Singapore bids farewell to founder

Singaporeans said farewell to longtime leader Lee Kuan Yew with an elaborate procession on Sunday and a three-hour state funeral where his son, the current prime minister, eulogized the statesman and declared that the wealthy Southeast Asian city state he helped build is his monument.

Tens of thousands of people undeterred by heavy rains lined a 15-km route through the city to catch a glimpse of the funeral cortege.

Lee's coffin, draped in Singapore's red and white flag and protected from the downpour by a glass casing, lay atop a ceremonial gun carriage that was solemnly led past city landmarks from Parliament to a cultural center, where the state funeral was underway.