Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew has died, aged 91
LEE KUAN Yew, Singapore’s first Prime Minister, has died aged 91, triggering a flood of tributes to the man who oversaw the tiny city-state’s rapid rise from a British colonial backwater to a global trade and financial center.
US President Barack Obama described Lee, who ruled Singapore for three decades, as “a true giant of history” whose advice on governance and economic development had been sought by world leaders down the years.
Prime Minister David Cameron also paid his respects to Lee for “turning the country into one of the great success stories of our modern world”.
Lee had receded from public and political life over the past few years, but he was still seen as an influential figure in the government of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, his oldest son.
In his lifetime, Lee drew praise for his market-friendly policies but also criticism at home and abroad for his strict controls over the press, public protest and political opponents. The government has declared a period of national mourning until his funeral on Sunday. Lee’s family will hold a private wake in the next two days, then his body will lie in state.