Massive Attack will not be allowed to perform in Singapore after the band reportedly flew a Palestinian flag and joined the crowd in a “Free Palestine” chant during a July 29 show at the city-state’s State Theater.In a statement shared to Instagram today, August 2, the band said they were “surprised and disappointed” by the authorities’ response, writing: “For our part, we did not imagine that merely holding up the flag of a sovereign state recognized by 157 countries (Palestine) would violate any law.”The decision is tied to Singapore’s policies on public speech, which prohibit publicly displaying foreign national emblems without a permit or exemption.
In 2023, the city-state’s Ministry of Home Affairs shared a release specifically discouraging citizens from wearing or displaying articles that address the Israel-Palestine conflict.“The peace and harmony between different races and religions in Singapore should not be taken for granted, and we must not let events happening externally affect this peace and harmony we have in Singapore,” it noted.According to the band’s statement, they were “detained by the police, isolated, and separately questioned” following their performance; the group also reported some band members being subject to passport confiscation and hotel room searches.
Massive Attack say that the “Free Palestine” chants in question were “organically led” by members of the audience.“We are proud to have made this impromptu expression with our fans in Singapore who clearly felt a moral imperative to show solidarity with the people of Palestine in their ongoing reality of illegal occupation, apartheid, and genocide, and we salute their courage in doing so,” the band wrote.“Right across the world, the continued inaction of the ‘international’ community is moving citizens to personal risk.”Massive Attack have long been vocal supporters of Palestinian self-determination.
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