The Media Enthralled: Singapore Revisited

Description

Once a proud and independent institution, the Singapore press was brought to its knees by threats, arbitrary arrests and detentions, general harassment, and litigation during Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew’s administration. Singapore’s former solicitor general, Francis T. Seow, tells this story, documenting the demise of the Eastern Sun, the Nan}/ang Siang Pau, and the Singapore Herald (among other news publications), as well as the severe curbs placed on foreign journalists reporting on Singapore. By the early 19805, Singapore’s entire press establishment had been restructured; with founding owners forced to divest their holdings of newspaper companies. Since then, as Seow substantiates the press has become the mouthpiece of the state, using invidious self-censorship to distort the news. Contents (v) Henry J. Steiner: Foreword (ix) Preface (xi) Acknowledgments (xvii) 1. The Bailiwick of Singapore (1) A Glimpse at History (2) Vignettes on Indian Press Legislation (2) The Situation at the Straits (4) The Singapore Chronicle (6) The Singapore Free Press (7) The Straits Times (7) The Malaya Tribune (8) The Singapore Tiger Standard (8) The Nanyang Siang Pau and the Sin Chew fit Poh (8) Some Extinct Publications (9) Notes (10) 2. A Handsel for the Media (11) Press Legislation (19) Notes (21) 3. The Techniques of Repression: A Lesson Well Learned (22) An Interlude (22) Singapore in Malaysia (24) Lee Kuan Yew and Journalists (25) Lee Kuan Yew and the Utusan Melayu (28) The Final Split (35) Notes (36) 4. The Subjugation of the Print Media: Two Important Cases (38) Shades of Black Operations (40) The Nanyang Siang Pau (42) Habeas Corpus Applications (48) The Eastern Sun (52) Notes (54) 5. The Government's Case Against the Singapore Herald (56) All About Reece (62) A Letter to the Editor (64) Prelude to the Prime Minister's Press Conference (65) The Press Conference (66) A Legal Notice of Demand (72) The "Save the Herald" Charade (80) The Permit Revoked (85) Of Overdraft and Guarantors (87) The International Press Institute Conference, Helsinki (88) The Singapore Herald Cooperative Rescue Effort (95) The Final Curtain Falls (99) The Foreign Media Reassured (101) In the Aftermath (101) Postscript on the Singapore Herald (102) Notes (103) 6. The Divestiture of Control (106) The Press Council (108) The Socialist International Entr'acte (109) The 1976 General Election (111) The Divestiture Continues (115) The Anson By-Election (117) The Restructure (119) The 1984 General Election (125) Other Domestic Publications (126) Political Organs, Newsletters, Etcetera (128) Notes (137) 7. The Foreign Media (140) Tallying Foreign Media Vexations (140) The Foreign Media's Turn: The Circulation Restriction (147) Time (148) The Asian Wall Street journal (149) Asiaweek (164) Far East Economic Review (165) The Economist: A Missing Key Sentence? (171) The International Herald Tribune (173) The Expulsion of Foreign Correspondents (179) Requirement for Bond, Etcetera (185) Singapore: A Salubrious Perch? (190) The Right of Reply Revisited (191) Interviews with the Prime Minister (194) Notes (196) 8. Inside the Web (201) Official Advertisements (202) A Special Relationship? (206) Media Blackout? (207) Self-Censorship (208) The Tentacles of Censorship (213) Letters to Editors (215) Investigative Reporting (217) Cartoons, Caricatures and Editorial Humour (219) The Legal Weapon (220) Conclusion: The Next Lap (223) Notes (224) Addendum: Relevant Legislation (228) Defamation Act, Cap. 75 (228) The Essential Information (Control of Publications and Safeguarding of Information) Regulations, 1966 (228) Judicial Proceedings (Regulation of Reports) Act, Cap. 149 (229) Internal Security Act, Cap. 143 (229) Official Secrets Act, Cap. 213 (230) Parliamentary (Privileges Immunities and Powers) Act, Cap. 217 (230) Penal Code, Cap. 224, Sections 449 to 500 (230) Sedition Act, Cap. 290 (231) Undesirable Publications Act, Cap. 338 (231) Notes (232) Appendix A: Newspaper Circulation (234) Appendix B: The Sunday Times, May 22, 1988 (234) Appendix C: Asia Watch Response (236) Selected Bibliography (238) Index (244) About the Book and Author (254)