Be wary of social media messages with ulterior aims: PM Lee

Singaporeans should be vigilant about messages that are shared on social media and actively guard against hostile foreign influence, regardless of where they originate from, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Speaking during the Mandarin portion of his National Day Rally speech yesterday, PM Lee said information that is shared on social media, such as Facebook and WeChat, as well as messaging platforms such as WhatsApp and Telegram, may be perceived as true and credible.

But some of these messages have an ulterior aim of persuading Singaporeans to take sides, or eroding their trust in the Government, he said.

Citing examples, he said there are messages in Chinese and English related to the Ukraine war that try to stir up strong anti-American sentiments. Others aim to discredit Russia and China, and seek to persuade people to side with the West, he added.

"We need to ask ourselves: Where do these messages come from, and what are their intentions? And are we sure we should share such messages with our friends?

"So please check the facts and do not accept all the information as truths. We must actively guard against hostile foreign influence operations, regardless of where they originate," said PM Lee.

Only then can Singapore's sovereignty and independence be safeguarded, he added.

PM Lee, who was speaking at the Institute of Technical Education headquarters in Ang Mo Kio, said he was heartened that most Singaporeans support the Government's position on the Ukraine war, including Chinese Singaporeans who are active on Chinese-language social media.

The first part of his Mandarin speech was devoted to geopolitical challenges, as the international environment has become more unstable. He cited the deepening division between the United States and China, and the hostility created between Russia and other countries as a result of its invasion of Ukraine. These have profound implications for Singapore, PM Lee said.

He reiterated why Singapore had to take a strong stance against Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which started on Feb 24. He noted that some have questioned the need to offend Russia, to side with the US, or for Singapore to stick its neck out.

"We cannot legitimise Russia's wrongful actions. Russia claims that what it calls a 'special military operation' in Ukraine is justified by 'historical errors and crazy decisions'. If we accept this logic, what happens if one day others use the same argument against us?"

Singapore was not siding with the US and neither was the Republic against Russia.

"But we have to be firm in our position and defend fundamental principles robustly... We believe the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, big or small, must be respected.

"These principles are existential for all nations, but especially so for a small nation like Singapore."

PM Lee outlined how countries such as India, China, Vietnam and Laos abstained when the United Nations voted in March on a resolution deploring Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

As the smallest nation in Asean, Singapore's interests and considerations are naturally different from the others, said PM Lee.

This was why Singapore not only explicitly condemned the invasion, but also imposed its own targeted sanctions on Russia, he said.

As for Singapore's Chinese community, it is clear about the country's national interests because of a deeper sense of national and cultural identity, said PM Lee.

The strong sense of local identity can be seen in the way home-grown artists infuse local flavour into their works, he said.

PM Lee cited the example of the recent musical Shadow Moon, presented by the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre, which incorporated xinyao, a genre of Singapore Mandarin songs.

The centre also plans to set up a dedicated unit this year to conduct research on the evolution of Singapore Chinese culture - a move which the Government supports, he added.