SINGAPORE: Singapore prosecutors yesterday demanded that a rebellious teenager be sent to a reformatory after he re-posted a controversial video attacking the late independence leader Lee Kuan Yew.
Amos Yee, 16, currently on bail after being convicted of two criminal charges, had been expected to avoid confinement after agreeing to take the video off YouTube, where it has generated more than one million views.
Prosecutors initially recommended probation but hardened their position in a closed-door hearing Wednesday.
“The offender’s behaviour, especially in re-posting the offending material after his conviction on 12 May 2015, amplifies the need for rehabilitation and appropriate counselling,” the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) said in a statement after the hearing.
The AGC asked the judge to commit Yee, who has also refused to meet his probation officer, to a special reform programme which involves being held with other minors – including some involved in gang activity.
Yee was found guilty of having hurt religious feelings in the video posted after Lee’s death on March 23. He likened Singapore’s founding prime minister to Jesus in an expletive-laden monologue. — AFP