A 27-year-old woman, Ma Su Nandar Htwe, has been charged with defamation over her involvement in a false story of miscarriage at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH).
The Myanmar national, who is a Singapore permanent resident, appeared in court on Monday (May 6) and received one charge under the Penal Code, according to CNA.
According to the report, Ma Su Nandar Htwe sent Instagram messages to Wake Up Singapore on Mar 21, 2022, detailing a fabricated account of suffering a miscarriage at KKH.
The intention was for Wake Up Singapore to publish the story, knowing that it would harm KKH’s reputation.
The article, titled “The baby is probably dead – Woman shares a harrowing account of her miscarriage at KKH A&E”, claimed that KKH’s mismanagement led to a woman suffering a miscarriage after waiting four hours for treatment. It was published on Wake Up Singapore’s platforms and widely shared on social media before being taken down.
KKH made a police report on Mar 25, 2022, after finding no records of the alleged patient.
Police investigations confirmed that the allegations were false.
Upon receiving the police report, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) consulted the Attorney-General’s Chambers and was authorised to investigate the matter. Investigations revealed that the 26-year-old man was the administrator for WUSG’s online platforms, and the allegations in the article were found to be untrue.
After the woman who made the claims admitted to lying, Wake Up Singapore apologised for publishing the false information, stating that they had been misled.
Ma Su Nandar Htwe’s passport has been impounded, and she is the second person to be charged in this case. Ariffin Iskandar Sha Ali Akbar, the administrator of Wake Up Singapore, was also charged with defamation last month.
The website has since published the POFMA correction notices.
Both cases will be heard again on May 24.
Following the incident, Wake Up Singapore apologised for publishing the false article and received a correction direction under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA).
Top Images : Wake Up Singapore/Instagram
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