Singapore authorities and the Infocomm Media Development Authority are investigating massive attack after the band raised a Palestinian flag at a concert at The Star Performing Arts Centre. Robert Del Naja and Grant Marshall hoisted the flag at the close of the performance, and the moment quickly turned into a licensing issue under Singapore rules on public display of foreign emblems.
The Foreign National Emblems (Control of Display) Act 1949 forbids displaying a foreign flag or national emblem in public without a specific government permit. Penalties for breaches include financial fines or imprisonment, putting the concert’s flag display into a legal framework that is narrower than a standard stage gesture.
Robert Del Naja at The Star Performing Arts Centre
Del Naja, a founding member of Massive Attack, raised the Palestinian flag with Grant Marshall as the concert ended. Band members also voiced support for Gaza during the performance, and Massive Attack used multimedia projections addressing the war in Ukraine, conflicts in Sudan, and critiques of global surveillance infrastructure.
Lushington Entertainments said it would fully cooperate with authorities. That matters for local organizers because the Infocomm Media Development Authority regulates public entertainment licenses, so the immediate pressure now sits not only on Massive Attack but also on the promoter that brought the concert into Singapore.
Singapore’s foreign display rules
The Ministry of Home Affairs has previously issued advisories stressing that domestic law treats imports of external geopolitical flashpoints into local public spaces strictly. The concert moved straight into that line of control: a Palestinian flag was raised on stage in Singapore, then the authorities opened an investigation into whether the display crossed the legal threshold that applies to foreign emblems in public.
What happens next runs through the licensing process rather than through rhetoric. Singapore authorities and the Infocomm Media Development Authority are still examining the concert, and the result will shape whether the issue stays as a probe into this Massive Attack concert or becomes a wider warning for future performances in Singapore.
