Many of you wrote to me via Facebook to complain about racially offensive remarks by “Heather Chua”. I’m glad that the Singapore Police Force has established the identity of a 22-year-old man who is believed to be behind the fictitious profile. He is currently assisting the Police with investigations.
The Internet allows us to share information and connect easily with one another. We should harness this powerful tool positively and responsibly. Let’s remember to be mindful of our words and to respect one another. We must uphold our racial harmony and social cohesion.
Lee Hsien Loong
*Article first appeared on his FB page here.
Related: 22 YR OLD MAN BEHIND FAKE FB ACCOUNT HEATHER CHUA UNDER INVESTIGATION BY POLICE
Editor's Note: The Singapore police have warned the public that anyone found stirring hatred among different racial or religious groups or otherwise undermining the harmony in our society could be jailed up to 3 years, fined or both. Do note that this is a very vague law and the sedition act can be abused by the authorities in their favour to silence Singaporeans.
For example, Leslie Chew the cartoonist published a cartoon depicting the decreasing Malay population percentage and an increasing Chinese population percentage through the influx of PRCs despite the Malays having a much higher fertility rate. In our opinion, this cartoon does not cause civil unrest and disharmony, it is a valid point made about the population statistics.
In Leslie Chew's case, the authorities came to their senses and dropped the sedition charges against him. They continued on the charge of contempt of court for quite some time afterward.
Contempt of court is another very vague law which can be used by the authorities to silence critics. Where do we draw the line between an innocent opinion about rulings made by the court and a comment which is seen as contempt?
In many other western democracies, contempt of court is rarely used and it was recently abolished in the UK as it was decided that if courts need such an ancient law to protect their integrity, then there is something seriously wrong with the judicial system.
Of course the case of Leslie Chew is very different to this current case involving 'Heather Chua'. There is a difference between discussing racial or religious issues with sound arguments and making degrading or insulting remarks about a certain race.
If the discussions are about statistics and problems, then we should break down the taboos of talking about such issues and be able to discuss them maturely and openly.
On the other hand, treating other racial or religious groups as inferior is clearly highly inflammatory.
However, when it comes to political discussions, the line must also be drawn differently as the very nature of politics is to point out the flaws and discuss better solutions for problems. Each political party has it's own set of ideas for how Singapore should be run, if showing support for one group and putting down the ideas of another group (eg. The PAP government) were to be seen as seditious due to it's possibility to 'cause civil unrest', then it would be impossible for a democracy to function.