Mr Tong, who was part of a panel discussion on fact, falsehoods and free speech, was asked if the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Bill may cause people to err on the side of caution during conversation as they may not know if what they are saying can be considered a statement of fact that may be false or misleading.
He reiterated that the new proposed law only deals with statements of fact and will not affect those who are offering personal comments or viewpoints.was something Law Minister K Shanmugam had addressed on Monday when he said that people putting falsehoods into the marketplace to confuse others and to change the terms of debate undermines free speech and democracy.
As such, the approach for a correction-based response to these falsehoods encourages free speech. “There are more viewpoints for you to have, rather than be restricted in what is said to be just false. So, I don't see how it affects free speech,” said Mr Shanmugam.The law also does not state how many people must have seen the false statement of fact for it to apply.
When asked about the size and scope of the online audience in which the proposed law applies, Mr Tong said it applies as long as someone issues a false statement of fact, even if it is in a closed group of 10 on a platform like WhatsApp. It might be more difficult to issue a correction direction for such platforms, but a general correction on other platforms on that particular falsehood may be considered, he added.“ I do agree there must be more effort to draw the distinction between what’s a fact and a comment or opinion among the public when the law comes into effect,” he added later.