Singapore Passes Controversial Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Bill

A recent bill was passed in Singapore that is gaining criticism because it seems to empower the government with further authority to violate free speech rights in the region.

It passed by 72-9 in parliament and the bill enables government to force corrections on any content that is deemed to be false, called the 'Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Bill'.

It's reported that along with the new bill comes authority now for the state to add facts that will travel together with any article that they might feel is posting falsehoods.

They aren't going to edit the article itself, but add their view along with it. It will cover social media platforms and a variety of media, and offers hefty finds for anyone considered to be a malicious actor, with potential prison time too. If you are caught posting using inauthentic online accounts or bots it could mean tens of thousands in fines and up to 10 years behind bars.

Activists are worried about the new law and say that it will enable sweeping government censorship.

Google has suggested that the new changes might hurt innovation and negatively impact the growth of the digital information ecosystem, because of the suppression to free speech. How this law is going to be implemented matters because it directly impacts the natural rights of millions.

Some journalists have also spoken out about the new changes, warning:

"In the wrong hands, legislation such as the one under discussion, can be misused for selfish gain. No government or minister - good or bad - should be allowed to wield such broad powers. The bill should be withdrawn pending a genuine and robust discussion on how best to combat 'fake news',"

And some academics have also expressed their concerns over the new legislative changes as well. Is this really the way to combat "fake news"? To suppress natural rights? Unfortunately, that is the stance that governments worldwide have been taking in this matter, suggesting that the only way to combat the "threat of falsehoods" is to give themselves more power to police what the people say, and punish them when they are speaking about things that they don't like.