Amos Yee says his support for pedophilia is ‘non-negotiable’ despite backlash

SINGAPORE: Blogger Amos Yee is courting fresh criticism with a renewed pledge to continue his pedophilia activism after his return to Singapore.

Yee returned to Singapore last month after a decade in the United States, where he spent several years in prison. He has since been arrested for defaulting on compulsory National Service (NS), released on bail of S$10,000, and is currently awaiting sentencing.

Yee, who left Singapore in 2016, was granted political asylum in the United States but found himself in jail for years after he was convicted of exchanging explicit images with a minor.

Although he acknowledged the perception that he squandered his opportunity to seek refuge in the US, he described his period of imprisonment abroad as one of personal growth, saying it had improved his mental and physical health and shaped his current outlook.

Looking ahead, Yee said he intends to resume producing online content, including blog posts and videos, if he is not in custody. He outlined plans to focus on several political and social issues in Singapore, including freedom of expression and the cost of living, as well as broader topics such as religion and self-development.

He added that his longer-term aim is to influence political change in Singapore, although he did not elaborate on specific strategies beyond continuing his writing and advocacy.

Yee also claimed that since his return, he has encountered members of the public who were “warm and supportive” in face-to-face interactions. He wrote, “I think there are way more supporters for my mission than it looks. For a long time, it might look like I’m speaking to the air, barely reaching anyone. Then one day, boom, the tipping point: thousands of people protesting in public, breaking unjust laws, getting arrested, the PAP loses their majority in the elections, the dictatorship is toppled.”

One “non-negotiable” in his advocacy, however, is his support for pedophilia.

He wrote, “If some silly thing I did 10 years ago stops you from supporting me. Well, that was 10 years ago. Any stupid opinion or action I made before, I’m sorry. Any opinion I made that seems to contradict a previous one, the opinion I hold is the most recent one I made. So I love religion now. Pedophilia, of course, I still support it; that’s non-negotiable.”

He also called pedophiles “the most discriminated group of people in the world, the group most deserving of being defended” elsewhere in his post.

His continued defence of pedophilia has triggered a fresh wave of criticism against him.

Pedophilia involves the sexual exploitation of minors, who cannot legally or meaningfully consent. Such conduct is widely recognised as abusive, and in Singapore and most jurisdictions worldwide, offences involving minors are treated with particular severity under the law.

Concerned Singaporeans online have argued that by framing it as something worthy of support, Yee appears to downplay or dismiss the harm experienced by victims of pedophiles. His past conviction involving a minor also amplifies public concern, as it links his statements to real-world actions rather than abstract debate.