The Judicial corruption: the 5th letter to PM Lee Hsien Loong (8 March 2016)

Attachment 1 (See here)

Attachment 2 (See here)

From: Yan Jun [mailto:medp1128@hotmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, March 08, 2016 16:56
To: Lee Hsien Loong (PM)
Cc: agc@agc.gov.sg; Connie CHAN (PS to the PM); Hui Agnes YAO (PA to Attorney-General); Jessie TEO (PA to Chief Justice); K Shanmugam (Minister for Law); STATECOURTS_QSM@StateCourts.gov.sg; SUPCOURT Registry (SUPCOURT); Alejandro Ponce (The World Justice Project); Liao Ran (Transparency International); Sofie Arjon Schutte (U4 Anti-corruption resource centre); Srirak Plipat (Transparency International); David Dadge (United Nations Office on Drug and Crime); Freedom House; Human Rights First ; Mickey Spiegel (Human Right Watch); Nicholas Bequelin (Amnesty International); Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (South East Asia); Phil Robertson (Human Right Watch); The International Service for Human Rights; Yuri Fedotov (United Nations Office on Drug and Crime); Commonwealth Magistrate and judges Association; David W Rivkin (International Bar Association); Elizabeth Andersen (American Bar of Association); Gail Davidson (Lawyers Rights Watch Canada); International Association of Judges; International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute; International Commission of Jurists; Mark Ellis (International Bar Association); Talia Dove (International Bar Association); Australia High Court; Federal Court of Malaysia; Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal; Supreme Court of Canada; Supreme Court of India; Supreme Court of New Zealand; Supreme Court of South Africa; The Caribbean Court of Justice; The Privy Council; Lian He Wan Bao; Lian He Zao Bao; Shin Min Daily; The Online Citizen (Singapore); The Straits Times; Yawning Bread; The Huffington Post; Apple Daily; Asia times; Gopalan Nair (Blogger); Jon Fasman (Economists) ; Keith Bradsher (New York Times); Linus Chua (Bloomberg); Patrick McDowell (The Wall Street Journal); Philip Bowring (The South China Morning Post); Reporters Without Borders (RWB); Rico Hizon (BBC); Roberto Coloma (Agence France-Presse); Seiff Abby (Freelance Corrrespondent); Reform Party; Singapore Democratic Party; Singapore People's Party; Workers' Party; Indonesia Embassy; Laos Embassy; Malaysia Embassy; Myanmar Embassy; Philippines Embassy; Thailand Embassy; Vietnam Embassy; Australia Embassy; Canada Embassy; German Embassy; Italy Embassy; Japan Embassy; UK Embassy; US Embassy; Argentina Embassy; Brazil Embassy; China Embassy; India Embassy; Mexico Embassy; Russia Embassy; Saudi Arabia Embassy; South Africa Embassy; South Korea Embassy; Turkey Embassy; Buscaglia Edgardo (Columbia University); Garry Rodan (Murdoch University); Li-ann Thio (Natiaonal University of Singapore); Matthew Stephenson (Harvard University); S.T. Quah Jon (National University of Singapore); Silverstein Gordon (Yale University) ; Susan Rose Ackerman (Yale University)
Subject: The violation of the right to freedom of expression in Singapore

Dear Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong,

I am writing to inform the PM of a police arrest over a protest against the judicial corruption in Singapore. 

Request to the PM

I have enough reason to believe that the arrest has provided the conclusive evidence that the PAP government has denied a citizen his constitutional right to freedom of expression.  I would request the government, or the Attorney-General (AG) V. K. Rajah, who represents the government, to justify the arrest in public.

The January email

In my email to the PM dated 21 January 2016 (See attachment 2), I provided the solid evidence of the judicial corruption in the Supreme Court and further questioned the government’s corruption-free reputation.

I didn’t receive any reply from the government. Although the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) has treated my allegations as spurious, the AGC ignored my requests to bring contempt proceedings against me to settle the issue of corruption in Court.

The protest and the arrest

After I had exhausted all other remedies including a discussion in the parliament, on 2 March 2016 at 10am, I staged a one-person protest by holding up 2 signs which read “No judicial corruption in the Supreme Court of Singapore” at Istana Park, a public park located across the road from the Istana (the office of the President).

Police officer Tang Wen Huei arrested me for protesting in prohibited areas, under Section 15 of the Public Order Act (POA). I was detained for some 26 hour and 40min (10:05 of 2 March to 12:40 of 3 March) and was released on bail.[1] The police has refused to explain why the Istana Park or the Istana is a prohibited area, and the Istana was not in 2015.

On 29 Feb 2016, the police rejected my application (PP/20160225/0003/G) for a permit on the ground that “Istana is a prohibited area under POA”[2]. While on the same day I proved that the rejection was flawed in law and requested the AG for justifications[3], there was no response. On 1 March, police officer Kai Wun THIA simply reminded me by email that “staging a protest outside Istana or any other public places is an offence under POA“[4].

The double standard

In an interview with Time last year about the cases of Amos Yee and Roy Ngerng, the PM said “we welcome criticism with constraints”. With respect to Mr. Ngerng's allegation that “the PM is guilty of criminal misappropriation of pension funds of Singaporeans”, the PM expressly stated that "If it's not true, the matter must be clarified and the best way to do that is by settling in Court. If it's untrue, it will be shown so".

In sharp contrast to the PM’s opinion, the AGC has persistently refused to settle the issue of the judicial corruption in Court and has declined to respond to the corruption allegations in public, without any justification. 

The violation of the right to freedom of expression

In 2009, two police officers arrested me for violating an expired court order. In 2012, the AGC officially treated the arrest as lawful. In 2014, the Supreme Court ruled that the arrest was unlawful but dismissed the suit in 2015 and made a cost order in favor of the police, without awarding any damages to me. Now the police has prohibited me from speaking out in any public areas against the injustice the Supreme Court imposed on me. Finally, the police has arrested me.  

I would request the AG V. K. Rajah to explain why the government is not oppressive in this case. Since a prohibited area must be determined in the public interest (s12 and s13 of the POA), the AG must state the very public interest that the police has relied on and explain how it overrides the government’s primary duty to administer justice.

My decision

On 18 Feb 2016 I submitted a petition to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention of the United Nations[5], so the PAP government’s explicit denial of the fundamental right against arbitrary arrest since 1984 can be investigated. 

In order to get justice, I will continue my protests against the judicial corruption because I don’t think the Supreme Court can curb the corruption on its own. Soon the protests will take place outside the following places: the Parliament, the US Embassy in Singapore, Singapore Press Holdings (the local press), and the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (the main opposition party). 

I won’t abide by the police decision on my protests because the police obviously acts against justice. Finally, I would repeat that the AG has a duty to clear the government's name by justifying the arrest in public. 

Thank you.

Regards,

Yan Jun

(Singapore NRIC: S7684361I)

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[1] Attachment 1, Bond and bail bond No. 1087749 issued by the police on 3 March 2016. p.1-2.

[2] Ibid, Email from Officer Kai Wun THIA of Tanglin Division on 29 Feb 2016. p. 5, Para 2.

[3] Ibid, My email to the AG on 29 Feb 2016. p. 4-5. Para 5-9.

[4] Ibid, Email from Officer Kai Wun THIA on 1 March. p. 3, Para 2.

[5] Ibid,, My Petition sent on 18 Feb 2016 to the Working Group United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (p. 9-23) and the Acknowledgement Email Reply from the UNs. (p.6).