One week on
It has been one week since Mr Lee Kwan Yew passed away and it has been an emotional, information overloaded week. I woke up this morning after his funeral and looked at the Singapore banner hanging in my room and recited the pledge out loud.The words resonating in my ears took on a new-found meaning because of LKY's passing.
We, the citizens of Singapore
pledge ourselves as one united people,
regardless of race, language or religion
to build a democratic society based on justice and equality,
so as to achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for the nation
I wrote this entry below as a response to my friend's question about my opinion on LKY:
Growing up as a Gen Y in Singapore, LKY has always been the giant that I know. I know his contributions to the country but never had to go through the transitions from a 3rd world to a 1st world Singapore. And so, it has been such a blessing to grow up in a 'successful' nation. However through education and having the opportunity to travel abroad, I understand that neither LKY was a SAINT nor the political system that we have now perfect. I disagree with some of the policies that were made by him and I do have a bucket list of things I hoped my country would emulate from the Western society. For example, having more societal support for the people deemed less 'useful' to the economy, the mentally disabled and the elderly. Travelling overseas, on the other hand, has made me more patriotic than before because I realise that I have taken many things for granted in my country, a safe society being one of them. These were a result of his works. As a society, we have sacrificed some things to attain others. But I do believe he did what he thought was best in his capability during that time. Therefore, when I use the three letters 'LKY', I say it with respect, honour and appreciation of a giant.
Since his passing, I have been like all the other Singaporeans out there, voraciously devouring every article that offered a glimpse about him. It might be hard for non-Singaporeans like you to understand our actions - the sudden outpouring of grief, queuing up for 10 hours in the sun to pay respects and the over-glorified eulogies of him. On one hand, I am glad that LKY has been relieved from his physical suffering but on the other, I feel conflicted and sad too at the passing of this giant. Consuming these over-glorified eulogies of him offer us an opportunity to try to understand what sort of a character he was - a loving husband and dedicated man that gave up so much for the nation. He was not a perfect man but there are certainly a lot that I could learn from him. One of them being this:
'My job is to get what I am doing done well. My motto in life is: If you have decided to do something, then do it well, or don't do it at all. So whatever I do, I try to achieve it at a high level'
- Lee Kwan Yew (2009)
His death has led us to collectively pause from rushing ahead in life, take stock of our lives and look back to history. And I think this is really important for us as a nation as we try to imagine a future without LKY. However, what struck me most from this week though was the community spirit that has risen up within the nation as people came forth to mourn.
i. People lining up in an orderly and respectful manner for hours
ii. The altruistic actions by businesses and individuals to offer free food, flowers, umbrellas (simply too many to list) to those that have been queuing up for hours.
iii. The many who worked overtime to allow others to come pay their respects.
This is the first time I see my nation being so united in spirit and all because of one man. This quote that has been passing around social media nicely sums it up: '50 years ago, he cried for the nation. 50 years later, the nation cries for him'. This, to me, is SG50 at it's best, not any of the celebrations installed by the government. Surely, life goes back to normal after this weekend but I think his passing has some far-reaching positive impact on us as a society and a nation. I truly truly wish that I am back home now for I would love to be able to physically pay respects to the giant at the Parliament House. But rather than moaning about my situation, I think it would be more appropriate for me to work harder :p