The duo behind sensationalist socio-political website The Real Singapore appeared in court today and received eight charges for publishing seditious articles on their domain.
26-year-old Singaporean student Yang Kaiheng and his 22-year-old Australian girlfriend and schoolmate Ai Takagi were arrested earlier in February for posting insensitive remarks online that could promote ill will and hostility among different races.
According to TODAY, the couple face seven counts each under the Sedition Act and one count each under the Penal Code for failing to produce accounts for online advertisements to the police.
Their alleged offences involved publising content on their website and Facebook page claiming that a Filipino family had caused the infamous Thaipusam altercation between a group of men and the police. The reality was that no Filipino family were involved, and the remarks have been regarded as fanning the flames of xenophobia.
Vitriolic attacks on foreigners had shaped the general tone of The Real Singapore’s contents, and another charge relating to sedition was also slapped due to an article published in 2013. In it, they claimed that a woman who put down an adopted puppy works for a company that hires mostly foreigners. Allegedly written by Takagi, she signed off with the handle “Farhan”.
A pre-trial conference has been scheduled for next month.
Photo: The Real Singapore website screengrab
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