The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued correction directions and targeted directions under the Protection of Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) on Jun. 29, 2024, regarding posts made by the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) on the charges brought against three women allegedly involved in organising a procession to the Istana.

The three women were charged under the Public Order Act on Jun. 27 after they allegedly delivered letters to the Istana in support of the Palestinian cause with a group of about 70 people.

The women are Mossammad Sobikun Nahar, 25, Siti Amirah Mohamed Asrori, 29, and Annamalai Kokila Parvathi, 35.

All were charged for organising an assembly or procession without a permit on Feb. 2 along the perimeter of the Istana.

In a press release, MHA highlighted two falsehoods:

1. The three women were prosecuted for organising support for the Palestinian people in the ongoing Gaza war, in the form of a procession to the Istana.
2. The government, and in particular Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law K Shanmugam, prosecuted the three women because they had expressed views that the Government disagreed with.

Procession in a prohibited area

With regards to the first falsehood, MHA emphasised that the three women were charged for organising a procession in a prohibited area.

In particular, they were charged under Section 15(1) of the Public Order Act (POA) 2009, which regulates assemblies and processions in public areas.

The Istana is a prohibited area under the POA.

MHA added that the three women were not charged for their support for the Palestinian cause, which is not a criminal offence.

MHA said:

"The decision to charge the three women was not in response to the views they had expressed, nor depended on whether these views concorded or did not concord with the Government’s views. The charges concern the organising of the unauthorised procession, in and of itself."

Charges not made by Shanmugam

With regards to the second falsehood, MHA reiterated that the three women were not charged for the views they expressed, but rather for organising a procession in a prohibited area.

Moreover, MHA said that the decision to charge the three women was not made by Shanmugam, as suggested by SDP's posts.

The charges were made by the Attorney-Generals' Chambers after an investigation by the police.

"The Minister does not make decisions relating to criminal prosecutions," MHA said.

MHA added:

"Any person who organises a public assembly or a procession in a designated prohibited area would have committed an offence, regardless of the cause or issue he or she is advocating for. Prohibited areas are security sensitive areas, and also include the Parliament House and the Supreme Court."

POFMA directions

A correction direction was issued to SDP by the POFMA office, requiring SDP to publish a correction notice alongside its Facebook and Instagram posts and create a new TikTok post containing a correction notice.

A targeted direction was also issued to TikTok Pte. Ltd, requiring them to communicate a correction notice to those in Singapore who accessed the TikTok post.

MHA clarified that laws like POA exist to "maintain the public peace and order which Singaporeans enjoy today".

MHA said:

"We know that some Singaporeans feel strongly about the Israel-Hamas conflict, in support of both sides of the conflict.

The very large majority of these views have been expressed in lawful ways, online and also during the many forums and dialogues that have been organised by the authorities and other entities, as well as through support for donation drives.

The Government did not take any action against them, whether or not the views concorded with the Government’s position on the conflict. On the other hand, unauthorised public processions could result in public order, and safety and security concerns, and will not be allowed regardless of the cause, or which side the support is for."

MHA also urged members of the public not to engage in activities that "damage the peace, public order and social harmony which Singaporeans have worked hard to achieve, and enjoy today".

"We should not deliberately break the law, even if to make a point. If we do so, eventually, we will become a lawless, unstable, and disorderly society," warned the ministry.

SDP responds

The statements by SDP were posted to Facebook, Instagram and TikTok on Jun. 28 and Jun. 27.

A correction notice has already been added to a Facebook post made on Jun. 27.

The SDP also pinned a correction notice to their TikTok account on Jun. 28:

A similar correction notice was posted on their Instagram account on Jun. 30.

The posts direct users to an article on gov.sg, published on Jun. 29, detailing the falsehoods in SDP's statements.

In a Jun. 30 media statement, SDP said that it rejected the POFMA claims made against them.

Top photo from Ng Yi-Sheng/Facebook & sgforpalestine/Instagram.