SINGAPORE: The youngest son of Singapore’s founding leader Lee Kuan Yew said he was granted asylum in Britain due to persecution at home, where a bitter family feud rages over a property dispute.

Lee Hsien Yang said in a Facebook post on Tuesday that he sought asylum in 2022 “as a last resort” from government attacks against him. “I am a political refugee from Singapore under the 1951 UN Refugee Convention,” Lee, 67, wrote.

“I face a well-founded risk of persecution and cannot safely return to Singapore.” The Lees are the closest thing Singapore has to royalty, and their battle over whether to demolish or preserve the single-storey house has generated headlines and gossip.

Lee Hsien Yang and his sister wanted to demolish the bungalow that hosted the formation of the People’s Action Party (PAP), which has governed Singapore since 1959.

Their older brother, former premier Lee Hsien Loong, wanted to preserve the property, which prompted his siblings to accuse him of trying to exploit their father’s legacy for political gain. After Lee Wei Ling, who was living at the disputed property, died of an illness on Oct 9, Lee Hsien Yang had said he felt unsafe to return to Singapore for her funeral.

Published in Dawn, October 24th, 2024