Comments on: The Li Hong Yi saga: the blogosphere steps up to bat

By: 28 Jun 2007, 2LT Li Hongyi’s email circulated on the Internet « Calibrated Coercion in Singapore

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 10:51:36 +0000

[...] extract from The Online Citizen traces the development of the online chatter which was eventually picked up and reported by the [...]

By: Clarence

Clarence — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 01:32:11 +0000

Well done guys, I am proud of you all =)

Keep me updated on local news! :D

By: Of a Paragraph in Digital Life (17th July 2007) « Winter Is Coming

Of a Paragraph in Digital Life (17th July 2007) « Winter Is Coming — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 16:53:12 +0000

[...] Media, be it in the incident of the Ministerial Salary debates, the Wee Shu Min Incident and the Lee Hong Yi incident, has risen to the occasion and I daresay has surpassed the one sided reporting/commentary that is [...]

By: Who is This LTA X? « A Mind of My Own

Who is This LTA X? « A Mind of My Own — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 09:08:34 +0000

[...] other blogs started putting up the said email with names being censored. The Online Citizen has rounded up the information on this case. Quite a [...]

By: Numb Already

Numb Already — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 01:57:22 +0000

The climate of fear is still very evident. Going through the blogs, whether pro or otherwise, the constructive or otherwise, the “fear” is evident. But this is not surprising. The cheng hu already knew this when they went into the election. Having garnered a “Band II” mandate, they knew there will be little to stand in the way of their implementing their “grand plans”. These are now historically implemented in the 12 months following their victory after allowing the people’s representatives, our esteemed MPs, and the general net-savvy community to “debate” about them. Are Singaporeans beginning to have an impact via the internet to have a voice? Are we being monitored? Many wished that we are, maybe just so that the cheng hu knows that there are unhappy citizens out there. Others are just too disillusioned or disenchanted to even hope that anything will come out of all these “voices” on the web. Does the LHY saga give hope to the environment for greater transparency and representation/reporting? Or is this part of a greater plan? Time is on whose side?

By: sgpolitics

sgpolitics — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 08:50:50 +0000

new stuff..enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jldRWPJmdoM

By: gggg

gggg — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 08:32:17 +0000

All these could just be a show to introduce the future PM.

By: jon

jon — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 08:12:07 +0000

Two supervising officers were issued letters of warning for administering inappropriate punishment.

Think about that.

This means at least two senior officers were aware of the problem and had decided to ignore 2LT Li Hongyi’s complaint.

If 2LT Li had followed the “proper channel”, what makes you think the 3rd senior officer up the chain of command will do anything?

MINDEF needs to clarify what it means by “proper channels”.

Will Li Hongyi be charged if he merely sent his letters to everyone directly above him (ie, Defense Minister, CDF, CoA, Chief Signal Officer, etc)?

The problem with that approach is that all these senior guys may still decide to ignore his complaint. What can he do then? In my opinion, his letter to everyone (including the unit storemen, cook, etc) directly causes the AWOL LTA to be court-martialed.

Cos the SAF leaders are now aware that justice must be seen to be done. Otherwise, they cannot no longer maintain effective discipline among the men.

By: journalism.sg » Li Hongyi case: Bloggers force officials' hand this time, but…

Sat, 14 Jul 2007 04:39:59 +0000

[...] The blogosphere steps up to bat [...]

By: Kew Kah Fatt

Kew Kah Fatt — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 01:04:06 +0000

What is there to fear if you are upright.
I put up a piece of LHL slapping Balakrisnan in my websites.
A pessenger told me the story when I was a taxi driver. He said he was an ex military officer attached to Mindef in Gombak. He said his friend was present when the slapping occured. His friend told him the details.

By: Shaun

Shaun — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 16:39:42 +0000

It’s a pity that despite Singapore being such a pleasant country in many aspects, fails to allow its citizen to voice their true thoughts openly.

This climate of fear has been passed down from our parents and forefathers who lived in the era of real ’self-censorship’. Heck those days no one even talks about the government in the coffee shops. Also, there definitely was no such thing as blogging.

With the increasing use of IT and a increasingly educated population, I believe its only a matter of time that we will find a way to circumvent these invisible barriers (self-imposed or otherwise), and find an avenue where we can really voice our opinions on any issues without fear.

Till the situation changes, we just have to wait for the right time and the right avenue. I mean, look waht happened to Hong Lim Park?

By: mrbiao

mrbiao — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 16:09:38 +0000

I’ve given in to the climate of fear and self-censorship since a long time ago. It’s just not worth it to put oneself at risk of legal trouble just to voice out one’s genuine thoughts and feelings about his own country and its leadership.

Many a time I’ve posted articles on my site, only to have them heavily edited or just deleted shortly later because I felt that I should be less vocal for my own good.

Maybe this seems cowardly to others out there, but I have many years of life down the road to journey through and I don’t want a permanent scar left on my records just because I wanted to satisfy a moment’s need for being heard.

My guess is many other bloggers out there are in the same situation as myself. We want to speak up, but are repressed by the climate of fear.