My acquaintance posted a Facebook status pretty much blaming TRS for sharing the truth (screenshot attached; photo and name blanked out to respect his privacy) - he is most probably referring to some other article although I don't know which.
One reason why Singapore ranks so poorly on the World Press Freedom Index (http://therealsingapore.com/content/world-press-freedom-index-2014-singapore-ranks-150th) is that our media censors not only the original thoughts and voices of contributors but also their important points.
After withdrawing my letter from the Straits Times and sending it to TRS (http://therealsingapore.com/content/safety-most-important-consideration-when-it-comes-mentally-ill-nsfs), I also wrote in to TODAY newspaper and they have just published it in their Voices section (http://www.todayonline.com/voices/exempt-those-schizophrenia-ns-prevent-further-loss-life).
However, as readers can see, they removed not only the same paragraphs (below in bold) as what the Straits Times wanted to do, but also even another one about the latest case on Private Ganesh Pillay himself (further in italics).
Perhaps TODAY is even more afraid of offending MINDEF than the Straits Times are; it is also not about the article length because my original was already far below TODAY's 500-word limit.
The other difference is that TODAY did not inform me beforehand (yes of course I know that they are not obliged to do so since they reserve the right to edit), although the only reason the Straits Times told me is probably because they had the additional requirement of exclusivity and therefore expected that if I had accepted the omission then I should not use it as a reason to submit my letter elsewhere.
What my three paragraphs have in common is that each cite a case of pushing the wrong limits, to demonstrate my original title "Yet another reminder to err on side of caution" whose main point is that if MINDEF had already learnt its lesson from the case of Private Dominique Lee then Private Ganesh's death could have been prevented.
By changing my title to become about only exempting schizophrenics from NS, TODAY diminished my message to become simply about taking tiny steps to merely attempt to fix faults specific to tragedies as and when they occur.
Do we want to wait until a fourth, fifth or sixth tragedy happens to keep coming up with minor suggestions on how things could be "better" managed?
If the government and authorities are serious about improving our country's plight, they need the balls to listen and understand the ugly truths raised by average Singaporeans, instead of nodding in approval at praises and beautifully painted pictures.
Below is the letter i sent to TodayOnline and the highlighted sentence are the parts where they remove it when publishing:
No amount of training would provide the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) with enough expertise in managing personnel with mental conditions ("MINDEF should ensure top-down training on mental health issues"; April 17).The challenges are too great even in a civilian or societal setting ("Not easy for doctors to identify those with mental issues"; April 15), much less in a highly regimental and authoritarian one such as National Service (NS).MINDEF must protect vulnerable persons from undue risk and exempt those with schizophrenia from NS, instead of putting their lives on the line while waiting for procedures to be improved and tightened, or for system inadequacies to be ironed out ("Share NSmen's medical records among camps"; April 14).When preventable tragedies, such as Private Ganesh Pillay's death, result from pushing the wrong limits and not taking proper precautions, retrospective admission of lapses or non-compliance offers cold comfort (especially to the parents of the deceased) while defensive statements cut deeper ("Coroner rules out foul play in NSF's death"; April 8, Channel NewsAsia).In the case of Private Dominique Lee's death two years ago, despite the clearly hazardous association between asthma and smoke, the Defence Minister claimed that nothing could have been done differently according to the Medical Specialist Board and that it was the extent of their technological abilities.Similarly, my in-camp Medical Officer had disdainfully insisted that my breathing difficulties were "purely psychological" and then a new heart murmur was "functional"; yet after I struggled on to the National Heart Centre which ended up diagnosing me with mild mitro-valve prolapse, MINDEF responded with "it is not possible to detect every medical condition and servicemen are reminded to exercise personal responsibility for their own well-being and seek immediate medical attention whenever they are unwell".Let us take concrete actions to be safe than sorry and stop reflecting only when it is too late.
Terence Lim