The Singapore High Court ordered fines of SGD 3,000 each, about 75,000 baht, on three female activists after convicting them of organizing an unauthorized march to show support for Palestinians.
On 1 May 2026 GMT+7, the Singapore High Court fined three female activists SGD 3,000 each, roughly 75,000 baht, after finding them guilty of organizing an unauthorized march supporting Palestinians under Singapore's strict public assembly laws.
Earlier, the three activists—Mossammad Sobikun Nahar, Siti Amirah Mohamed Asrori, and Kokila Annamalai—were acquitted by the lower court in October last year. In February 2024 GMT+7, they led about 70 protesters from a shopping mall to near the Singapore presidential palace to deliver a letter to the prime minister, urging Singapore to cut ties with Israel over the Gaza conflict. Photos from the event showed participants holding watermelon-patterned umbrellas, a symbol used in several countries to support Palestinians.
Singapore prosecutors appealed the acquittal, and the High Court reversed the decision last Thursday, stating the defendants should have verified clearly whether the march route was in a prohibited assembly area.
The Singapore government has consistently maintained that its laws regulating assemblies and protests are necessary to maintain public order and social harmony. However, human rights groups and critics argue these laws severely restrict citizens' freedom of expression and political activism.
Source: AFP