Wee Kim Wee
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His Excellency Wee Kim Wee DUTx1, GCB (Honorary) |
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|---|---|
| 黄金辉 | |
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| 4th President of Singapore | |
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In office September 1985 – 1 September 1993 |
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| Prime Minister |
Lee Kuan Yew (1959–90) Goh Chok Tong (1990–2004) |
| Preceded by | Devan Nair |
| Succeeded by | Ong Teng Chong |
| Ambassador to the Republic of Korea | |
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In office February 1981 – April 1984 |
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| Prime Minister | Lee Kuan Yew |
| Ambassador to Japan | |
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In office September 1980 – April 1984 |
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| Prime Minister | Lee Kuan Yew |
| High Commissioner to Malaysia | |
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In office 1973 – September 1980 |
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| Prime Minister | Lee Kuan Yew |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
4 November 1915 Singapore, Straits Settlements |
| Died | 2 May 2005 (aged 89) Singapore |
| Resting place |
Mandai Columbarium 200° |
| Spouse(s) | Koh Sok Hiong (许淑香) |
| Alma mater | Outram School |
| Occupation | Journalist, diplomat, politician |
| Religion | Buddhism |
Wee Kim Wee (simplified Chinese: 黄金辉; traditional Chinese: 黃金輝; pinyin: Huáng Jīn Huī; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Ûiⁿ Kim-hui;4 November 1915 – 2 May 2005), DUT (First Class), GCB, was a Singaporean politician who served as the fourth President of Singapore. He worked as a journalist from 1945 to 1973 before he was offered the post of High Commissioner of Singapore to Malaysia by the government. He then served as Ambassador to Japan in September 1980 and also as Ambassador to South Korea in February 1981 before returning to Singapore in April 1984 and took up the position of Chairman of the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation. Wee was appointed as the President of Singapore in 1985 and was sworn in on September 1985, where he was in office for one term until September 1, 1993.
Born in Singapore on November 4, 1915, Wee Kim Wee was the son of Wee Choong Lay, and his wife Chua Hay Luan. Wee Choong Lay was a ship purser but was blind when Wee Kim Wee was six years old. Wee Kim Wee lost his father when he was eight and his mother when he was nineteen. Wee received his primary education at Pearl's Hill School before enrolling in Raffles Institution for his secondary education. However, Wee did not complete his secondary education and dropped out after two years at the institution in January 1930.
In 1930, Wee started out as a clerk working for the newspaper The Straits Times, before becoming a reporter focusing on political issues. He eventually became one of the paper's main reporters. In 1941 he joined the United Press Associations, and was its chief correspondent in the 1950s. He returned to The Straits Times in 1959, and was appointed deputy editor in Singapore. In 1963 he was awarded the Public Service Medal. In 1966, he interviewed the former Indonesian president Suharto, reporting the latter's intention to end the three-year confrontation with Malaysia (see Konfrontasi). He broke the news with a front-page headline using Suharto's own words: "Suharto: 'Peace: The sooner the better'". In 1973, he was awarded the Public Service Star as the editorial manager of the Straits Times.
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