阅读李光耀 Lee Kuan Yew在小说之家的作品!!! | |||
李光耀李光耀 - 兴趣爱好
李光耀
新加坡前总理李光耀知识渊博，兴趣广泛。李光耀从小受英文教育，又努力学习华语和方言闽南话。尤其喜欢学习及背诵中国人的四字成语。喜欢跑步、游泳，爱喝中国茶。
李光耀对数学格外感兴趣。早在上大学时期，李光耀就专修过数学，从政后数学帮了他的大忙，无论是在国家经济的宏观决策上，还是在具体计划制定方面，他都要精心策划，精心计算。
李光耀在语言方面，也显示了出众的才华。他既精通英语，也懂马来语，还掌握了日语、泰米尔语。李
光耀的英文水平是许多人望尘莫及的，他不仅能快速阅读英文书籍，而且能用英文写作，用英文发表演说，30岁以后又开始学习华语。他能使用多种语言进行交流，这对于实行种族协调倒是至关重要的。也许很少有人知道，李光耀还特别喜欢生物学，他很善于观察各种生物的生活习惯。
李光耀对文艺也颇有兴趣，他会唱歌、跳舞，会玩多种乐器。在一次文艺晚会上，为了活跃会场气氛，他即席唱了一首客家山歌。令人特别惊讶的是，他竟能用英文把这首歌翻译出来。
李光耀 - 从政经历
1978年11月，邓小平出访新加坡，李光耀接机
1954年10月，李光耀与一些从英国回来的华人、当地受华文教育的左派学生和工会领袖成立人民行动党，参加次年举行的首次选举。这次选举中李光耀本人顺利当选立法议院议员，开始与新加坡的共产党合作争取独立。
1959年新加坡取得自治地位，在自治政府的首次选举中人民行动党成为立法议院第一大党，李光耀出任总理，此后李光耀一直希望能够与马来亚合并成立“大马来西亚”，以取得正式的独立，同时也可以为新加坡经济发展提供保障，最后还可以铲除在当地日渐得势的共产党活动。
1961年李光耀为首的反共份子与党内的亲共份子决裂，李光耀坚持新加坡应与
马来亚合并。1963年7月，李光耀在伦敦与马来亚政府达成协议，双方正式合并。合并后的马来西亚联邦政府与李光耀主导的新加坡政府采取行，逮捕了新加坡的多名共产党高层。但是合并后很快联邦政府与新加坡政府就在经济等多项政策上发生严重分歧，李光耀作为新加坡州长，在马来西亚国会倡导建立“马来西亚人的马来西亚”而不是马来人的马来西亚，引起首相东姑的不满。
辜汪会谈
1964年新加坡发生种族骚乱，李光耀政府指责马来西亚联邦政府试图推行“种族沙文主”，马来人在联邦内享有特殊待遇，并煽动新加坡的马来人反对当地华人政府，这最终导致了新加坡在1965年8月退出马来西亚联邦。
独立后李光耀积极推动经济改革与发展，成功使新加坡在三十年内发展成为亚洲最发达的国家之一，在其任内推 动了开发裕廊工业园区、创立公积金制度、成立廉政公署、进行教育改革等多项政策。今天的新加坡的政府以高效、廉洁而闻名，人民生活水平较其他亚洲国家为高。
1990年李光耀辞去总理职务，但是留任内阁资政至今。此外，根据2003年首次披露的新加坡政府投资公司董事会，李光耀其实卸任总理后就一直担任着该公司的董事长职务。该公司负责管理新加坡的政府外汇储备，却一直是该国最神秘的公司。他始终提倡“亚洲价值观”，认为亚洲国家不需要完全依照西方的价值观行事。李光耀因此也一直对西方国家对他专制的批评不加理会，认为西方民主不能强加给亚洲人民。
李光耀 - 家庭简介
子女情况
李光耀与妻子柯玉芝共育有三个子女：长子李显龙后来成为新加坡总理，长媳何晶现任新加坡官方最重要的投资控股公司--淡马锡控股公司总裁；女儿李玮玲在陈笃生医院全国脑神经学院担任副主管；次子李显扬任新加坡电信公司总裁。
爱妻逝世
新加坡政府2010年10月2日晚对外宣布，新加坡内阁资政李光耀的夫人柯玉芝当天逝世，享年89岁。新加坡政府的新闻稿说，柯玉芝于新加坡当地时间2日下午5点40分“在家中安然离世”。柯玉芝的葬礼将于6日举行。柯玉芝2008年5月曾患中风，被送往医院接受治疗，当时她的病情严重，经过脑部扫描结果发现“右脑大量出血”。
李光耀 - 个人荣誉
李国章，李光耀、陈佳洱、池田大作、田家炳
作为新加坡的总理，在这个头衔之下，李光耀不仅发起了反对随地吐痰、嚼口香糖、喂养鸽子的运动，还禁止乱扔垃圾、在公共场所吸烟和说粗话脏话，并制定了严格的法律。他还强烈推广了几项他最为倡导的行为：微笑、礼貌待人以及在公共厕所主动冲水。正是由于他在指导公众行为方面所做的指令性研究，李光耀获得了1994年的搞笑诺贝尔奖心理学奖。
由于李光耀祖辈均为客家人，故其本人亦被视作为客家族裔的杰出代表之一。鉴于其对世界客家事务的影响和贡献，李光耀被特别聘请为新加坡最大的客属团体（组织）——新加坡茶阳(大埔)会馆的永远荣誉主席一职。
2000年12月7日，香港中文大学新加坡内阁资政李光耀颁发了荣誉博士学位。颁授学位仪式由香港中文大学校长李国章主持。中大在对李光耀的赞辞中，形容李光耀是近百年内最杰出的政治家之一。并形容他“以廉反贪”、“以法去乱”、“注重和平而避免冲突”、“协调种族而拘除仇视”、“带领新加坡走向富强之路”等。
2005年5月17日，上海复旦大学授予82岁的李光耀名誉博士的学位。复旦大学校务委员会主任秦绍德教授在授证仪式上说，授予李光耀名誉博士学位，是因为他对促进中新两国关系发展所作出的贡献。李光耀在授证仪式上作了题为《中国复兴中上海的角色》的主题演讲。他说，未来30年，中国和印度的崛起将会把世界的中心从大西洋转移到太平洋和印度洋。而中国的复兴仅靠经济力量是不够的，还需要文化等软力量的增强，“上海则有机会成为中国软力量的中心”。李光耀说，中国复兴在取得经济发展的巨大成就的同时，也要通过复兴重现中国文化的辉煌，“打造一个21世纪版的中国文明”。
香港杜莎夫人蜡像馆立有一尊李光耀的蜡像（制作年代不详）。
李光耀 - 人物评价
蒋经国and李光耀夫妇
李光耀在新加坡有很高威望，在国际上也享有美誉，多位政坛名人如撒切尔夫人、基辛格对他廉明、高效率的政府表示赞赏。但是也有很多西方舆论指责新加坡没有足够的自由，政治上并不民主，文化发展因政治需要而备受压抑。
李光耀本人的两个儿子都在政府中担任重要职务，大儿子李显龙为新加坡现任总理，小儿子李显扬曾任最大国营企业新加坡电信（淡马锡控股旗下）的总裁兼CEO（2007年4月1日卸任）。女儿李玮玲在陈笃生医院全国脑神经学院担任副主管；李显龙的妻子何晶在2002年出 任政府财政部的资金管理公司淡马锡控股的董事后，著名的财经媒体Bloomberg发表文章影射该项任命是“为满足李氏家族利益或某种与嘉惠李氏家族利益有关的腐败动机”，遭到李光耀的驳斥并于以控告。可预期地，李光耀获得最终的胜诉，但是此类批评依然存在。2004年9月，李光耀之子李显龙接任总理后，英国《经济学家》杂志再度发表文章，指责新加坡政治中存在的裙带关系。李光耀威胁要诉诸法律，但后来该杂志刊登了公开的道歉信与赔偿。但是新加坡反对党指《经济学家》因在新加坡设有地区总部，因此新加坡的法律对此有司法管辖权，所以才迫使《经济学家》道歉。
李光耀
林清祥在打击政敌方面李光耀毫不手软，自独立后就一直维持有效的《国内安全法》授予政府在必要时“不经审判”即得以“无限期拘禁”危害国家安全的人士。一些早年曾与李光耀合作的新共领导人即因该法被拘禁20多年，其中最有名的政治犯是新共领袖林清祥。此外他透过司法手段打 压反对的声音，许多反对派因此被迫退出政坛或移民他国。在新加坡国内，虽然反对派的声音一直存在，却始终不能成为主流。
此外，还有很多国际媒体指责李光耀是个不折不扣的精英主义者，曾倡导大学毕业的女性应该与受同一教育水平的男子结婚，以确保他们的下一代也拥有“高智商”。这项政治宣传终因国内过大的反对声音（主要是来自这群选择独身的高学历女性）而作罢，李光耀本人却依然坚持其立场正确，并在其自传中引用剑桥大学教授的研究为佐证来支持自己的看法。
绝大多数新加坡人却还是尊重他对国家，尤其是在经济上的贡献。
李光耀 - 胸腔感染住院
2010年9月29号晚间，新加坡内阁资政李光耀，由于胸腔感染入院。
李光耀的助手说，可能是他出访回国后出席多项活动，太过劳累，医生正进一步诊察。助手又透露，李光耀周一回国后，不小心跌倒，扭伤了脚，也曾到医院检查。刚于两星期前87岁生辰的李光耀，08年九月时，曾出现心律不整，接受治疗后康复。李光耀曾经担任新加坡总理31年，1990年转为内阁资政后，仍然活跃於新加坡以至世界政坛，不时获邀与中国及美国等国家元首会面，交换地区及世界政局的看法。
As the co-founder and first secretary-general of the People's Action Party (PAP), he led the party to eight landslide victories from 1959 to 1990, oversaw the separation of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965 and its subsequent transformation from a relatively underdeveloped colonial outpost with no natural resources into a "First World", Asian Tiger. He has remained one of the most influential political figures in South-East Asia.
Singapore's second prime minister, Goh Chok Tong, appointed him Senior Minister in 1990. He currently holds the advisory post of Minister Mentor, created by his son, Lee Hsien Loong, when the latter became the nation's third prime minister in August 2004. With his successive ministerial positions over 50 years, Lee is also one of history's longest serving ministers.
Family background
In his memoirs, Lee refers to his immigrant background as a fourth-generation Chinese Singaporean: his Hakka great-grandfather, Lee Bok Boon (born 1846), emigrated from the Dapu county of Guangdong province to the Straits Settlements in 1862.
His elder son Lee Hsien Loong has been Prime Minister of Singapore since 2004.
The eldest child of Lee Chin Koon and Chua Jim Neo, Lee Kuan Yew was born at 92 Kampong Java Road in Singapore, in a large and airy bungalow. As a child he was strongly influenced by British culture, due in part to his grandfather, Lee Hoon Leong, who had given his sons an English education. His grandfather gave him the name "Harry" in addition to his Chinese name (given by his father) Kuan Yew. He was mostly known as "Harry Lee" for his first 30 or so years, and still is to his friends in the West and to many close friends and family. He started using his Chinese name after entering politics. His name is sometimes cited as Harry Lee Kuan Yew, although this first name is seldom used in official settings. Lee and his wife Kwa Geok Choo were married on 30 September 1950. His wife passed away on 2 October 2010 in her sleep. They have two sons and one daughter.
Several members of Lee's family hold prominent positions in Singaporean society, and his sons and daughter hold high government or government-linked posts. His elder son Lee Hsien Loong, a former Brigadier General, has been the Prime Minister since 2004. He is also the Deputy Chairman of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC), of which Lee himself is the chairman. Lee's younger son, Lee Hsien Yang, is also a former Brigadier General and is a former President and Chief Executive Officer of SingTel, a pan-Asian telecommunications giant and Singapore's largest company by market capitalisation (listed on the Singapore Exchange, SGX). Fifty-six percent of SingTel is owned by Temasek Holdings, a prominent government holding company with controlling stakes in a variety of very large government-linked companies such as Singapore Airlines and DBS Bank. Temasek Holdings, in turn, is run by Executive Director and C.E.O. Ho Ching, the wife of Lee Hsien Loong. Lee's daughter, Lee Wei Ling, runs the National Neuroscience Institute. Lee's wife, Kwa Geok Choo, used to be a partner of the prominent legal firm Lee & Lee.
Early life
Lee was educated at Telok Kurau Primary School, Raffles Institution (where he was a member of the 01 Raffles Scout Group), and Raffles College (now National University of Singapore). His university education was delayed by World War II and the 1942-1945 Japanese occupation of Singapore. During the occupation, he operated a successful black market business selling tapioca-based glue called Stikfas. Having taken Chinese and Japanese lessons since 1942, he was able to find work transcribing Allied wire reports for the Japanese, as well as being the English-language editor on the Japanese Hodobu (報道部 — an information or propaganda department) from 1943 to 1944.
After the war, he briefly attended the London School of Economics before moving to Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, where he studied law, graduating with Double Starred First Class Honours. (He was subsequently made an honorary fellow of Fitzwilliam College.) He returned to Singapore in 1949 to practise as a lawyer in Laycock and Ong, the legal practice of John Laycock, a pioneer of multiracialism who, together with A.P. Rajah and C.C. Tan, had founded Singapore's first multiracial club open to Asians.
Early political career – 1951 to 1959
Pre-People's Action Party (PAP)
Lee's first experience with politics in Singapore was his role as election agent for John Laycock under the banner of the pro-British Progressive Party in the 1951 legislative council elections. However, Lee eventually realised the party was unlikely to win mass support, especially from the Chinese-speaking working class. This was especially important when the 1953 Rendel Constitution expanded the electoral rolls to include all local-born as voters, resulting in a significant increase in Chinese voters. His big break came when he was engaged as a legal advisor to the trade and students' unions, which provided Lee with a link to the Chinese-speaking, working-class world. Later on in his career, his People's Action Party (PAP) would use these historical links to unions as a negotiating tool in industrial disputes.
Formation of the PAP
On 12 November 1954, Lee, together with a group of fellow English-educated middle-class men whom he himself described as "beer-swilling bourgeois", formed the "socialist" PAP in an expedient alliance with the pro-communist trade unionists. This alliance was described by Lee as a marriage of convenience, since the English-educated group needed the pro-communists' mass support base while the communists needed a non-communist party leadership as a smoke screen because the Malayan Communist Party was illegal. Their common aims were to agitate for self-government and put an end to British colonial rule. An inaugural conference was held at the Victoria Memorial Hall, attended by over 1,500 supporters and trade unionists. Lee became secretary-general, a post he held until 1992, save for a brief period in 1957.
In opposition
Lee comprehensively won the Tanjong Pagar seat in the 1955 elections. He became the opposition leader against David Saul Marshall's Labour Front-led coalition government. He was also one of PAP's representatives to the two constitutional discussions held in London over the future status of Singapore, the first led by Marshall and the second by Lim Yew Hock, Marshall's hardline successor. It was during this period that Lee had to contend with rivals from both within and outside the PAP.
Lee's position in the PAP was seriously under threat in 1957 when pro-communists took over the leadership posts, following a party conference which the party's left wing had stacked with fake members. Fortunately for Lee and the party's moderate faction, Lim Yew Hock ordered a mass arrest of the pro-communists and Lee was reinstated as secretary-general. After the communist 'scare', Lee subsequently received a new, stronger mandate from his Tanjong Pagar constituents in a by-election in 1957. The communist threat within the party was temporarily removed as Lee prepared for the next round of elections.
Prime Minister, pre-independence – 1959 to 1965
Self-government administration – 1959 to 1963
In the national elections held on 1 June 1959, the PAP won 43 of the 51 seats in the legislative assembly. Singapore gained self-government with autonomy in all state matters except defence and foreign affairs, and Lee became the first Prime Minister of Singapore on 5 June 1959, taking over from Chief Minister Lim Yew Hock. Before he took office, Lee demanded and secured the release of Lim Chin Siong and Devan Nair, who had been arrested earlier by Lim Yew Hock's government. Lee faced many problems after gaining self-rule for Singapore from the British, including education, housing, and unemployment.
A key event was the motion of confidence of the government in which 13 PAP assemblymen crossed party lines and abstained from voting on 21 July 1961. Together with six prominent left-leaning leaders from trade unions, the breakaway members established a new party, the pro-communist Barisan Sosialis. At its inception it had popular support rivalling that of the PAP.
35 of the 51 branches of PAP and 19 of its 23 organising secretaries went to the Barisan Sosialis. This event was known as The Big Split of 1961. The PAP's majority was now 26-25 in the legislative assembly.
In 1961, the PAP faced two by-election defeats as well as the defections and labour unrest by leftists.
Lee's government was near collapse until the 1962 referendum on the issue of merger, which was a test of public confidence in the government.
Merger with Malaya, then separation – 1963 to 1965
Main article: Singapore in Malaysia
After Malayan Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman proposed the formation of a federation which would include Malaya, Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak in 1961, Lee began to campaign for a merger with Malaysia to end British colonial rule. He used the results of a referendum held on 1 September 1962, in which 70% of the votes were cast in support of his proposal, to demonstrate that the people supported his plan.
On 16 September 1963, Singapore became part of Malaysia. However, the union was short-lived. The Malaysian Central Government, ruled by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), became worried by the inclusion of Singapore's Chinese majority and the political challenge of the PAP in Malaysia. Lee openly opposed the bumiputra policy and used the Malaysian Solidarity Convention's famous cry of "Malaysian Malaysia!", a nation serving the Malaysian nationality, as opposed to the Malay race.
The 1964 race riots in Singapore followed, such as that on Muhammad's birthday (21 July 1964), near Kallang Gasworks, in which 23 people were killed and hundreds injured as Chinese and Malays attacked each other. It is still disputed how the riots started, and theories include a bottle being thrown into a Muslim rally by a Chinese, while others have argued that it was started by a Malay. More riots broke out in September 1964, as rioters looted cars and shops, forcing both Tunku Abdul Rahman and Lee Kuan Yew to make public appearances in order to calm the situation.
Unable to resolve the crisis, the Tunku decided to expel Singapore from Malaysia, choosing to "sever all ties with a State Government that showed no measure of loyalty to its Central Government". Lee was adamant and tried to work out a compromise, but without success. He was later convinced by Goh Keng Swee that the secession was inevitable. Lee signed a separation agreement on 7 August 1965, which discussed Singapore's post-separation relations with Malaysia in order to continue co-operation in areas such as trade and mutual defence.
The failure of the merger was a heavy blow to Lee, who believed that it was crucial for Singapore’s survival. In a televised press conference on television that day, he broke down emotionally as he formally announced the separation and the full independence of Singapore:
"For me, it is a moment of anguish. All my life, my whole adult life, I... I believed in Malaysian merger and unity of the two territories. You know that we, as a people are connected by geography, economics, by ties of kinship... It literally broke everything that we stood for.... Now, I, Lee Kuan Yew, as Prime Minister of Singapore, in this current capacity of mine do hereby proclaim and declare on behalf on the people and the Government of Singapore that as from today, the ninth day of August in the year one thousand nine hundred and sixty-five, Singapore shall be forever a sovereign democratic and independent nation, founded upon the principles of liberty and justice and ever seeking the welfare and happiness of the people in a most and just equal society."
On that same day, 9 August 1965, just as the press conference ended, the Malaysian Parliament passed the required resolution that would sever Singapore's ties to Malaysia as a state, and thus the Republic of Singapore was created. Singapore's lack of natural resources, a water supply that was beholden primarily to Malaysia and a very limited defensive capability were the major challenges that Lee and the Singaporean Government faced.
Prime Minister, post-independence – 1965 to 1990
In his biography, Lee stated that he did not sleep well, and fell sick days after Singapore's independence. Upon learning of Lee's condition from the British High Commissioner to Singapore, John Robb, British Prime Minister Harold Wilson expressed concern, in response to which Lee replied:
"Do not worry about Singapore. My colleagues and I are sane, rational people even in our moments of anguish. We will weigh all possible consequences before we make any move on the political chessboard..."
Lee began to seek international recognition of Singapore's independence. Singapore joined the United Nations (UN) on 21 September 1965, and founded the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on 8 August 1967 with four other South-East Asian countries. Lee made his first official visit to Indonesia on 25 May 1973, just a few years after the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation under Sukarno's regime. Relations between Singapore and Indonesia substantially improved as subsequent visits were made between Singapore and Indonesia.
Singapore has never had a dominant culture to which immigrants could assimilate even though Malay was the dominant language at that time. Together with efforts from the government and ruling party, Lee tried to create a unique Singaporean identity in the 1970s and 1980s—one which heavily recognised racial consciousness within the umbrella of multiculturalism.
Lee and his government stressed the importance of maintaining religious tolerance and racial harmony, and they were ready to use the law to counter any threat that might incite ethnic and religious violence. For example, Lee warned against "insensitive evangelisation", by which he referred to instances of Christian proselytising directed at Malays. In 1974 the government advised the Bible Society of Singapore to stop publishing religious materials in Malay.
Decisions and policie
Lee had three main concerns — national security, the economy, and social issues — during his post-independence administration.
National security
The vulnerability of Singapore was deeply felt, with threats from multiple sources including the communists and Indonesia with its Confrontation stance. As Singapore gained admission to the United Nations, Lee quickly sought international recognition of Singapore's independence. He declared a policy of neutrality and non-alignment, following Switzerland's model. At the same time, he asked Goh Keng Swee to build up the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and requested help from other countries, particularly Israel, for advice, training and facilities.
Government policie
Like many countries, Singapore was not immune to political corruption. Lee introduced legislation giving the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) greater power to conduct arrests, search, call up witnesses, and investigate bank accounts and income-tax returns of suspected persons and their families.
Lee believed that ministers should be well paid in order to maintain a clean and honest government. In 1994 he proposed to link the salaries of ministers, judges, and top civil servants to the salaries of top professionals in the private sector, arguing that this would help recruit and retain talent to serve in the public sector.
In the late 1960s, fearing that Singapore's growing population might overburden the developing economy, Lee started a vigorous 'Stop-at-Two' family planning campaign. Couples were urged to undergo sterilisation after their second child. Third or fourth children were given lower priorities in education and such families received fewer economic rebates.
In 1983, Lee sparked the 'Great Marriage Debate' when he encouraged Singapore men to choose highly-educated women as wives. He was concerned that a large number of graduate women were unmarried. Some sections of the population, including graduate women, were upset by his views. Nevertheless, a match-making agency Social Development Unit (SDU) was set up to promote socialising among men and women graduates. Lee also introduced incentives such as tax rebates, schooling, and housing priorities for graduate mothers who had three or four children, in a reversal of the over-successful 'Stop-at-Two' family planning campaign in the 1960s and 1970s. By the late 1990s, the birth rate had fallen so low that Lee's successor Goh Chok Tong extended these incentives to all married women, and gave even more incentives, such as the 'baby bonus' scheme.
Corporal punishment
Main article: Caning in Singapore
One of Lee Kuan Yew's abiding beliefs has been in the efficacy of corporal punishment in the form of caning. In his autobiography The Singapore Story he described his time at Raffles Institution in the 1930s, mentioning that he was caned there for chronic lateness by the then headmaster, D. W. McLeod. He wrote: "I bent over a chair and was given three of the best with my trousers on. I did not think he lightened his strokes. I have never understood why Western educationists are so much against corporal punishment. It did my fellow students and me no harm."
Lee's government inherited judicial corporal punishment from British rule, but greatly expanded its scope. Under the British, it had been used as a penalty for offences involving personal violence, amounting to a handful of caning sentences per year. The PAP government under Lee extended its use to an ever-expanding range of crimes. By 1993 it was mandatory for 42 offences and optional for a further 42. Those routinely ordered by the courts to be caned now include drug addicts and illegal immigrants. From 602 canings in 1987, the figure rose to 3,244 in 1993 and to 6,404 in 2007.
It was in 1994, with the intensely publicised caning, under that vandalism legislation, of the American teenager Michael Fay, that judicial caning came to the notice of the rest of the world.
School corporal punishment (for male students only) was likewise inherited from the British, and this is in widespread use to discipline disobedient schoolboys, still under 1957 legislation. Lee also introduced caning in the Singapore Armed Forces, and Singapore is one of few countries in the world where corporal punishment is an official penalty in military discipline.
Relations with Malaysia
Mahathir bin Mohamad
Lee looked forward to improving relationships with Mahathir bin Mohamad upon the latter's promotion to Deputy Prime Minister. Knowing that Mahathir was in line to become the next Prime Minister of Malaysia, Lee invited Mahathir (through the then President of Singapore Devan Nair) to visit Singapore in 1978. The first and subsequent visits improved both personal and diplomatic relationships between them. Mahathir asked Lee to cut off links with the Chinese leaders of the Democratic Action Party; in exchange, Mahathir undertook not to interfere in the affairs of Malay Singaporeans.
In June 1988, Lee and Mahathir reached an agreement in Kuala Lumpur to build the Linggui dam on the Johor River.
Senior Minister – 1990 to 2004
Lee Kuan Yew (middle) meets with U.S. Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen and Singapore's Ambassador to the U.S. Chan Heng Chee in 2000.
After leading the PAP to victory in seven elections, Lee stepped down on 28 November 1990, handing over the prime ministership to Goh Chok Tong. He was then the world's longest-serving Prime Minister.
This was the first leadership transition since independence.
When Goh Chok Tong became head of government, Lee remained in the cabinet with a non-executive position of Senior Minister and played a role he described as advisory. In public, Lee would refer to Goh as "my Prime Minister", in deference to Goh's authority. In practice, it is said, that Lee's opinions still carry much weight with the public and in the cabinet. He has continued to wield much influence in the country and is ready to use it when necessary; essentially, still maintaining power as an autocratic dictator. As he said in a 1988 National Day rally:
"Even from my sick bed, even if you are going to lower me into the grave and I feel something is going wrong, I will get up."
Lee subsequently stepped down as the Secretary-General of the PAP and was succeeded by Goh Chok Tong in November 1992.
Minister Mentor – 2004 to present
Since the early 2000s, Lee has expressed concern about the declining proficiency of Mandarin among younger Chinese Singaporeans. In one of his parliamentary speeches, he said: "Singaporeans must learn to juggle English and Mandarin". Subsequently, in December 2004, a one-year long campaign called 华语 Cool! (Huayu Cool!) was launched, in an attempt to attract young viewers to learn and speak Mandarin.
In June 2005, Lee published a book, Keeping My Mandarin Alive, documenting his decades of effort to master Mandarin, a language which he said he had to re-learn due to disuse:
"...because I don't use it so much, therefore it gets disused and there's language loss. Then I have to revive it. It's a terrible problem because learning it in adult life, it hasn't got the same roots in your memory."
In an interview with CCTV on 12 June 2005, Lee stressed the need to have a continuous renewal of talent in the country's leadership, saying:
"In a different world we need to find a niche for ourselves, little corners where in spite of our small size we can perform a role which will be useful to the world. To do that, you will need people at the top, decision-makers who have got foresight, good minds, who are open to ideas, who can seize opportunities like we did... My job really was to find my successors. I found them, they are there; their job is to find their successors. So there must be this continuous renewal of talented, dedicated, honest, able people who will do things not for themselves but for their people and for their country. If they can do that, they will carry on for another one generation and so it goes on. The moment that breaks, it's gone."
In November 2010, Lee's private conversations with US Deputy Secretary of State, James Steinberg, on 30 May 2009 were among the US Embassy cables leaked by WikiLeaks. In a US Embassy report classified as 'Secret', Lee gave his assessment of a number of Asian leaders and views on political developments in North Asia, including implications for nuclear proliferation. Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed deep concern about the leaks, especially when read out of context, and the need to protect confidentiality of diplomatic correspondence.
Legacy and memoir
Legacy
During the three decades in which Lee held office, Singapore grew from being a developing country to one of the most developed nations in Asia, despite its small population, limited land space and lack of natural resources. Lee has often stated that Singapore's only natural resources are its people and their strong work ethic. He is widely respected by many Singaporeans, particularly the older generation, who remember his inspiring leadership during independence and the separation from Malaysia.
On the other hand, many Singaporeans have criticized Lee as being authoritarian and intolerant of dissent, citing his numerous mostly successful attempts to sue political opponents and newspapers who express an unfavorable opinion. International media watchdog Reporters Without Borders has asked Lee, and other senior Singaporean officials, to stop taking libel actions against journalists
Memoir
Lee has written a two-volume set of memoirs: The Singapore Story (ISBN 0-13-020803-5), which covers his view of Singapore's history until its separation from Malaysia in 1965, and From Third World to First: The Singapore Story (ISBN 0060197765), which gives his account of Singapore's subsequent transformation into a developed nation.
Award
Lee has received a number of state decorations, including the Order of the Companions of Honour (1970), Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (1972), the Freedom of the City of London (1982), the Order of the Crown of Johore First Class (1984), the Order of Great Leader (1988) and the Order of the Rising Sun (1967).
Lee was awarded the Ig Nobel Prize in 1994.
In 2002, Lee was formally admitted to the Fellowship of Imperial College London in recognition of his promotion of international trade and industry, and development of science and engineering study initiatives with the UK.
In 2006, Lee was presented with the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.
In 2007, Lee was conferred an honorary Doctorate in Law at the Australian National University in Canberra, albeit amid protest from students and staff.
In October 2009, Lee was conferred the first Lifetime Achievement award by the U.S.-Asean Business Council at its 25th anniversary gala dinner in Washington, D.C.. In his tribute, former United States Secretary of State and 1973 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Dr Henry Kissinger said:
"He has become a seminal figure for all of us. I've not learned as much from anybody as I have from Mr Lee Kuan Yew. He made himself an indispensable friend of the United States, not primarily by the power he represented but by the quality of his thinking.
Meeting the U.S. President at the White House Oval Office a day later, President Barack Obama introduced him as:
"... one of the legendary figures of Asia in the 20th and 21st centuries. He is somebody who helped to trigger the Asian economic miracle."
On 15 November 2009, Lee was awarded the Russian Order of Friendship by President Dmitry Medvedev on the sidelines of APEC Singapore 2009.
On 29 April 2010, Lee was named to the TIME 100 list as one of the people who most affect our world.
Health
On 13 September 2008, Lee, then 84, underwent successful treatment for abnormal heart rhythm (atrial flutter) at Singapore General Hospital, but he was still able to address a philanthropy forum via video link from hospital. On 29 September 2010, he was hospitalized for a chest infection, cancelling plans to attend the wake of Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Balaji Sadasivan.
Controversie
Devan Nair
Devan Nair, the third President of Singapore and who was living in exile in Canada, remarked in a 1999 interview with the Toronto The Globe and Mail that Lee's technique of suing his opponents into bankruptcy or oblivion was an abrogation of political rights. He also remarked that Lee is "an increasingly self-righteous know-all", surrounded by "department store dummies". In response to these remarks, Lee sued Devan Nair in a Canadian court and Nair countersued. Lee then brought a motion to have Nair's counterclaim thrown out of court. Lee argued that Nair's counterclaim disclosed no reasonable cause of action and constituted an inflammatory attack on the integrity of the government of Singapore. However, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice refused to throw out Nair's counterclaim, holding that Lee had abused the litigating process and therefore Nair has a reasonable cause of action.
Defamation judgment
On 24 September 2008 the High Court of Singapore, in a summary judgment by Justice Woo Bih Li, ruled that the Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER) magazine (Hugo Restall, editor), defamed Lee and his son, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. The court found the 2006 article "Singapore's 'Martyr': Chee Soon Juan" meant that Lee Kuan Yew "has been running and continues to run Singapore in the same corrupt manner as T. T. Durai operated the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) and he has been using libel actions to suppress those who would question to avoid exposure of his corruption." The court sentenced FEER, owned by Dow Jones & Company (in turn owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp), to pay damages to the complainants. FEER appealed but lost the case when the Court of Appeal ruled in October, 2009 that the Far Eastern Economic Review did defame the country's founder Lee Kuan Yew and his son Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Secondary source
Barr, Michael D. 2000. Lee Kuan Yew: The Beliefs Behind the Man. Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press.
Datta-Ray, Sunanda K. 2009. Looking East to Look West: Lee Kuan Yew's Mission India
Gordon, Uri. 2000. Machiavelli's Tiger: Lee Kwan Yew and Singapore's Authoritarian regime
Josey, Alex. 1980. Lee Kuan Yew — The Crucial Years. Singapore and Kuala Lumpur: Times Books International.
King, Rodney. 2008. The Singapore Miracle, Myth and Reality. 2nd Edition, Insight Press.
Kwang, Han Fook, Warren Fernandez and Sumiko Tan. 1998. Lee Kuan Yew: The Man and His Ideas. Singapore: Singapore Press Holdings.
McCarthy, Terry (23 August 1999). "Lee Kuan Yew". Time Asia (Hong Kong).
Minchin, James. 1986. No Man is an Island. A Study of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.