SINGAPORE — Amendments to the Public Entertainments and Meetings Act (PEMA) were passed in Parliament yesterday, as part of efforts to keep the Act relevant in the face of evolving entertainment landscape.

Minister for Communication and Information Yaacob Ibrahim outlined the key changes to fine-tune the Act, including expanding its scope to regulate arts entertainment performances that are streamed live or in real time to audiences in Singapore.

“The same regulatory principles should apply regardless of whether an arts entertainment is performed physically or virtually staged, so that younger viewers are protected and consumers can make informed viewing choices,” he said.

With the amendments, all forms of arts entertainment will require classification by the Media Development Authority (MDA), regardless of whether the arts entertainment or public entertainment licence is issued by the MDA or the police, respectively.

Currently, arts classification ratings from the MDA are not required for arts performances in public entertainment establishments, such as bars or pubs.

Acknowledging that this may introduce a regulatory burden on businesses, Dr Yaacob said there will be a clause that allows the Ministry of Communications and Information to grant exemptions for certain genres of arts entertainment that the MDA has no content concerns with.

The Amendments Bill was thrown into the spotlight recently during public consultations, especially on the self-classification or Term Licensing Scheme. Following strong reactions from the arts community, the MDA eventually decided to scrap the idea.

Speaking in support of the Bill, Member of Parliament Zaqy Mohamad (Chua Chu Kang GRC) said the MDA should not give up on the idea of co-regulation. Dr Yaacob said while it has no plans to pursue co-regulation for now, the MDA will continue its engagement efforts with arts groups. Laura Philomin