September 8, 2025

#Lee Kuan Yew Memoirs

I first read the two volumes of Lee Kuan Yew memoirs (total 1,430 pages) when they were first published (1998/2000). I then re-read both the books from Dec last year…

I first read the two volumes of Lee Kuan Yew memoirs (total 1,430 pages) when they were first published (1998/2000). I then re-read both the books from Dec last year to Mar this year. The first read was exciting and informative, and the second read was familiar and insightful. And when I was studying for my MPA (Master in Public Administration) in Harvard in 2002/2003, I actually did a project/presentation on the political leadership of Lee Kuan Yew. It was very well received and I actually got a distinction out of that class!

The Singapore Story

The first volume starts and ends with the sudden independence of Singapore on 9 Aug 1965. Many people will remember the dramatic scene when Lee Kuan Yew met and broke down emotionally when he broke the news to the press in the morning of Singapore’s separation from Malaysia. He was in anguish as he felt that he had let down the many people in Malaya (including Singapore), Sabah and Sarawak. This was because these people had responded to his call for a “Malaysian Malaysia”. And with separation, this would not happen anymore.

This book reads like a history book as it tells both the stories of Singapore and that of Lee Kuan Yew from his birth in 1923 to the independence of Singapore in 1965. It recounts the battles against colonialists, communists and communalists that led to Singapore’s independence. It also gives us a vivid picture of how others viewed Lee Kuan Yew–determined, motivated, ambitious or even dangerous. The books also brings the reader into Lee Kuan Yew’s private life, his permanent bond with his wife, Kwa Geok Choo. Finally, Lee Kuan Yew also shares his insights into the men who shaped the times–Goh Keng Swee, Tunku Abdul Rahman, Harold Macmillan, etc. All these shaped his views and policies, which had a major impact on Singapore and the region.

From Third World to First–1965 to 2000

In the second volume, the stories of both Singapore and Lee Kuan Yew are told in a different manner–no more by chronology but by topics. It covers from 1965 when Singapore was firmly in the Third World (by all measures) to 2000 when Singapore was firmly in the First World (as it had the world’s fourth highest per capita income). It is further divided into three parts:

Part I. Getting the Basics Right

Here, Lee Kuan Yew details the extraordinary efforts it took Singapore in South East Asia to survive with just “a razor’s edge” to manoeuvre in. We also read how Lee Kuan Yew and his cabinet colleagues finished off the communist threat to the fledging states’ security, to begin the long, hard work of building a nation–creating an armed forces from scratch, stamping out corruption, and providing mass public housing, etc. Lee Kuan Yew writes frankly about his trenchant approach to political opponents and his often unorthodox views on human rights, democracy and inherited intelligence, aiming always “to be correct, not politically correct”. Lee Kuan Yew sees himself as a “conductor of an orchestra”, be it in the nurturing of Singapore Airlines and Changi Airport, or the fighting against traffic congestion.

Part II. In Search of Space- Regional and International

In Part II, Lee Kuan Yew writes in an inimitable style about his larger place in world affairs. He brings to life his cogent analysis of strategic issues, and candid pen-picture of key people he met—including the indomitable Margaret Thatcher and the favourite Ronald Reagan. But it was his meeting with Deng Xiaoping–“a five-footer but a giant among men”–which helped change the course of Southeast Asian history. We also read of Lee Kuan Yew’s role in starving off disorder in Indonesia with urgent phone calls and a secret meeting with Suharto’s daughter on Christmas Day of 1997. Finally, we read as Lee Kuan Yew navigates the complex skein of relations between America, China and Taiwan over the years, acting as confident, sounding board and bearer of sensitive messages. In these 35 years, with Lee Kuan Yew’s leadership and intelligence, Singapore had found sufficient diplomatic space to manoeuvre both in the region and in the world. It had also allowed Lee Kuan Yew himself to play a role much larger than the size of Singapore as a country.

Part III. Winding Up

In the final Part III, Lee Kuan Yew lifts the veil on his family life and writes of his wife and partner Kwa Geok Choo and his pride in their three children, including elder son Lee Hsien Loong, now Singapore’s Senior Minister. (It is with sadness and disappointment to report that since the passing of his wife and Lee Kuan Yew, the said three children had subsequently got into a legal dispute with regards to the family property at 38 Oxley Road. The daughter, Lee Wei Ling, had recently passed on, and the younger son Lee Hsien Young is also in political asylum in Hong Kong…..) In 1990, Lee Kuan Yew hand over the prime ministership to Goh Chok Tong. The former became Senior Minister, and then Minister Mentor. Finally, Lee Hsien Loong also became Singapore’s third prime minister from 2004 to 2024.

Conclusion

I have 3 insights from reading the memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew:

Lee Kuan Yew, as a political leader, was a very determined, motivated, ambitious and successful leader. Without his leadership, Singapore would not had been as successful and prominent in both the region and the world. Students and practitioners of political leadership should read these memoirs for this purpose.
Singapore, as a polity (up to 2000), was a small, principled, influential and successful country. Building up Singapore took a lot of ingenuity, hard work, leadership and luck. And without Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew would not have a platform to play his larger role in both regional and world affairs. Students and practitioner of nation building should also read these memoirs for this purpose.
Finally, it was both providence and luck that both Singapore and Lee Kuan Yew came together in 1965. My personal view is that both was indispensable for the success of both the country and the prime minister. Thus, the question of whether the country/person that made the history or the history that made the country/person is really a moot one.