Singapore opposition leader fined for public speech
SINGAPORE: A bankrupt Singapore opposition party leader was sentenced
to five weeks in prison or pay a S$5,000 ($3,700) fine for speaking in
public without a permit.
Chee Soon Juan, leader of the Singapore Democratic Party, was on
Friday found guilty of the offence committed on April 8, 2006. He has
six outstanding charges of speaking in public without a license between
November 2005 and April 2006.
Singapore has tough laws on public gatherings, and protests are rare.
An assembly of five or more people requires a police permit and offences
under the Public Entertainments and Meetings Act could lead to fines as
high as S$10,000 .
Chee, who pleaded not guilty on the grounds of his constitutional
right to free speech, was made a bankrupt in February 2006 when he
failed to pay libel damages of S$500,000 to former prime ministers Lee
Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong.
Singapore, Friday, Reuters |
