Is America’s far-right meddling in Singapore’s trans rights movement? Terrified activists say yes.

Protests have erupted in Singapore in solidarity with autistic Tamil trans woman Vickreman Harvey Chettiar, known simply as Harvey, who is at risk of punishment following her critical remarks of the Singaporean president on Instagram. Following a recent court battle, she is now out on bail but risks being sent to a male prison or back to the male ward of the Singaporean Institute of Mental Health (IMH), where she was previously raped. 

The recent trans rights protests have been faced with persecution by law enforcement, with protesters facing possible criminal charges. Under the 2009 Public Order Act, it is illegal to protest in Singapore without government permits, which are especially difficult for LGBTQ+ individuals to obtain due to the harsh atmosphere against queer rights in the country.

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“I have definitely been stressed because it feels as though they are going down harder on this series of protests,” one protestor, Odette, told LGBTQ Nation. 

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“Perhaps due to the subject matter, the nature of the case that is being protested – like for instance, for me, I received a police letter mandating me to go down to the police station. My understanding is that the letter isn’t issued so quickly or easily, so it came as a bit of a shock to me. They usually will try to contact you, I don’t know why they didn’t try to contact me. I received a CPC letter saying that if I don’t go down at that date, they’ll issue a warrant and legally compel me to go down. Which was kind of unexpected, because my understanding is that they don’t issue these letters so easily.”

Taking place outside of the Singapore State Courts, the Attorney-General’s Chambers, and the IMH, these protests have also opposed the bail conditions placed on Harvey, which prohibit her from using her social media profiles and require her to delete all posts.

Protests in solidarity with Harvey have reached international status, with solidarity protests occurring in the United Kingdom, New York, and San Francisco. These protests were shared across social media under the hashtag #Justice4Harvey and received small but notable attention.

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A post shared by Safety4Harvey US (@safety4harveyus)

“The relationship with ‘Justice4Harvey’ is more ‘Safety4Harvey,’’ Odette explains. “At least the protest I participated in, the first one, it was purely calling for Harvey’s safety in recognition that she’s a trans woman and that trans women are subjected to higher risks of violence due to transmisogyny in institutional settings and incarcerated settings. So it has more to do with the safety of trans women.”

Protesters allege that far-right actors in Singapore are deliberately working to damage LGBTQ+ rights in the nation, especially those of transgender people. Many claim that they have been targeting Harvey and her affiliates with harassment campaigns in an effort to prohibit them from campaigning for transgender rights. One activist, Wong J-Min, has had to flee from Singapore to the United Kingdom in order to escape persecution.

And the harassment isn’t only coming from within Singapore. Activist Carissa Cheow has claimed to have information suggesting that there are organizations working internationally from the United States to negatively influence LGBTQ+ rights in Singapore by funding far-right groups and churches there.

These organizations allegedly include the Witherspoon Institute, an American right-wing think tank, as well as the organizations CanaVox and the Global Rainbow Crossers Alliance. This effort is alleged to be tied to an ongoing campaign by Singaporean Christian members of the far-right to further fund opposition efforts to LGBTQ+ rights. Referred to by progressives as “Operation High Tide,” it is a large part of the motivation for protesters and a large reason why some have fled the country.

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A post shared by Justice4Harvey (@justice4harvey)

“From what I can gather from my own independent research, Operation High Tide is a Christian far-right operation to criminalize trans people in Singapore,” protester Eliza told LGBTQ Nation. “The Witherspoon Institute is involved to quite a substantial degree in helping to fund and run Operation High Tide in Singapore. They are bankrolling and assisting in it. They are pretty involved. There are other organizations, but as far as I can tell they’re arms of the Witherspoon Institute.”

The protesters generally expect things to escalate as a result of police attention. At best they expect a warning, but at worst they expect to face legal charges, and even a battle in the courtroom. “I expect that we might get a stern warning, either conditional or unconditional,” says Odette. “Or we might get a criminal charge under the Public Order Act.” 

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A post shared by Safety4Harvey US (@safety4harveyus)

Eliza also details the worry of additional publicity on individual protesters following escalation. “If things reach a point where because I’m formally charged and I have to fight it in court, and the newspapers report and my name and face get publicized, it becomes, is there a bigger target on my back? It’s a fear of mine.”

Protesters have emphasized a need for this situation to be shared across social media, as well as the need for more protests abroad and for more overall coverage of these issues. They worry about additional persecution if there isn’t more awareness, and they explain that without accountability they may be left at the mercy of the state.

The website Safety for Singapore is also a resource for interested parties to learn more. 

“The most important thing is spreading word about the situation in Singapore, the stuff that they’re doing in Singapore,” says Eliza. “It’s not even just a Singapore thing. If people in other countries, the US or anywhere, are involved in a queer struggle, anti-racist struggle – as Harvey is brown, Tamil – it would be really great if you could connect. All of the right-wing backlash, it’s happening in the US, UK, all the way across the globe.”