Lee Khoon Choy

In this Chinese name, the family name is Lee.

Lee Khoon Choy DUBC (Chinese: 李炯才; pinyin: Lǐ Jǐongcái; 29 January 1924 – 27 February 2016) was a Singaporean politician.^[2] A member of the governing People's Action Party, he was the Member of Parliament for the Bukit Panjang Constituency from 1959 to 1963, Braddell Heights Constituency between 1977 and 1984 and Hong Lim Constituency between 1965 and 1976.

Lee Khoon Choy DUBC
李炯才
Lee in 1967
Member of the Singapore Parliament for Braddell Heights Constituency
In office 7 February 1977 – 4 December 1984
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Goh Choon Kang
Majority	1976: N/A (walkover) 1980: N/A (walkover)
Member of the Singapore Parliament for Hong Lim Constituency
In office 8 December 1965 – 6 December 1976
Preceded by	Ong Eng Guan
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Member of the Legislative Assembly for Bukit Panjang Constituency
In office 1 July 1959 – 3 September 1963
Preceded by	Goh Tong Liang[1]
Succeeded by	Ong Lian Teng
Party Whip of the People's Action Party
In office 23 June 1959 – 16 October 1963
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Chan Chee Seng
Personal details
Born	(1924-01-29)29 January 1924 Butterworth, Penang, British Malaya (now Malaysia)
Died	27 February 2016(2016-02-27) (aged 92) Singapore
Party	People's Action Party
Spouses	Florence Khor Swee Hoon ​ ​ (died 1959)​ Eng Ah Siam ​ (m. 1962)​
Children	2 with Khor, 5 with Eng
Alma mater	Regent Street Polytechnic

Early life and education

Lee was born in 1924 in Butterworth, Penang, and was educated at Yeok Keow Chinese School and Chung Ling High School in George Town, Penang.^[3][4]

During the Japanese occupation of Penang, he took refuge in his uncle's farm located in a jungle.^[4]

He left Singapore for London in 1949 to study journalism at Regent Street Polytechnic on a year long scholarship.^[4]

Career

In 1946 Lee commenced a career in journalism in Penang with Sin Pin Jit Poh, then left for Singapore to work for a number of Chinese (Sin Chew Jit Poh, Nanyang Siang Pau) and English (Singapore Tiger Standard) newspapers before culminating in his working for The Straits Times in 1957.^[4]

Politics

Member of Parliament

Resigning in 1959, Lee commenced his political career and was elected to the legislative assembly. He served as Minister of State for Culture, Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, and Senior Minister of State in PMO. He stepped down from his parliamentary positions in 1984.^[4]

Diplomat

In 1968 he commenced his diplomatic career, serving as Singapore's Ambassador to Egypt, Ethiopia, Yugoslavia, Lebanon and Indonesia, and High Commissioner in Pakistan. On stepping down from Parliament, he served as Singapore's Ambassador to Japan and South Korea.^[4]

Post politics

He retired from public service in 1988, founding his own firm, Eng Lee Investment Consultants, in 1990.^[4]

He has been and is a director of a number of companies. He is currently Chairman of Eng Lee Investment Consultants, and an Independent non-executive director of Koh Brothers Group Ltd.^[5] Previous positions held include:^[4]

• Chairman, Sino-American (UIC) Tours Corporation
• Independent director, Metro Holdings
• Non-Executive chairman, SSH Corporation (formerly known as Sin Soon Huat)
• Independent director, L & M Group Investments

Bibliography

Lee has published ten books, including:

• Lee, Khoon Choy (2013) Lee, Khoon Choy (2013). Golden Dragon and Purple Phoenix: The Chinese and Their Multi-Ethnic Descendants in Southeast Asia. Hackensack, New Jersey: World Scientific. p. 604. doi:10.1142/8357. ISBN 978-981-4383-43-1.
• Lee, Khoon Choy (2005) Choy, Lee Khoon (2005). Pioneers of Modern China: Understanding the Inscrutable Chinese. Hackensack, New Jersey: World Scientific. p. 576. doi:10.1142/5921. ISBN 978-981-256-618-8.
• Lee, Khoon Choy (1999) A fragile nation: the Indonesian crisis. World Scientific Publishing.
• Lee, Khoon Choy (1995) Japan: Between Myth and Reality. World Scientific Publishing. ISBN 9810218656, 9789810218652.
• Lee, Khoon Choy (1993) Diplomacy of a Tiny State. World Scientific Publishing. ISBN 9810212194.
• Lee, Khoon Choy (1976) Indonesia: Between Myth and Reality.

Personal life

Lee married Florence Khor Swee Hoon, and they had two sons.^[6] Khor died at the age 30 on 26 October 1959.^[6] In 1962, Lee married Eng Ah Siam,^[7] with whom he has had five daughters.

Lee died in his sleep at home aged 92, at 3am on 27 February 2016.^[8] He is survived by his second wife, seven children and 11 grandchildren.^[9]

Honours and awards

• 1974: (Indonesian) Bintang Bakti Utama (Meritorious Service Star) for his work in enhancing relations between Indonesia and Singapore.
• 1986: The Scholarly Achievement Award by the Japan Institute of Oriental Philosophy for his achievements in the research and development of eastern philosophy, thought and culture.
• 1988: (South Korean) Order of Diplomatic Service Merit for his service in promoting relations between South Korea and Singapore.
• 1990: Darjah Utama Bakti Cemerlang (Distinguished Service Order) in recognition of his contributions.^[10]
• 1997: Made an honorary member of the Chinese National Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing for his contributions in the field of humanities and social sciences.