In its reaction to the petition to shut down the Straits Times’ voyeurism site, STOMP, the Media Development Authority (MDA) has invited the public to suggest how a site such as STOMP be handled.

The MDA posted on its Facebook page on Friday:

“Should you believe that STOMP, together with other class-licensed and individually licensed sites merit stronger regulation, we invite you to propose how the standards should be tightened.”

MDA’s statement has drawn ridicule and anger from members of the public. You can read the comments here: MDA Facebook page.

The petition has so far received 22,450 signatures of support. You can view it here: Close down Stomp.

MDA’s statement was also posted on the Ministry of Communications and Information Facebook page. Click here.

Here is MDA’s statement in full:

“You may be aware of an ongoing petition to shut down STOMP. While it is not for MDA to influence the editorial slant of sites, we would, as the media regulator of Singapore, take firm action if any Internet content provider is in breach of the Internet Code of Practice. These typically cover content that is against public interest and/or content that promotes racial and religious hatred or intolerance. “As users of the Internet and as part of our efforts to promote responsible online behaviour, netizens can and should continue signalling to content providers the standards that we expect of them, so that they can in turn heed these calls. Should you believe that STOMP, together with other class-licensed and individually licensed sites merit stronger regulation, we invite you to propose how the standards should be tightened. “Let’s build a healthy online environment together.”