Singapore mourns Lee Kuan Yew's death, world leaders pay rich tributes

SINGAPORE: With tears in their eyes and prayers in their hearts, Singaporeans today mourned the death of their first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew as world leaders hailed him as a "true giant of history" who transformed the tiny former British colony into a financial powerhouse.

Lee, 91, the country's first Prime Minister passed away peacefully at the Singapore General Hospital in the wee hours of today after being in intensive care for pneumonia since February 5.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who is also Lee's eldest son and Singapore's third Premier, declared a period of national mourning from March 23 to 29.

Singapore plunged into mourning and tributes from world leaders soon started pouring in as the news about Lee's death spread.

Prime Minister Lee issued a statement before dawn announcing the passing of his father.

"He fought for our independence, built a nation where there was none, and made us proud to be Singaporeans. We won't see another like him," he said in an emotional TV address.

Glowing tributes for Lee from world leaders started streaming in with US President Barack Obama praising Lee as a visionary and a "true giant of history".

"A visionary who led his country from Singapore's independence in 1965 to build one of the most prosperous countries in the world today, he was a devoted public servant and a remarkable leader," Obama said.

"He was a true giant of history who will be remembered for generations to come as the father of modern Singapore and as one the great strategists of Asian affairs," Obama said.

UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon called Lee a "legendary figure in Asia".

Remembering Lee, UK Prime Minister David Cameron said, "Lee personally shaped Singapore in a way that few people have any nation. He made his country into one of the great success stories of our modern world. That Singapore is today a prosperous, secure and successful country is a monument to his decades of remarkable public service."

Cameron said Lee was always a friend to Britain, sometimes a critical one, and many British Prime Ministers benefited from his wise advice.

"His place in history is assured, as a leader and as one of the modern world's foremost statesmen," he said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping praised Lee as an "old friend of the Chinese people".

Xi said Lee, who was ethnically Chinese, was "widely respected by the international community as a strategist and a statesman".