S’PORE’S ADVERTISING AUTHORITY WANTS CATHAY TO CHANGE PINKDOT POSTER

Cathay Cineleisure has been asked to remove the subtitle, “Supporting the Freedom to Love”, from its Pink Dot 2017 poster following an online controversy over the advertisement.

The Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore (ASAS) weighed in on the recent furor by agreeing that the ad did not contravene the Singapore Code of Advertising Practice (SCAP), but commented that the phrase “Supporting the Freedom to Love” was not in line with SCAP’s general guidelines.

The guidelines specifically emphasize under Section 10.1 of its “Family Values” code that advertisements cannot “downplay the importance of the family as a unit and foundation of society.” ASAS also warned that advertisers should bear in mind the shared values of Singapore’s society, which emphasize “family as the basic unit of society”, “community support and respect for the individual”; and “consensus, not conflict”.

The council has since requested for Cathay to remove the phrase “Supporting the freedom to love” and will be checking for its compliance.

Cathay Organization has been a long time supporter of Pink Dot 2017. In previous years, prior to the ban on foreign involvement, it had been corporate sponsor for the event.

In 2015, Cathay had placed an application to screen a promotional trailer for Pink Dot 2015 in its cinemas, but it was rejected by the Media Development Authority of Singapore (now IMDA).