From Third World to First: The Singapore Story

From Third World to First: The Singapore Story - 1965-2000: Lee Kuan Yew: 9780060197766: Amazon.com: Books

From Third World to First: The Singapore Story - 1965-2000: Lee Kuan Yew: 9780060197766: Amazon.com: Books








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From Third World to First: The Singapore Story - 1965-2000 Hardcover – October 3, 2000
by Lee Kuan Yew (Author)
4.9 out of 5 stars 98 customer reviews






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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review


In this memoir, the man most responsible for Singapore's astonishing transformation from colonial backwater to economic powerhouse describes how he did it over the last four decades. It's a dramatic story, and Lee Kuan Yew has much to brag about. To take a single example: Singapore had a per-capita GDP of just $400 when he became prime minister in 1959. When he left office in 1990, it was $12,200 and rising. (At the time of this book's writing, it was $22,000.) Much of this was accomplished through a unique mix of economic freedom and social control. Lee encouraged entrepreneurship, but also cracked down on liberties that most people in the West take for granted--chewing gum, for instance. It's banned in Singapore because of "the problems caused by spent chewing gum inserted into keyholes and mailboxes and on elevator buttons." If American politicians were to propose such a thing, they'd undoubtedly be run out of office. Lee, however, defends this and similar moves, such as strong antismoking laws and antispitting campaigns: "We would have been a grosser, ruder, cruder society had we not made these efforts to persuade people to change their ways.... It has made Singapore a more pleasant place to live in. If this is a 'nanny state,' I am proud to have fostered one."

Lee also describes one of his most controversial proposals: tax breaks and schooling incentives to encourage educated men and women to marry each other and have children. "Our best women were not reproducing themselves because men who were their educational equals did not want to marry them.... This lopsided marriage and procreation pattern could not be allowed to remain unmentioned and unchecked," writes Lee. Most of the book, however, is a chronicle of how Lee helped create so much material prosperity. Anticommunism is a strong theme throughout, and Lee comments broadly on international politics. He is cautiously friendly toward the United States, chastising it for a "dogmatic and evangelical" foreign policy that scolds other countries for human-rights violations, except when they interfere with American interests, "as in the oil-rich Arabian peninsula." Even so, he writes, "the United States is still the most benign of all the great powers.... [and] all noncommunist countries in East Asia prefer America to be the dominant weight in the power balance of the region." From Third World to First is not the most gripping book imaginable, but it is a vital document about a fascinating place in a time of profound transition. --John J. Miller
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Yew is not an endearing figure. He is arrogant, self-righteous, and seems unduly sensitive to criticism by "outsiders" of Singapore's record on human rights. Despite occasional efforts to hide his less-than-pleasant characteristics, they often burst through in his long and often fascinating account of the dramatic transformation of this island nation into a stable and prosperous society. As prime minister for more than three decades, Yew certainly merits credit for Singapore's emergence, and there is much to be learned from his version of his stewardship. This is a detailed and sometimes difficult read, particularly if one lacks a strong grounding in macroeconomics. Still, his description of the difficulties of nation building in a multiethnic society has great value; his efforts to mesh Western concepts of free enterprise with Third World traditions of a "guided economy" may not have universal applicability, but they deserve close scrutiny. This is an essential contribution in efforts to understand why some societies seem so successful in becoming important players in the global economy. Jay Freeman
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Product details

Hardcover: 752 pages
Publisher: Harper; 1st edition (October 3, 2000)
Language: English
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Biography
Lee Kuan Yew, GCMG, CH, SPMJ (born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, 16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), informally known by his initials LKY, was the first Prime Minister of Singapore, governing for more than three decades from 1959 to 1990, including through Singapore's independence from Malaysia in 1965. After Lee chose to step down as Prime Minister in 1990, Lee's successor, Goh Chok Tong, appointed him as Senior Minister, a post he held until 2004, when his elder son, Lee Hsien Loong, became the nation's third prime minister. The elder Lee then assumed the advisory post of Minister Mentor until he left the Cabinet in 2011. In total, Lee held successive ministerial positions for 56 years. He continued to serve his Tanjong Pagar constituency for nearly 60 years as an elected Member of Parliament until his death in 2015.

Lee is recognised as the founding father of independent Singapore, with the country being described as transitioning from the "third world to the first world in a single generation" under his leadership.

Lee graduated from Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge University, with a double starred-first-class honours in law. In 1950, he became a barrister of the Middle Temple and practised law until 1959. Lee co-founded the People's Action Party (PAP) in 1954 and was its first secretary-general, a position he held until 1992, leading the party to eight consecutive victories. He campaigned for Britain to relinquish its colonial rule. His view was shared by the British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan (1957–1963), who was keen on a merger of British colonial territories across South East Asia, including Singapore, in order to hasten the end of British rule, whilst sharing similar concerns to those of Lee about avoiding possible Communist infiltration in Singapore. Britain withdrew in 1963, when Singapore merged with Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak to form the new federation of Malaysia. Racial strife and political tensions led to Singapore's separation from the Malaysian Federation two years later. With overwhelming parliamentary control, Lee and his cabinet oversaw Singapore's transformation from a relatively underdeveloped colonial outpost with no natural resources to an Asian Tiger economy. In the process, he forged an effective system of meritocratic and highly efficient government and civil service. Many of his policies are now taught at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.

Lee eschewed populist policies in favor of pragmatic long-term social and economic measures. With meritocracy and multiracialism as the governing principles, Lee made English the common language to integrate its immigrant society and to facilitate trade with the West. However, Lee also mandated bilingualism in schools for students to preserve their mother-tongue cultural identity.

Lee's rule was criticised, particularly in the West, for curtailing civil liberties (public protests, media control) and bringing libel suits against political opponents. He argued that such disciplinary measures were necessary for political stability, which together with rule of law, were essential for economic progress.
Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by Robert D. Ward [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

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Customer Reviews
4.9 out of 5 stars
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4.9 out of 5 stars

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Top customer reviews

Clay GarnerTop Contributor: Philosophy
5.0 out of 5 stars“There is such a thing as evil, and men are not just evil because they are victims of society.”March 28, 2018
Format: Hardcover|Verified Purchase

“There are books to teach you how to build a house, how to repair engines, how to write a book. But I have not seen a book on how to build a nation out of disparate collection of immigrants from China, British India, and the Dutch East Indies.’’ (3)

This unique story, building a nation from scratch, makes Lee’s experience so interesting. Who else?

How to crate an economy? Where to find jobs? Well . . . many believed that multinational corporations. . .

“. . . were exploiters of cheap land, labor and raw materials. This ‘dependency school’ of economists argued that they continued the colonial pattern of exploitation that left the developing countries selling raw materials and buying consumer goods from the advanced countries. The corporations controlled technology and consumer preferences and formed alliances with their host governments to exploit the people and keep them down.’’ (58)

Lee agree?

“Third world leaders believed this theory of neocolonialist exploitation, but Keng Swee and I were not impressed.’’ (58)

His skepticism proved correct. Singapore now wealthy. Mainly from the boost from multinational corporations. Wow!

Chapter 7 - A Fair, Not Welfare, Society

“We believed in socialism, in fair shares for all. Later we learned that personal motivation and personal rewards were essential for a productive economy. However, because people are unequal in their ability, if performance and rewards are determined by the marketplace, there will be a few big winners, many medium winners, and a considerable number of losers.’’ (95)

What problem?

“That would make for social tensions because a society’s sense of fairness is offended.’’ (95) What to do?

“My primary preoccupation was to give every citizen a stake in the country and its future. I wanted a home owning society. I had seen the contrast between the blocks of low-cost rental apartments, badly misused and poorly maintained, and those of house proud owners.’’ (95)

Another key was adamant, unyielding integrity in government . . .

“It is easy to start off with high moral standards, strong convictions, and determination to beat down corruption. But it is difficult to live up to these good intentions unless the leaders are strong enough to deal with all transgressors, and without exceptions.’’ (163)

‘Without exceptions’! Really . . .

Lee continued to seek new ideas and expert opinion. However . . .

“I found many other fresh ideas and picked the brains of other highly intelligent people who were not always right. They were to politically correct. Harvard was determinedly Liberal. No scholar was prepared to say or admit there was any inherent differences between races or cultures or religion.’’ (460)

Well . . .

“They held that human beings were equal and a society only needed correct economic policies and institutions of government to succeed. They were so bright I found it difficult to believe that they sincerely held these views they felt compelled to espouse.’’ (461)

Yep, he is not ‘politically correct’! Another example . . .

“Man needs a moral sense of right and wrong. There is such a thing as evil, and men are not just evil because they are victims of society.”

This large work (681 pages) covers wide variety of themes. International politics, economic decisions, financial developments, race riots, communist adversaries, etc., etc..

Considerable space on his visits and views on other countries; including Russia, China, America, Taiwan, etc.. Also, forthright analysis of world leaders, Gorbachev, Gerald Ford, Henry Kissinger, etc..

Fascinating!

Easy to read. Reader will need interest on political, economic, social issues.

Adds insight to the modern world.
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John R
5.0 out of 5 starsThe Story of a Man and the Nation He CreatedDecember 5, 2017
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I lived in Singapore for four years towards of the end of Lee Kuan Yew's tenure as Prime Minister and traveled there many times before and since. What Mr. Lee created in Singapore is a masterpiece of political, economic and social engineering. It represents an important alternative from the inefficiencies and deficiencies of both a free wheeling democracy and autocratic rule. It is the most intelligently run government I have ever run across.

No politician speaks more directly and with greater clarity than Lee Kuan Yew. "Third World to First World" is a great chronicle of his thought process, experiences and view of the world. It remains highly relevant today. A really great book.

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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsUnderstanding APAC history - and nation buildingMarch 12, 2017
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In our new world of rising hysteria l and intellectually void leadership in crucial countries, it is important to return to and read about the great statesmen who have made our world and times a better place. And to learn from their thoughts and thinking. LKY's book is a fantastic series of snapshots and vignettes about the birth and formative years of a remarkable city state and his decision making process. An amazing time for an amazing man.

3 people found this helpful

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Brim
5.0 out of 5 starslike any person with their own opinionsSeptember 17, 2014
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Outstanding man, outstanding writing, outstanding story. Though, like any person with their own opinions, I didn't agree with every one of Mr. Yew's views on life and the world we could all learn some valuable lessons in reality by reading this book and truly contemplating all he accomplished. Amazing (and I hate that word). I've been gobbling up books for the last nine months like I own stock in Amazon and this has been my favorite thus far. Highly recommended.

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Book Worm
5.0 out of 5 starswas just brilliant!February 21, 2015
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Mr. Yew had a vision and put it into place. With only three square miles Mr. Yew led his nation into the modern era by using education and giving it's citizens a sense of of themselves in knowing that freedom can be achieved through staying single minded in purpose. How Mr. Yew handled the myriad is problems, especially the hateful communists, was just brilliant!

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analyzethis
5.0 out of 5 starsEVERYONE should read this bookOctober 5, 2015
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If we could just have five of these people running the entire world, peace and happiness would be achievable. It's a pretty hefty volume but do not be deterred, you can skim over sections of it and just focus on the parts that are applicable everywhere. His observations about human society are thought provoking and brilliant.

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Mary Lee
5.0 out of 5 starsLKY: Singapore from 3rd World to 1st.June 5, 2015
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It's a very engaging book. Mr. Lee Kuan Yew had a lot of wise sayings and he was so predictable. He had very good foresight and events indeed happened according to his words. He meant what he said and was able to transform a tiny island into one of the world's busiest nation within a short spam of time. Very few political leaders would be able to achieve that. LKY had made Singaporeans a product of Singapore. Once I pick up the book to read, it's hard to put it down.

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bleujay17
5.0 out of 5 starsA very good read. I may not agree with all LKY ...April 7, 2017
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A very good read. I may not agree with all LKY said and did, but here is one person with political will and the intent to make his country First World and improve the people's lives, even with strict policies. Singapore is not perfect, but it's a good example of what can happen with vision and followthrough.

2 people found this helpful