LIKE most constitutions, Singapore’s promises freedom of speech. Unlike most, it allows the government to limit that freedom with “such restrictions as it considers necessary or expedient” to maintain national security, friendly relations with other countries or public order and morality, as well as to protect “the privileges of Parliament” and to prevent “contempt of court” or “incitement to any offence”. Officials have not hesitated to quell their critics. Opponents of the People’s Action Party (PAP), which has ruled Singapore without interruption since independence, have often found themselves on the losing end of defamation suits regarding accusations that American or European politicians would have shrugged or laughed off.
Singapore’s government has long insisted that such measures are essential to safeguard the country’s hard-won racial harmony and public order. Recently, however, the country’s rulers have begun expounding the virtues of thick skins. In late February Lee Hsien Loong, the prime minister, said leaders need to be challenged: “If all you have are people who say, ‘Three bags full, sir’, then soon you start...Continue reading
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