Lee Kuan Yew (LKY), Singapore’s first prime minister, passed away in 2015.

In 2017 it came to light that his three children were bitterly divided over what

to do with LKY’s house at 38 Oxley Road, which has political significance as the

birthplace of the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP), but which LKY had long

said that he wanted to destroy.

His oldest child and current prime minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong (LHL), argued

that LKY was open to the idea of preserving the house.1 LKY’s two other children

and executors of his estate, Lee Wei Ling (LWL) and Lee Hsien Yang (LHY), believed

that LKY wanted the house demolished, and that he had effectively been forced by the

establishment into accepting preservation as a viable option.

Though Singaporeans surveyed in 2015 overwhelmingly favoured the demolition

option, two camps have emerged, broadly along partisan lines.2 The establishment

and the PAP appear to support LHL’s view of LKY’s intentions vis-à-vis 38 Oxley

Road, while many in the opposition seem to back the position of LWL and LHY,

especially after the latter joined the Progress Singapore Party in 2020.

This partisanship has been mirrored in the media, with mainstream channels echoing

LHL’s viewpoint and alternative ones generally offering support to his siblings’ position.