Ambrose Lee dies in his sleep at age 73, city leader praises former Hong Kong security minister for ‘exemplary contributions’
- His death was confirmed by multiple sources, including former senior officials and Lee’s ex-colleagues
- ‘I was deeply impressed by his dedication and commitment to serving the people of Hong Kong when I worked with him,’ says City leader John Lee
Ambrose Lee Siu-kwong, Hong Kong’s longest serving security secretary, who steered the government’s response to chaotic protests at a trade summit and a deadly hostage crisis involving residents visiting the Philippines, died in his sleep on Sunday at the age of 73.
His death was revealed by former senior officials and his ex-colleagues in the disciplined services.
City leader John Lee Ka-chiu praised Lee, who served as security chief from 2003 to 2012, for his “exemplary contributions” during his time in public office over the decades, adding the former minister had commanded the “respect and love” of his employees and colleagues.
“Lee was a senior officer whom I respected,” the chief executive said in a statement expressing his deep sadness. “I was deeply impressed by his dedication and commitment to serving the people of Hong Kong when I worked with him in various positions in the past.”
Other officials who had worked with Lee expressed shock over his death, saying he appeared to be in good health after a stay in hospital to treat ribs he broke in a recent fall.
“Last week I met Lee and friends twice,’ Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong Wai-lun wrote on his Facebook page, describing Lee as “a teacher and friend” from their shared years in the civil service. “It felt very sudden and sad to hear about his passing.”
Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, the convenor of the Executive Council, the government’s key decision-making body, said Lee had attended gatherings with friends last week for an early celebration of his birthday, which fell on this Wednesday.
“I have not heard of any serious illnesses he had,” Ip said. “I met him some months ago and he looked fine.”
Born in 1948, Lee studied at Kowloon Technical School and graduated from the University of Hong Kong’s department of electrical and electronic engineering, before further studying at the University of Oxford in Britain, Tsinghua University in Beijing and Harvard University in the United States.
He joined the civil service in 1974 as an immigration officer and rose through the ranks to become assistant director in 1995 and deputy director two years later. He served as head of the department from 1998 to 2002.
Ip said she worked closely with Lee when he was her deputy in 1996 at the department, holding him in high regard over his handling of right of abode and passport cases.
In 2002, Lee was appointed commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and the following year joined the Tung Chee-hwa administration as secretary for security. He replaced Ip, who stepped down after an estimated half a million people took to the streets to protest over a proposed national security law, forcing the government to abandon the idea.
Lee was security minister during some of the biggest crises to confront the government in the past 25 years, including protests by South Korean farmers at a World Trade Organization summit in 2005 that led police to shut down parts of downtown, and a protracted hostage crisis in Manila in 2010, in which eight Hong Kong tourists and their tour guide, a compatriot, were killed.
After stepping down as minister, Lee served as a deputy to the National People’s Congress, China’s legislature, from 2013 to 2018 and often made headlines for his controversial remarks on current affairs. In 2016, he described young people involved in the Mong Kok riot, when unrest escalated in the district after a crackdown on unlicensed hawkers sparked violence, as “beasts” who had lost their conscience.
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The same year, he suggested Beijing consult Hong Kong on pulling the city out of a United Nations convention under which it is obliged to offer protection for asylum seekers.
Lee had expressed regret over not being able to relaunch the shelved national security legislation before his retirement.
“Safeguarding national security is the vocation for all of us, not only a responsibility for the secretary for security,” he told the media at the time.
Incumbent security chief Chris Tang Ping-keung praised Lee for his efforts in maintaining law and order, and in exercising effective immigration control.
Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki recalled the two decades he spent working with the former minister in immigration.
“Lee’s outstanding leadership, and his meticulous attitude towards and decisive approach to work, were highly respected by me and his colleagues,” Chan said.
ICAC Commissioner Woo Ying-ming described Lee as a “humble gentleman and a determined leader with vision”, and said he led the watchdog in forging cooperation with counterparts in mainland China under his leadership.
Lee is survived by his son Glen Lee Lam-yan, an artist for local broadcaster TVB for more than two decades. He had told the media that the development of his acting career was limited by his father’s post in the government, as he said he was always assigned to play “positive” roles.
