carriage took the casket of Lee Kuan Yew, the founding father of
modern Singapore, to Parliament House for public viewing.
Mr Lee Kuan Yew, who died on Monday aged 91, was Singapore's prime
minister for 31 years and is seen as its founding father.
His funeral is on Sunday.
Chants of "Lee Kuan Yew" rang out from the crowd as the carriage
entered the colonnaded Parliament House in the heart of the
city-state's business district, where his body would be moved the next
day to a cultural centre for the funeral.
Earlier on Wednesday, his flag-draped coffin, accompanied by
representatives of the military and government, was then carried from
the Istana through the main shopping and business districts, before
arriving at Parliament House.
The casket, wrapped in the Singaporean flag, was brought from the
Istana palace, where the Singapore prime minister's office is located
and the Lee family held a private wake for the last two days.
Bagpipers played "Auld Lang Syne" as the procession set off.
Lee was credited with transforming the city-state from a British
colonial outpost into one of the world's wealthiest nations on a per
capita basis with a strong, pervasive role for the state and little
patience for dissent.
Mr Lee's body has been resting at the Istana - the official residence
- for a private family mourning period. Thousands have already left
flowers and message at its gates and signed books of condolence.
Officials said in a statement they were taken aback by the
"overwhelming response" from the public. The viewing was meant to end
at 20:00 local time but has since been extended twice.
Many organisations and businesses are gave employees time off to pay
their respects.
--ChannelsTV
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