SINGAPORE, March 29 — Thousands lined an almost 1.6km stretch of central Singapore in driving rain as the city prepared to farewell first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, ahead of a state funeral that will draw dignitaries from around the world.

Lee’s body will move from Parliament House in a gun carriage procession that will pass City Hall, the financial district and his own constituency. 

A 21-gun salute, an air force aerial salute and naval sailpast are planned en route.

At the National University of Singapore’s cultural center, the venue for the funeral, police and army personnel were briefed on arrangements for dignitaries when they arrive, with civilian workers decked out in plastic raincoats and carrying umbrellas. 

A table in the reception area was set up with flowers, a condolence book and black and white photo of Lee.

Hundreds of people, many of them dressed in white — traditionally a mourning color in parts of Asia — were lined up along roads in the central business district despite the heavy rain, with yellow flowers tied along the route that Lee’s body will take. Huddling under umbrellas, many draped the red and white Singaporean flag over yellow barricades.

“What’s a little rain?” said Danny Tan, 41, a lawyer with Allen and Gledhill LLP, who was waiting with his wife and toddler son to view the procession. 

“Mr LKY is an important man to this country. 

“We may not agree with all that he’s done but there’s no denying he contributed much to Singapore,” said Tan, referring to Lee by his initials.

‘Better Place’

The funeral will cap a week of mourning after Lee died March 23 at 91. More than 450,000 people have waited in line for as long as 10 hours over the past four days to pay their respects as he lay in state.

“The world is a better place for Lee Kuan Yew,” said Henry Kissinger, President Richard Nixon’s secretary of state. 

“He taught us about the way Asians think about problems and he explained to us what development meant in a practical sense.”

Kissinger and former President Bill Clinton will represent the U.S. at the funeral. Other dignitaries set to attend include Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Australia’s Tony Abbott, UK House of Commons leader William Hague and Igor Shuvalov, Russia’s first deputy prime minister.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Lee’s eldest son, will deliver the first of 10 eulogies. 

A public warning system will sound for 15 seconds for the nation to observe a minute of silence. Lee will be cremated at a private ceremony.

‘Welcomed Me’

As prime minister from 1959 to 1990, Lee helped turned Singapore into Southeast Asia’s richest nation by opening it to foreign investors while running a tightly controlled state that emphasised incorruptibility and stability. He stepped down from the cabinet in 2011.

The government increased access to Lee’s body in Parliament House to 24 hours starting Wednesday morning until 8pm yesterday after mourners formed a line more than 1.6km long through the financial district.

“Nothing will deter us on this day,” said Kirrily Hoare, 38, an Australian who’s been working in Singapore for 18 months as she waited by the road for Lee’s procession. 

“I am here to pay my last respects to a great man who made this possible and welcomed me to his country.” — Bloomsberg