TODAY: You’re banned, Singapore!

1412Vor025 MA website has barred S’pore surfers to protest hanging as an execution method here

A headline like “Singapore bans website” wouldn’t raise eyebrows one bit, as we know that the Media Development Authority (MDA) monitors the web and occasionally restricts access to websites based on their content — the most recent being a gay-related website which the MDA did not name. When a website is banned by the MDA, you can’t access it from your browser if you’re in Singapore.

Even if you wanted to find out, the MDA won’t reveal its name or URL, according to the news report.

So, as you can imagine, if a website is blocked or banned, it effectively disappears from the local bit of cyberspace. But what happens when a website bans Singapore?

Read more at TODAYonline

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Direct your browser to www.putfile.com — the website of a company that provides free online file storage and sharing services — and if you’re surfing from Singapore, you’ll be transferred to a page with a message titled: “Putfile says goodbye to Singapore”.

As far as I know, this is the first time a website has banned access to its services from a particular geographical location. You’ll have to ask your technologically-savvy friends how this is done, because I don’t know how to explain it.

Voicing its opposition to the method of capital punishment used in Singapore, Putfile’s message reads: “While Putfile is not a human rights campaigning organisation, we believe that if a country must have the death penalty, there is no need for it be barbaric.”

And Putfile assured users from Singapore that they would “be happy to restore service following any positive move from the Government of Singapore towards abolition of hanging as an execution method.”

Putfile’s decision last week to terminate services to Singapore residents sparked a heated debate on the company’s own forums as well as on several others, though the company has since removed the thread.

Some commentators were scathing of the company’s decision, labelling it a publicity stunt, and an unintelligent one to boot.

One website dedicated to news about peer-to-peer file sharing, p2pnet.net, ran the story about the furore, which garnered comments such as: “Stupid, you think Singapore will care? There are plenty of business/services in line to serve the Singaporean. Your stupidity is your biggest lost (sic).”

“Maybe Putfile will start banning other countries that have the death penalty by hanging,” said another commenter, echoing the sentiment of several others in suggesting that Putfile was taken in by the media circus surrounding the hanging of convicted drug trafficker Nguyen Van Tuong.

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Blogger poil11 (poil11.wordpress.com) asked: “Why should the innocent Internet users who were not involved at all have to suffer?”

As for the impact of Putfile.com’s actions, most bloggers and commentators were of the opinion that it would have no impact on the current law.

“Although I would hate to be blocked from their service just for living in Singapore, I respect them for standing up to their beliefs on such a touchy subject. I really don’t think it will make a difference or change a country’s laws,” said a commenter on a post submitted to blog aggregator Digg.com.

“God I love Singapore. If only everyone’s laws were like theirs. The world would be such a nicer place … *packs bags to move to Singapore but then remembers there is no Putfile anymore so decides to stay in crime ridden US of A*,” said another.

However, the response from Singaporean forum-dwellers and bloggers was muted, and people I spoke to on the matter said they only heard of Putfile after they decided to ban Singapore.

(Either that, or they didn’t want to reveal what types of files they “shared” on Putfile’s service.)

Blogger Zhiyang (mrlim.isthebest.net) typified the sentiment: “You won’t be missed, Putfile. Blocking the entire population because of the state’s decision? You guys are geniuses.”

Mr Miyagi aka Benjamin Lee has been entertaining readers at miyagi.sg for over a year, and bans only his mother from reading his website.

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11 responses to “TODAY: You’re banned, Singapore!”

  1. Nikholai Avatar

    They have simply, have nothing better to do. Sanctimonious.

  2. Nikholai Avatar

    They have simply, have nothing better to do. Sanctimonious.

  3. Hobbes Avatar
    Hobbes

    Actually, when I read the putfile forum, there were a lot of posts from people who said they were S’poreans. Most of them only had a post count of 1-2, and generally they slammed the action taken by putfile.

  4. Hobbes Avatar
    Hobbes

    Actually, when I read the putfile forum, there were a lot of posts from people who said they were S’poreans. Most of them only had a post count of 1-2, and generally they slammed the action taken by putfile.

  5. Your Loss. Not Ours.

  6. […] TODAY: You’re banned, Singapore! [Miyagi] You’re banned, Singapore! [Today]   [link] […]

  7. V Avatar
    V

    This practice of hanging in Singapore has been there all along. The only reason they’re doing this is just because an Australian has been hanged, and they’re damn bitter about it. But, hey, who cares about a file host anyway? It’s not as if we don’t have a choice.

  8. V Avatar
    V

    This practice of hanging in Singapore has been there all along. The only reason they’re doing this is just because an Australian has been hanged, and they’re damn bitter about it. But, hey, who cares about a file host anyway? It’s not as if we don’t have a choice.

  9. Jacky Avatar
    Jacky

    I am a singapore myself,i used putfile last time,but after they banned us,i dun use them anymore.
    But Putfile is really too much,it’s like the singaporeans did nth about the hanging incident.And they say tat they will be happy to restore service if the goverment did something about tat law..Well..Tat is no different from terrorist tat threatens to kill people..It is the same,they are threatening us..Well..If tat’s how people are thinking of a drug addicted tat is being hanged then i have nth to say.It is like we have this law for so long and this smuggler comes and smuggle drugs,it is his fault,we are just using our laws to punish him..

  10. Jacky Avatar
    Jacky

    I am a singapore myself,i used putfile last time,but after they banned us,i dun use them anymore.
    But Putfile is really too much,it’s like the singaporeans did nth about the hanging incident.And they say tat they will be happy to restore service if the goverment did something about tat law..Well..Tat is no different from terrorist tat threatens to kill people..It is the same,they are threatening us..Well..If tat’s how people are thinking of a drug addicted tat is being hanged then i have nth to say.It is like we have this law for so long and this smuggler comes and smuggle drugs,it is his fault,we are just using our laws to punish him..

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