Lee Wei Ling, the daughter of Singapore’s first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, passed away Wednesday at the age of 69 after battling a rare degenerative brain disease for four years, reported the Straits Times.
Her brother, Lee Hsien Yang, shared the news of her passing on Facebook, stating that she died at home on Wednesday. Lee Wei Ling, the second of three siblings, was also the sister of Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Lee Kuan Yew, architect of modern Singapore, and his wife Kwa Geok Choo (2nd R) blow out candles on a birthday cake as they celebrate his 80th birthday in Singapore, September 16, 2003. Lee turned 80 on Tuesday but his vow to stay in government has deepened debate over how soon his son, Hsien Loon (R) should become prime minister – and whether the elder Lee should retire. Looking on is elder Lee’s daughter, Lee Wei Ling. Photo by Reuters |
In his tribute, Lee Hsien Loong remembered his sister as a fighter whose character remained unchanged throughout her life. “She was fiercely loyal to friends, sympathised instinctively with the underdog, and would mobilise actively to do something when she saw unfairness, or suspected wrongdoing,” he wrote.
Lee Wei Ling, a neurologist who served as the director of the National Neuroscience Institute from 2004 to 2014, was diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) in 2020. She described the disease as a “Parkinson’s-like illness that slows physical movements, impairs fast eye movements and balance”, eventually resulting in death, according to the CNA.
Despite her diagnosis, Lee Wei Ling approached it with her typical resilience and calm, treating it as another challenge to endure, Lee Hsien Loong shared. “She knew what it meant, and made the most of the time she had, even as her health declined. Now she has left us. I will deeply miss Ling. May she rest in peace.”
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