Tag: Amos Yee

Rally At Hong Lim Park Calling For The Release Of Amos Yee

A day before teenage blogger Amos Yee returns to court, where he could be sentenced for posting an obscene image online and posting content intended to hurt the religious feelings of Christians, a rally was held at Hong Lim Park today (July 5) calling for his release.

The rally was organised by Community Action Network, a group of individuals describing themselves as “concerned about freedom of expression in Singapore”.

The group had also started a petition on change.org two months ago to drop charges against the 16-year-old. As of 10pm today, there were more than 6,300 signatories.

Source: www.todayonline.com

July 6, 2015
Amnesty International: Free Prisoner Of Conscience Amos Yee

The Singapore authorities must immediately and unconditionally release teenager Amos Yee, who is facing a minimum of 18 months of reformative training after criticising the late Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew online. Amnesty International considers him to be a prisoner of conscience, held solely for exercising his right to freedom of expression. As he is a minor, authorities must also ensure that his treatment is consistent with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to which Singapore is a State party.

Amos Yee was found guilty on 12 May by a Singapore court for “transmitting obscene materials”, under penal code section 292(1)(a) which is punishable by a fine, and for violating penal code section 298, “uttering words with deliberate intent to wound the religious or racial feelings of any person”, punishable by three years in prison and a fine. He is currently in remand at Block 7 of the Institute of Mental Health in Buangkok, Singapore. He was first arrested on 29 March after he uploaded a YouTube video entitled “Lee Kuan Yew is dead”, referring to the late Singapore Prime Minister, and for posting an image featuring the superimposed photos of Lee Kuan Yew and former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher on the heads of two cartoon figures having sex.

The next hearing in Amos Yee’s case is on 6 July 2015, when a court is expected to decide whether he will be sentenced to a minimum of 18 months reformative training or up to two years’ mandatory treatment for people with psychiatric conditions.

Amos Yee has been remanded several times as the courts explore his sentencing options. His defence rejected the prosecution’s proposal for a punishment of probation and reformative training. According to the Office of the UN Commissioner on Human Rights, reformative training is “akin to detention and usually applied to juvenile offenders involved in serious crimes” and was referred to in a recent Singapore district court decision as “incarcerative in nature and should be imposed cautiously.”

Amnesty International calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Amos Yee. The right to freedom of expression is enshrined in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). It includes the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers. Under international human rights law and standards, restrictions on the right to freedom of expression must be the exception rather than the rule. What Amos Yee said was peacefully expressed and was clearly not grounds for criminalization. He has been held for nothing but exercising his right to freedom of expression, and Amnesty International considers him to be a prisoner of conscience.

Pending his release, authorities in Singapore must also ensure that Amos Yee is safe from any security threats and is not tortured or otherwise ill-treated. Singapore has a duty to ensure that Amos Yee’s best interests under the Convention on the Rights of the Child are given priority, including ensuring that he has unconditional access to his parents. As stated in the Convention, Singapore also must ensure that his specific needs as a juvenile are taken into account.

The case of Amos Yee highlights the wider, restrictive environment for freedom of expression in Singapore. Opposition activists, former prisoners of conscience and human rights defenders continue to express their concerns about the restricted space for public discussion in the country, and the government’s tight control of critical debate. The government persists in using defamation suits against critics, and the media continues to be tightly controlled through restrictive laws on censorship.

Amnesty International urges the Singapore authorities to repeal or review and amend all laws which impose unlawful restrictions on the right to freedom of expression, to ensure that they comply with international human rights law and standards.

Source: www.amnesty.org

July 3, 2015
I Saw Amos Yee On Wanted List At Woodlands Checkpoint

Hi, I would like to raise an awareness. I was using Woodlands Checkpoint few days back. When I was the Car’s queue at the Immigration counter, I saw the Immigration Officers PC serving the opposite of my counter.

In their PC Monitor, Left Side states HOT LIST and all wanted person picture will be moving upwards. Then I saw Amos Yee(in Yellow T-shirt) picture in it.

It was a shock of my life. A young teenage boy picture in the Hot List while he is IMH. How can pass thru Immigration while under custody. And lastly just for speaking the truth and what a normal born Singaporean feel in his heart got him in to Politically Intimidated/Bullied. I am now really terrified of the Ruling Party/Government/PAP/LHL. I am shocked that nobody reported it.

From a very concern, Born Singaporean.

Md Yas

Source: http://statestimesreview.com

July 3, 2015
Amos Yee: Remanded At IMH For 2 Weeks Pending Psychiatric Report

Teenage blogger Amos Yee Pang Sang, 16, has been remanded at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for two weeks pending a psychiatric report.

Before the State Courts on Tuesday (Jun 23), District Judge Jasvender Kaur said that a report by Dr Munidasa Winslow said that Yee may suffer from autism-spectrum disorder. This emerged from the reformative training suitability report, which found the accused physically and mentally suitable for reformative training.

As such, Judge Kaur said that she is exploring other sentencing options, including a mandatory treatment order.

A mandatory treatment order provides treatment for offenders suffering from psychiatric conditions that are susceptible to treatment, where the accused will have to undergo psychiatric treatment. It is meted out in lieu of imprisonment.

It was introduced as part of a series of community-based sentencing (CBS) options implemented since January 2011, under Criminal Procedure Code 2010. If the CBS is successfully completed, the criminal record will be rendered spent. This means the offender is deemed to have no record of that conviction.

The next hearing is on Jul 6 at 2.30pm, when the psychiatric report is expected to be ready.

The prosecution, led by Deputy Public Prosecutor Hay Hung Chun, reminded the courts that they had suggested on two previous occasions that Yee be assessed by relevant experts on his mental health.

NO PREVIOUS INDICATION OF MENTAL CONDITION

Speaking to the media, Yee’s father Alphonsus said that he noted there was speculation from the public on Yee’s mental health but no previous medical check-ups had revealed that Yee might have autism-spectrum disorder.

Yee was found guilty of two charges – one for making offensive or wounding remarks against Christianity and another for circulating obscene imagery. A third charge, for the teen blogger’s statements on the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew in a YouTube video, was withdrawn.

On Tuesday, Yee agreed to privatise all his posts and not repost the offending posts, according to his lawyer Alfred Dodwell.

Yee had previously rejected the option of probation and a term in the Reformative Training Centre as a sentence, sticking to his original plea for a jail term.

In his previous hearing on Jun 2, Judge Kaur made the call for the reformative training suitability report to be done in view of Yee refusing a possible probation sentence and failing to turn up for meetings with his probation officer.

After Yee’s probation officer reported the turn of events to the courts, prosecutors then made a call for reformative training, which was seen by them as a move that was in line with rehabilitation as opposed to a jail term or fine.

Reformative training is an option for young offenders aged between 16 and 18 years old who are assessed to be unsuitable for probation. Offenders will be detained for a minimum of 18 months in the Reformative Training Centre.

It was made known to prosecutors on May 21 that Yee had republished online the image and video pertaining to the case. He was told to take the materials down when he was charged.

In a statement Monday, the United Nations Human Rights Office asked Singapore courts to “drop the demand for sentencing (Yee) to the RTC” and called for the “immediate release of (Yee) in line with (Singapore’s) commitment under the UN Convention on the Rights of Child”.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

June 23, 2015
UNHCR Expresses Concern On Amos Yee’s Conviction

BANGKOK (22 JUNE 2015) – The United Nations Human Rights Office for South-East Asia (OHCHR) is concerned about the conviction of 16 year-old Amos Yee for uploading remarks and images critical of the late Lee Kuan Yew, the founding Prime-Minister of Singapore. He is due to be sentenced on 23 June 2015. Amos was remanded on 2 June for three weeks after he refused probation and is currently detained in Changi prison where, according to his lawyer, his physical and psychological status is deteriorating.

Amos was convicted on 12 May 2015 on two charges, one of wounding religious feelings under section 298 of the penal code and another for circulating obscene imagery under 292 (1) of the Penal Code. Amos had pleaded not guilty to both offences. OHCHR understands that at the request of the prosecution, Amos is currently being assessed for his suitability for the Reformative Training Centre for a period of at least 18 months.

OHCHR is concerned that the Reformative Training Centre is akin to detention and usually applied to juvenile offenders involved in serious crimes. The District Court of Singapore in a recent case involving a juvenile recognized that the Reformative Training Centre is incarcerative in nature and should be imposed cautiously.

While recognizing the Singapore authorities concern with public morality and social harmony, OHCHR is concerned that the criminal sanctions considered in this case seem disproportionate and inappropriate in terms of the international protections for freedom of expression and opinion.

While Amos himself has refused the option of probation, OHCHR appeals to the Singapore authorities to give special consideration to his juvenile status and ensure his treatment is consistent with the best interests of the child, the principle that lies at the heart of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Singapore is a party.

OHCHR urges the Government to review the conviction of Amos Yee and the prosecutors to drop the demand for sentencing him to the Reformative Training Centre. OHCHR calls for the immediate release of Amos in line with its commitment under the UN Convention on the Rights of Child. OHCHR also hopes that the judiciary will exercise its authority in the protection of human rights including the rights of the child.

ENDS The Regional Office for South-East Asia in Bangkok represents the High Commissioner for Human Rights within South East Asia. The High Commissioner for Human Rights is the principal human rights official of the United Nations and heads the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, which spearheads the United Nations’ human rights efforts .

Source: http://bangkok.ohchr.org

June 23, 2015