edited by Alastair Carthew and Simon Winkelmann
The forced registration of an online journalist website as a political organisation, the rejection of an appeal by a British writer against a six week jail sentence for contempt of court and the continued upward growth of Internet based services were features of Singapore in the first half of 2011.The government order for the journalistic website The Online Citizen, to register as a political organisation before the Singapore election was criticised by organisations like The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a media watch group, as a move “apparently designed to limit political commentary.”
Said Bob Dietz, CPJ’s Asian program co-ordinator: “Discussing politics does not make a publication a political organisation. Forcing The Online Citizen to register as a political association distorts its role and threatens its ability to cover politics.”
The Online Citizen had reported business since 2006, covering political issues and other news. A written appeal by the website to the Registry of Political Donations, a branch of the prime minister’s office, was rejected.
Controversy around 76-year-old British writer Alan Shadrake continued, when his appeal against a six week jail sentence he received in November, 2010 on a charge of contempt of court for criticizing the country’s judicial system in a book, was rejected. Shadrake was sentenced to jail and a SGD20,000 fine for criticising Singapore’s use of the death penalty in his book “Once a Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock.”
Singapore’s broadcast and print media are largely under government control. The press is governed by the Newspaper and Printing Presses Act of 1972, which says that “no person shall print or publish or assist in the printing or publishing of any newspaper in Singapore unless the chief editor or the proprietor of the newspaper has previously obtain a permit granted by the Minister authorising the publication thereof, which permit the Minister may, in his discretion grant, refuse or revoke, or grant subject to conditions to be endorsed thereon.
Singapore has had strained relations with foreign publications, notably libel suits brought by the family of Lee Kuan Yew, founder of the republic, against the Asian Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, The Economist, The Financial Times, the now defunct Far Eastern Economic Review and AsiaWeek.
Internet services provided by three major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are subject to regulation by the Media Development authority (MDA) which blocks websites containing “mass impact objectionable” material.
Singapore’s Internet growth continued unabated with initiatives such as the rollout of a new fibre network that will increase fixed broadband penetration and a new Diploma of Digital Journalism started at the SAE Institute, Singapore the world's largest international network of media training institutes for audio engineering, digital film production, interactive animation, games programming and multimedia. The one-year diploma courts provide an all inclusive study of journalism, teaching practical knowledge of digital technology and its adaptation to 21st media development.
Singapore’s Internet penetration at June, 2010 was 77.8%, with 2.4 million Facebook users at March, 2011, 52.3% penetration.
Singapore was 136th (equal with Mexico) on the Reporters Without Borders press freedom index in 2010.