A film director who could face charges over his documentary about an opposition politician said yesterday that police have asked him to surrender all remaining copies of the film and the equipment used to make it.
Martyn See said authorities have also asked him to hand over shipping documents for Singapore Rebel, which he sent for screening at the New Zealand Human Rights Film Festival and the Amnesty International Film Festival in Hollywood earlier this year.
See said police questioned him for three hours on Thursday.
Police have said See may have broken the law by knowingly showing or distributing a "party political film." See could be imprisoned up to two years or fined up to S$100,000 (US$60,606) if convicted.
Singapore's government is trying to promote this ultramodern city-state as an Asian regional arts and media hub -- but its leaders have been widely criticized for their strict censorship policies and other controls on free speech.
Leaders argue that such regulations help maintain the stability that has turned Singapore into one of Asia's safest and wealthiest countries.
Singapore Rebel is about outspoken government critic Chee Soon Juan, who faces bankruptcy due to defamation lawsuits filed by former leaders Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong.
The 26-minute film was pulled from this year's Singapore International Film Festival after organizers were warned that it may contain some politically sensitive material.
See said that an assistant police superintendent questioned him on Thursday about his political affiliations.
He said police also quizzed him about his online journal, and about how he had obtained archived newspaper articles posted on his Web site.
"The mood was relaxed until near the end of the interview, when I felt many questions were totally irrelevant to the making of Singapore Rebel," See said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
The filmmaker agreed to surrender the video, documents and copies on Aug. 29 after he was informed that the items would be returned.
Singapore's government has called politically motivated films "an undesirable medium" to debate issues. See has said he made the film independently and is not an opposition member.
Police spokesman Victor Keong confirmed that investigators met See on Thursday.
He gave no further details, saying only that "investigations are ongoing."
REVENGE: Trump said he had the support of the Syrian government for the strikes, which took place in response to an Islamic State attack on US soldiers last week The US launched large-scale airstrikes on more than 70 targets across Syria, the Pentagon said on Friday, fulfilling US President Donald Trump’s vow to strike back after the killing of two US soldiers. “This is not the beginning of a war — it is a declaration of vengeance,” US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on social media. “Today, we hunted and we killed our enemies. Lots of them. And we will continue.” The US Central Command said that fighter jets, attack helicopters and artillery targeted ISIS infrastructure and weapon sites. “All terrorists who are evil enough to attack Americans are hereby warned
‘POLITICAL LOYALTY’: The move breaks with decades of precedent among US administrations, which have tended to leave career ambassadors in their posts US President Donald Trump’s administration has ordered dozens of US ambassadors to step down, people familiar with the matter said, a precedent-breaking recall that would leave embassies abroad without US Senate-confirmed leadership. The envoys, career diplomats who were almost all named to their jobs under former US president Joe Biden, were told over the phone in the past few days they needed to depart in the next few weeks, the people said. They would not be fired, but finding new roles would be a challenge given that many are far along in their careers and opportunities for senior diplomats can
Seven wild Asiatic elephants were killed and a calf was injured when a high-speed passenger train collided with a herd crossing the tracks in India’s northeastern state of Assam early yesterday, local authorities said. The train driver spotted the herd of about 100 elephants and used the emergency brakes, but the train still hit some of the animals, Indian Railways spokesman Kapinjal Kishore Sharma told reporters. Five train coaches and the engine derailed following the impact, but there were no human casualties, Sharma said. Veterinarians carried out autopsies on the dead elephants, which were to be buried later in the day. The accident site
RUSHED: The US pushed for the October deal to be ready for a ceremony with Trump, but sometimes it takes time to create an agreement that can hold, a Thai official said Defense officials from Thailand and Cambodia are to meet tomorrow to discuss the possibility of resuming a ceasefire between the two countries, Thailand’s top diplomat said yesterday, as border fighting entered a third week. A ceasefire agreement in October was rushed to ensure it could be witnessed by US President Donald Trump and lacked sufficient details to ensure the deal to end the armed conflict would hold, Thai Minister of Foreign Affairs Sihasak Phuangketkeow said after an ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting in Kuala Lumpur. The two countries agreed to hold talks using their General Border Committee, an established bilateral mechanism, with Thailand
RSS