Self-censorship: Musings from Singapore

Singapore’s reputation is that of a law-abiding, tolerant, conservative society, modern and underpinned by tradition. Despite a noticeable liberalization in certain areas, its media is still considered to be highly regulated by the government. The ‘heavy artillery threat’ of defamation suits is also somewhat of a disincentive to open debate or local political criticism.

But if the internet allows vocal freedom without restriction, ie, allowing suppressed demographics in places like Iran and Egypt to challenge governments and policies, is it used similarly in 'regulated' Singapore? Well, no it isn’t. Why? Sinapan Samydorai, from Singapore’s Think Centre, perhaps touches on the answer when he talks about journalistic self-censorship embedded within the local culture, ie, mirroring Asian and Confucian values such as respect for elders (read: government). Then again, there’s still the possibility of legal action as two Singaporeans discovered, now in prison under the anti-sedition law.

It may be that fear curtails dissent, but personally I’d just like to think that Singaporeans are morally upstanding, considerate and generally good people, which is why online ‘evil’ so rarely emerges from the island nation. An analogy is the gun policy argument, that it's not the gun that's evil but the person holding it.

For more background see ‘the changing media environment in Singapore’ from ABC’s Media Report: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/mediareport/stories/2007/1841546.htm