Batik cheongsam and matching jacket with peacock motif in silk worn by Kwa Geok Choo

This batik cheongsam with a matching jacket in silk was worn by Mdm. Kwa Geok Choo, the late wife of Mr. Lee Kuan Yew. Batik is a type of formal wear for Southeast Asia events.Kwa was born in 1920. She met Lee when they studied at Raffles Institution, where she was the only girl in high school. The couple won the Queen’s scholarship to study law at Cambridge University where Kwa became the first Malayan woman to graduate with first class honours. Besides being one of Singapore’s earliest women lawyers, Kwa was also credited with drafting part of a key amendment to the Separation Agreement when Singapore broke away from Malaya.

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