The Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma) and the death penalty were among key issues raised during the review of Singapore's human rights record yesterday.
Some 140 UN members signed up for Singapore's packed segment at the 38th session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group in Geneva, leaving each member with only 45 seconds to speak. Most of them made live video statements, while a few also submitted written questions and recommendations in advance.
Responding to questions on Pofma from Belgium, Canada, Sweden, the United States and other members, deputy director at the Law Ministry's international legal division Seraphina Fong said freedom of expression and assembly is a fundamental liberty guaranteed under the Singapore Constitution, in line with international standards.
"Societies have to find the right balance between individual freedom and liberty on the one hand, and the interests of society on the other," she said, pointing out that falsehoods can misinform citizens and polarise society.
Ms Fong made three clarifications on Pofma.
First, it relies primarily on correction directions, which allow the authorities to attach "health warnings" to falsehoods that draw the readers' attention to the facts.
The directions do not require the removal of the statement, and are not sanctions. The public may compare both accounts and make up their own minds.
"In this way, the democratic process is aided, because the antidote to falsehoods is more speech, more information," she said.
She added that this approach should also be compared with how Twitter affixes labels to tweets with misinformation.
Second, Pofma applies only to false statements of fact that affect the public interest. It does not apply to opinions, and cannot be used just because the Government disagrees with a statement, she said.
Third, the Act provides for checks and balances, as a Pofma direction may be challenged in court, Ms Fong said.
Responding to questions from Albania, Austria, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile and others on the death penalty, senior director at the Ministry of Home Affairs' policy development division Lin Qinghui said it is an important component of Singapore's criminal justice system, and is applied only after due process of law and with judicial safeguards.
"In our experience, it has been an effective deterrent against the most serious crimes such as murder and drug trafficking," he said, adding that this deterrent effect has also been observed in other serious offences.
Firearm offences, for example, declined immediately by 39 per cent when the death penalty took effect in 1974. Kidnapping fell sharply from an average of 29 cases per year between 1958 and 1960, to just one case in 1961 when the death penalty was introduced for this offence. Both offences are now rare in Singapore.
Grace Ho
