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Messages to Lee Kuan Yew marking his death anniversary. Photo: AFP


Lee Kuan Yew

Siblings of Singapore PM fear for their safety, accusing him of harassment and trashing Lee Kuan Yewâs values

âWe feel big brother omnipresent. We fear the use of the organs of state against usâ

By Bhavan Jaipragas

14 Jun 2017 / UPDATED ON 6 Jul 2017
 The late Singaporean statesman Lee Kuan Yew, left, his sons Lee Hsien Loong (second left) and Lee Hsien Yang (second right), and daughter Lee Wei Ling (right). Photo: Straits Times

An open feud among the family of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong deepened on Wednesday after the premierâs two younger siblings said they feared for their safety because they felt their elder brother was using state organs to harass them.

The premier immediately fired back, slamming his siblings for issuing a statement âpublicising private family mattersâ. The Lees are the children of Lee Kuan Yew, Singaporeâs revered founding prime minister who died aged 91 in 2015 after a political career spanning over five decades.

The two younger siblings Lee Hsien Yang and Lee Wei Ling in their online statement early Wednesday had said the harassment they were facing was so grave that âHsien Yang feels compelled to leave Singaporeâ. âSince the passing of Lee Kuan Yew, on 23 March 2015, we have felt threatened by Hsien Loongâs misuse of his position and influence over the Singapore government and its agencies to drive his personal agenda,â the two younger siblings said in a Facebook statement.

âWe feel big brother omnipresent. We fear the use of the organs of state against us and Hsien Yangâs wife, Suet Fern,â they said in the six-page statement. It was titled âWhat has happened to Lee Kuan Yewâs values?â They added: âWe feel hugely uncomfortable and closely monitored in our own country. We do not trust Hsien Loong as a brother or as a leader. We have lost confidence in him.â Lee Wei Ling is a top neurologist, while her brother, Lee Hsien Yang, is a former military general who has held various corporate portfolios including a 12-year stint as chief executive of SingTel. He is currently chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore.

The premier said he was âdeeply saddened by the unfortunate allegations that they have made.â

âWhile siblings may have differences, I believe that any such differences should stay in the family...My siblingsâ statement has hurt our fatherâs legacy,â he said.

âSince my fatherâs passing in March 2015, as the eldest son I have tried my best to resolve the issues among us within the family, out of respect for our parents.â

The premier also took issue with claims by his siblings that he harboured political ambitions for his son Li Hongyi, describing that assertion as âabsurdâ.

He added: âAs my siblings know, I am presently overseas on leave with my family. I will consider this matter further after I return this weekend.â The feuding comes almost a year after Lee Wei Ling took to Facebook in April last year to accuse her brother of abusing his power and forming a political dynasty.

Her social media comments criticising her brother after their fatherâs death have given rise to intense public debate about a split in the Lee family, which remains widely respected in the tiny Southeast Asian city state.

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The elder Lee is widely recognised as the architect of Singaporeâs meteoric rise from developing status to one of Asiaâs most stable and affluent cities within one generation. He however faced criticism for his strongman style of governance during his 31 year tenure as prime minister from 1959 to 1990.

Lee Hsien Loong took over as premier from the elder Leeâs successor Goh Chok Tong in 2004.

The current premier has largely avoided sparring with his sister in public.

After her comments last year, he said was âdeeply saddenedâ. âThe accusations are completely untrue,â he said at the time.

Garry Rodan, who has written extensively about Singapore politics, said the public spat was ânot necessarily indicative of an intra-elite split beyond the Lee familyâ.

âHowever, claims by Lee Wei Ling and Lee Hsien Yang can potentially be used by the People Action Partyâs opponents and critics,â said Rodan, a politics professor at Murdoch University in Australia.

âExpressing fears about organs of the state being exercised against them and depicting the prime minister as an agent against meritocracy is hardly helpful for the PAP â irrespective of the veracity of such claims,â he added. The two younger siblings, the executors and trustees of the elder Leeâs will, said in their statement that they felt their brother wanted to go against their fatherâs expressed wishes on the fate of the family home after his death.

Lee in his will had ordered it to be demolished soon after his death or after Lee Wei Ling, who had been living with her father for years, moved out. In a 2011 interview with the Straits Times, Lee said he did not want the public to âtrudge throughâ his family home after he died. âIâve seen other houses, Nehruâs, Shakespeareâs. They become a shambles after a while,â he said. Lee first moved into the house after his marriage to his college sweetheart Kwa Geok Choo in 1950. Kwa died in 2010 at the age of 89. The younger siblings said that instead of following through with the will, the current premier was planning to preserve the house as that âwould enhance his political capitalâ. They said the preservation of the colonial-era bungalow â near the Orchard Road shopping district â would allow the premier to âinherit a tangible monument to Lee Kuan Yewâs authorityâ.

âWe are private citizens with no political ambitions. We have nothing to gain from the demolition of 38 Oxley Road [Lee Kuan Yewâs home], other than the knowledge that we have honoured our fatherâs last wish,â the two younger Lee siblings said.

Separately, Li Shengwu, one of Lee Hsien Yangâs sons, said on Facebook that âmy immediate family has become increasingly worried about the lack of checks on abuse of power.
âThe situation is now such that my parents have made plans to relocate to another country, a painful decision that they have not made lightly,â the Harvard University economics researcher wrote.

Lee Hsien Yang meanwhile told the Financial Times newspaper he had not decided where to move to.

âI have a long record of public service. It is heart-wrenching for me to leave this country. Itâs not something I would do lightly, if I didnât have reasons to do it,â he said.

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Premier Lee has previously said he had ârecused himself from all government decisionsâ involving the house, and personally wanted his fatherâs wishes to be honoured. In a statement issued late on Wednesday, the government reiterated this point.

Lee, who won a crushing election victory in a 2015 general election held months after his fatherâs death, is seen by observers as widely popular because of his convivial nature and extensive use of social media. The ruling Peopleâs Action Party holds 83 out of 89 parliamentary seats.

In his statement on Wednesday, Lee said âI will do my utmost to continue to do right by my parents.â

âAt the same time, I will continue serving Singaporeans honestly and to the best of my ability. In particular that means upholding meritocracy, which is a fundamental value of our society.â Bhavan Jaipragas
 

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