Sunday Times 2
Singapore on edge as Lee Kuan Yew’s condition worsens
View(s):SINGAPORE, March 21 (AFP) -The health of independent Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew has worsened, the government said today as one of the foremost figures of 20th century Asia struggled with severe pneumonia.
A picture of elder statesman Lee Kuan Yew and messages are placed outside the Singapore General Hospital where he remains critically ill on March 21 (AFP)
The 91-year-old, widely credited with transforming the city-state from a relative backwater into one of Asia’s wealthiest economies, has been in Singapore General Hospital since February 5 and is being aided by mechanical ventilation, a form of life support.
“Mr. Lee Kuan Yew’s condition has worsened,” the office of his son, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said in a terse midday statement.
The government said earlier in the week that he was already critically ill.
Floral tributes and cards dedicated to Lee have started to pile up outside the hospital as Singaporeans showed affection for the authoritarian leader who modernised Singapore but was criticised by rights advocates for his iron-fisted rule.