PM Wong, SM Lee send condolences to Bangladesh on death of former leader Khaleda Zia
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Mourners gathering to pay their respects to Bangladesh’s former prime minister Khaleda Zia during her funeral in Dhaka on Dec 31, 2025.
PHOTO: EPA
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SINGAPORE – Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong offered their condolences to Bangladesh on the death of former prime minister Khaleda Zia
Ms Zia, a dominant figure in the country’s politics and its first female leader, died at the age of 80 on Dec 30, 2025.
In a letter to Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus on Jan 2, PM Wong highlighted Ms Zia’s role in shaping Bangladesh’s politics and economic development.
PM Wong said she played an important role in Bangladesh’s journey towards parliamentary democracy and a market economy, and noted that she was a champion of women’s education and development.
He also said that Ms Zia was instrumental in strengthening bilateral ties between Singapore and Bangladesh.
Her dedication and service to her country, he wrote, would be “deeply remembered”.
He expressed his sympathies to her family and to the Bangladeshi people during their period of mourning.
SM Lee on Jan 2 also wrote to Ms Zia’s son, Mr Tarique Rahman, who is acting chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, to offer his condolences.
SM Lee recalled hosting Ms Zia on her official visit to Singapore in March 2005, an encounter he described as an honour.
He said Ms Zia “personified the resilience of the Bangladeshi people”, entering politics after the death of her husband and going on to win a mandate to become the country’s first female prime minister.
During her time in office, he wrote, she expanded Bangladesh’s private sector, championed women’s education and worked to improve livelihoods, particularly in rural communities.
He added that Ms Zia also deepened engagement with Singapore, helping to lay the foundation for what he described as an enduring friendship between the Republic and Bangladesh.
SM Lee said his thoughts were with Mr Rahman’s family and the people of Bangladesh during this difficult time.
Ms Zia, who became Bangladesh’s first female prime minister in 1991 and served three terms as the country’s leader, was jailed for corruption in 2018 under her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina’s government.
Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, she had vowed in November 2025 to campaign in elections scheduled for February 2026 – the first vote since a mass uprising toppled Hasina in 2024
