Singapore Where Free Speech Isn't Free

Blogger critical of a lack of government transparency faces defamation lawsuit from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Politicians the world over love talking about freedoms such as the right to vote,  peaceful assembly and freedom of the press to name but a few of their beloved freedoms.  In practice its a different story.  Political leaders love these freedoms when they benefit them when that is no longer the case then peoples freedoms must be restricted. 

No freedom is flogged more by these condescending fools than that of speech.  Yes, everyone has the right to speak their mind on the problems of the day just as long as they don't involve their beloved leader in their grievances.     

Singapore is just such a place where its elected leaders are all about freedom speech until you actually and explicitly use said freedom.  Then you must pay literally. 

Freedom of speech in the city state is quashed through the courts when the aggrieved file defamation law suits against their accusers and the judiciary being under the control of the government manages to find judgement with the aggrieved party about 90% of the time.    

Roy Ngerng is set for a court battle over a defamation suit filed by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, a case that has catapulted the blogger into the limelight in the fight for freedom of expression in this city-state.
 
A prolific blogger who runs the website The Heart Truths, Ngerng first received a letter on May 19 from Lee's lawyer, Davinder Singh, alleging a post he had written constituted a "very serious libel" against the prime minister. 

The offending blog focused on the Central Provident Fund (CPF) - Singapore's state pension fund - and how money from there was channelled into investments in GIC, one of Singapore's two sovereign wealth funds. Ngerng also noted that Prime Minister Lee is chairman of GIC.

"The article means and is understood to mean that Mr Lee Hsien Loong, the Prime Minister of Singapore and Chairman of GIC, is guilty of criminal misappropriation of moniespaid by Singaporeans to the CPF," Singh wrote in the letter. He demanded that Ngerng remove the article, issue an apology, and pay damages to Lee.