SINGAPORE: The Online Citizen (TOC) has been ordered to insert a correction notice on an article published on its website on Nov 22 that made false statements about the death penalty in Singapore.
As part of the order under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA), the alternative news platform is also required to carry similar correction notices on its Facebook, Instagram and X posts on Nov 22.
“TOC’s article (which was shared on its social media posts) alleges that the state suppresses dissenting views on the death penalty through POFMA Correction Directions. This is false,” the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in a media release.
“The state only issues POFMA Directions if a false statement of fact has been communicated, and if it is in the public interest to do so.”
MHA also said that a POFMA correction direction does not require the recipient to adopt the government’s position or to remove the original post. Instead, it requires the government’s position to be carried alongside the original post, so that people can read the post containing the falsehoods, together with the official clarifications, and come to their own conclusion.
“The state does not limit dissent, suppress alternative perspectives, stifle open debate or pressure dissenting voices to conform, as alleged by TOC,” the ministry added.
TOC’s article on Nov 22, written by its chief editor Terry Xu, also suggested that Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam, in an interview with CNN, took contradictory positions on Singapore’s drug policies.
MHA said on Monday that the full context of what Mr Shanmugam said had not been set out by the article.
“It is misleading (and hence false) for the author to omit relevant facts, and selectively quote the minister, to reach the position that the minister had taken contradictory positions about Singapore’s anti-drug policies,” the ministry added.
An article on the government fact-checking website Factually explains further why the assertions made by TOC are false.
TOC will be required to carry a correction notice alongside the publications with a link to the government’s clarification on the matter.
