LEE Hsien Yang has turned a “personal vendetta” into an international smear campaign against his father, family and country, said the Singapore Government on Oct 31.
Responding to an interview that Lee Hsien Yang gave to the Associated Press (AP) – his second with international media in slightly more than a week – the government refuted his claims that Singapore has become more repressive and that corruption here has worsened.
Lee Hsien Yang, who was granted political asylum in Britain in August 2024, claimed in his interview with the American news agency that the authorities here have “weaponised” the country’s laws against critics, and that a growing number of Singaporeans are fleeing abroad to seek protection from the government.
He had earlier aired similar grievances against the Republic in an interview with British newspaper The Guardian. He has also been vocal on social media about the government, especially in relation to 38 Oxley Road, the site of his late father Lee Kuan Yew’s house.
Questions over the fate of the house resurfaced after the death of Lee Kuan Yew’s daughter, Dr Lee Wei Ling, on Oct 9. Dr Lee Wei Ling, the younger sister of Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, lived in the house until her death.
Releasing its full response to the AP to local media on Oct 31, the government said Lee Hsien Yang is a major beneficiary of the Singapore system.
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“(He) knows all these facts,” it said in its response to AP. “All the examples of alleged corruption that (he) cites have been thoroughly addressed, either through the courts or in Parliament,” it added.
It said that what AP should consider when assessing the credibility of his claims were conclusions from a Disciplinary Tribunal (DT) and the Court of Three Judges in 2020. It found that Lee Hsien Yang and his wife, Lee Suet Fern, presented “an elaborate edifice of lies” on the execution of Lee Kuan Yew’s last will, and that they had misled the late Lee Kuan Yew in its execution and lied under oath.
The couple left Singapore in 2022 and have not returned since.
The government cited a Financial Times article, which reported that Lee Hsien Yang had argued in the asylum application that one reason why he and his family were being persecuted by the Singapore Government was to prevent his son, Harvard economist Li Shengwu, from being prime minister.
“That he would go so far as to allege this – though his son has repeatedly said he has no such ambition – shows his campaign against Singapore is not based on principles,” the government said.
It also addressed the money laundering and corruption scandals that Lee Hsien Yang had cited.
On the billion-dollar money laundering case that came to light in August 2023, the Government said 10 of the offenders have been sentenced in court, and had their assets seized. Another 17 individuals who left Singapore have also had their assets frozen and seized, with warrants of arrest and Interpol Red Notices issued against four of them. Interpol Blue Notices were issued against the remaining 13.
On the 1MDB case, the Government said it took “robust actions” against banks and individuals that failed to discharge their anti-money laundering obligations. This included the closure of local units of Swiss banks Falcon Private Bank and BSI Bank, financial penalties imposed on eight banks, and lifetime bans on six individuals.
On Keppel Offshore and Marine’s corruption case in Brazil, the government said this was addressed in Parliament in February 2023. Full payments of fines were made to the Brazilian authorities, and Seatrium – the merged entity of Keppel Offshore and Marine and Sembcorp Marine – is currently in discussions with the public prosecutor on a deferred prosecution agreement.
On the Wirecard fraud scandal, the government said this took place in Germany. But on Singapore’s part, financial penalties were imposed on four financial institutions found to have inadequate anti-money laundering controls. Former Singapore-based Wirecard employees have also been sentenced to jail for criminal breach of trust.
Finally, on Singapore-based global commodity trader Trafigura, which is facing up to US$1.1 billion in losses over a Mongolian oil scandal, the government said it will take action against the company should it conduct illicit activities here.
The government cited the case involving former transport minister S Iswaran, too. The 62-year-old was sentenced to 12 months’ jail on Oct 3 for accepting gifts as a public servant and obstructing justice.
“Singapore has always acted firmly and decisively against those who break our laws… If he had been a minister elsewhere, he would not have been charged for accepting such gifts, let alone sentenced to a year in prison,” the government added.
“Just as Lee Kuan Yew acted when he was prime minister, neither Lee Hsien Loong nor his successor Lawrence Wong prevented their former colleague from being investigated, prosecuted and convicted,” it said.
The government also pointed to Singapore’s good performance in various global rankings, including the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index, as evidence of its firm stance against corruption.
Finally, in response to accusations of repression, the government noted that, post-independence, Singapore has been the only country in South-east Asia that has held regular elections, without ever suspending its Constitution or imposing martial law.
It also noted that Singaporeans are free to vote for whichever party they think can better serve them, and about 40 per cent of citizens vote for opposition parties.
The government said Lee Hsien Yang, too, has freely participated in politics, pointing to his membership with the Progress Singapore Party and that Lee Hsien Yang had also considered contesting in the 2020 general election under the PSP’s banner.
It said that Lee Hsien Yang continues to fund and support the opposition from afar.
“(He) is not a victim of persecution. He and his wife remain citizens. They are and have always been free to return to Singapore,” it added.
