Singaporean Reactions to Commemorations of Lee Kuan Yew in Tamil Nadu

Abstract

When Lee Kuan Yew passed away, many of the national and even some international rituals of mourning were expected. However, what took Singapore by surprise was an outpouring of grief and memorializing in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Singaporean mass media reported that in the village of Ullikkottai and the surrounding area, families mourned the death of a leader to whom they attributed their region’s prosperity and economic development. This article uses Arnold van Gennep’s observations on rites of passage and Victor Turner’s notion of liminality to examine the public reaction to media coverage of mourning rituals in Tamil Nadu. These reports reflexively shed light on the complex relationships and histories of race, immigration, statehood, and national identity in Singapore, all brought into focus between March and September 2015.