AGC sends warning to filmmaker for contempt of court
By Claire Huang
POSTED: 14 Jun 2013 6:20 PM
Subordinate Courts (file photo)
SINGAPORE: The Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) has sent a warning to filmmaker Lee Seng Lynn, for posting online videos which contained allegations made by ex-SMRT bus drivers.
In a statement released on Friday afternoon, the AGC said it has issued a letter of warning to Ms Lee through her lawyer, for having committed sub judice contempt of court.
In January 2013, she had made public videos of interviews with two ex-SMRT drivers from China, who were charged with instigating other SMRT bus drivers to join the November 2012 illegal strike.
In the video, the two drivers, He Junling, 32, and Liu Xiang Ying, 33, had alleged that they were physically abused and threatened by their interrogators when in police custody sometime after the strike.
AGC said at the time of publication, Ms Lee was aware that criminal proceedings against He and Liu, as well as two other ex-drivers from China, Gao Yue Qiang and Wang Xianjie, were pending.
The criminal proceedings against the former bus drivers ended in February.
AGC said it has completed its review of Ms Lee's conduct and found that her conduct created "a real risk of prejudice to the criminal proceedings pending then".
It added that such conduct "can obstruct the determination of the truth or erode respect for our judicial institutions".
This, it said, would in turn harm the public interest in the proper administration of justice.
But AGC is of the view that a warning is sufficient in this case, rather than court action against her for contempt of court.
Separately, the AGC said it is aware of remarks made by the family of the late Mr Shane Todd in relation to the coroner's inquiry, which is currently in progress.
The AGC urged the public and the media not to make or report any statements "which could be construed as trying to improperly influence the decision of the coroner, or cast aspersions on the independence of this proceeding."
- CNA/xq
