Han Hui Hui removes, apologises for contemptuous statements

SINGAPORE — The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) will not pursue contempt of court proceedings against blogger Han Hui Hui after she complied with directions to remove scurrilous statements she had made on social media and apologise for them.

She had been served notice last Monday to remove a YouTube video and five Facebook posts alleging impropriety on the part of judges hearing her case on a 2014 demonstration she illegally organised at Speakers’ Corner, as well as publish apologies for these.

The AGC said on Tuesday (March 21) Ms Han “has since complied with (its) conditions … (and) removed the contemptuous statements”.

Checks showed that she amended the posts in question to omit the offending portions by Monday.

Ms Han, who unsuccessfully ran in the Radin Mas single ward in the 2015 General Election, alleged in her video and online posts between Jan 21 and Feb 25 that a district judge had lied about evidence and imposed the fine quantum to “politically persecute” her, with the aim of disqualifying her from parliamentary elections.

The AGC said her comments “wrongfully” insinuated that the judge had not acted independently in determining the sentence and instead acted on the instructions of others. They also wrongfully ascribed “a dishonest intention” to the district judge and insinuated that the judge’s actions in court and his judgment were meant to “malign innocent Singaporeans including yourself”.

In its statement, the AGC said: “Contempt of court in its various forms harms the proper administration of justice in Singapore. Left unchecked, such conduct can obstruct the determination of the truth and erode respect for our judicial institutions. This would in turn harm the public interest in the proper administration of justice.”

It added that it would take firm action against contempt of court, including starting committal proceedings in appropriate instances.