article_snippet: (Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew will forever be remembered as the man who transformed a mosquito-ridden colonial trading post into a prosperous financial center with clean streets, shimmering skyscrapers and a stable government.
article_snippet: Born in 1923, Lee Kuan Yew became Prime Minister in 1959 when Singapore, a tiny spit of land with no natural resources and a polyglot population of Chinese, Malays and Indians, was still British territory and beset by riots and unrest.
article_snippet: Lee Kuan Yew presided over Singapore's bitter split from Malaysia in 1965 and molded the independent country into the global economic powerhouse it is today.
article_snippet: Lee Kuan Yew's thinking also had an international impact.
article_snippet: Lee Kuan Yew brand of capitalism -- which stresses the role of government rather than the free hand of the market -- has provided a blueprint for China's landmark economic reforms.
article_snippet: Lee Kuan Yew voluntarily stepped down as Prime Minister in 1990, the first Asian strongman to do so.
article_snippet: However, Lee Kuan Yew played a role in China's Cabinet until 2011 when Lee Kuan Yew eldest son, Lee Hsien Loong, was elected for a second term as prime minister.
article_snippet: Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew retained Lee Kuan Yew influence around the world.
article_snippet: A fourth-generation Singaporean, Lee Kuan Yew's family originally emigrated from southern China.
article_snippet: The city Lee Kuan Yew took control of in 1959 was still recovering from the ravages of war and could not have been more different from today's Singapore.
article_snippet: Lee Kuan Yew concentrated on attracting investment and creating jobs; first finding a successful niche in electronics manufacturing by touting Singapore as an alternative to Hong Kong, which Lee Kuan Yew said was in turmoil due to the Cultural Revolution in China.
article_snippet: While Lee Kuan Yew has been lauded for Lee Kuan Yew economic accomplishments, Lee Kuan Yew also created a Singapore bound by stringent laws and regulations that dictated most, if not all, aspects of society -- including media and political freedoms, censorship and even the selling of chewing gum.
highlights_snippet: Lee Kuan Yew became Prime Minister in 1959 .
  
highlights_snippet: Lee Kuan Yew presided over Singapore's bitter split from Malaysia in 1965 .
  