Couple behind petition get death threat

This article is more than 12 months old

Apr 02, 2015 06:00 am

A Singaporean couple who started an online petition for an annual public holiday to honour the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew have received a death threat, after rumours circulated that the petition was a scam.

Businessman John Lim and his wife, Madam Tan Lay Geok, have made a police report over the death threat, Mr Lim told The Straits Times yesterday.

On Sunday, the couple started two websites - www.lkyday.com and www.1923-2015.org - to collect signatures to petition the Government to declare March 23 a public holiday. Mr Lee had died on March 23 at age 91.

The petition, which asked Singaporeans to give their e-mail addresses as well as identity card and telephone numbers, collected more than 1,600 signatures by Tuesday. It also listed the full names of Mr Lim and Madam Tan, as well as their e-mail address.

But on Monday, an e-mail accusing the couple of using the petition as a ruse to collect personal information went viral. The anonymous e-mail noted that the petition is hosted by an overseas website-hosting company and outside the jurisdiction of Singapore's Personal Data Protection Act, which acts as a safeguard against the misuse of personal information collected.

Yesterday morning, Madam Tan received an anonymous death threat via e-mail. The couple decided to make a police report.