- Lee Hsien Yang is the estranged brother of former Singapore PM Lee Hsien Loong
- The brothers are the sons of Lee Kuan Yew, modern Singapore’s founding father
- They have been in a dispute since 2017 over their fathers family home
- Lee Hsien Yang has been granted asylum in the UK
Singapore founder’s son says he is now a political refugee in UK
Lee Hsien Yang, the estranged brother of former Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong, said Tuesday that he’s now a “political refugee” after the UK government granted him asylum from what he described as persecution at home.
The Lee brothers are the sons of Lee Kuan Yew, modern Singapore’s founding father. They have been engaged in a public spat since 2017 over the late patriarch’s family home, and Lee Hsien Yang has accused the Singapore government of persecuting him, his wife and son.
In a Facebook post Tuesday, he said that he sought asylum protection in 2022 “as a last resort”.
“The Singapore government’s attacks against me are in the public record. They prosecuted my son, brought disciplinary proceedings against my wife, and launched a bogus police investigation that has dragged on for years. On the basis of these facts, the U.K. has determined that I face a well-founded risk of persecution and cannot safely return to Singapore,” he said.
“I remain a Singapore citizen and hope that someday it will become safe to return home.”
