Singapore has directed social media platforms to disable access to posts undermining its multicultural model. The government said the foreign-sourced content threatened racial harmony and multiculturalism.
The Singapore government on Saturday ordered three social media platforms to block access to 14 posts, likely originating from China, which targeted the Indian community and “undermine” the country’s “model of multiculturalism”.
The police have issued disabling directions under the Online Criminal Harms Act (OCHA) to block access to the posts on YouTube, Facebook and X, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in a statement.
Seventy-five per cent of Singapore’s over six million population are of Chinese descent, 15 per cent are Malay, and between seven to nine per cent are of Indian origin. The rest are of other international origins.
The direction requires the platforms to “take all reasonable steps to disable access by Singapore users to these posts”, it added.
Second Minister for Home Affairs Edwin Tong told reporters at a community event on Saturday that “from what we know so far, the content originated from overseas”.
Investigations into the problematic content in these posts had revealed that it likely originated from a China-based platform and was subsequently shared by other platforms and websites, according to a Channel News Asia report on Saturday.
“These videos attack our multiracial society and they try to divide people based on race. This, however, is not who we are. Every community in Singapore here is valued and everyone has an equal place,” the Channel quoted Tong as saying.
“These videos strike at the very foundation of what makes Singapore home for all of us and they undermine the very basis of our society,” said Tong, who is also Minister of Law.
Tong said the government does not tolerate any narratives that seek to undermine Singapore’s racial harmony, “especially when it is propagated by foreigners”.
In a statement, the MHA said Singapore firmly opposes “nativism and xenophobia”.
“Any attempt to pit one community against another here must be firmly rejected,” said the MHA. “These attacks coming from a foreign source are doubly unacceptable.”
Tong said that there is currently no evidence to suggest that this is a coordinated campaign by any government. Investigations have shown that the content was likely generated organically by various foreign netizens, he added.
“I would say any country seeking to safeguard its social cohesion would agree with us that such content is unacceptable, and would take a similar stance to safeguard their own society,” the Channel quoted the minister as saying.
The social media posts, which include videos, portray various claims that Singapore is displaying anxiety over its cultural identity and ethnic politics. Such narratives started circulating online in the Chinese information space in May, the MHA said.
“Shortly thereafter, online content emerged containing inflammatory narratives about Singapore’s cultural diversity and suggesting that Singapore was being overrun by Indians,” said the ministry.
The problematic content likely breach Section 298A of the Penal Code for knowingly promoting feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will between different groups on grounds of race, or committing an act prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony between different racial groups in Singapore, said the ministry.
The offence carries a punishment of up to three years’ jail and a fine.
The Singapore government takes a serious view of threats to the country’s social cohesion and racial harmony, including from external actors, and will act resolutely against them, it added.
Tong said the government will continue to monitor the sites “very closely” and will not hesitate to take further measures “if we regard it to be in Singapore’s interests”.
“More importantly, I think Singaporeans should also be discerning and careful with what they are consuming online, and also question the source or intention of such videos. And, don’t disseminate them if they may harm our social fabric or our social harmony,” the Channel had Tong as saying.
