Police issue stern warning to WP’s Raeesah Khan after investigation into 2 Facebook posts

SINGAPORE — The police have issued a stern warning to Workers’ Party (WP) Member of Parliament Raeesah Khan after completing their investigation into two of her social media posts, they said on Thursday (Sept 17).

Two police reports had been lodged against Ms Raeesah on July 4 and July 5, during the General Election this year, in relation to the two posts, in which she had raised concerns about racial and class issues. 

“The police have completed their investigations and, in consultation with the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), have issued a stern warning to Ms Raeesah Khan,” they said.

Ms Raeesah was being investigated for the offence of promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion for the two social media posts. One had been posted in February 2018 and the other in May this year.

She was also investigated for an additional offence of contempt by scandalising the court for the 2018 post, the police added. 

The posts, which were made in February 2018 and May this year, had resurfaced during the hustings. 

In the 2018 post, Ms Raeesah commented in the context of the City Harvest Church ruling that Singapore jailed minorities mercilessly and harassed mosque leaders but let “corrupt church leaders who stole S$50 million walk free”.

In the May post, she made reference to a viral post showing people mingling outdoors at Robertson Quay during the circuit breaker and commented that Singapore's law enforcement authorities discriminated against citizens, and that compared to other groups, rich Chinese and Caucasians were treated differently under the law.

Despite the posts, Ms Raeesah was part of the WP quartet that won the contest for Sengkang Group Representation Constituency during the election, taking 52.12 per cent of the vote against a People’s Action Party team that included three former office-holders. 

TODAY has reached out to the WP for comment. 

In a separate statement on Thursday, the police added that a Facebook user using the moniker "Abdul Malik Mohammed Ghazali" — who had reported Ms Raeesah to the police for her posts — had also been issued a stern warning. 

He was issued a warning for making a threatening communication likely to cause alarm for a social media post on July 5. He was also warned for two additional offences of promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion or race for two separate social media posts made in February this year. 

In the Facebook post on July 5, the user claimed to be "one of the first to leak out and (make) viral screenshots" of Ms Raeesah's social media accounts.

In the post, he also took a jab at her father Farid Khan’s position in the Singapore Malay Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SMCCI), of which he is president. 

“SMCCI very big meh? Best for you to step down Raeesa (sic), or he'll be next,” the post had read.

In another statement on Thursday, the police confirmed that reports were lodged in relation to online posts made by social media influencer Xiaxue. 

The reports alleged that Xiaxue’s posts “intended to wound religious or racial feelings and constituted harassment against minorities”. 

The police said they have consulted the AGC and would no longer be taking further action on the matter. 

At least one police report was filed against Xiaxue — known also as Wendy Cheng — on July 6 for a post she had made on Twitter in 2010 against migrant workers. 

The report was made after she commented on Ms Raeesah’s case on Instagram on July 5 and 6.