Singapore has drastically cut its blacklist of banned books and publications, finally allowing citizens to read an erotic novel first published in the 18th century, but a host of adult magazines remain proscribed.
It is no longer a crime to own a copy of the historic English text “Fanny Hill” or some anti-colonial and communist publications dating back to Singapore’s troubled early years as a republic in the 1960s.
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Long ridiculed as a nanny state that controls what its people can read and watch, Singapore has cut an archaic list of prohibited books and publications from 257 to just 17, most of them adult magazines.
The “de-gazetting” of 240 titles took effect on Wednesday.
The Media Development Authority, a regulatory body that also oversees film, broadcasting and Internet standards, said Thursday that it “routinely reviews prior classification decisions, in order to ensure that they keep pace with societal norms”.
“For the 17 publications which are still prohibited, the decision to retain the prohibition was based on the fact that the contents of these publications remain contrary to public interest,” a spokesman added.
The banned titles include those published by the Jehovah’s Witnesses sect whose members refuse to undergo military service, which is mandatory for all Singaporean men when they turn 18.
The rest are adult titles like Playboy, Penthouse, Hustler, Playgirl, Mayfair, Knave and Cheri.
Pakistani government should take step to lift ban on books like Singapore .
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