Hon Wing William Yee (born 18 July 1928) was a Fijian engineer and politician. He was the first Chinese Fijian to be elected to the Legislative Council.[2]

William Yee
Member of the Legislative Council for Suva General
In office
1966–1972
Member of the House of Representatives for Suva/Central General
In office
1972–1982
Succeeded byJames Ah Koy
Personal details
Born18 July 1928
Zhongshan, China
Political partyAlliance Party
ProfessionCivil engineer[1]

Biography

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Yee was born in Zhongshan in China, before moving to Fiji as a child. He attended the Marist Brothers High School in Suva and St Bede's College in Canterbury.[1] He then studied engineering at the University of Auckland,[1] and was the first Fijian Chinese to earn a degree in the subject.[3]

Political career

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The 1966 general elections were the first in which Chinese Fijians were able to vote. Yee was an Alliance Party candidate in the three-seat General constituency of Suva, and was elected by a margin of 90 votes. In the 1972 elections he was re-elected in the Suva/Central General constituency of the House of Representatives. He was re-elected again in March 1977 and September 1977, by which time the constituency had been renamed Suva/Central.[4]

Other roles

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In 1975 Yee became chairman of the new Chinese Education Society and worked as school manager of the Yat Sen School.[5] He remained chairman until 1983, and held the post again between 1987 and 1996.[5]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Pacific Islands Year Book and Who's Who 1968, p690
  2. ^ Bessie Ng Kumlin Ali (2002) Chinese in Fiji, p188
  3. ^ Pacific Islands Monthly, 1955
  4. ^ September 1977 Fiji House of Representatives elections Fiji Elections
  5. ^ a b Ng Kumlin Ali, p156