The government of the Republic of Singapore
engages in minimal Internet filtering, blocking
only a small set of pornographic Web sites as a
symbol of disapproval of their contents.
However, the state employs a combination of
licensing controls and legal pressures to regulate Internet access and to limit the presence of
objectionable content and conduct online.
Background
Singapore’s government uses restrictive laws,
political ties to the judiciary, and ownership and
intimidation of the media to suppress dissenting
opinion and opposition to the ruling People’s
Action Party (PAP). Provisions of the Internal
Security Act (ISA), the Criminal Law (Temporary
Provisions) Act (CLA), the Undesirable Publications Act (UPA), and other statutes prohibit the
production and possession of “subversive”
materials and permit the detention of suspected
offenders without judicial review. 1 Citizens,
including Singapore Democratic Party (SDP)
leader Chee Soon Juan, have been arrested for
speaking publicly without a permit, 2 and foreign
activists from civil society organizations have
been detained, interrogated, and deported. 3
Government plaintiffs have been able to levy civil
liability and heavy damages through defamation
suits against independent and critical voices,
including those of opposition politicians and of
regional publications with domestic circulation. 4
Moreover, virtually all domestic newspapers and
television and radio stations are owned by corporations with economic ties to the government;
hence they adhere closely to the PAP line when
reporting on sensitive issues. 5 Taken together,
these economic and legal controls contribute to
a climate of pervasive self-censorship of political
commentary. These mechanisms of control and
influence allow the Singapore government to
RESULTS AT A GLANCE
No evidence
Suspected
Selective
Substantial
Pervasive
Filtering
of filtering
filtering
filtering
filtering
filtering
Political
●
Social
●
Conflict/security
●
Internet tools
●
Other factors
Low
Medium
High
Not applicable
Transparency
●
Consistency
●
Singapore
engages in minimal Internet filtering, blocking
only a small set of pornographic Web sites as a
symbol of disapproval of their contents.
However, the state employs a combination of
licensing controls and legal pressures to regulate Internet access and to limit the presence of
objectionable content and conduct online.
Background
Singapore’s government uses restrictive laws,
political ties to the judiciary, and ownership and
intimidation of the media to suppress dissenting
opinion and opposition to the ruling People’s
Action Party (PAP). Provisions of the Internal
Security Act (ISA), the Criminal Law (Temporary
Provisions) Act (CLA), the Undesirable Publications Act (UPA), and other statutes prohibit the
production and possession of “subversive”
materials and permit the detention of suspected
offenders without judicial review. 1 Citizens,
including Singapore Democratic Party (SDP)
leader Chee Soon Juan, have been arrested for
speaking publicly without a permit, 2 and foreign
activists from civil society organizations have
been detained, interrogated, and deported. 3
Government plaintiffs have been able to levy civil
liability and heavy damages through defamation
suits against independent and critical voices,
including those of opposition politicians and of
regional publications with domestic circulation. 4
Moreover, virtually all domestic newspapers and
television and radio stations are owned by corporations with economic ties to the government;
hence they adhere closely to the PAP line when
reporting on sensitive issues. 5 Taken together,
these economic and legal controls contribute to
a climate of pervasive self-censorship of political
commentary. These mechanisms of control and
influence allow the Singapore government to
RESULTS AT A GLANCE
No evidence
Suspected
Selective
Substantial
Pervasive
Filtering
of filtering
filtering
filtering
filtering
filtering
Political
●
Social
●
Conflict/security
●
Internet tools
●
Other factors
Low
Medium
High
Not applicable
Transparency
●
Consistency
●
Singapore