CHICAGO (Reuters) – A US immigration judge in Chicago on Friday granted asylum to a Singaporean blogger, saying he was persecuted for his political opinions in the Southeast Asian city-state.
Amos Yee, 18, who had been jailed twice in Singapore, qualifies as a political refugee, according to a 13-page opinion by the US immigration judge.
Yee is immediately eligible for release after having been held in US immigration detention since Dec. 16, 2016, according to his attorney, Sandra Grossman, who is based in Bethesda, Maryland.
The Singapore Embassy in Washington could not be reached for comment after business hours on Friday evening.
Judge Samuel Cole ruled Yee’s prosecution, detention and maltreatment at the hands of the Singapore authorities “constitute(s) persecution on account of Yee’s political opinions,” and called him a “young political dissident.
“The evidence presented at the hearing demonstrates Singapore’s prosecution of Yee was a pretext to silence his political opinions critical of the Singapore government,” Cole wrote.
The US Department of Homeland Security had opposed Yee’s asylum application, claiming the Singapore government legitimately prosecuted Yee.
Grossman said the judge’s decision supported the right of individuals to criticize their government.
“The right to free speech is sacred, even when such speech is considered offensive,” she said in an email. “The decision timely underscores the vital need for an independent judiciary in a functioning democracy.”