Blogger in Singapore faces financial ruin following defamation suit
“If we want our freedom, we have to fight for it,” wrote blogger Roy Ngerng last year after he was sued for defamation by Singapore’s prime minister. The case was sparked by a blog post in which Ngerng allegedly suggested Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had misappropriated funds in a state pension system. In November,…
Lee Kuan Yew’s legacy
What to make of Singapore’s first and former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who died Monday morning in the city-state? Under the banner of the People’s Action Party, Lee held government power for three decades. After stepping away from the prime minister’s office in 1990, he held positions of senior minister and later “minister mentor”…
In Singapore, blogger under pressure, CPF under scrutiny
A critical Singaporean blogger continues to suffer financial and legal pressure because of a blog post that allegedly accused the city-state’s prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, of corruption. The episode is part of a disturbing pattern of government legal and financial pressure on critics, but it is also a lesson in how censorship can backfire.
Singapore blogger: ‘I have been waiting’ for government backlash
EDITOR’S NOTE: This week, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong demanded an apology from a critical blogger who has allegedly accused him of corruption. Roy Ngerng Yi Ling, who is also a healthcare worker, has frequently posted critical commentary on the ruling People’s Action Party on his blog, The Heart Truths.
Singapore bloggers wary of news site license scheme
Singapore’s Internet community is in backlash since the government announced on May 28 a new licensing scheme for “news websites”–a term it did not define–arguing that digital news platforms ought to be regulated on par with offline media. The government said the scheme would take effect June 1.
CJR: Singapore not so modern on press freedom
Singapore is a rich country with a surprisingly poor press freedom record—so says a story out this week in the Columbia Journalism Review. CPJ’s own findings point to a series of court fines and damages awarded over slights to the country’s government by major international papers like The New York Times and The Wall Street…