Even while in hospital, Lee Kuan Yew receives visitors

Even in hospital, Lee meets IATA chief

SINGAPORE - Singapore's elder statesman Lee Kuan Yew is still being treated in hospital on Friday, two days after he was admitted for a chest infection, but a photograph released by his office showed him in good spirits.

Lee, 87, the city-state's first prime minister and father of current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, was pictured standing next to Giovanni Bisignani, director-general of the International Air Transport Association, in his room at Singapore General Hospital.

The two men "discussed key developments in the aviation industry", according to a brief statement from Lee's press secretary Yeong Yoon Ying.

The elder Lee was admitted into hospital late on Wednesday for treatment for a chest infection. He had suffered a fall on Monday and had gone to hospital on Tuesday for physiotherapy.

The government did not respond to queries about his health on Thursday.

Lee, who still sits in the cabinet with the title of minister mentor, spoke about the effects of old age and his concerns about what would happen to the tiny Southeast Asian island nation after his passing in a recent interview with the New York Times. - Reuters