Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF), in its World Press Freedom Index for 2005 issued late Wednesday, May 3, ranked prosperous Singapore below countries like Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Russia, Sudan and Yemen.

But it was an improvement on Singapore's 147th place in the 2004 edition of RSF's index, which officials here dismiss as a biased Western ranking that favours adversarial media regardless of domestic circumstances.

In the 2005 RSF index, the top place was shared by Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland. The bottom position went, as it did in 2004, to hardline communist state North Korea.

"Singapores low ranking was due to the complete absence of independent newspapers, radio stations and TV stations, the application of prison sentences for press offences, media self-censorship and the oppositions lack of access to the state media," the RSF said in a report accompanying the index.

The RSF report coincided with campaigning for Saturday's general election in which the People's Action Party (PAP), which has been in power since 1959, is seeking to retain its almost total control of parliament.

The PAP is credited with turning Singapore into one of Asia's richest and most modern societies, but condemned by critics for restrictions on dissent.

Foreign publications have paid heavy damages or suffered circulation restrictions after publishing articles critical of Singapore's leaders.

In a forum with foreign correspondents last week, Singapore's founding leader Lee Kuan Yew defended the country's record.

"We're not going to allow foreign correspondents or foreign journalists or anybody else to tell us what to do," said the 82-year-old former prime minister, who won a new five-year term as an MP after running unopposed.

His son, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, is leading the PAP into an election for the first time after inheriting the job from Goh Chok Tong almost two years ago under a pre-arranged succession scheme.

Media watchdog RSF said Singapore has exercised a "very sophisticated strategy for silencing Singaporean and foreign journalists ... the threat of heavy fines or distribution bans have sufficed to bring press groups to heel."

"Singaporeans have ample access to foreign media, but the two large national press groups, Singapore Press Holdings and Mediacorp, are run by ruling party allies. Their journalists censor themselves on domestic issues although the quality of their international coverage is good."

The RSF earlier condemned Singapore's restrictions on political discussions in blogs and websites ahead of the election.

Videocasts and podcasts -- recorded messages that can be downloaded over the Internet -- cannot be used for campaign purposes.

All political party websites and overtly political blog sites have to be registered with a media regulator.

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