• Doctor Kho Kwang Po was charged for posting offensive, hateful remarks on Facebook which linked Muslims to violence and criminality.
• Kho faces up to three years in prison, a fine, or both for intentionally wounding religious or racial feelings.
A doctor was charged on Wednesday, February 26, for a Facebook post containing egregiously offensive and hateful remarks directed at Muslims. Kho Kwang Po was charged with intentionally intending to wound the religious feelings of Muslims through a post made on April 21, 2021.
The charge sheet indicates that Kho, a Singaporean, created and uploaded a post filled with vitriolic and prejudiced content, which not only linked Muslims to violence and criminality but also insinuated dishonesty among religious leaders. These comments were deliberately inflammatory, designed to incite hatred and division.
According to a press release from the Singapore Police Force, reports about Kho’s online posts emerged on June 29 and 30, 2021. Investigations revealed that Kho had re-shared screenshots of his original posts, which were laden with offensive content from five years earlier.
Kho left Singapore in January 2022 amid ongoing investigations and returned only in October 2024, the police noted. Appearing in court without legal representation, Kho indicated that he would likely plead guilty. When asked if he wished to engage a lawyer for mitigation, he declined.
For intentionally offending religious or racial sensitivities, Singaporean law stipulates a punishment of up to three years in prison, a fine, or both.
There were 3,759,180 Islamophobic posts made on Twitter between 28 August 2019 and 27 August 2021. Of these, only 14.83% ended up being removed. Between 2019 and 2022, India recorded the highest number of anti-Muslim tweets, totaling 871,379, followed by the United States with 289,248.
