If you’re thinking of creating a political blog, one place you shouldn’t do it is Singapore, where all political party Web sites and political blogs have to be registered with a media regulator. What’s more, podcasts cannot be used for campaign purposes. These restrictions were recently criticized by the press watchdog group Reporters Without Borders.
“Once again the Singapore authorities are showing their determination to prevent the holding of a genuinely democratic debate on the Internet,” the organization said.
Outside of elections periods, bloggers have to register with the Media Development Authority (MDA) if they want to openly and regularly defend a political line, the watchdog group said. But during election periods, even registered bloggers are not allowed to express opinons on political issues online.
These restrictions apply to podcasts as well.
You can find the Reporters Without Borders statement here.
