A foreign pilot who infuriated Singapore's Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew by leading a rare union revolt has been told by the government he can no longer live in Singapore as a permanent resident.  Captain Ryan Goh Yew Hock, a Malaysian citizen, was singled out by Lee as the main instigator in a November 2003 vote by pilots to sack their union leaders for caving into wage cuts and layoffs imposed by state-controlled Singapore Airlines.

The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority said Goh, who has lived in Singapore for 26 years, had been told that his entry and re-entry permits that are necessary for permanent residents would be cancelled.

The leaders of Singapore's government have said “confrontational industrial relations” are a threat in a country where the government, employers and unions traditionally co-operate closely and where industrial action is rare.