Authorities ‘watching closely’ fake videos that try to stir trouble among foreign workers: Shanmugam
Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam warned that the circulation of fake videos, aimed at stirring anger among foreign workers here, could lead to a "riot-like situation".
SINGAPORE — The authorities are “watching closely” the online circulation of fake videos which aim to stir trouble in the foreign worker community, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said on Wednesday (April 29), warning that those posting such videos are “playing with fire”.
He cited one such video, which made its rounds on social media and text messaging platforms earlier this week. It purported to be of a foreign worker who had hanged himself at a dormitory in Tuas.
The Singapore Police Force (SPF) said in a Facebook post on Tuesday that the incident did not happen in Singapore.
Speaking during a media briefing on the video conferencing platform Zoom, Mr Shanmugam said: “Some people are deliberately doing this to foment trouble in the foreign worker (dormitories) and they don't realise this is like playing with fire because you have several hundred thousand of them in public-built dorms.”
“You use falsehoods to ferment trouble and make them angry and you don't know what might happen. It could be a serious law and order situation,” he added.
Mr Shanmugam gave a few other examples of such videos that have made the rounds among Singaporeans on social media and messaging platforms recently, as Covid-19 has torn through the foreign worker population here.
One depicts a fight in a dormitory between two men of South Asian origin. While the video was taken in Dubai some time ago, people have claimed it was filmed in Singapore, he said.
Another video shows two men who claim to have escaped from a dormitory and are walking around the streets of Singapore.
When asked whether the authorities are investigating any of these videos or the people circulating them, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Singapore Police Force declined to comment.
“Another example, no less serious in my view, is people taking photographs, old photographs of food being served to the foreign workers and recirculating them now to suggest that food is bad,” Mr Shanmugam said.
“This is pretty serious because there is a mood of despondency and despair circulating amongst the foreign workers, when actually their salaries are taken care of, their food is being taken care of and their medical (needs) are being taken care of. You have people actively trying to instigate (them). And we are watching this very closely.”
He added: “We have to be careful that through the transmission of fake news, they can be encouraged to go and create a riot-like situation.”
Mr Shanmugam said that as the Government has stepped up measures to help foreign workers during this time, it is unfair for people to encourage these workers to be “angry and bitter” and to “mislead” Singaporeans and the foreign workers into thinking that things are bad.
The Government will take action against any falsehoods and will consider the appropriate action, he said, noting that a man was charged for putting out falsehoods earlier this week.
Kenneth Lai Yong Hui was charged on Monday with posting a false message that claimed he "got intel" that Singapore would close food courts and coffee shops from "this Saturday" and that supermarkets would open only two days a week.
“We will go on the basis of the Attorney-General's Chambers' advice, and when it's a criminal offence, we will take action along those lines. If it doesn't cross that threshold but if it crosses a threshold for the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma), we'll use Pofma,” he said.
