Do you need this or any other assignment done for you from scratch?
We have qualified writers to help you.
We assure you a quality paper that is 100% free from plagiarism and AI.
You can choose either format of your choice ( Apa, Mla, Havard, Chicago, or any other)
NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.
NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.
Lee Kuan Yew was the eldest son of Lee Chin Koon and Chuan Jim Neo. Lee Kuan Yew was greatly influenced by the British culture, his grandfather had received an English education. He was later to become the first Prime Minister of the state of Singapore in 1959 when the country gained self-government status. Lee started his political career as an election agent for the pro-British Progressive party in 1951. He made his first major political mark when he became the trade and students union, legal advisor. This provided him with the much-needed link with the Chinese-speaking working class. He, together with English educated middle-class colleagues formed the socialist Peoples Action Party in an alliance with communist trade unionists on 21 November 1954. Lee Kuan Yew became the secretary-general of the party that sought to end British rule and establish self-government. Lee took the seat of the opposition leader after the 1955 elections. He was also involved in the two London constitutional discussions as a PAP representative (Mauzy, p. 25). Lee Kuan Yew took over power from Lim Yew Hock after the 1959 elections when Singapore received autonomy in all state issues apart from defense and foreign affairs. During his pre-independence rule, Lee faced problems in many sectors including education, housing, and unemployment. He successfully campaigned for Singapores federation with Malaysia though the union did not last long.
Lee Kuan Yew also referred to as the founding father of the state of Singapore has made an indelible mark on his countrys development. He made a significant achievement in the fight for the independence of his country from the British. He realized the importance and significance of Malayan independence, realizing that Singapores independence was in away inevitable. After realizing that the British labor party was supportive of independence to their colonies, Lee adopted socialist tendencies, eventually taking part in the formation of the socialist Peoples Action Party. He made calculated moves after being elected the partys secretary-general that saw him eventually lead the party to victory in the 1959 national elections (Mauzy, p. 78).
Since Malaysia gained independence before Singapore, the prime minister sought to form a federation with Malaysia to end the British rule in his country. The union did not auger very well for Lee Kuan Yew and his country. Their union initially started well but conflicting ideological stances between the Chinese and Malayans led to tensions between the two camps, verbal attacks, and race riots. Lees Peoples Action Party campaigned on a platform of ending racism and having a Malaysia for all Malaysians. They took part in the Malaysian 1964 federal elections but performed very poorly having won only one seat and only seven percent of the total vote. Apart from the racial issue, the federations failure to set up a common market added an extra dent to their relations. Singapore seceded on August 9, 1965, but both states decided to maintain a cordial relationship, trade agreements, and defense ties.
After secession, Prime Minister Lee started seeking Singapores international recognition. Singapore joined the United Nations in 1965 and took played a key role in the formation of the Association of southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1967. On the cultural level, Lee made efforts to create a unique Singaporean culture, one that took note of racial consciousness under a multicultural society. His government was tolerant to religious independence, maintained racial harmony, and created provisions in the law to deal with ethnic incitement and religious violence. (Fernandez 13) Lee Kuan Yew made national security one of his main focuses. After Singapores admission to the United Nations, Lee declared his country neutral and not aligned to any cold war era superpower. He also embarked on creating and enlarging the Singapore Armed Forces. In 1967 he and his military strategist Goh Keng Swee formed the National Service a reserve force that could be mobilized on short notice. He also established military ties with ASEAN, Five Power Defense Arrangement, and other nonaligned states.
The separation from Malaysia was initially a major blow to Singapores economic well-being. The loss of the federation common market was followed by the withdrawal of the British military East of Suez leading to the loss of tens of thousands of Singaporean jobs. Lee Kuan Yews started Singapores path to industrialization in 1961 with the formation of the Economic Development Board that aimed to attract foreign investors, offer attractive tax incentives, and provide a disciplined and highly skilled labor force. The Economic Development Board is the leading government body that oversees the planning and execution of Singapores economic strategies and offers support to local and foreign investors. (Fernandez 43) Lees government also exercised tight control of the economy especially in land allocation, labor resources, and capital resources. Lees government also formed the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board in 1964 to promote tourism in the country. The board was to later become very successful in selling Singapores image as a tourist destination and thus creating many employment opportunities in the service industry. Lees government managed to cut the unemployment rate by huge margins.
Lee Kuan Yew realized the dangers of corruption so he set up Corrupt Practices Bureau (CPIB) and gave it more authority to arrest, search, conduct investigations on bank accounts and income tax returns. Lee also started a campaign dubbed stop at two family planning to avoid rapid population growth that could overburden the economy. The stop at two campaigns surprisingly achieved the remarkable success that at some point it had to be reversed to avert the record low birth rates. He also sparked controversy by when he told men to marry highly educated women out of concern that many graduate women were unmarried (Minchin, p. 37).
In conclusion, Lee Kuan Yew has transformed the South Asian country from a very poor, underdeveloped country to a developed economic and industrial hub. Lee established a unique system whereby investment and industrialization became the pillars of the economy but the government maintained a strong grip on all aspects of the countrys social and economic life. Singapore is today a model country to all the third world has transformed from a developing nation to a Newly Industrialized Country (NIC) despite having a small population, land, space, and natural resources. He stepped down as the prime minister on 28th November 1990 and is currently referred to as mentor minister. His eldest son, Lee Hsien Loong, is the current Prime Minister.
Works Cited
- Fernandez, Warren Tan. Lee Kuan Yew: The Man and His Ideas. Singapore: Singapore Press Holdings. 1998 pp. 11-25
- Mauzy, Diane. Singapore Politics under the Peoples Action Party. Routledge 2002 pp. 68-89
- Minchin, James.:No Man is an Island. A Study of Singapores Lee Kuan Yew. Sydney: Allen & Unwin. 1986 pp. 22-50
Do you need this or any other assignment done for you from scratch?
We have qualified writers to help you.
We assure you a quality paper that is 100% free from plagiarism and AI.
You can choose either format of your choice ( Apa, Mla, Havard, Chicago, or any other)
NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.
NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.