As reported earlier, private sites are not allowed to come out in support of any party or candidate.
The Web sites of political parties are allowed to post their manifestos, posters, candidate profiles and photos, and even hold discussions and forums. However, parties must appoint moderators for chatrooms and discussion forums during the election and keep logs of all messages. These moderators must try their best to remove any messages that the Returning Officer deems to be against public interest, public order or national harmony, or which offend good taste or decency.
Party sites are also permitted to send out calls for members, volunteers or canvassers, and publish notices of meetings or constituency visits. They can also contain links to sites that do not have election advertising, or which follow the rules on election advertising.
New rules detailing email and SMS messages were also released under the Parliamentary Elections Act, which was amended in August to allow online advertising by political parties.
Parties, candidates and other election agents who send out email and SMS messages with election advertising during an election must indicate who is sending the messages and on whose behalf they are sent, reported the The Straits Times.
Such messages are not allowed to ask directly or indicate in any way that the recipient forward it to others, "chain-letter" style. And they must also cease sending messages to anyone who asks them to stop.
The rules apply from the time the writ of election is issued until the close of the last polling station on Polling Day.
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