Hate speech against LGBT people in Singapore

In Singapore, the Sedition Act not only prohibits seditious acts and speech which undermine the administration of government but also criminalises actions that promote feelings of ill-will or hostility between different races or "classes of the population". Despite the statement that it is supposed to protect all segments of society, which by right should also include the LGBT community, it has mainly been used against individuals who have made offensive rants against the Malay-Muslim community. The LGBT community has not been accorded any shelter under this law and hate speech against it has been indulged in with impunity.

=Progress in protection against anti-LGBT hate speech=

In 2019, the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act (MRHA) was amended to protect both religious groups as well as non-religious ones, like the LGBT community. It is supposed to do so by dealing with both groups equally as the new provisions are meant not only to reduce conflicts between and within religious groups, but also to prevent religion from being used as a basis to attack groups that may not be of a religious persuasion, such as the LGBT community. However, in practice, no action has been taken against most instances of online hate speech.

=Anti-LGBT groups=

In stark contrast to the fact that no organisations against any race, religion or other minorities are allowed to exist in Singapore, the Government allows anti-LGBT groups to flourish. Most of the hate speech against the gay community that can be read by the public surfaces on groups on Facebook such as We are against Pinkdot in Singapore, Ban Pink Dot & LGBT Activism - Protect Children and Singaporeans Defending Marriage & Family. Many comments made below online news articles, especially those on Yahoo! Singapore are also virulently anti-gay, abetted by the allowed anonymity of the posters.

=Instances of anti-LGBT hate speech=

The following comments were made below a Yahoo! article entitled, "Disney cuts same-sex kiss scene in Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker for Singapore market" published on 20 December 2019: 

=See also=
 * Discrimination against homosexuals in Singapore
 * Article 12 of the Singapore Constitution: LGBT aspects

=References=
 * Fabian Koh, "Parliament: Law protects both religious groups and LGBT community from threats, says Shanmugam", The Straits Times, 2 March 2020.

=Acknowledgements=

This article was written by Roy Tan.