Lee Kuan Yew’s home ‘worthy of preservation’ as centre of Singapore independence

The site of 38 Oxley Road was “more than just the home” of founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew – it was where Singapore’s independence movement took shape, a government advisory board said on Monday.

The Preservation of Sites and Monuments Advisory Board assessed the site as having “strong national significance worthy of preservation as a national monument”, describing it as a foundational part of Singapore’s independence that is “not represented by any other site or monument”.

The site witnessed pivotal events in the 1950s that marked the country’s journey to independence, the board said.

These included “political conversations, activities and decisions” by the nation’s founding leaders that “profoundly influenced the trajectory of Singapore’s independence movement and its subsequent national history”.

Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth David Neo intends to gazette the site as a national monument, after considering the advisory board’s assessment and the National Heritage Board’s recommendation, according to a joint statement from the heritage board and the Singapore Land Authority.

The announcement marks the latest development in a saga that has unfolded since Lee’s death on March 23, 2015.