Singapore
One of the proposed changes include expanding IMDA officers’ investigation and enhancement powers.
SINGAPORE: Amendments to the Films Act was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday (Feb 27), including enhancing the investigation and enforcement powers of officers from the Info-communications Media Development Authority of Singapore (IMDA).
The Film (Amendments) Bill was read for the first time on Tuesday, following the closing of the public consultation phase in December last year.
The agency had said then that the Bill was targeted to be introduced during the first quarter of the year.
The proposed changes had caused a stir among the public, with 134 submissions received following the close of the public consultation.
Among those who wrote in included groups such as mm2 Entertainment, Community Action Network with Function 8, Motion Picture Association and the Screenwriters Association Singapore. There were also 125 individual submissions and two online petitions, according to the closing note by IMDA then.
In particular, the proposal to allow IMDA to enforce and investigate all breaches under the Films Act – in place of the police – was a source of concern, with the majority of respondents commenting on this mooted change.
Among the concerns raised were that the powers would allow IMDA officers to enter and search private homes without a warrant and seize personal equipment such as laptops, hard disks and mobile phones. There were also concerns whether these officers had the training and experience to exercise these powers and the possibility of abuse of power.
Acknowledging the public’s worries, IMDA and the Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) tweaked its proposals by specifying the offences with which IMDA enforcement officers will be allowed to enter and search one’s home without a warrant.
