or peril, gone things which were worth doing more. That’s my personal achieve- done more in the circumstances. then First Deputy Prime Minister. specialised skills put together in a think of it, I have to leave to “At home, after some years, down on my knees to pray, or gone To get the e-book: and in not having more than one’s ment.” “What people think of it, I have “When I went public to say, very intricate form, with inputs around the 1960s, we stopped the to the temple and hoped for some ■ Go to Apple App store on your iPad or Google Play Store on your Android normal share of tragedies. Of his political achievements, to leave to them. It is of no great ‘Look, this is my assessment’, I did from many nations and their ex- them. It is of no great rituals in memory of my grandfa- miracle. tablet or smartphone “Everybody goes through the va- he pointed to a thriving Singapore. that deliberately to make sure peo- perts in financial services, manufac- ther on certain days like Qing “I do not believe strength ■ Type “The Straits Times Star” to search for The Straits Times Star garies of life. I am fortunate that I “What I have to show for all my consequence. ple understood that this was an turing, tourism, all sorts of econom- consequence. What is of Ming, with the offerings, candles, comes, necessarily, from a belief in E-books app escaped death at the hands of the work is Singapore, and Singapore is “What is of consequence is, I did “ ■ Download it onto your iPad or Android device my best.” open exercise, that they, Goh’s ic activities put together. It’s not joss sticks. God. You must have some belief in Japanese, and death and injury in a still working. It would have been ■ You will find Lee Kuan Yew: The Man And His Ideas inside peers, had chosen him. easy to replicate. consequence is, I did my best. “If you ask me, ‘Is there a God?’, a philosophy, in an idea, in a con- nasty accident when my car turned better if we had Singapore as part of “In other words, having chosen “I consider this as the best contri- my answer is ‘I don’t know.’ But I cept. The app is designed to work on iPad devices running iOS 6 and above. over at Thomson Road, at Calde- a successful Malaysia. I still believe [email protected] him, they have to support him. I bution I can make, the most worth- MR LEE KUAN YEW, on whether he would live life differently do know that those who believe in “It is a question of faith which, It is not available on the iPhone. It is best viewed on tablets. cott Hill, near Radio Singapore. that, but it wasn’t possible, so that’s [email protected] had not appointed him. If I ap- while thing to do.” if he were to do it over God – like Hon Sui Sen and his wife in the case of the communists, had Because of its size, you might want to download it using a wifi connection. “It was a bad turn. It’s no longer that.” [email protected] 24 SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2015 the sunday times

1923 - 2015 He changed my life “I paid attention to how he was reacting. I went to one side. He seemed okay with it. Then I went to the other side. Still okay. Then I began circling him. When he went to the PHOTO: GEORGE GASCON toilet, one of the editors Mr Lee’s wife, Madam Kwa Geok Choo, watched as a makeup artist prepared him for his public appearance at the 2001 National Day Rally at University Cultural Centre who were interviewing in National University of Singapore. Known for her attention to detail, she once interrupted the taping of an interview to touch up his hair and makeup. him said I was moving too much and making too much noise. I told him, ‘But he The trusted photographer doesn’t seem to mind.’ He said, ‘Yeah, why is George Gascon, former ST photographer, was given unique access after gaining Mr Lee’s confidence that?’” MR GEORGE GASCON Raul Dancel “Who is he?” she asked her Philippines Correspondent host. In Manila Mr Lee told her: “This is George Gascon. He’s my photographer. He’s from the Philippines.” He did not crowd a room, bark in- Mr Gascon said: “I felt my pride structions or prance around. swelling, for someone so impor- And because he knew how to tant to introduce me to someone observe without intruding, Mr equally important.” George Gascon earned the privi- He said the freedom Mr Lee lege of gaining access to a man gave him allowed him to capture known for being exacting in all his some little-seen facets of the lead- affairs, Mr Lee Kuan Yew. er. For a meaningful photograph For seven years, as a photogra- can capture more than facial fea- pher with The Straits Times, Mr tures, it shows a man’s thoughts, Gascon recorded Mr Lee for posteri- he said. ty. Mr Gascon particularly remem- He witnessed unguarded mo- bered one shot where Mr Lee ments of tenderness: Mrs Lee clasped his cheeks with his palms. lovingly combing Mr Lee’s hair be- “You can feel his exasperation in fore a photo shoot. He was there that photo, at having to belabour a when Mr Lee hosted important PHOTO: GEORGE GASCON point, at trying to overcome stub- world figures, lingering on when After stepping down as Prime Minister, Mr Lee continued to work at the bornness with patience,” he said. all the other photographers had Istana, where he took meetings in his office (above), among other rooms. It was also the unguarded mo- been ushered out, prompting quiz- ments that he cherished. In a pho- zical looks. Who was this man to shoot for the first of Mr Lee’s with the camera and the Charles two-volume memoirs, Mr Gascon Bronson moustache? was invited to Mr Lee’s house. Mr Gascon joined The Straits He was asked to take a photo of Times in 1992. Three years later, Mr Lee in front of a computer, so he was asked to take pictures when that Singapore’s seniors could see Mr Lee was being interviewed for that they had nothing to fear from the book Lee Kuan Yew: The Man technology. And His Ideas. As they were preparing for the His brief was to go in, take a few shoot, Mr Gascon caught a glimpse shots and then head for the door. of Mrs Lee combing Mr Lee’s hair. Mr Lee was not known to be an It was a moment that Mr Gas- easy subject; the first photographer con dearly wished to capture. So assigned to the job had managed he took out his Leica, knowing the to get just 17 shots before being quiet shutter would not intrude in- told the session was over. to the tenderness. To his surprise, Mr Gascon end- Yet, even with her back to Mr ed up staying for two hours as Mr Gascon, Mrs Lee heard the clicking Lee spoke. of the camera. In an interview with The Sun- She said: “George, I heard that.” day Times last Thursday at his PHOTO: COURTESY OF GEORGE GASCON When Mr Lee learnt that Mr farm, south of Manila, where he Mr Lee with Mr Gascon and his wife, Sylvia. For about 20 minutes, he tried to Gascon was planning to leave has lived since retirement, the persuade them to stay on in Singapore instead of retiring in the Philippines. Singapore and retire in the Philip- 62-year-old paused to reflect on pines, he asked to see the photogra- what made Mr Lee trust him. pher. “I paid attention to how he was For about 20 minutes, Mr Lee reacting. met Mr Gascon and his wife, try- “I went to one side. He seemed ing to persuade them to stay on. okay with it. “But I had already made up my “Then I went to the other side. mind,” said Mr Gascon. Still okay. As parting advice, Mr Lee told “Then I began circling him. Mr Gascon to take good care of his “When he went to the toilet, hard-earned money. The advice one of the editors who were inter- has served Mr Gascon well. He viewing him said I was moving too placed about $100,000 of his Cen- much and making too much noise. tral Provident Fund savings in an “I told him, ‘But he doesn’t investment fund with DBS Bank. seem to mind.’ When that fund matured, he trans- “He said, ‘Yeah, why is that?’” ferred the money to a Philippine ac- said Mr Gascon. count, where it serves as a buffer At the end of the shoot, Mr Gas- against emergencies. con had used up 12 rolls of film of Mr Gascon now spends most of 36 shots each. his days at his 500,000 sq m farm, His boss told him: “You just in Cavite province’s Mendez town, earned your bonus.” a three-hour ride from Manila. He ST PHOTO: RAUL DANCEL He had been told to lug a tri- gets most of what he needs from pod, a strobe light and a flashgun, Mr Gascon feeding chickens at his farm in Cavite province’s Mendez town, a three-hour ride from Manila. He spends most of his days there now. the farm, spending no more than but Mr Gascon said he instinctive- $500 a month. ly knew that bursts of light and a “I’m at peace here,” he said. noisy shutter would get him sent much, George, for the wonderful colour would work best for a shoot, He was tending to his garden out faster than he could say pictures of my husband.” what was the ideal spot in the Is- when he heard the news of Mr “Cheese”. From that point on, Mr Gascon tana for group portraits of some of Lee’s death. Gathering the most All he took was a camera. The became “George”. the world’s most important men? fragrant herbs and most colourful During photo sprays, he would only lighting was sunlight. At official functions, Mr Lee flowers from his farm, he arranged be allowed to linger and he could would acknowledge Mr Gascon To keep his nerves steady, he move outside the security rope and them around a portrait of Mr Lee, thought of Mr Lee not as one of with a slight nod. He would be in- shoot from any angle he wanted. the one that eventually became a Singapore’s most powerful men, vited not just to the Istana but to When Ms Megawati Sukarnopu- book cover. but as a father or a grandfather. Mr Lee’s home in Oxley Road and tri, former Indonesian president, He lit a candle and said a prayer Mr Gascon said that when he to occasions as intimate as a family paid Mr Lee a courtesy call in 2000, for the man to whom he would al- was next invited to the Istana, Mrs birthday party. she noticed that everyone had ways be “my photographer”. Lee walked up to him. “So you’re Mr Lee’s office would often con- been led out of the room except for the photographer? Thank you very sult the photographer – what shirt one man. [email protected]