Singapore gags foreign press
Freedom of expression, the right to impart and receive information without impediment, the right to dissent and freedom of the press and electronic media are cherished rights essential to a healthy democracy.
In Singapore, however, according to the Orwellian-sounding Ministry for Information, "It is a privilege and not a right for foreign newspapers to circulate."
The Singaporean Government, led by Lee Kuan Yew’s son Lee Hsien Loong, campaigns unsubtly and unashamedly to stamp out opposition and the freedom of the press to report on dissent. A favourite technique is to bankrupt opponents, journalists and organisations with expensive law suits.
Fearless opposition leader Chee Soon Juan is no stranger to the defendant’s dock, at considerable personal cost. Judges have likewise ordered media organisations such as the Economist and the International Herald Tribune to pay sizeable damages. In August, the Lees sued the Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER) for defamation for an article about Chee. This came on top of a demand that FEER and 4 other foreign publications each pay S$200,000 ($US126,000) to the Singapore Government as security against any future legal action by the island state.
Last month, sale and distribution of FEER were banned in Singapore, allegedly for breach of the onerous press regulations. Merely to subscribe to the Hong Kong-based monthly magazine as a private citizen is now a crime.
"Singapore has never enjoyed freedom of expression," according to Dr Chee. NGO Reporters Without Borders ranked Singapore 140th out of 167 in the 2005 World Press Freedom Index. Regional and international news is relatively independent, but reportage of domestic politics is "in the grip of a rigorous self-censorship."
Says Chee, Secretary-General of the Singapore Democratic Party:
"Singaporeans and the international community must view this latest clamp down on the media with alarm and urgency. The condemnation of such blatant repression must be unequivocal and universal. In addition, efforts to achieve democracy, transparency and a free flow of information in Singapore must be stepped up."
