Singapore PM's siblings say they hope to resolve family feud

SINGAPORE – The siblings of Singapore's prime minister launched another public attack on their brother over social media Thursday, but they said from now on, they're keeping the spat private.

The family's unusually public feud has riveted Singapore, an orderly island nation where such political spectacles are virtually unheard of. The dispute centers on claims of bullying, nepotism and the legacy of their father, Singapore's founder Lee Kuan Yew.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's brother and sister released on Facebook a full summary of emails, documents and posts that they had made on social media since the dispute burst into the open on June 14.

But they said they hope to resolve the matter in private from now on.

"For now, we will cease presenting further evidence on social media, provided that we and our father's wish are not attacked or misrepresented," said a joint statement from the siblings, business executive Lee Hsien Yang and Dr. Lee Wei Ling, a well-known neurosurgeon. "We are not politicians, and do not wish to see Singapore embroiled in a never-ending public argument."

The siblings said they have "much evidence" that they have not released.

"If there is ever a truly independent inquiry to examine the evidence, they are welcome to ask," they said.

The siblings have accused the prime minister of using the "organs of the state" against them to preserve a house belonging to their father, who died in 2015. His seventh and final will indicated a family bungalow should be demolished once his daughter moves out.

Dr. Lee and her brother have claimed that the prime minister secretly wanted the house preserved to "inherit the faith Singaporeans had in Lee Kuan Yew through the visible symbol of the house."

Lee Hsien Loong responded later in the day with a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office that repeated his earlier rejection of the allegation and said he also wanted to settle the dispute in private.