Communications and Information Minister S Iswaran believes that the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulations Act (POFMA) is Singapore's response to the global problem of fake news.

Iswaran was speaking to CNBC in an interview in Davos, Switzerland on Jan. 21, 2020.

CNBC asked: "Just clarify here for us. Obviously, fingers are being pointed at this stage, and the argument is being made that this fake news law was primarily directed at stamping down on opposition from other parties."

Iswaran replied: "It is hardly the case."

He said that digital technologies and communication platforms are "great enablers".

However, he also said that the government is mindful of the potential risks of fake news, whether it involved, businesses, media, societies or governments.

Simple approach to fake news

Iswaran added: "There is a global dialogue. Different countries have been seeking out different methodologies to deal with it, and this is our approach to it. At the heart of it, is very simple. It is a juxtaposition of the truth with the false statement of fact. That is all that is required."

Iswaran explained that if a party against whom a Correction Direction was issued felt "aggrieved", they could seek recourse in the courts.

He mentioned one such case undergoing a hearing in the courts, concerning the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) and the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), although not by name.

Iswaran said: "So we think it is a system that will work in our context and help address some of the concerns our citizens have."

Unrest in Hong Kong negatively affects Singapore

CNBC also asked Iswaran about the troubles in Hong Kong, and whether Singapore can benefit from the unrest if businesses are concerned.

Iswaran said, on the contrary, Singapore would like to see an "early and amicable resolution".

He said: "I think we belong to the school of thought that basically feels that, when we all do well, we all stand to benefit, and if there is a problem in any one of our markets in the region, then I think it has a dampening effect on all of us, because it affects sentiments, consumer sentiment, investor sentiment, and so on."

He added that overall stability is important for investor confidence in the region.

New partnership to boost digital trade

At the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Trade Digitalisation Forum, Iswaran announced the signing of a partnership between Singapore, the ICC and 17 industry partners to boost efforts to digitalise trade.

The TradeTrust framework "pioneered by Singapore" will also help to support the existing multilateral, rules-based trading system.

The framework includes:

• Legal harmonisation to provide legal validity of trade documents.
• Standards development to make sure documents exchanged can be worked on.
• Accreditation structure to certify technical solutions that meet legal requirements.
• A set of open source codes that can easily integrate backend solutions to the TradeTrust network.

More efficiency in trade

With this partnership, ICC's 45 million members will be able to conduct trade more efficiently.

The network will also cut documentation time by more than half, from 45 days to 20, seen in pilot efforts.

Referring to the newly-concluded Digital Economy Agreements with Chile and New Zealand, Iswaran also shared that negotiations with Australia are ongoing.

Iswaran is in Davos together with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies Tharman Shanmugaratnam to attend the 50th World Economic Forum.

Top image from MCI.