Vivian Lee gets 6 months jail term over 'bak kut teh' FB post (Updated)

KUALA LUMPUR: Vivian Lee May Ling (pix) was sentenced to six months in jail after the Sessions Court found her guilty of sedition for uploading a Ramadan greeting on Facebook featuring a photo of a "bak kut teh" dish during the fasting month.
Lee who is the former girlfriend of controversial blogger Alvin Tan Jye Yee, will however only serve five months and 22 days in prison after Sessions Judge Abdul Rashid Daud allowed the defence's application to take into consideration the eight days she had spent in remand.
In sentencing, Abdul Rashid said Lee had committed a serious offence by touching on a matter sensitive to Muslims, especially during the fasting month.
“As we know, pork is prohibited in Islam. You are an educated person. You should have thought about the sensitivity to others, before posting (the
picture),” said Abdul Rashid.
He said the sentence should serve as a lesson to the public that they should not use social media to ridicule the religion of others.
Both Tan and Lee were charged under the Sedition Act 1948 for uploading a picture with a caption, "Selamat Berbuka Puasa. (with Bak Kut Teh ... fragrant, delicious and appetising)" on their Facebook page which had insulted Muslims during Ramadan.
The former couple were initially jointly charged on July 18, 2013, but Tan later jumped bail and is believed to be in the United States.
Abdul Rashid allowed the defence's application for a stay of execution but increased bail from RM10,000 to RM20,000.
Earlier, Deputy Public Prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin said even the Chinese community had condemned the insensitive posting.
In mitigating for a lighter sentence, defence counsel Chong Joo Tian said Lee works as a customer service support representative and earns RM2,600 a month, adding that she has no previous criminal record.
He said Lee only played a passive role in the commission of the offence as she did not write the caption for the Facebook post.