Taken from Channel News Asia
The government has notified the Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER) that it will have to comply with conditions required of offshore newspapers under Section 23 (3) of the Newspapers and Printing Presses Act.
From September 11 this year, FEER will have to appoint a legal representative in Singapore to deal with any lawsuits that may arise against the publisher.
It will also have to post a security deposit of S$200,000.
But there will be no change to FEER's current circulation cap of 10,000 copies.
This change is to correct an anomaly for FEER, which currently does not have to comply with conditions for offshore newspapers.
It follows the FEER's move from a weekly to a monthly publication in 2004.
But FEER is still a declared foreign newspaper, defined as one engaging in the domestic politics of Singapore.
K Bhavani, Press Secretary to the Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, says it was an administrative oversight not to have subjected the news magazine to the same conditions required for declared foreign newspapers.
She adds that the conditions for offshore newspapers are not something new.
Several offshore newspapers have already posted the security bond and appointed representatives in Singapore.
The FEER was gazetted as a declared foreign newspaper on 26 December 1987 for interfering in the domestic politics of Singapore.
Subsequently, the FEER was also classified as an offshore newspaper following the amendment to the Newspapers and Printing Presses Act on 30 August 1990, and was subjected to the conditions under the Act.
The government has also reviewed the exempt status of offshore newspapers circulating in Singapore as a result of changes in the media scene.
It has notified four publications - the International Herald Tribune, Financial Times, Newsweek and TIME - that the exemption granted to them will be lifted when their current permits expire.
This means they will then have to appoint a legal representative in Singapore and post a bond of S$200,000.
The government says these publications now regularly report on political issues in the region and Singapore, and have significant circulations here.
Since 1990, some offshore newspapers were exempted from certain provisions under the Newspapers and Printing Presses Act before they were permitted to circulate in Singapore.
But the Minister may allow declared foreign newspapers, defined as those engaging in the domestic politics of Singapore, to continue circulation in the country.
This approval may also be granted subject to conditions.
The Ministry of Communications, Information and the Arts says the Newspaper and Printing Presses Act serves to reinforce the government's consistent position that it is a privilege and not a right for foreign newspapers to circulate in Singapore.
It adds that they do so as foreign observers of the local scene and should not interfere in the domestic politics of Singapore. - CNA/ch
Why now?? Is it to "remind" the foreign media operating in Sg to "behave" during the upcoming World Bank event?
ReplyDeletemaybe it had something to do with the recent interview with Dr Chee.
ReplyDeleteNo problem. FEER can always offer "premium content" on their website to their subscibers. The free-market wins eventually ;-)
ReplyDeleteI love it when fascists and commies (and their apologists) try to initiate "anti-consumer" measures in the market.
I love it when people forget that a market is a demand economy — i.e. it exists because consumers have "needs" waiting to be fulfilled.
Contrast that with the anti-freedom, anti-consumer and anti-individual command economy of the state — any state Europe, Mid East, Asia, N America..., pick one — they all have command economies varying only in the degree of state interference.
Command economies operate by FORCE — by forcing "customers" to pay for shitty, half-rate services like public schools, public healthcare, and govt controlled arts, media and publishing. Governments become big and powerful because they use lots of FORCE and TAX (steal from) people.
Demand economies operate by giving the customer what hewants, "good" qulaity at a "cheap" price, available easily because of efficient marketing and distribution networks (the "middlemen" — much hated by Marxists). Companies like WalMart, Microsoft, McDonald's and Exxon become big and make their shareholders rich because they PERSUADE people to buy their "cheap and good" stuff... and the happy customers come back for more!
The "markets" (aka spontaneous orders) for individual opinion — publishing, blogging, film making, song writing...artisitic expression... work because they are demand driven — that is, because the actors themselves "need to" or "want to" or "have to" express themselves.
Yeah sure. The govt can lock a few "dissidents" up, but that won't and can never halt the spontaneous order, which is driven by individual action. Who knows what the next human being is thinking, or what he is going to do to express those thoughts and beliefs. Anything does indeed Go!
Dear PAP, you pay occasional lip-service to the free market. Are you guys afraid or something to embrace it TOTALLY? Trust me, you can have a lot more fun. (And I'm into having fun) :-)
Little Ms Chee quoted in a well-read and notable international publication:
ReplyDelete“My papa is in jail, but he didn’t do anything wrong. People have just been unfair to him.”
An 82year old despot gets a slap from a little girl.
Ouch.
Bring the fucking magazine to its knees, or ban it immediately! Target the kid, and when she's old enough...get her!
oh no...sack ST journalist back as registered user
ReplyDeleteMy Advice to the FOREIGN PRESS:
ReplyDeleteBOYCOTT SINGAPORE AND RELOCATE THE OFFICES ELSEWHERE, IF YOU CLAIM TO UPHOLD THE RIGHTS TO PRESS FREEDOM !
AREN'T YOU GUYS TIRED OF THE NEVER-ENDING CONDITIONS YOU HAVE TO MEET IN ORDER TO STATION YOURSELF HERE AND REPORT ON LOCAL EVENTS ??
this blog has very good coverage on the issue:
ReplyDeletehttp://noself.blogspot.com/2006/08/channelnewsasia_04.html
Any lawyers out there? This may be a case for the WTO, and may violate S'pore's FTA's with several countries.
ReplyDeleteBy imposing such "conditions" for publishers, the S'pore govt is protecting their own publishing company: SPH.
Let's see them try to wriggle out of that one :-)
would anybody be proud attempting to shield that vile little rag the Straits Times?
ReplyDeleteman dont you realize you are barking up the wrong tree? virtually no die hard PAP/SPH royalists visit this blog; there may be a couple of civil servants reponsible for information collection who keep an eye on blogs; right now most of the politics related blogs are not renewed frequently because there is no election going on, so the guys wont be working so hard at it either; when they eventually see your posts, it merely confirms their impression that most of the critics just rant and have no meaningful ideas to offer
ReplyDeletewhat exactly is your beef? what's bugging you?
any criticsm whatever the winge is a mark of discontent against the regime of its target. the moan does not always have to contain a message, the fact that the message had been blogged is enough.
ReplyDeletesingapore powers that be must look at the level of discontent, if the levelcontinues to increase, they have a long term problem on their hands.