FROM THIRD WORLD TO Fl HST FROM THIRD WORLD TO FIRST THE SINGAPORE STORY: 1965-2000 Lee Kuan Yew SINGAPORE AND THE - ASIAN ECONOMIC BOOM HarperCollinsPublishers FROM THIRD WORLD TO FIRST Copyright © 2000 by Lee Kuan Yew All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews For information address HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022 HarperCollins books may be purchased for educational, business, or sales promotional use For information please write: Special Markers Department, HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022 FIRST EDITION Designed by North Marker Street Graphics Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Dara is available ISBN 0-06-019776-5 00 QW 10 To Goh Keng Swee, S Rajaratnam, Hon Sui Sen, Lim Kim San, Eddie Barker, Toh Chin Chye, Ong Pang Boon, and Othman Wok, my old-guard colleagues who together made possible The Singapore Story Contents Foreword by Dr Henry A Kissinger Preface Xlll Acknowledgments XVll Part I 10 Getting the Basics Right Going It Alone lX Building an Army from Scratch 11 Britain Pulls Out Surviving Without a Hinterland Creating a Financial Center Winning Over the Unions 31 49 71 83 95 109 121 135 145 157 173 185 199 A Fair, Not Welfare, Society The Communists Self-Destruct Straddling the Middle Ground Nurturing and Attracting Talent 11 Many Tongues, One Language 12 Keeping the Government Clean 13 Greening Singapore 14 Managing the Media 15 Conductor of an Orchestra Contents Vlll Part II In Search of Space-Regional and International 225 Ups and Downs with Malaysia 227 17 Indonesia: From Foe to Friend 18 Building Ties with Thailand, the Philippines, and Brunei Vietnam, Myanmar, and Cambodia: Coming to Terms with the Modern World 20 Asean-Unpromising Start, Promising Future 259 293 21 22 23 24 25 East Asia in Crisis 1997-1 999 Inside the Commonwealth Club New Bonds with Britain Ties with Australia and New Zealand South Asia's Legends and Leaders 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 Following Britain into Europe The Soviet Union-An Empire Implodes America: The Anticommunist Anchorman Strategic Accord with the United States America's New Agenda Japan: Asia's First Miracle Lessons from Japan Korea: At the Crossroads 35 36 37 38 39 Hong Kong's Transition Taiwan: The Other China China: The Dragon with a Long Tail Deng Xiaoping's China China Beyond Beijing Tiananmen 309 329 343 351 373 385 403 423 439 449 471 487 501 521 531 543 559 573 595 617 40 China: To Be Rich Is Glorious 625 645 Part III Winding Up 661 41 Passing the Baton 42 My Family 43 Epilogue 663 675 685 Index 693 Foreword Dr Henry A Kissinger In the second half of the twentieth century, the emergence of scores of new states has made international politics and economics truly global for the first time in history At the same time, technology has made it possible for nearly every country to participate in events in every part of the world as they occur Unfortunately, the explosion in information has not been accompa nied by a similar increase in knowledge The continents interact, but they not necessarily understand each other The uniformity of technology is accompanied by an implicit assumption that politics, and even cultures, will become homogenized Especially, the long-established nations of the West have fallen prey to the temptation of ignoring history and judging every new state by the criteria of their own civilizations It is often over looked that the institutions of the West did not spring full-blown from the brow of contemporaries but evolved over centuries which shaped fron tiers and defined legitimacy, constitutional provisions, and basic values But history does matter The institutions of the West developed grad ually while those of most new states were put into place in elaborated form immediately In the West, a civil society evolved side-by-side with the maturation of the modern state This made possible the growth of representative institutions which confined the state's power to those mat ters which society could not deal with by its own arrangements Political conflicts were moderated by overriding purposes Many postcolonial states have no comparable history Tasks, which, in X Foreword the West, were accomplished over centuries, must be completed in a decade or two and under much more complex circumstances Where the common national experience is colonial rule, especially when the state comprises diverse ethnic groups, political opposition is often considered an assault on the political validity of the state rather than of a particular government Singapore is a case in point As the main British naval base in the Far East, it had neither prospect nor aspiration for nationhood until the col lapse of European power in the aftermath of the Second World War redrew the political map of Southeast Asia In the first wave of decolo nization, Singapore was made part of Malaya until its largely Chinese population proved too daunting for a state attempting to define its national identity by a Malay majority Malaya extruded Singapore because it was not yet ready to cope with so large a Chinese population or, less charitably, to teach Singapore the habits of dependence if it was forced back into what later became the Malaysian Federation But history shows that normally prudent, ordinary calculations can be overturned by extraordinary personalities In the case of Lee Kuan Yew, the father of Singapore's emergence as a national state, the ancient argu ment whether circumstance or personality shapes events is settled in favor of the latter Circumstances could not have been less favorable Located on a sandbar with nary a natural resource, Singapore had in the 1950s a poly glot population of slightly over a million (today over million), of which 75.4 percent was Chinese, percent Malay, and percent Indian It adjoined in the south with Indonesia, with a population of over 00 mil lion (now nearly double that), and in the north with Malaya (later Malaysia), with a then-population of 6.28 million By far the smallest country in Southeast Asia, Singapore seemed destined to become a client state of more powerful neighbors, if indeed it could preserve its indepen dence at all Lee Kuan Yew thought otherwise Every great achievement is a dream before it becomes reality, and his vision was of a state that would not sim ply survive but prevail by excelling Superior intelligence, discipline, and ingenuity would substitute for resources Lee Kuan Yew summoned his compatriots to a duty they had never previously perceived: first to clean up their city, then to dedicate it to overcome the initial hostility of their Foreword XI neighbors and their own ethnic divisions by superior performance The Singapore of coday is his testament Annual per capita income has grown from less than $1,000 at the time of independence to nearly $30,000 today It is the high-tech leader of Southeast Asia, the commercial entrepot, the scientific center Singapore plays a major role in the politics and economics of Southeast Asia and beyond This volume is Lee Kuan Yew's account of his extraordinary achieve ment He navigated this passage by understanding not only the require ments of his own society but the needs and motives of his neighbors A thoughtful discussion of Indonesia and the fall of its President Suharto is matched by Lee Kuan Yew's account of his encounters with China and its leaders His narrative of Singapore's abortive venture into creating a satel lite city in Suzhou is particularly instructive on the challenge of melding the market economics of even so friendly an interlocucor as Singapore with the political and social realities of a China midway between Mao and reform Lee Kuan Yew would not be true to himself were he less than frank about his analysis of the difference between the individualism of the West and the priority for social cohesion in countries such as his and in much of the rest of Asia He does not ask us co change our patterns, only co refrain from imposing them on societies with different histories and necessities These views have subjected Lee Kuan Yew to considerable criticism in the West Those of us who prize our values while understanding the com plexities of a new country in a different culture are prepared co leave it co hiscory co pass judgment as to whether there were other options available co him But, for a generation, every American leader who has dealt with Lee Kuan Yew has benefited from the fact that, on international issues, he has identified the future of his country with the fate of the democracies And he has done so not passively but by making a seminal political con tribution to the struggles of our time Index on Straits Times staff, 86, 87 and Vietnamese occupation of Cambodia, 3 , 34, 3 Raman, P S , Ramos, Fidel , 302, 304 Ramos-Horta, Jose, 392 Ramphal , Sonny, 363 Ranariddh, Prince of Cambodia, 326-3 27 , 39, 340 Rangoon, 9-3 22 Rao, Narasimha, 409-4 Razak, Abdul : and Asian "brain drain," 142 Australia visit of, 3 and Chinese relations, and communises, 269 and Five-Power Defense Arrangement, , 46 as Malaysia prime minister, 6, 6-2 37 , and Singapore relations, 23-24 , 228, 230, 234-2 , 38-2 39, 67 5-67 Razak, Najib Abdul, Reagan, Ronald: and China-Taiwan relationship, 477-479, 562, 1 with Lee Kuan Yew, 474-482 and Philippines, 304 , 48 speaking skill of, 5 and U.S interest in Southeast Asia, 36, 3 Reischauer, Edwi n, 460 Residents' committees (RCs), in Singapore, Retail industry, i n Singapore, 89 Rhodesia, independence of, , 1-3 54, , 363 Richardson, Gordon, Rickover, Hyman, 47 2-473 Rifkind, Malcolm, 550 19 Rioc(s): anti-Chinese, 90 by army, 1- by Chinese middle school students, 20 communal , , 386, 432 and home ownership, 103 "jungle girl ," 90, 2 i n Korea, 34 , 5 i n Kuala Lumpur, 2-24, , 23 3-2 34, 397 Richauddeen, Tengku, 238, 334, 484 Robb, John, 8, Rochore Canal , cleanup of, Rockefeller, David, 89 Roh Tae Woo, 3-5 37 Rollei : in Singapore, 64-65 technician training by, 68-69 Romulo, Carlos, 299-300 Rose, Sir Alan, Roscow, Wale, 5 Roch, Stanley, 284, 287 Rothschild, David, 77 Roy, Stapleton, 482 Royal Air Force (RAF), presence in Singapore, Rubin, Robert, 659 Rukunegara policy, in Malaysia, 236 Rusk, Dean, 450-45 , 5 , 456 Russia See also Soviet Union and European Union, 435 Singapore relationship with, 440-447 U.S relationship with, 487 Rwanda, 499 Ryzhkov, Nikolai, 444-44 , 4-5 Saac, Othman, 240 Sadat, Anwar, 47 720 I ndex Safronov, Ilia lvanovich, 440, 44 Saifuddien, Sir Omar Ali , 305-307 Saigon See also Ho Chi Minh City as economic dynamo, 3 fall o� 203, 30, 467 , 468 Samoa, 395 Samuelson, Paul, 460, 640 Sandys, Duncan, 376 Sato, Eisaku, 503-504, 506, Sayeed, M J., 67 Schmidt, Helmut, 3-436, 493-495 , 97 Schmidt, Loki , 3 Schulz, Siegfried , Scowcroft, Brent, 485 Shultz, George, 79, 304, 36, 38, 434, 47 8-480, 1 Siabu Air Weapons Range, Siddhi Savetsila, 298, 3 Sieff, Marcus, Siemens: exports to EEC countries, 423 in Singapore, 98 Sihanouk, Norodom, Prince of Cambodia: Deng Xiaoping relationship with, 607 leadership of, 24-3 , 327 , 336, 606 Lee Kuan Yew relationship with, Seagate, in Singapore, 98 Seah Mui Kok, 87 Securities Industry Act (Singapore), Seiko, Singapore plant of, 08 Seletar airfield, , 5 , 20 Son Sann relationship with, 3 talent of, 36 Sikhs, in India, 408 Sim Kee Boon, 68, 90, 204-205 Simmons, Bill, 86, 88 Sin Chew]it Poh newspaper (China), 86 Sindhi merchants, as Singapore immigrants, Singapore: air force of, , , 44 , antispitting campaign i n , armed forces o f (see Singapore Armed Forces) in Asean, 268, 329, 3 9-340, 578 Australian troops in, 385 , 397 Britain economic relationship with, Selkirk, Lord, 450 Sembawang, dockyard at, , 54 Senanayake, Dudley, 4-4 Sencosa resort, 54, 1 Seow, Francis, 6-1 28, 2 Separation Agreement (SingaporeMalaysia), 244 Serangoon River, 203 Serendip, Shacochis, Bob, 494 Shamsuddin Tung Tao Chang, 148 Sharif, Nawaz, 9-42 Sharma, P V , 1 Shastri , Lal Bahadur, Shaw, Runme, Sheares, Benjamin, 449 Shell Oil: and Arab embargo, 68 recruitment program of, 668 Shiba, Ryotaro, 565 , 642 Shipbuilding industry, in Singapore, 37 5-376, 379, in British Commonwealth, , , 7-363 in British Empire, , 689, 690 British presence in, 4, 24-2 , 1-47 , 2-5 , 1 , , 37 3-376, , , 464 , 69 chewi ng gum ban in, 83 China diplomatic ties with, , 27 , 5 9, 66, 68, 606 Index China relationship with, , 274, 3-5 80, 85-586, , 63 1-634 , 642 , 64 5-649, 690 cigarette smoking in, 82- 83 climate of, as commercial center, 689 721 Germany economic relationship with, 437 and globalization, 80, 3 government spending in, 06 home ownership in, 95- 00, , , 66 communist influence in, 1 1-1 , Hong Kong compared to, , 1- 2 , 44 , 467 , 7 , 84, 686 Confucian values in, 488, 647-648 corruption in, 63 , 70, 348, Hong Kong immigrants to, 548 independence of, 3-9, 1 0, , 228, 492 493 , 648 currency of, 39 40, , 1-2 , Indians in, 8, 3 , , , , 240, 306, 344 , 672 and East Asian financial crisis, 346, 212 India relationship with, 404, 406, 497 , 54 3-546 , 54 , 404 , 686 409 and East Timor crisis, , Indonesia economic relationship economy o f (see Singapore economy) with, 49, 263 , 27 5-279, 289-290, 330 and Indonesian Confrontation, 3 , , 39 40, 49, , 229-2 , education in, 5- , - , 0-2 , 37 , , 634, 688 elections in, , 65 -1 66, 666 (see also PAP) 262, 263, 374, 686 electronics industry in, -6 , 65 , 98 industrialization of, 49-5 , 5 , entrepreneurship in, 66-68 ethnic Chinese in, 2 , 99, 5- 36, , 2 , 234, 244 , 268, 27 , 7-58, -69, 5 , 497 , 498 infrastrucrure in, 06, 22 , 74 insurance industry in, 89 404, 8, 547 , 7 , 80, interracial marriage in, 143 84-5 86, 93-5 94 Israeli consulate in, , 26 Europe economic relationship with, 423 425 exports from, 402 , 423 425 financial industry in, 1-82 Japan economic relationship with, 504 , 06-5 09, 26, 690 Japanese occupation of, , , First World standards of, 74-1 84 judicial system in, 2-2 , in Five-Power Defense Arrangement, 44 46, 4 foreign aid from, 26 6-2 language of, 60, , 145- leadership in, 664-67 , 680, foreign investment in, 3 , , , -66, 68, 79, 637-638 385 , 50 1-503 , 689 686-690 Malaysia relationship with, , , France economic relationship with, 425 432 future of, 690, 69 7-2 38, 240-242, 246-2 54 Malays in, 6, , 8, 2 , 0-2 , 234, 244 geostrategic goals of, 387 media in, 85-1 97 , 722 Index Singapore (cont'd ): minority groups in, 6, 8, 2 , 207-2 as model fo r China, 645-649 as model for Sri Lanka, 6-4 multicultural values in, national anthem of, 685 natural assets of, nature of, navy of, , 5-36, 40 New Zealand economic relationship with, 402 Pakistan relationship with, 42 Parliament of, 1 , 1 0-1 1 , pensions in, 02- 03 , , 666 petrochemical industry in, 68 Philippines economic relationship with, 300 police in, 6, , pollution in, 8-1 82 population growth of, president of, 70, 220-2 productivity of, -92, 2 , 24-5 racial issues in, , 22-2 , 234, 244 , 4-2 5 , , 397 reproductive races in, 39- retail industry i n , 89 Russia relationship with, 440 447 shipbuilding industry in, size of, as handicap, 28 social problems in, 647 Soviet relationship with, 395 , 442 444, 464, 7 , 578, 98 state monopolies in, 67-68 street hawkers in, 74 , and Suzhou development project, 649-654 Taiwan relationship with, 5 9, 66, 68, , 84-5 85 talent recruitment co, 142- tariffs in, , 07 , , 34 taxes in, 07 , 40 technology in, , 689 Thailand economic relationship with, 343 Tiananmen reaction of, 627, 629 tourism in, 0-5 , 7 , 609 trade partners of, 49, 98, 642 transportation in, 204-206 unemployment in, 7, 8, , 44, 49-5 , 5 , 62, , 93, 68 unions in, 3-9 , 1 4, 202 urban renewal in, 82 U.S arms sales co, 47 472 U.S military bases in, 484 U.S relationship with, 4, 26-1 27 , 384, 487 , 489 490, 496-499 U.S troops in, and Vietnamese refugees, 395 , 467 468, 488 Vietnam relationship with, 309-3 , 339 wages i n , 67-1 70, water management in, 78-1 water supply from Malaysia, 28, 228, 244 , 246, , 254 wealth redistribution in, 03-105 workforce in, 86-88, 98, 107, 142- 44, 227-2 28 Singapore, Straits of, 40 , 507 Singapore Airlines (SIA), 60, 66, 68, 200-205 , 24 , 245 , 3 , Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) building of, 6, 4-20, 24-29, , 244 common language for, 46 in Ease Timor, equipment for, , 3-24, Lee sons i n , 7 723 Index Malays in, 2- , 6, 2 , 247-249 racial issues in, 16, Singapore Teachers' Union, 1 recruitment for, 27-28 Singapore Telecom, 67 , , 7-3 19, religious tolerance in, 27 68 Singapore Tourist Promotion Board, 51 Singapore Trade Union Congress, 92 reserves in, 6-27 riot by, 1- training for, 27-28, , 386-387 , 5 9-5 , , 63 3-634 and Vietnamese refugees, 467-468 Singapore Armed Forces Training Institute (SAFTI), 24 Singapore Bus Services (SBS), 02- 103 Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), , 133 Singapore economy: British military contribution to, 3 , 36, , 44, 2-5 Singapore Technologies, 67 , , 68 Singapore Volunteer Corps, , Singh, Manmohan, 409, Singh, Natwar, 408, 409 Singh, Swaran, 406 Sinhalese, in Sri Lanka, 4 , Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana (Tutut), 27 5-27 , 280 Siti Hediati Hariyadi Prabowo (Titiek), 277 Slater, Jim, 3-74 Slater Walker Securities, 74 currency crisis in, 67 2-67 Smith, Adam, 640 growth of, , 07 , , 66, 69, Smith, Arnold, , 362, 363 639, 647 , 689 postindependence evolution of, , 06- 08 Smith, Chris, 383 Smith, Ian, Social Action Party, in Thailand, 294 success of, 42, 68, 06, -382 Social Democratic Party (SPD), in Singapore Factory and Shop Workers' Germany, 434 Union, 1 Singapore Herald newspaper, 88 90 Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA), 2 Social Development Section (SDS), in Singapore, 39 Social Development Unit (SDU), in Singapore, 38 39 Singapore Infantry Regiments (SIR), 1 , Socialism: 6, in France, 428 Singapore International Chamber of Commerce, Singapore International Monetary versus free-market competition, 95 , 05- 06 Soemitro, Lieutenant-General (Indonesia Exchange (SIMEX), 7 , National Security Command), Singapore Petroleum, 66, 68 Singapore River, cleanup of, 8- 80, 82 Singapore Standard newspaper, 87 , 88, 90 The Singapore Story (Lee), 265 Solarz, Stephen, 3 Son Sann, 3 , 3 , 606, 607 Sony, 374 Soong, James, 69 Soros, George, 343, 345 724 I ndex South Africa: and apartheid, 382, 37 arms sales to, 9, 362 British interests in, 354, 360-36 in Commonwealth, 360 spores boycott of, 400 South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), 3 Southeast Asia: anti-Japanese sentiment in, 0, British presence in, 43 colonization in, 293 communism in, 269, 29-3 30, 3 , 3 , 340, 404, , 467 , 488, 98-600 current political realities of, 3 and Southeast Asia communises, 329, 338 technological superiority of, 439 and U.S Scar Wars program, 480 and Vietnamese occupation of Cambodia, 44 , 603-604 Vietnam relationship with, 38, 96, 605 in World War II, 442 Special assistance plan (SAP), for Chinese instruction, 54 Special Branch (Singapore intelligence), 449 45 Spraclys islands, claims of, 34 , 484 Spycatcher (Wright), 95 Spydar Securities, 74 English language in, ethnic Chinese in, 49 , 574, 598-600 after fall of Saigon, 203, 467 financial crisis in, 343-3 50 industrialization of, 498 official corruption in, 8, Singapore role i n , 267 , 268, 689 Soviet influence in, , 97-598 U.S presence in, 465 , 487 Vietnamese attitude coward, 309-3 South Pacific Forum, 392 Soviet Union See also Russia Afghanistan invasion by, 34 , 3 , 407 , 8, 434, 443 , 444 , 47 474 anti-American propaganda by, China relationship with, 475 476, , 96-5 97 , 60 , as Commonwealth threat, disintegration of, 446 447 , 488, 493 economy of, 444 446, India relationship with, 405 power o� 428 430, 438, 607-608 Singapore relationship with, 395 , 442 444, 464 , 7 , Sri l anka, 368, 409, 4 Standard Chartered Bank of London, 76 Scace La w and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), in Myanmar, 322 Stephens, Donald (Faud), 89 Stewart, Michael, Stock Exchange of Singapore (SES): Black Monday ( 987) on, 7 crisis in, 76 and Lee family property purchases, merger with SIMEX, spl it from Malaysia-Singapore Stock Exchange, 38 39 stocks on, 54, 68 Stock Exchange of Singapore Dealing in Automated Quotation Systems (SESDAQ), Straits Times (Singapore), 60, 85-1 88 Subandrio (Indonesia foreign minister), 26 , 262 Subic Bay, 483 Suez Canal, , 689 Sugica, Ichiji, 725 Index Suharto: and Asean, 303, 307 , 330, 3 economy of, -5 62 education in, 562, 568 and Batam development project, 27 -272 death of wife of, 27 and East Asian financial crisis, 348 and East Timor, 392 environmental agenda of, 7 and Hongkong & Shanghai Bank bombing, 20 and Indonesian corruption, 65 and Indonesian coup, 9, 262 and Indonesian currency crisis, 275-280, 497 as Indonesia president, 263-27 , 27 3-274, 280, 3 , 3 , 607 and Islam, Lee Kuan Yew honors from, privileges to family of, 277-278, 282 resignation of, 280-282, 343 and Vietnam , 34 , 468 Sukarno, , 9-262, 287 , 29 , 329, 452 Sumitomo Chemical Corporation, 508-509 Summers, Lawrence, 276, 278, 497 Sun, Y S , 565 Suppiah, K., 85-86 Sutherland, Peter, Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP), 649-654 Suzhou New District (SND), 65 Suzuki, Zenko, Swan & Hunter, 35-3 , 54 , Swettenham, Port (Kelang), , 5 elections in, 64 , 565-566, 569 electronics industry in, 389, 562 independence of, 63-565 , 567-5 , 7 , 1 , 6 , 64 643 , 65 industrialization of, 498, Taff, Ahmad Haj i , 229 Taiwan: Chinese in, 62-5 , 5 democracy i n , 494, 495 , , 64, 67 and East Asian financial crisis, 346 investors from, , 5 , 630 Japan relationship with, 67 and Nixon visit to China, 464, 465 refugee flow into, 44 secret societies in, 65-566 Singapore Armed Forces training in, 28, 5 9-5 , 63 634 standard of living in, 62 Tiananmen reaction of, 627 2-28 incident in, 565 in UN, 640 64 U.S relationship to, 47 5-48 , 569, 570, 1 , , 660 Taiwan Relations Act, 6 Takeshita, Noboru, 4-5 Tambyah, J A , 220 Tamils: language of, in Singapore, 146, 5 , 86 in Sri Lanka, 409, 3-4 Tamil United Liberation Front, Tan, Ton� 40, 68, 667 , 67 Tanah Melayu (Malay land), Tanaka, Kakuei , 507 , 509-5 Tan Cheang Wan, Tang Liang Hong, 29- 30 Tanjong Pagar, 249-2 Tanjung, Akbar, 287 , 289 Tan Kia Gan, 60- Tan Lark Sye, 49 Tan Siew Sin, , 66, , , Tan Teck Chwee, 668 Tan Teck Khim, 20 Tan Wah Piow, 1 4-1 726 Index Tanzania, 360 Tao Payoh, new housing site at, 98 Tariffs: on imports, , Singapore phaseout of, , Tarling, Richard, 74 Taxi industry: in Hong Kong, 54 in Pakistan, 420 in Singapore, 89, 74 Tea industry, in Sri Lanka, Teh Cheang Wan, 99, 62-1 , Teh Kok Peng, Telok Kurau English School, 240 Teng, Teresa, 62 Tengah airfield, , 201 Tentara Nasional Indonesia (TNI), 287 , 393 Teo Chee Hean, 28, , 28 3-284 Tet offensive, Texas Instruments, , 89 Thomson, George, 40 , 379, 399 Thomson, Roy, 89 Tiananmen Square protests, 486, 548, 5 , 5 , 625-634 Time magazine, 62, Tiong Bahm, new housing site at, 98 Tiran, Straits of, 26 Toh Chin Chye: and British east of Suez policy, 43 and Great Marriage Debate, 37 leadership of, 687 Malaysian birthplace of, 44, 228 and Nanyang University, and Singapore-Indonesia relations, 228 as Singapore deputy prime minister, Thailand, 293-299 in Asean, 268, 329, 339 communist cadres in, 1 currency of, 82, 274, 343-345 economy in, 297 , 345 election expenses in, 64, 299 electronics industry in, 62 foreign threats to, 293 Singapore relationship with, 296-297 support for U.S., 293-295 and Vietnam War, 293-298, , 463 , 468, 98 Thanin (Thailand prime minister), 7 Thanom Kittikachorn, 293-294 Than Shwe, 3 Thatcher, Margaret, 307 , 367 , 374, 380-38 , 400 Thean, L P , Thomas, George, 380 Tokyo, 02-5 03 Tonga, 395 Tourist industry: in China, 609 in Singapore, 0-5 , 7 , 609 Trade Unions Act (Singapore), 87 , 161 Tran Due Luong, 8, Transparency International, , 492 Tree Planting Day (Singapore), 77 Trisakti University (Indonesia), Trudeau, Pierre, , 363, 395 , Truong Tan Sang, Tung Chee-hwa, 5 2-5 5 as Singapore minister for health, 1 and Singapore minister self-renewal, 669-670 Tojo, Hideki, Uganda, 360, 36 , 366 UMNO (United Malay National Organisation) anti-Singapore sentiment of, 229-2 30, 2-2 3 , 243 , , 5 Index leaders of, , 28, 236, 240-242, , 67 and money policies, 64- and multiracialism, and Straits Times, 88 Ultras in, 6, , 24, 1 , 99, 3 , 666, 686 UN Assistance Mission to Ease Timor (UNAMET), 390 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), 507 UNESCO, 640 Unions : in Britain, 380, Korean versus Japanese, 3 in Singapore, 83-93, 1 4, 202 United Kingdom , in Five-Power Defense Arrangement, 44 United Malay National Organisation See UMNO United Nations (UN): and Arab-Israeli Six-Day War, 26 and armed interventions, 407 and Cambodian elections, 324, 3 China admission to, 464, 5 9, 7 Democratic Kampuchea i n , 607 and Ease Timor, 390-394 Japan in, Khmer Rouge in, 3 3-3 34 and Kosovo, 490 Singapore-Malaysia Separation Agreement held by, 244 Singapore recognition by, , 6, Taiwan i n , 640-64 and Vietnam, 3 , 395 United Nations Development Program (UNDP), 49-5 United Overseas Bank, 80 United Scates: administrative appointments in, 68 and Asean, 30, 3 727 Asian immigration policy of, , 142 and British ease of Suez policy, , 34-3 and Cambodia, 3 6-339 China relationship with, 4, 462-464 , 47 5-48 , 485-488, 493, 496, 5 , , 629-630, 639, 65 8-660 in CIA bribery scandal, 449-4 consumer values of, currency of, 343-344 and Ease Timor, 391-393 economy of, 00, freedom o f press i n , 92 , 94, 492 global position of, 498-5 00, 691 high-tech industry in, 499-5 00 human rights issues in, 490, 499 and Indonesian currency crisis, 6-27 influence o n Europe, 429 influence on Singapore, 84 investments in Singapore, , involvement i n Singapore policies, 26- 27 in Korean War, 498, 600 Lee Kuan Yew relationship with, , 449-45 military bases i n Singapore, 484 multinational corporations of, 7, 62 Myanmar position of, 3 and Philippines, 303, 304, 483, 484 , 98 reaction co caning, 4, 496 ship repair facilities in Singapore, 54 Singaporeans educated in, Singapore Armed Forces training in, 28 social problems in, 491-492 , 00 and Southeast Asia communises, 45 1-4 5 728 Index United States (cont'd ): and Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, 334 Scar Wars defense program of, 480 and China, 1 , 39, 96, 602 , 603 , 606, 607 , 0, and communism, 0, 3-3 , 9, 329 and Taiwan, 69, 0, 603 , 1 , , 660 tobacco lobby in, 82 , 83 Confucian values in, 4, 491 currency of, development in, 7-3 8, 429-430 and Vietnam War, 4, 32 , 37, 42, , economy of, 1-3 , , , 3 264-265 , 268, 293-294 , 36, 8, 395 , 2-459, 462-468, 498, 98 University of Malaya in Singapore, 36 University of Singapore, 50, , 54 , 511 UN Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC), 3 U Nu, 9-320 Upadic Pachariyangkun, 296 297 ethnic Chinese i n , 99 foreign threats co, India policy toward, 407 leadership of, 4-3 , 8, 430 refugees from, 395 , 98, 467-468, 488 Soviet support of, 38, 443 , 96, 605 Vietnam War, 293-298, and Asean, British attitude coward, 35, 39 danger co Singapore from, , 386 Uruguay Round, Tee offensive in, 58-45 U.S Commodity Futures Trading Thailand role in, 293-298 Commission, 77 U.S Federal Reserve Bank, 640 U.S News & World Report, 62 Utusan Melayu newspaper (Malaysia), 28, 86, 207 , 2 9-2 30, , , 678 U.S involvement in, 4, , , 42, , 264-265 , 268, 293-294 , 3 , , 395 , 45 2-459, 462-468, 498, 98 Vijiaratnam, A , 204 Viraca, Cesar, 30 , 302 Volcker, Paul, 7 Values, Asian versus Western, 490-492 , Vo Van Kiec, 2-3 , 540, Vance, Cyrus, 3 Wanandi, Sofyan, 280-2 Van Oenen (vice president, Singapore Bank of America), -7 , Ver, Fabian, 305 Wang Daohan, 67 Wardhana, Ali, 27 Warner, Denis , Vernon, Ray, 5 , 460 Water Agreement (Singapore-Malaysia), Vietnam, 309-3 9, 7-3 i n Asean, 34 bureaucracy in, Cambodia invasion by, 296 298, 246 Watergate, 464 , 467 , 468, 474 Watson, Neville, 54 Watson, Ogilvy, 74 300, 5-326, 3 3-340, 429, Wee Chong Jin, 96, 603-604, Wee Toon Boon, 729 Index Weinberger, Caspar, 47 , 1 Welfare state, cost of, 04-1 05 World Trade Organization (WTO), 349, 496, 38, 546, 654, 59-660 Whiclam, Gough, 386, 392, 394-396 Wright, Peter, 95 Wilson, David, 547-549 Wilson, Harold: as author, 8-3 and BCCI, and British east of Suez policy, , 29, 1-43 , 377 Lee Kuan Yew relationship with, 8, 37 , 376, 7 overture t o France, 2 and Rhodesian independence, , 354 Winsemius, Albert, 49-5 0, 54, 80 as economic adviser, , 60 , 89 and Singapore as financial center, 1-7 and Singapore Economic Development Board, 8-5 Wiranto, 280, 28 , 287 , 288, 290 Wisma Pucra (Malaysian foreign ministry), 245 Wok, Othman, , 1 , 687 Xu Weicheng, 646 648 Yamashita, Tomoyuki , , Yang Shangkun, 486 Yatim, Rais, 248 Yazhou Zhoukan (Asian Weekly), 29, 30 Yeltsin, Boris, 487, 63 Yeo, George, 28, 290, 483, 672 Yeo, Philip, 65 , 67 Yeo Cheow Tong, 60, 672 Yeo Ning Hong, 672 Yong, Edward, 23 Yong Nyuk Lin, 687 Yong Pung How, 24, 78, 144, 7-2 Yu Kuo-hwa, , 569 Zadari, Asif Ali, 420, 42 Zadari, Asif Azad, 368 Zainuddin, Daim, 247 , 249, 250, 5 , 279 Wolfensohn, James, 78 Wolfowitz, Paul , 479 Wong Chooi Sen, Zakaria, Fareed, Zambia, 36 , 365-366 Zhang Xinsheng, 649 650 Wong Kan Seng, 445 , 672 Zhao Ziyang: Wong Meng Quang, 08 Deng Xiaoping selection of, 624, 67 Wong Ming Yang, 679 Wong Yew Kwan, Woodhull, Sandra, with Lee Kuan Yew, 604 605 , 608 0, 2-6 , 638 at Tiananmen, 62 , 630 63 Woodlands, customs checkpoint at, and U.S , 478, 479 249-2 Woon, Walter, Workers' Party (Singapore), 1 4, 1 , 24, 3 , 148 World Bank, 286, , 340, 364, 464, 38, 629, 640 and Vietnam, 336 337 Zhou Enlai, 296, 574, 576 579, 86, , 63 Zhu Rongj i , 446, 496, 569, 64 , 650 65 , 59 Zia al-Haq, 8-4 $35.00 USA CANADA $ 52.95 "Lee Kuan Yew is one of the seminalfigures ofAsia, and this book does justice to his extraordinary accomplishments Describing the motivations and concepts that have animated his conduct and explaining specific actions, he will undoubtedly raise many troversies But whether one agrees or not, one will learn a great deal "-DR HENRY A KISSINGER Few gave tiny Singapore much chance of survival when it was granted independence in 965 How is it, then, chat today the former British colonial trading post is a thriving Asian metropolis with not only the world's number one airline, best airport, and busiest pore of trade, bur also the world's fourth-highest per capita real income? The story of char transformation is told here by Singapore's charismatic, controversial founding father, Lee Kuan Yew Rising from a legacy of divisive colonialism, the devastation of the Second World War, and general poverty and disorder following the withdrawal of foreign forces, Singapore now is hailed as a city of the future This miraculous history is dramatically recounted by the man who not only lived through it all bur who fearlessly forged ahead and brought about most of these changes Delving deep into his own meticulous notes, as well as previously unpublished government papers and official records, Lee derails the extraordinary efforts it took for an island city-state in Southeast Asia to survive at chat time Lee explains how he and his cabinet colleagues finished off the communise threat to che fledgling state's security and began the arduous process of nation building: forging basic infrastructural roads through a land chat still consisted primarily of swamps, creating an army from a hitherto racially and ideologically divided population, scamping out the lase vestiges of colonial-era corruption, providing mass public housing, and establishing a national airline and air port In chis illuminating account, Lee writes frankly about his trenchant approach to political opponents and his often unorthodox views on human rights, democracy, and inherited intelligence, aiming always "co be correct, not politically correct." Nothing in Singapore escaped his (co n t i n u ed on back flap) 000 (co n t i n u ed fro m fro n t flap} watchful eye: whether choosing shrubs for the greening of the country, restoring the romance of the historic Raffles Hotel, or openly, unabashedly persuading young men to marry women as well educated as themselves Today's safe, tidy Singapore bears Lee's unmistakable stamp, for which he is unapologetic: "If this is a nanny state, I am proud to have fostered one." Though Lee's domestic canvas in Singapore was small, his vigor and talent assured him a larger place in world affairs With inimitable style, he brings history to life with cogent analyses of some of the greatest strategic issues of recent times and reveals how, over the years, he navigated the shifting tides of relations among America, China, and Taiwan, acting as confidant, sounding board, and messen ger for them He also includes candid, sometimes acerbic pen portraits of his political peers, including the indomitable Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan, the poetry-spouting Jiang Zemin, and ideologues George Bush and Deng Xiaoping Lee also lifts the veil on his family life and writes tenderly of his wife and stalwart partner, Kwa Geok Choo, and of their pride in their three children-particularly the eldest son, Hsien Loong, who is now Singapore's deputy prime minister For more than three decades, Lee Kuan Yew has been praised and vilified in equal measure, and he has estab lished himself as a force impossible to ignore in Asian and international politics From Third World to First offers readers a compelling glimpse into this visionary's heart, soul, and mind LEE KUAN YEW was born in Singapore on September 6, 923, a third-generation descendant of immigrants from China's Guangdong Province He read law at Cambridge University, England In 954 he formed the People's Action Party, which won the first Singapore general election five years lacer Lee became the country's first prime minister in 9 , at the age of thirty-five In November 990 he resigned the office to assume the pose of senior minister in the Singapore cabinet jacket design by Marc Cohen Author photograph by Alexander Mares-Manton/www.asia-images com jacket photographs ofSingapore from The Image Bank HarperCollinsPublishers www.harperco ll ins.com .. .FROM THIRD WORLD TO Fl HST FROM THIRD WORLD TO FIRST THE SINGAPORE STORY: 1965- 2000 Lee Kuan Yew SINGAPORE AND THE - ASIAN ECONOMIC BOOM HarperCollinsPublishers FROM THIRD WORLD TO FIRST. .. army training depot at Shenton From Third World to First 12 Way, next to the Singapore Polytechnic When he learned to his astonish ment that 80 percent of recent recruits to all units were Malays,... compatriots to a duty they had never previously perceived: first to clean up their city, then to dedicate it to overcome the initial hostility of their Foreword XI neighbors and their own ethnic