Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s red box on display at National Museum

SINGAPORE — Starting today (April 1), the red box used by the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew as his briefcase went on display at the National Museum of Singapore, as part of the memorial exhibition, In Memoriam: Lee Kuan Yew.

Education Minister Heng Swee Keat had written about the red box in a Facebook post on March 24, in a tribute to Mr Lee, who died on March 23. 

Mr Lee used the red box to carry papers, speech drafts, letters, readings, notes and cassette tapes with his recorded instructions. His secretaries would transcribe the dictated notes and Mr Heng, who was his Principal Private Secretary from 1997 to 2000, would follow up on his instructions.

Mr Lee used the red box right up until Feb 4, the day before he was hospitalised. The red box “symbolises Mr Lee’s unwavering dedication to Singapore so well”, said Mr Heng. 

The red box is displayed with other personal items used by Mr Lee, including his barrister wig when he was admitted to the Bar and the Rolex Oyster Perpetual watch presented to him by the Singapore Union of Postal and Telecommunications Workers. 

Admission to the exhibition is free. It ends on April 26. 

After the exhibition, the red box, along with Mr Lee’s other personal objects and parts of the memorial exhibition, will be incorporated into the museum’s permanent galleries. 

Since the exhibition opened on March 25, more than 14,000 people have visited it.