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Dear Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Mrs Lee.
On behalf of the Eurasian Community and the Eurasian Association, I convey my heartfelt condolences to you and the entire Lee family on the passing of your father and our nation’s first Prime Minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew.
Mr Lee was a close friend of the Eurasian community. Apart from Mr E.W. Barker, who served as the first post-independence Law Minister and was also a good friend of Mr Lee, many of our Eurasian forefathers worked closely with Mr Lee and his pioneer team of cabinet ministers to establish various government institutions – the Police force, Military, Education, Civil Service and Diplomatic Service. Our pioneers such as Benjamin Sheares, Kenneth Byrne, Maurice Baker, Stanley Stewart, George Bogaars, Joe Conceicao, Herman Hochstadt and others played significant roles in the new government. They were attracted to serve by his visionary leadership and call to mission; many became his close friends. Many other Eurasians worked in government service, supporting Mr Lee and his team, and helped to build the foundations of the world class civil service we have today.
Perhaps one of Mr Lee’s greatest gifts to us was his firm belief in treating all races fairly and giving them a sense that Singapore belonged to all of us – Chinese, Malays, Indians, Eurasians and others – and not any one race in particular. He was committed to the idea of building a model multiracial society, quite unlike what he had seen in other countries or experienced as a student in the UK, or growing up in pre-independence Singapore. He was a pragmatic person who was able to understand the challenges that minority groups faced and yet the value that their diversity could bring to Singapore.
He led us to pledge ourselves as “one united people, regardless of race, language or religion”. Whilst he led us to become one Singaporean people, his philosophy was not to do this at the expense of our individual identities, resulting in the rich tapestry of cultures that makes up the Singapore fabric of today. It’s because of Mr Lee and his strong sense of justice, meritocracy and values that we have a cohesive and multi-ethnic society. It is a society where Singaporeans of all ethnicities don’t just live and work happily together but where we are able to discuss difficult and sensitive issues openly in a mature and constructive manner. This is an amazing achievement, especially when we look around and see the racial and religious strife in many other countries across the world.
In the Eurasian community, while we grieve the demise of a loved one it is also often a time for celebration, to celebrate the life and achievements of the one we have lost. So while we mourn the loss of Mr Lee, we should also remember to celebrate his greatest achievement and fruit of his lifelong passion – the success of Singapore.
Much has been said in the earlier tributes and in the last few days in the media about the many great contributions Mr Lee made to Singapore. We saw this also on the video that was shown earlier. Whilst many of us, especially those who are older, know most of this, it is a useful reminder of the difficult start that Singapore had and the challenges that Mr Lee and his pioneer team had to overcome. As many have said, he was a giant among men. It was his tremendous vision, capability and determination that led us out of adversity and into building the successful nation that Singapore is today.
For such a small country, Lee Kuan Yew and Singapore have an exceptionally strong brand. Not just because we have been successful economically but also because we are known for our integrity, the quality of our execution and our innovation. Singapore has challenged the norm in so many areas of economic development, urban planning, business and social development; and made it a success. Whenever I travel or meet with foreign visitors, the respect that Singapore commands world-wide makes me tremendously proud to be Singaporean. I’m sure this admiration is shared by the many tens of thousands of Singaporeans who have been queuing for hours over the last few days to pay their respects to Mr Lee.
It is probably apt that we are now at the cusp of our 50 years of nationhood; a significant milestone to reflect on the past and celebrate the success of Singapore. Whilst we should celebrate this success in Mr Lee’s honour, the best tribute we can pay him is to come together as one Singaporean people to ensure his legacy is well preserved and commit to building on this success for future generations.
There are many lessons we can learn from Mr Lee but there are two in particular that resonate with me.
He was a determined and passionate leader; the embodiment of courage as he overcame much adversity. He taught us to be bold; he showed us that if we were diligent, did our homework and worked hard, we could overcome any challenge.
He also thought us about love. The great love and mutual respect he had for the late Mrs Lee. He treated her as more than his equal; his greatest ally and life partner. This was a side of Mr Lee that most of us did know about until reading his memoirs. I was particularly touched to learn about how, when Mrs Lee was ill and bedridden, Mr Lee would make it a point to spend an hour or more every night to read to her the news and her favorite books. Even when he was travelling overseas, he would read to her via webcam. Few of us can live up to the kind of love and devotion that Mr Lee had for Mrs Lee.
As we bid our farewell to Mr Lee, I hope Prime Minister Lee and the Lee family will take comfort that this great man, a man of exceptional capability and intellect, is no longer shackled by his ailing physical body. He is now free, free to unite in spirit with Mrs Lee, the love of his life, which I am sure will make him happier than anything on earth.