‘Trying to divide people’: Singapore orders social media sites to block content targeting Indian community | Today’s news
The Singapore government on Saturday ordered social media platforms to block access to posts that target the country’s Indian community. According to Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), YouTube, Facebook and X have been ordered to block access to 14 posts under the Online Crime of Harm Act (OCHA).
The direction requires platforms to “take all reasonable steps to block Singaporean users from accessing these posts,” it said.
“An attempt to divide people based on race”
“These videos attack our multiracial society and try to divide people based on race. But that is not us. Every community in Singapore is valued and everyone has an equal place,” Singapore’s Second Home Minister Edwin Tong said on Tuesday.
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“These videos strike at the very foundation of what makes Singapore home for all of us and undermine the very foundation of our society,” he added.
“Content originates from China”
According to state-run Channel News Asia, an investigation revealed that the content likely originated from a China-based platform and was subsequently shared by other platforms.
Social media posts, which include videos, show various claims that Singapore is showing concern over its cultural identity and ethnic politics. Such stories began circulating online in the Chinese news space in May, MHA said.
“Shortly thereafter, online content appeared containing inflammatory narratives about Singapore’s cultural diversity and suggesting that Singapore had been overrun by Indians,” the ministry said.
“From what we know so far, the content came from overseas,” Tong said.
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He said the government does not tolerate any narratives that seek to undermine Singapore’s racial harmony, “especially when promoted by foreigners”.
The problematic content likely violates Section 298A of the Penal Code for knowingly promoting feelings of enmity, hatred or ill will between different groups on the basis of race or committing an act prejudicial to maintaining harmony between different racial groups in Singapore, the ministry said.
The misdemeanor is punishable by up to three years in prison and a fine.
The MHA said that Singapore firmly opposes “nativism and xenophobia”.
“Any attempt to pit one community against another must be categorically rejected here,” MHA said. “These attacks coming from a foreign source are doubly unacceptable.”
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However, Tong said there is currently no evidence to suggest this is a coordinated campaign by any government. Investigations revealed that the content was likely organically generated by various foreign netizens.
Indians in Singapore
Singapore is home to a large Indian community, making it the third largest ethnic group in the country. Tamils are the largest Indian ethnic group in Singapore and Tamil is also one of the country’s four official languages alongside English, Malay and Mandarin.
Although they make up less than 10 percent of the country’s population, people of Indian origin have made their presence felt in Singapore’s politics, business and more.
Three of the nine presidents Singapore has had so far, including incumbent Tharman Shanmugaratnam, are of Indian origin. The others were Devan Nair, who served as Singapore’s third president, and SR Nathan6, who was the city-state’s 6th president. JY Pillay, who is an ethnic Tamil, also briefly served as Acting President of Singapore in September 2017.
Key things
- Singapore prioritizes racial harmony and actively monitors social media for divisive content.
- The government has the power to force the removal of content under the Online Crime Act.
- Challenges to cultural identity and social cohesion often come from foreign sources, underscoring the need for vigilance.
