Facts you need to know about Li Shengwu, Lee Hsien Yang’s son
Singaporean economist Li Shengwu was recently in the news for making tenure at the prestigious Harvard University — an achievement he posted about on his X account.
His father, Mr Lee Hsien Yang, later shared the news on his own Facebook account, adding that the achievement “would have given my late father-in-law much joy if he were alive today”.
Mr Li was an assistant professor of economics at Harvard from 2018 to 2023. He is now an associate professor there.
Tenured.
Now that it's no longer tempting fate, let me say this: Be kind to yourself. It's easy on the tenure track to work to the point of negative marginal return.
Focused work is hard. If you can work on a proof for four real hours in a day, that is a good day.
— Shengwu Li (@ShengwuLi) February 27, 2024
Before this milestone, Mr Li, who graduated from the University of Oxford with a Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, had already made a name for himself in the academic world.
The 39-year-old has had several works published, and received the Aliprantis Prize in 2017 for his research.
Source: Li Shengwu on Facebook
However, Mr Li has also landed in the news for other reasons.
Here’s what you need to know about the current Harvard Associate Professor of Economics, including his occasionally tense relationship with Singapore.
1. He is Lee Kuan Yew’s grandson
Mr Li is a descendant of the distinguished Lee family.
He is the grandson of the first Prime Minister (PM) of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, and the son of former brigadier-general and businessman Lee Hsien Yang and lawyer Lee Suet Fern.
Mr Lee Hsien Yang is the younger brother of current PM Lee Hsien Loong, which makes Mr Li PM Lee’s nephew.
Source: Lee Hsien Yang on Facebook
2. He is one of three children
Mr Li is the oldest of Mr Lee Hsien Yang’s three sons. In a 2017 Straits Times article, Mr Lee Hsien Yang was quoted saying that his sons do not live with him anymore.
Mr Li’s second brother, Li Huanwu, is the vice president of an American tech company, Afiniti.
In 2019, Li Huanwu married his partner, Heng Yirui, in South Africa, one of several countries where same-sex marriages are legal.
“Today would have been unimaginable to us growing up. We are overjoyed to share this occasion in the glowing company of friends and family,” the couple shared with Pink Dot SG.
Mr Li Shengwu and his immediate family were all present for his brother’s wedding.
Source: Dear Straight People on Facebook
Not much is known about Mr Li’s youngest brother, Li Shaowu.
3. He has a master and a PHD
According to his curriculum vitae (CV), upon receiving his Bachelor’s Degree from Oxford in 2009, Mr Li went on to acquire a Master of Philosophy degree in Economics with distinction in 2011.
He then pursued a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Economics at Stanford University, where he worked on his dissertation titled ‘Essays in theoretical and behavioral economics’.
He graduated in 2016 before joining the Harvard Society of Fellows as a Junior Fellow.
4. He was awarded the Sloan Research Fellowship in 2023
Along with his distinguishable tenure, Mr Li was also awarded the prestigous Sloan Research Fellowship early last year.
He was one of 125 ‘outstanding’ researchers in the United States and Canada who was selected for the fellowship.
The Fellowship is awarded to a select group of young researchers in the United States (US) and Canada based on their “research accomplishments, creativity and potential to become a leader in their field”, said the organisation behind the fellowship.
Mr Lee Hsien Yang had said on Facebook that he was “thrilled that Shengwu continues to bring honour to Singapore”.
“I believe Shengwu was the first Singaporean inducted into the Harvard Society of Fellows, I don’t know whether any other Singaporean has been awarded a Sloan Research Fellowship before.”
5. He used to be an avid photographer
Besides his many academic achievements, Mr Li also used to have an interest in landscape photography, publishing many of his photographs on the global photo-sharing platform, 500px.
“I took up landscape photography; it helped that there was astounding natural beauty just 20 minutes’ drive from campus. This is sunset from Russian Ridge Preserve, looking out towards the Pacific,” he said on X in 2021.
I took up landscape photography; it helped that there was astounding natural beauty just 20 minutes’ drive from campus. This is sunset from Russian Ridge Preserve, looking out towards the Pacific. pic.twitter.com/uMvWNC9JcV
— Shengwu Li (@ShengwuLi) May 29, 2021
6. He was found guilty of contempt of court in Singapore in 2020
In 2017, Mr Li’s father, uncle PM Lee, and aunt Lee Wei Ling were in a public dispute over the fate of the home of his late grandfather’s home at 38 Oxley Road.
Mr Li in July that year shared links to news articles from the The Wall Street Journal and the New York Times on his personal Facebook page.
In the private post, which was meant for friends, he commented that the Singapore Government was “very litigious” and has a “pliant court system”.
Source: Property Asia Direct site
Singapore’s Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) subsequently sued Mr Li for contempt of court.
In January 2020, Mr Li said he will stop participating in the legal proceedings due to his objections towards certain events.
Mr Li was found guilty of contempt of court in late July 2020 and fined S$15,000, which he would have to pay within the next two weeks or serve a week in jail.
In an August 2020 Facebook post, Mr Li shared he will be paying the fine to “buy some peace and quiet”, but did not admit to guilt. “I disagree that my words were illegal,” he wrote.
7. His father and mother fled Singapore during police investigations
Mr Lee Hsien Yang and his wife Lee Suet Fern were under police investigation last year for potential offences of giving false evidence in judicial proceedings in relation to Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s will.
According to Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is also Coordinating Minister for National Security, the couple had initially agreed to an interview with police, but later refused to do so.
The police advised them to reconsider taking part, but the pair left Singapore and has remained overseas since, Mr Teo has said.
The issue had arose after Mr Lee Hsien Yang and Dr Lee Wei Ling challenged PM Lee over the fate of their family home after the death of their father on 23 March 2015.
PM Lee said he had recused himself from taking part in any Government consideration or decisions regarding the Oxley Road property.
A demolition clause — relating to the demolition of the Oxley Road house after Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s death — was the point of contention among the children. It had not been in the penultimate will or the will before that, but was in the last.
Source: Lee Hsien Yang on Facebook
In 2020, the Court of Three Judges and a disciplinary tribunal found that the couple had lied under oath during disciplinary proceedings against Ms Lee over her handling of the last will of Mr Lee Kuan Yew.
Mr Lee Hsien Yang has been reported saying that he is now in a self-imposed exile, as he feared he’d be arrested if he returned.
In 2023, he took to Facebook to express his feelings about the situation, hinting that he is unlikely to come back to Singapore to see his sister, who has been diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy, a rare brain disorder.
Pointing out that his sister Dr Lee is now extremely unwell, he said: “It pains me beyond words that I am unlikely ever to be able to see my sister face to face again.”
He added: “After what I have been through, I have no confidence whatsoever in the system. We have lost our lives in Singapore, our home, our friends, our wider families and our society.”
Also read: Li Shengwu announces tenure at Harvard University, Lee Hsien Yang has proud dad moment
Li Shengwu announces tenure at Harvard University, Lee Hsien Yang has proud dad moment
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Featured image adapted from Lee Hsien Yang on Facebook and Harvard.
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