INTERVIEW | When activist Fadiah Nadwa Fikri was recently barred from entering Singapore, it reignited familiar questions about dissent and the boundaries of acceptable speech.

But for Singaporean political exile Tan Wah Piow, 78, the episode is hardly surprising.

On March 22, Fadiah posted on X, claiming she had been deported and banned from re-entering the country. She was then described by Singapore’s Home Ministry as an “undesirable visitor”.

The ministry stated that the activist had promoted...