SENIOR Minister Lee Kuan Yew has said that for a democratic process to work in a country, there needs to be certain fundamental rules and these include education and literacy.

He was speaking at a function to mark Reuters News agency's 150th anniversary.

Speaking off-the-cuff to a roomful of guests, Mr Lee said that it's not new that countries in this region are having some difficulties.

He noted that as the world is changing, there's now emphasis on democracy and human rights.

But SM Lee added that before a country goes through a democratic process, it needs to ensure some fundamental rules or it will end up in chaos.

He cited the example of the Phillipines, which has a constitutional process in place, but was unable to remove the President constitutionally although he was impeached.

"So it just doesn't work...the checks and balances do not work out in the same way and we have to live with reality. And one of the reality is that this is an area where the population needs to have its level of education brought up, complete literacy, dissemination of information that makes it possible for informed judgements," said Mr Lee.

Turning to Reuters, Mr Lee said it has been quick to adopt new technology to its advantage, in an age where information technology has led to real-time transmission of news.