S’pore site critical of govt gets licence suspended as critics cry censorship

SINGAPORE – A Singaporean news site often critical of authorities today had its licence suspended for failing to declare funding sources, said regulators, with a rights group slamming the move as “unacceptable censorship”.

Critics frequently accuse the tightly regulated city state of curbing media freedoms, and The Online Citizen (TOC) has long been in the government’s cross hairs.

One of the republic’s few alternative news sources, it often runs stories more critical of authorities than those in the pro-government mainstream media. 

Singapore’s media regulator said it suspended the company’s licence to operate its websites and social media channels as it has not fully met obligations to declare funding. 

Sites such as TOC “are required to be transparent about their sources of funding”, said the Infocomm Media Development Authority in a statement.

“This is to prevent such sites from being controlled by foreign actors, or coming under the influence of foreign entities or funding.”

TOC has been ordered to disable its websites and social media accounts by Thursday.

If it fails to provide enough further information, its licence to operate may be cancelled entirely, said the regulator. 

It added that the portal, which was first registered in 2018, has not fully complied with the obligations to declare its funding sources since 2019.

It noted that TOC allows subscribers to get specific articles written in return for “subscription funding”, and warned that this “could be an avenue for foreign influence”.

But, chief editor Terry Xu told AFP that the site “has never received any foreign funding, nor would it in the future”, and that the company is considering its options.

Earlier this month, Xu and a TOC writer were ordered to pay substantial damages after losing a defamation suit against Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. 

Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch, said the licence suspension is “outrageous and unacceptable censorship, disguised as government regulatory action”.

“The reality is that the Singaporean government has been looking to shut down TOC by hook or by crook, because they simply don’t like their independence or their critical reporting.”

Singapore ranks 160th out of 180 countries and territories in Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index, where the No. 1 spot indicates the country with the greatest media freedoms. – AFP, September 14, 2021