Google says an anti-fake news law passed by Singapore's parliament could stunt innovation, a quality that the city-state wants to nurture under plans to expand its tech industry.
Singapore's parliament on Wednesday passed Prevention from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Bill, a law criticised by rights groups, journalists and tech firms over fears it could be used to clamp down on freedom of speech.
The passage of the law comes at a time when Singapore, a financial and transport hub, has been making efforts to position itself as regional centre for digital innovation.
Google said the law could hamper those efforts.
"We remain concerned that this law will hurt innovation and the growth of the digital information ecosystem," the company said in response to a query from Reuters.
"How the law is implemented matters, and we are committed to working with policymakers on this process."
The law will require online media platforms to carry corrections or remove content the government considers to be false, with penalties for perpetrators running as high as prison terms of up to 10 years or fines up to one million Singapore dollars ($A1 million).
Singapore says it is vulnerable to fake news because of its position as a global financial hub, its mixed ethnic and religious population and widespread internet access.
Law Minister K. Shanmugam earlier told parliament the legislation should not be feared.
"Free speech should not be affected by this bill. We are talking here about falsehoods. We are talking about bots... trolls... fake accounts and so on," Shanmugam said.
Simon Milner, Facebook's Asia-Pacific vice-president of public policy, said: "We remain concerned with aspects of the new law which grant broad powers to the Singapore executive branch to compel us to remove content they deem to be false and to push a government notification to users."
Milner said Facebook hoped that the ministry's reassuring statements led to a "proportionate and measured approach in practice".
Singapore is ranked 151 among 180 countries rated in the World Press Freedom Index of Reporters Without Borders, a non-government group that promotes freedom of information - below Russia and Myanmar.
The International Commission of Jurists, an association made up of senior judges, lawyers and legal scholars who campaign to uphold human rights standards around the world, said the law could be subject to abuse.
