While Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat fielded difficult questions from opposition politicians during the Institute of Policy Studies' (IPS) Singapore Perspectives Conference on Jan. 20, 2020, the non-politicians in the audience did not shy away from asking tough questions too.

Moderated by IPS Director Janadas Devan, Heng was invited to share his thoughts on Singapore's fake news law, gay marriage, and the Singapore Together movement that he initiated six months ago.

Facts needed to make the right decision

Heng took two questions on the use of the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulations Act (POFMA) during the question and answer session following his speech.

The first came from Walid Jumblatt Bin Abdullah, an academic from Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

Referring to Heng's point in his speech about "trust between government and the citizens", he asked if under Heng's leadership, the government will continue to use "harsh laws" like POFMA as a solution to problems.

Waleed said: "Don't you think such laws only increase and widen the gap between citizens and the government, especially in the way it's been used today? Almost exclusively on the members of the opposition."

Another audience member, who identified himself as Matthew Ting from the China Foundation, also asked about POFMA.

He pointed out that if POFMA was about getting the facts right, Singaporeans should then have a Freedom of Information Act to help them easily access facts that will aid public discourse.

Addressing POFMA's "harshness", Heng said that POFMA is not about stopping people from having different points of view, but to stop falsehoods.

He recounted meeting an American during a trip abroad, who said that while he valued the tenet of free speech, and everyone is entitled to their own opinion, they are not entitled to their own facts.

Heng said, "Because without proper facts, you cannot make the right decision. The country cannot collectively make the right decision."

Marketplace of ideas needs regulation

Heng also quoted Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz's recent article in the Financial Times, about the need for regulation of the marketplace of ideas.

Heng gave the example of cough syrup, and how it was necessary to have the correct information on it to ensure that it does not harm others. He added:

"So in many instances, to protect public interests, you need to ensure that what you put out is true, and that the person is not lying to you and encouraging you to buy something."

Heng said that for political discourse, when making decisions about the future of the country, it is all the more important that opinions and facts are accurate, and not false and misleading.

He added that POFMA is still needed to tackle the rising issue of fake news and false facts. While Heng welcomed a diversity of opinions and views, it has to be based on facts which everyone could agree on.

Singapore Together

Heng also spoke multiple times about the Singapore Together movement, which he launched in June 2019.

A student from Yale-NUS College asked him how the government would make sure that the voices of lower-income and underrepresented groups would be heard in the Singapore Together engagement activities, while a student from the National University of Singapore (NUS) pointed out that Singapore Together seemed a lot like "Our Singapore Conversation 2.0".

The NUS student asked Heng if he could explain "pragmatically, practically, concretely speaking" how Singaporeans will get to influence Singapore policy through the Singapore Together movement.

Heng replied that for engaging with underrepresented groups, he and several other ministers, including Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee, met with social service agencies working with those groups to discuss how they could work together.

Heng also said that outreach needs to extend beyond agencies, and spoke about meeting the residents of his GRC during Meet the People sessions.

Heng shared that there will be forums with various groups in order to hear diverse views, and that he believes that “everyone should have a future in Singapore, a stake in Singapore, regardless of where they're starting from.”

S Rajaratnam's Democracy of Deeds

Addressing the NUS student's question, Heng shared his hope that Singapore Together would move past just conversation and sharing views, and instead be put into action toward what S. Rajaratnam called a "democracy of deeds".

A good democracy is not just people go to Parliament and say, 'let's do A, B, C' and all that. But rather it is one where every citizen does his or her part to make life better for everyone", said Heng.

In response to the NUS student asking about the degree to which citizens input would be considered by the government, such as what would happen if there was a consensus to abolish 377A, Heng said that even if a consensus if reached, "We have to consider."

He gave the example of the "GST issue", stating that he needs to justify why it is the right decision for Singapore, as it is in the long-term interest of young Singaporeans that we have a source of income to take care of seniors.

Gay marriage in Singapore?

A student who identified herself as a United World College Southeast Asia student broached the topic of LGBT rights in Singapore, asking Heng about why Singapore won't legalise gay marriage when other countries in the world have moved in that direction.

She said, "We're aiming to be more accepting of people from different cultures, different backgrounds, and different beliefs. So why is it that we can't give the LGBT community the respect that they deserve yet?"

Janadas jumped in, evoking laughter with his comment: "Okay, got it. Actually you want to go straight to gay marriage, bypassing 377A."

Heng said that there is no consensus on the issue of abolishing Section 377A of the penal code, and that many more people in Singapore are against it than are for it.

He pointed to lack of social consensus as being the root of the issue, and indicated that the views on a socially contentious issue such as the repeal of 377A may change in the future, although he cautioned people from being too confrontational:

"But what is important is that for certain issues where views are so different, it is for us to build that social consensus. And over time, views may evolve. But what is important is not for groups to go on the confrontation, because when we do, then I think the views will be even more polarised.

I believe that views will change over time, and we will have to deal with that. And even then, it is not the case that everybody will change their views."

Top image from Angela Lim.