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THE High Court yesterday cleared a political activist known online as 'Uncle Yap' of being part of an illegal National Day assembly at Toa Payoh in 2008.
Giving his verdict yesterday, Justice Quentin Loh said the presence of Mr Yap Keng Ho, 49, at the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) event did not amount to his participation in it.
Mr Yap, with five SDP members, was found guilty of being in an assembly without a permit, and fined between $900 and $1,000 in 2010.
They appealed to the High Court against the convictions and sentences last year.
But even as Mr Yap's conviction was quashed, the court dismissed the appeals of the five SDP members who were in the event, dubbed the Tak Boleh Tahan campaign. (A Malay phrase, it means 'cannot take it any more'.)
Mr Yap, an IT consultant and part-time taxi driver, had maintained during the trial that he was a blogger covering the event.
Justice Loh noted that Mr Yap was not a member of the SDP, and that unlike the party members, he was not wearing a red Tak Boleh Tahan T-shirt, distributing pamphlets or selling the T-shirts.
The judge further noted that almost all of the time, Mr Yap was filming the event, away from the SDP group. Although he had shouted the words 'tak boleh tahan' twice, Justice Loh said there was a difference between participating in and supporting the campaign. Mr Yap's appeal was thus allowed.
Giving his verdict yesterday, Justice Quentin Loh said the presence of Mr Yap Keng Ho, 49, at the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) event did not amount to his participation in it.
Mr Yap, with five SDP members, was found guilty of being in an assembly without a permit, and fined between $900 and $1,000 in 2010.
They appealed to the High Court against the convictions and sentences last year.
But even as Mr Yap's conviction was quashed, the court dismissed the appeals of the five SDP members who were in the event, dubbed the Tak Boleh Tahan campaign. (A Malay phrase, it means 'cannot take it any more'.)
Mr Yap, an IT consultant and part-time taxi driver, had maintained during the trial that he was a blogger covering the event.
Justice Loh noted that Mr Yap was not a member of the SDP, and that unlike the party members, he was not wearing a red Tak Boleh Tahan T-shirt, distributing pamphlets or selling the T-shirts.
The judge further noted that almost all of the time, Mr Yap was filming the event, away from the SDP group. Although he had shouted the words 'tak boleh tahan' twice, Justice Loh said there was a difference between participating in and supporting the campaign. Mr Yap's appeal was thus allowed.
