Fish Tales

Before moving to Singapore, several people warned me that the government was oppressive and somewhat controlling. During my first six months staying here I haven’t encountered this. Not once. But, perhaps, it’s probably due to the fact I haven’t intentionally sought out content the government deems out-of-bounds.

Tonight, while searching the Internet for an obscure software driver for my old TV tuner card, I ended up visiting one of those websites that serves way too many annoying pop-up windows. As I closed them, I noticed something that surprised me. StarHub, my ISP in Singapore, replaced the pop-up content with a message indicating the original material was restricted. What? Why?

I think this represents the first time I’ve ever been censored. Apparently the MDA (Media Development Authority) believes they know what is appropriate and not appropriate for me to see. While there’s a potential I may find the content objectionable, I still don’t find the need for that decision to be made for me. After reading-up on their organization I learned they tend to censor both violence and sexual themes with the justification that Singaporean citizens are very conservative and censorship of political, racial, violent, sexual and religious is necessary to avoid upsetting the balance of the nation’s delicate, multi-racial society.

Okay.

Why is this upsetting me so much? I’m actually surprised that I haven’t just let it go. It’s not that I need, or even want, to see the intended content in that pop-up window. It’s just that I want to be the one making that determination. Not someone else.

Screenshot of what I saw (below). Notice the recommended browser. What humorous irony that they suggest software that’s over ten years old.

StarHub Censorship