The High Court has dismissed an appeal by the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) against the correction directions it was issued under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma) by Manpower Minister Josephine Teo.
In December last year, Mrs Teo had issued three correction directions against the party over an article and two Facebook posts, which she said contained falsehoods and a misleading graphic. The Facebook posts were linked to the article titled “SDP population policy: Hire S’poreans first, retrench S’poreans last”, published on SDP’s website in June last year.
The party then applied for the directions to be cancelled, and Mrs Teo rejected the application. SDP then filed an appeal with the High Court.
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Singapore Democratic Party v Attorney-General [2020] SGHC 25
High Court dismisses appeal by Singapore Democratic Party (“SDP”) relating to Correction Directions issued under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (“POFMA”).
This is the first appeal against Correction Directions (“CDs”) issued under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (“POFMA”). This appeal was brought by the Singapore Democratic Party (“SDP”) under s 17 of the POFMA to set aside three CDs issued by the Minister for Manpower in relation to various material communicated by the SDP. The material communicated by the SDP included, among other things, statements about the employment prospects of professionals, managers, executives, and technicians (“PMETs”).
Under POFMA, a Minister may cause the issuance of a CD if a false statement of fact (the “subject statement”) has been or is being communicated in Singapore and the Minister is of the opinion that it is in the public interest to issue a CD. If a CD is issued, the recipient of the CD may be required to publish a Correction Notice, which may contain a statement that the subject statement is false, and/or a correction to the subject statement.
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AGC slams SDP for ‘false statements’ on Pofma hearing, says political party ‘blatantly defied’ judge
The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) has come out swinging at the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) for what it described as “deliberate false statements” made by the party during and after a recent court hearing.
The opposition party had brought an appeal to the High Court to overturn correction orders imposed by Manpower Minister Josephine Teo under Singapore’s fake-news laws, the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma).
In a letter to the Supreme Court on Monday (Jan 20) — a copy of which was sent to the media — AGC pilloried SDP for “completely unacceptable” conduct, saying that the party was intent on misrepresenting the Government and undermining processes under Pofma.
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AGC says SDP articles misrepresented its arguments in POFMA case, seeks new hearing
An opposition party that went to court over allegedly false statements it made in articles on local employment is now accused of making further misrepresentative statements while the hearings for the first matter are ongoing.
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) has published false statements mischaracterising the Attorney-General's Chambers' (AGC's) arguments in the first case to be heard under the online falsehoods law, AGC charged in a letter to the Supreme Court on Monday (Jan 20).
The AGC is seeking a hearing before the judge in light of the new developments. However, SDP has denied these allegations.
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AGC seeks further hearing, says SDP mischaracterised its arguments
The Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) has requested a further hearing in the first court challenge against fake news law corrections, to deal with what it called deliberate mischaracterisations of its arguments by the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP).
The AGC is accusing the SDP of making misleading statements about proceedings that took place last week during what was already a hearing involving whether the SDP had made misleading statements.
That two-day hearing, an appeal by the SDP against the correction directions it was ordered last month to post alongside its Facebook posts and an article on its website, concluded on Friday with the judgement reserved for a later date. The case was the first court appeal against a correction direction under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma).
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AGC presents argument against SDP's fake news law challenge; High Court reserves judgment
The fake news law does cover matters of interpretation, said Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar Nair as he outlined the Government's argument against the challenge brought forth by the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP).
Both sides wrapped up their arguments on Friday (Jan 17), and the High Court reserved judgment in the first court appeal against a correction direction under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma).
The SDP has until next Wednesday (Jan 22) to file written responses to the submissions presented by the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC), if it wishes to do so.
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SDP presented no direct data to support statement, says AGC as judge reserves verdict
A judge reserved his decision over the Singapore Democratic Party's (SDP's) appeal against correction directions by the Manpower Minister under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) on Friday (Jan 17).
This was after the Deputy Attorney-General, who is representing the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), began and finished his arguments charging that SDP's statements in the three offending online posts are false, that they misled readers, and "cherry-picked" data to present a narrative.
Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar Nair pointed out in his submissions that the opposition party has presented no direct data to support its allegation that local PMET (professionals, managers, executives and technicians) employment had gone down. He also argued that the burden of proof was on SDP to prove that its statements were true, as they are the party bringing the court action, he said in his submissions to court.
SDP’s arguments in defence of statements on PMET jobs 'hopelessly flawed': AGC
Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar Nair set out arguments on behalf of the Attorney-General on why the Singapore Democratic Party's application to have Pofma correction directions set aside should be rejected
Lawyers for the Attorney-General on Friday (Jan 17) outlined arguments on why a “reasonable person” would have understood statements made by the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) on job figures to have a meaning that was demonstrably false.
Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar Nair, a Senior Counsel, was leading a team of lawyers appearing in chambers in the High Court to oppose an application by the SDP to have correction directions made by Manpower Minister Josephine Teo set aside. The correction directions related to an article published on the SDP website, two Facebook posts and a graphic that Mrs Teo said was misleading.
The case is the first challenge to correction orders issued under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma), which came into force in October last year. The hearing started on Thursday.
In fake news case, Singapore government says ordinary person would have misread SDP’s posts
The Singapore government on Friday argued that online posts made by an opposition party would have misled people into thinking local jobs were being lost to foreigners, as the city state’s first fake news hearing wrapped up.
The Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma) – which allows ministers to order corrections on statements they determine to be false and which harm public interest – came into force last October and has been invoked four times in under a month, primarily on opposition figures.
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) launched a legal challenge after it received correction orders in December from Manpower Minister Josephine Teo for two Facebook posts and a website article which the ministry said contained falsehoods. On Friday, deputy attorney general Hri Kumar Nair SC, who represented the government, said the key issue was how an ordinary person would understand statements about retrenchment made by the SDP.
SDP: Ministry’s use of Pofma ‘not appropriate’
The Singapore Democratic Party's (SDP) appeal against corrections issued under the fake news law began in the High Court yesterday, with it arguing that the legislation should be applied against clearly and verifiably false statements of fact, but not the interpretation of statistics.
The party wants the court to cancel the correction directions it was ordered last month to post alongside its Facebook posts and an article on its website. The order was made under the new Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma).
The arguments, in this first challenge against Pofma, were heard in chambers, after Justice Ang Cheng Hock turned down the SDP's application to move it to an open court.
Manpower Minister Josephine Teo’s use of POFMA on SDP’s statements are “not appropriate” argues SDP in court
Invoking the use of the Protection From Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) over three of the Singapore Democratic Party’s (SDP’s) posts was not an appropriate use of the legislation, argued the party in the High Court yesterday (16 January). It explained that the legislation is meant to be applied to “obvious, deliberate falsehoods”.
Party chairman Dr Paul Tambyah, when speaking to reporters after the hearing, said that the party’s statements which were decided to be false by Manpower Minister Josephine Teo were actually made based on a “reasonable interpretation” of publicly available data provided by her ministry.
This challenge by SDP against the minister’s correction directions is the first POFMA case to be brought to court. The party, representing themselves and led by SDP chief Chee Soon Juan, presented its arguments before Justice Ang Cheng Hock in chambers. The party had applied for the case to be heard in open court but was denied. Speaking to reporters, Dr Chee said, “What we’re taking issue with is, MOM then takes its case, presents its data in a certain manner, and then uses it to say ours is false. That is the point of contention.”
Chee Soon Juan “very disappointed” by High Court’s dismissal of bid to have POFMA heard in open court
Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) secretary-general Chee Soon Juan has called the High Court’s decision to reject his party’s bid to have their anti-fake news law case heard in open court “very disappointing”.
Manpower Minister Josephine Teo invoked the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) and issued Correction Directions to the SDP over two Facebook posts and an article that talked about the displacement of local workers by foreigners. The Government held that the SDP’s Facebook posts and article contained falsehoods.
While the SDP complied and posted correction notices on its article and Facebook posts, it later called on Ms Teo to cancel the Correction Directions and issue an apology. When the Minister refused to do so, the SDP challenged the Correction Directions in court.
Why case is not being heard in open court
The Singapore Democratic Party's (SDP) application to have its court challenge against the fake news law heard in open court was unsuccessful because there was "no special reason" to do so, said Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar Nair.
Speaking to reporters outside the courtroom yesterday, Mr Nair said public interest - which the SDP cited - was not enough of a reason for a given case to be moved from chambers and made open to the public.
He added that many past cases - even those involving constitutional changes - have not been deemed "special enough" to meet the legal threshold.
SDP argues for MOM to release data on local employment to prove the party's statements are false
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) argued in court on Thursday (Jan 16) for the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to release data on local PMET (professionals, managers, executives and technicians) employment, to prove that their statements are false and so settle the matter.
SDP was issued correction directions by Manpower Minister Josephine Teo over three online posts they made that referred to a purported rising trend of local PMET retrenchments. MOM said SDP's article and two Facebook posts on Singapore's population policy contained a misleading graphic and false statement of facts. It said there was no rising trend of local PMET retrenchments, and that employment of local PMETs has instead risen steadily since 2015.
However, SDP stands by its posts and says they are accurate based on what data is made available, and took to the High Court in a chamber hearing to argue their case.
Judge denies SDP application for POFMA case to be heard in open court
The Singapore Democratic Party’s (SDP) application to have its case against Manpower Minister Josephine Teo heard in open court, over the invocation of a controversial anti-fake news law, has been denied. The SDP had filed the case against Teo for three correction directives issued against it under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulations Act (POFMA), in the first legal challenge to a POFMA directive.
Following a hearing in chambers before Justice Ang Cheng Hock on Thursday (16 January), Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar told reporters at the High Court that Justice Ang did not see any "special reason" to have the hearing in open court.
Asked how he felt about the decision, SDP chief Chee Soon Juan said, "It's very disappointing, but we are where we are. We have to go back in right now for our case."
Judge rejects SDP’s bid for first Pofma appeal to be heard in open court
A High Court judge on Thursday (Jan 16) morning rejected the Singapore Democratic Party’s (SDP’s) arguments for their appeal against Manpower Minister Josephine Teo’s correction direction to be heard in open court.
The case is the first court challenge against a minister’s directive since the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma) came into effect in October last year. The appeal would be heard in chambers before Justice Ang Cheng Hock on Thursday. This means that members of the public and the media are not allowed to attend.
Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar Nair told reporters that the Attorney-General’s Chambers — which is representing the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) — argued for the case to be heard in chambers.
Singapore’s SDP loses bid for first challenge against fake news law to be heard in open court
Singapore’s first court challenge against its anti-fake news law got under way on Thursday as an opposition party appealed against two orders to correct Facebook posts and a website article related to foreigners and employment.
The Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma), which allows ministers to order corrections on statements they determine to be false and which harm public interest, came into force in October last year and was been invoked four times in under a month, primarily on opposition figures. Last week, Singapore’s communication and information minister said this was an “unfortunate convergence or coincidence”.
The case was heard in chambers – meaning it was closed to the public and media – despite the Singapore Democratic Party’s application for it to be heard in open court. SDP secretary general Chee Soon Juan said Justice Ang Cheng Hock’s decision to hear it in chambers was “very disappointing” given the “immense public interest” in the topic.
High Court rejects SDP's application to have Pofma case heard in open court
A High Court judge has dismissed an application by the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) to have its case, challenging two corrections issued against it under the fake news law, heard in open court.
The case, in which the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) is named as respondent, continues in chambers and is not open to the public or the media.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday (Jan 16) outside the courtroom, Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar Nair said Justice Ang Cheng Hock had rejected SDP's application, as there was "no special reason" for the case to be heard in an open court.
SDP applies to have POFMA case against Josephine Teo heard in open court
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), which filed a case against Minister for Manpower Josephine Teo in the High Court for three correction directives issued against it under a controversial anti-fake news law, will apply to have the case heard in open court.
The case – scheduled for Thursday at 10am – is to be heard in chambers, which is not open to members of the public and media, before Justice Ang Cheng Hock.
The party, which is unrepresented, said on Monday in a press statement, “Given that the matter has drawn widespread and intense public interest, the SDP is of the view that the case be open to the public.”
Case against Pofma corrections should be heard in open court: SDP
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), which has had two correction directions issued against it under the fake news law, will request to have its case challenging the corrections heard in an open court.
The case, in which the Attorney-General is named as the respondent, is scheduled to be heard in chambers on Thursday morning (Jan 16) and is not open to the public or the media.
The party said in a Facebook post on Monday that it will make the application to the judge when the session is convened. It added that the case should be open to the public as the matter "has drawn widespread and intense public interest".
SDP appeals against correction notices by Manpower Ministry in first court challenge of fake news law
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) has filed an appeal in the High Court against correction notices issued by the Manpower Ministry - the first court challenge of the fake news law.
The party's appeal comes after Manpower Minister Josephine Teo on Monday (Jan 6) rejected its application to cancel three correction directions issued under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma).
A hearing is scheduled to take place at 10am on Jan 16, said the SDP on Wednesday (Jan 8).
SDP files case in High Court against Manpower Minister Josephine Teo over POFMA orders
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) has filed a case against Minister for Manpower Josephine Teo in the High Court over three orders that she had issued against the opposition party under a controversial anti-fake news law.
The move by the SDP to file the Originating Summons marks the first ever legal challenge against the government under the Protection Against Online Falsehoods and Manipulations Act (POFMA).
In a statement on Wednesday (8 January), the SDP said it has set out its case in a detailed submission to Teo, including statistical analyses of the Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) own data and the use of different sets of data by MOM, explaining why she is wrong to issue the orders.
SDP to take MOM to court after application to cancel Correction Directions rejected
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) has announced its intentions to challenge the Ministry of Manpower’s fake news Correction Direction (CD) in court after its application to cancel said Correction Directions was rejected.
A statement released by the party today (Jan 7) said that “In rejecting the SDP’s application for the cancellation of the Correction Directions, the MOM has failed to provide any grounds for its decision”.
MOM’s reply to the party’s application simply stated that their application did not provide sufficient grounds for the cancellation of the CDs.
JOSEPHINE TEO'S REFUSAL TO SUBSTANTIATE POFMA ALLEGATION IS INDICATION OF CALIBRE OF PAP'S 4G LEADERSHIP
In rejecting the SDP's application for the cancellation of the Correction Directions, the MOM has failed to provide any grounds for its decision.
MOM's reply simply insisted that "your Application does not provide sufficient grounds for the cancellation of the CDs." This is not a rational answer as the SDP had submitted a detailed account – including analysing MOM's own statistics – of the reasons for the statements in our posts.
The SDP is confident of our case and we, therefore, have no qualms posting our full document for all to read and judge (see here).
Minister Josephine Teo refused application by SDP to cancel POFMA correction directions
The Minister of Manpower, Josephine Teo has refused the application of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP)’s application to cancel the correction directions issued on 14 Dec last year on three online postings as she views that the application does not provide sufficient grounds for the cancellation.
SDP had earlier submitted its application on 3 Jan to cancel the three correction directions issued by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) under Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA). Ms Teo in the MOM statement on 6 Jan, did not elaborate on how SDP’s application did not provide sufficient grounds.
Last month, MOM issued three Correction Directions (CDs) to SDP for three online postings, alleging that the statements made regarding employment in Singapore were false.
MOM Statement on the Singapore Democratic Party’s application to cancel the Correction Directions issued under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act
Three Correction Directions (“CDs”) were issued on 14 December 2019 in respect of: (a) an article on the Singapore Democratic Party (“SDP”) website dated 8 June 2019 (the “Article”); (b) a post on the SDP Facebook page dated 30 November 2019 (the “SDP FB post”); and (c) a Facebook post sponsored by the SDP published on 2 December 2019 (the “sponsored post”). Both the SDP FB post and the sponsored post contain links to the Article, which article contains a false statement of fact. The sponsored post additionally contains a misleading graphic.
MOM received the SDP’s application to cancel the CDs (the “Application”) on 3 January 2020. After careful consideration, the Minister for Manpower is of the view that the Application does not provide sufficient grounds for the cancellation of the CDs. The Minister for Manpower has therefore decided to refuse the Application. The SDP has been notified of the Minister’s decision.
Separately, we wish to clarify that the SDP’s assertion that the Minister is applying the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act to the Article retroactively is misconstrued. In particular, the Article was hyperlinked in the SDP FB post and sponsored post, hence it was actively being publicised as late as 2 December 2019.
For details on the CDs issued against the false statements of fact, please refer to https://www.gov.sg/factually/content/corrections-on-falsehoods-posted-by-SDP.
Josephine Teo rejects SDP's application to cancel 3 correction directives
Minister for Manpower Josephine Teo on Monday (6 January) rejected an application by opposition party Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) to cancel three correction directives issued to it under a controversial anti-fake news law.
This comes three days after Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam rejected an application by the founder of socio-political website States Times Review to cancel a correction directive issued to it under the same law. The outcome of SDP’s application, filed last Friday, was announced in a press statement by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on Monday.
“After careful consideration, the Minister for Manpower is of the view that the application does not provide sufficient grounds for the cancellation of the (correction directives). The Minister for Manpower has therefore decided to refuse the application,” said the ministry.
“The SDP has been notified of the minister’s decision.”
Manpower Minister rejects SDP’s application to retract correction directions, cites insufficient grounds
The Minister for Manpower has rejected the Singapore Democratic Party’s (SDP) application to cancel the correction directions that were issued last month about statements the SDP had made on its website and Facebook page about employment issues, The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said on Monday (Jan 6).
The opposition party had on Thursday called on Minister for Manpower Josephine Teo to retract the correction directions, insisting that its statements were “true and correct”. MOM said it received SDP’s application to cancel the correction directions on Friday.
"After careful consideration, the Minister for Manpower is of the view that the application does not provide sufficient grounds for the cancellation of the correction directions," the ministry said on Monday.
SDP calls for Josephine Teo to retract correction directions, apologise
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) says that Manpower Minister Josephine Teo owes the opposition party an “immediate, unambiguous and public apology” over correction directions imposed on the SDP last month.
In a media statement on Thursday (2 January), the SDP claimed the directions – made against two Facebook posts and an online article by the party – had abused the Protection Against Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA).
“The problem lies with the fact that MOM had accused the SDP of making statements that we did not make or cited different sets of data which it then used to accuse the SDP's post as false,” said the party, referring to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).
SDP wants Manpower Minister to retract correction directions and apologise as the party quoted statistics taken from MOM itself
On 2 January (Thursday), the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) has released a statement calling for Manpower Minister Josephine Teo to retract the correction directions under Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation (POFMA) Act which her Ministry issued on 14 December 2019.
The Party also wants the Minister to issue an “immediate, unambiguous and public apology over the matter”. This is because SDP said that its statements in the three posts which MOM issued the correction directions, are indeed true and correct.
“The problem lies with the fact that MOM had accused the SDP of making statements that we did not make or cited different sets of data which is then used to accuse the SDP’s post as false. This is an abuse of POFMA,” SDP said.
Singapore opposition party to challenge fake news notices in court
A Singapore opposition party on Thursday said it was prepared to legally challenge a government order to attach correction notices to its online posts, accusing the government of using a new fake news law to stymie political debate. This would be the first time such a case could head to court since the law came into effect in October.
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), which has no current representation in parliament, was told last month to issue the notices on an article on its website and related Facebook posts that discussed white-collar jobs in the city state. The law requires recipients of correction orders to comply even if they intend to appeal. The SDP attached the notices, but said on Thursday it stood by its content and asked for the correction notices to be retracted by the manpower ministry.
The party said in a statement on its website:
“We call on the Minister [for Manpower Josephine Teo] to not only retract the Correction Directions but also issue an immediate, unambiguous and public apology to the SDP … failing which we will be obliged to pursue the matter in a court of law,”
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