SINGAPORE: Two social media platforms have been issued with targeted correction directions under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) after an activist did not comply with a POFMA order issued to her last week.
Activist Kokila Annamalai was issued the order on Oct 5 for posts she had made on Facebook and X.
The posts falsely stated that “the government schedules and stays executions arbitrarily and without regard for due legal process, and that the State does not bear the legal burden of proving a drug trafficking charge against the accused person”, said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday (Oct 11).
An article on the government fact-checking website Factually explained further why the assertions made by Ms Annamalai were false.
Under the order, Ms Annamalai was required to put up a correction notice on the two posts but she has not done so.
“The Minister for Home Affairs has instructed the POFMA Office to issue a targeted correction direction to Meta Platforms and X, following Ms Kokila Annamalai’s non-compliance,” said MHA in a press release.
The targeted correction order requires Meta and X to alert users who have seen the posts that they contain false statements, it said.
It also requires the platforms to provide users with the link to the article on Factually, said the ministry.
MHA said it would refer Ms Annamalai to the POFMA Office for “investigations into her non-compliance with the correction direction that was issued to her on Oct 5”.
