SG blogger lost everything just by criticizing the PM
Protected June 27th, 2014 | Author: Online Press
Singaporean blogger Roy Ngerng is being sued by his country's prime minister, has been fired from his job, and has gained national fame over a post that said the prime minister was "guilty of criminal misappropriation of the monies paid by Singaporeans to the compulsory state pension fund. (Stefanus Ian/AFP/Getty Images)
(25 June 2014) – They’ve called it a David versus Goliath fight and, for once, the cliche is appropriate.
On one side, a 33-year-old public hospital employee; on the other, Singapore’s prime minister. Until last month, Roy Ngerng was just a normal guy blogging about social issues in Singapore.
He’s now being sued by the city-state’s prime minister, has been fired from his job, and has gained national fame.
It all started last month, when Ngerng published a blog post suggesting — according to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s lawyer — that the prime minister was “guilty of criminal misappropriation of the monies paid by Singaporeans” to the compulsory state pension fund.
Roy Ngerng was asked to take down the post (now available here), publicly apologize, and offer compensation. He complied with the requests. The apology even involved flowers. But the approximately $4,000 compensation he offered was deemed “derisory” and rejected by the prime minister’s aide.
He’s now being sued for defamation.
To Human Rights Watch Asia deputy director Phil Robertson, Roy Ngerng has clearly “hit a nerve.”
In a normal democracy, he says, the response would be to send someone from the pension fund administration to debate the allegations, instead of suing an “ordinary citizen.”
More in: http://www.whittierdailynews.com/ge...ything-just-by-criticizing-the-prime-minister
source: http://www.tremeritus.com/2014/06/27/sg-blogger-lost-everything-just-by-criticizing-the-pm/
Protected June 27th, 2014 | Author: Online Press
Singaporean blogger Roy Ngerng is being sued by his country's prime minister, has been fired from his job, and has gained national fame over a post that said the prime minister was "guilty of criminal misappropriation of the monies paid by Singaporeans to the compulsory state pension fund. (Stefanus Ian/AFP/Getty Images)
(25 June 2014) – They’ve called it a David versus Goliath fight and, for once, the cliche is appropriate.
On one side, a 33-year-old public hospital employee; on the other, Singapore’s prime minister. Until last month, Roy Ngerng was just a normal guy blogging about social issues in Singapore.
He’s now being sued by the city-state’s prime minister, has been fired from his job, and has gained national fame.
It all started last month, when Ngerng published a blog post suggesting — according to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s lawyer — that the prime minister was “guilty of criminal misappropriation of the monies paid by Singaporeans” to the compulsory state pension fund.
Roy Ngerng was asked to take down the post (now available here), publicly apologize, and offer compensation. He complied with the requests. The apology even involved flowers. But the approximately $4,000 compensation he offered was deemed “derisory” and rejected by the prime minister’s aide.
He’s now being sued for defamation.
To Human Rights Watch Asia deputy director Phil Robertson, Roy Ngerng has clearly “hit a nerve.”
In a normal democracy, he says, the response would be to send someone from the pension fund administration to debate the allegations, instead of suing an “ordinary citizen.”
More in: http://www.whittierdailynews.com/ge...ything-just-by-criticizing-the-prime-minister
source: http://www.tremeritus.com/2014/06/27/sg-blogger-lost-everything-just-by-criticizing-the-pm/
