Singaporean of the Year finalist: Lawyer on mission to advocate for those with invisible disabilities

SINGAPORE - Veteran lawyer Peggy Yee’s passion to advocate for people with invisible disabilities – such as autism spectrum disorder and mental illnesses – was ignited around 30 years ago during a criminal trial when she assisted in the defence of a young man who displayed atypical social behaviour.

The man, who was in his 20s, was facing charges for importing bomb components. Throughout the trial, Ms Yee noticed something amiss – the man did not seem to understand the gravity of the offences he was accused of, and eventually found guilty of.

Even now, she remembers feeling very helpless at the time as the man was led away from the court to begin his prison sentence, because she felt that more could have been done to help him.

After almost two decades of campaigning for people with mental health conditions, autism, intellectual disabilities and other invisible needs, Ms Yee’s efforts came to fruition in March.

The Ministry of Law

committed to a multi-agency task force

to support individuals with invisible disabilities within the justice system, announced then Second Minister for Law Edwin Tong at the inaugural Access to Justice Symposium, where Ms Yee chaired the organising committee.

Mr Tong had said: “There is not much point in being a first-class legal system if the members of society that it is meant to serve are unable to access it, unable to claim justice and unable to use the system.”

Ms Yee is a finalist of The Straits Times Singaporean of the Year award, which is given to a Singaporean or group of citizens who have made a significant contribution to society.

This can be through achievements that put Singapore on the world stage, or by going beyond the call of duty to selflessly improve the lives of others in the community, among other ways.

The Straits Times Singaporean of the Year awards, which is now in its 11th year, is organised by The Straits Times and presented by UBS Singapore.

Ms Yee, who has been running her own law firm PY Legal since 2009,

does pro bono work on criminal and civil cases for individuals with invisible disabilities

, including those charged with offences such as unlawful stalking and harassment.

These people

are often misunderstood

, she told ST at her Clarke Quay office.

She cited a case where she represented a man who was charged with the use of criminal force and intentional harassment for spitting and pointing his middle finger at another person.

He had also sent threatening messages to another person on Facebook.

The man, who was in his 20s then, was diagnosed with autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

“It was his way of venting his frustration, but every one of these (actions) became a chargeable offence,” she said.

Although Ms Yee’s eyes were opened to the reality that more needed to be done to ensure that offenders with invisible disabilities had access to justice, many others were unconvinced at first.

“There were people who told me there are just too many problems (with the system). Besides that, it involved too many people to address the issue,” she said.

Undeterred, Ms Yee continued to pitch her idea to government agencies and others in her network – she wanted to create a platform for the various groups to come together to discuss how people with invisible disabilities could have access to justice.

Battle with cancer

In 2021, when she was finally able to gather the resources to organise the symposium, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

“It was a very nasty, aggressive cancer,” said Ms Yee, who had to undergo a mastectomy to remove both breasts and several sessions of chemotherapy.

While battling cancer, she recounted having nightmares, and falling into depression.

Still, she continued working, even delaying surgery to attend the sentencing of one of her pro bono clients who had schizophrenia and was charged with theft.

She successfully fought for the client to get a mandatory treatment order in lieu of jail time.

Once her cancer was in remission, Ms Yee went right back to work. With the support of her husband and her three children, aged 25, 23 and 18, she continued pushing for the symposium.

While it is impactful that the symposium has taken place, Ms Yee wants to go further. She said: “The Access to Justice Symposium is not the end point. In fact, it is the springboard for impactful change, not just within the legal system but holistic societal change.”

Going beyond ensuring that people with invisible disabilities have access to justice, Ms Yee believes that a more holistic solution could be considered, such as keeping such people out of the legal system, and devoting resources to helping them address their (invisible) disability instead.

“It’s not just a mindset shift, there has to be change,” she said. “Even if we keep them out of the legal system, they will still have to survive, they have to be understood in this world.”