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Veteran Singaporean newspaper editor PN Balji on press freedom, Lee Kuan Yew and the ‘sin’ of self-censorship
- Balji, the former chief editor of the English language newspapers Today and The New Paper, launched a new book on Friday
- He recalled several occasions when he thought his job was in danger, but he survived each time
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Dewey Simin Beijing
Government dominance over Singapore’s media dating back to the era of Lee Kuan Yew, the city state’s late founding prime minister, will likely continue even as a new generation of leaders prepare to take power, according to one of the country’s most respected former newspaper editors.
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PN Balji, the former chief editor of the English language newspapers Today and The New Paper, said however that during his decades-long career he found Lee – father of the current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong – not altogether antagonistic towards the press.
The senior Lee transformed Singapore from third world to developed status in one generation but also faced international criticism for curtailing civil liberties including press freedom during his five-decade career.
Launching his new book Reluctant Editor, Balji, 70, said with Singaporeans continuing to back the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) – co-founded by Lee and spearheaded by his son – the status quo of the country’s media is unlikely to change.
“It’s human nature when you have control over something, you won’t want to give up that control. Why should you? At least in my lifetime, I don’t think it’s changing,” Balji said during the book launch on Friday.
Prime Minister Lee, who took power from his father’s successor Goh Chok Tong in 2004, is expected to hand over the reins to the newly anointed Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat some time after the next general election due by 2021.
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Balji said there were several occasions when he thought he would lose his job because he had incurred the elder Lee’s wrath, although he survived each time.
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