Remarks over Thaipusam event on TRS site could promote ill will: Police
By Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh And Amir Hussain, The Straits Times, 19 Feb 2015
By Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh And Amir Hussain, The Straits Times, 19 Feb 2015
Police said in a statement yesterday that they have arrested a 26-year-old Chinese Singaporean man and a 22-year-old Australian woman for posting remarks online "that could promote ill will and hostility among the different races in Singapore".
They did not further identify the duo, who are out on bail.
They are believed to be two of the site's founders.
TRS wrote on its site yesterday that one of its editors involved in the running of the site had been called up for investigations by police, along with four others.
It added that "she is currently cooperating fully with the police".
The arrests were prompted by a Feb 4 article on TRS alleging that a Filipino family's complaint over noise from drummers led to a scuffle during the Thaipusam procession on Feb 3.
Three Singaporeans were later charged over disorderly behaviour.
But the article's original writer reportedly distanced herself from the published version.
Police said yesterday that they received reports on Feb 5 about an "insensitive article" online. After extensive checks, they identified the suspects, who were arrested the next day.
If found guilty under the Sedition Act, a first-time offender can be fined up to $5,000 or jailed for up to three years, or both.
If found guilty under the Sedition Act, a first-time offender can be fined up to $5,000 or jailed for up to three years, or both.
"Police take a stern view of acts that could threaten social harmony in Singapore. Any person who posts remarks online that could cause ill will and hostility between the different races or communities in Singapore will be dealt with in accordance with the law," added the police.
In the aftermath of the scuffle during Thaipusam, videos of the incident were circulated by netizens, who raised questions over the ban on music during the procession that has been in place since 1973.Yesterday, TRS said it will post "a full story" some time in the future. It added that this might include how the site works and who is behind it, but "currently, as investigations are ongoing, such a full response would be inappropriate".
TRS is known to carry articles that hit out at various aspects of Singapore society, painting a bleak picture of it, with some postings said to fan xenophobia.
But TRS said investigations are focused on the Thaipusam article, and no other articles are coming under scrutiny at the moment.
The arrests are the latest case of individuals being taken to task for seditious online content in nearly two years.
The previous known case of sedition over online postings was when cartoonist Leslie Chew was arrested in April 2013 for an online comic strip about how a government suppressed its Malay population. After investigations, the Attorney-General's Chambers decided to take no further action.
TRS was founded in 2012 but has remained tight-lipped about those behind it. One founder is systems engineer Alex Tan, who told The Straits Times in 2013 that he started the site with a couple he had never met, but whom he believed lived in Australia.
The couple had identified themselves to him as Yang Kaiheng and Ai Takagi, Mr Tan had said.
STERN VIEW OF REMARKS
Any person who posts remarks online that could cause ill will and hostility between the different races or communities in Singapore will be dealt with in accordance with the law.
- Police
Questions over foreign students behind site
By Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh, The Straits Times, 19 Feb 2015
QUESTIONS were raised yesterday about the key players behind a website which puts up spoof news knocking Singapore. The Real Singapore (TRS) is said to be headed by an Australian-Japanese student with the help of others from Malaysia and one man from Singapore and, among other things, has taken a hard line against foreigners.
Any person who posts remarks online that could cause ill will and hostility between the different races or communities in Singapore will be dealt with in accordance with the law.
- Police
Questions over foreign students behind site
By Nur Asyiqin Mohamad Salleh, The Straits Times, 19 Feb 2015
QUESTIONS were raised yesterday about the key players behind a website which puts up spoof news knocking Singapore. The Real Singapore (TRS) is said to be headed by an Australian-Japanese student with the help of others from Malaysia and one man from Singapore and, among other things, has taken a hard line against foreigners.
A recent post, which sparked a police investigation, alleged that the Thaipusam procession scuffle stemmed from a Filipino family's complaint.
In the past, it has warned against "humanizing" some foreign workers. It also asked for the number of Filipinos in Singapore to be reduced.
TRS has gained notoriety since it was set up in 2012, and has been accused of plagiarism, fabricating stories, and publishing unverified content.
It has also shied away from making the identities of its key players known. Although the site adopts the tagline "Voices of average Singaporeans", and purports to push the idea of putting Singaporeans above foreigners, few realise that it is not run by Singaporeans, but some foreign students.
A website set up in 2013, The Real Singapore Exposed, has tried to establish the identities of TRS' key players. Among the screenshots on the site was that of a post on the TRS Facebook account in 2012, signed off by an Ai Takagi who called herself chief editor.
Photos of Ms Takagi, and contact details and photos of Mr Robin Yang Kai Heng, were also posted on the site.
Posts on the HardwareZone forum suggested that the couple are studying at the University of Queensland.
On its site, TRS stressed it is not funded by any political organisations or companies, but draws its income from advertising. A New Paper report yesterday said that the students involved had "bragged to their families about the income they had been generating" from their site.
It said the site is hosted in Switzerland, the United States and Sweden. Its servers are "located in a remote and secure location in order to provide our readers with secure browsing".
TRS has also come under fire for publishing articles without verifying information.
In June 2013, an article criticising the Government's actions during the haze went up on TRS, and was attributed to Tampines GRC MP Irene Ng, who did not write it. She filed a police report over it.