Blue on Blue: Part 2

Shooting the messenger

[Please scroll down to the kicker if you've no time to read a long posting.]

I always thought stories of how the system blackballs critics were sensationalised and overblown, until it happened to me.

My letter on training safety, published by the 90 cents newspaper's Forum Page, was a game changer - it apparently got me barred from the media preview to the Army Open House (AOH) 2009 and saw me waste a day's leave.

Granted, I am no longer part of the media. Neither is it my birthright to walk right into the AOH preview.

Seen in isolation, the excuse given by the Public Affairs Department (PAFF) of the Singapore Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) sounded perfectly rational. A MINDEF press minder explained that as I was no longer a journalist, I could not attend the media preview as they wondered what other journalists might say. Mind you, I heard this explanation two weeks after I was denied entry.

I had taken a day's annual leave to attend the media preview on 31 August 2009 at Pasir Laba Camp and was only informed of the about turn that very morning by a curt SMS. It ruined my day. But, life goes on.

A week earlier, MINDEF allowed me to attend the media briefing on the Terrex Infantry Carrier Vehicle on 26 August 2009. Information collected from that session was meant for a commentary on wheeled armour and the Singapore Army's experience with such vehicles since the V-200 Singapura series were acquired in 1968.

The briefing went well. Commander 9 Division/Chief Infantry Officer even scrolled back his powerpoint presentation by a couple of viewgraphs after I was whisked into the room slightly late. Yes, I notice these sort of things. It was a nice gesture on his part and I thank him for taking the initiative to do so.

So after requesting that I be allowed to attend Monday's AOH preview, and having received a reply in the affirmative, I applied a day's leave. Those who know me, SAF personnel and people from the defence eco-system who have hosted me previously would know I live for such events.

Sadly, that was not to be and the manner in which entry was denied ran counter to the amount and depth of access I had been granted previously.

In happier times, I'd attended Exercise Paradigm, which demonstrated the Army's Advanced Combatman System.

I'd reported on Exercise Top Deck, the capability demo by the navy's stealth frigate squadron. I spent two days and one night aboard RSS Steadfast. As I spent my birthday aboard the frigate, the embed was most memorable and meaningful for me. I thank the crew for their hospitality.

I had also attended Exercise Torrent VI, the Republic of Singapore Air Force's (RSAF) Emergency Runway Exercise, plus the media day for the RSAF Open House, among other events.

Caption: With SG1 in St Louis, Missouri, the day before her official roll-out. The flag I'm holding has accompanied me for every SAF operation I was sent to cover. It has been to Taiwan (Ops Lion Heart 9/21 quake relief), Timor Leste (Ops Blue Heron), the Northern Arabian Gulf (Ops Blue Orchid I) and Meulaboh, Indonesia (Ops Flying Eagle).

I was even flown to St Louis, Missouri, to witness the roll-out of the RSAF's first F-15SG Strike Eagle in November 2008. I was very moved when the American audience, which included many Boeing F-15 assembly line workers, gate crashed the event and hogged the periphery of the official roll-out just to witness history being made. There was that lump-in-the-throat moment when the RSAF's "I am the wind" commercial was screened and the largely American audience applauded - applause that was neither auto-cued nor insincere.

Those were halcyon times.

So why the change of heart?

The issue here isn't about a ex-Defence Correspondent who demands unbridled access to SAF events. I have never asked for this. Neither do I quibble about the cursory manner in which PAFF plays with people's annual leave, although PAFF's customer service standards leave much to be desired.

I am of the opinion that sentiments I expressed in the Straits Times Forum Page letter plus a comment on the issue in militarynuts.com did not go down well with MINDEF PAFF.

If that is so, I feel it is a pity because the language used to frame the letter on the Land Rover death was calibrated not to upset confidence in or support for National Service or the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). Read it, think things through and you will realise this.

My comparison between PAFF and the Army Information Centre, of which I held and still hold a favourable impression, was gleaned from my 25 days embedded with the Humanitarian Assistance Support Group. If ops experience doesn't count, what does?

Many SAF personnel familiar with media ops during Operation Flying Eagle felt the same way. I stand by those comments and I fear for the Third Generation SAF if the sensibilities are so fragile that assorted postings on the Internet can cause ruffled feathers.

I was moved to write the Forum letter as I felt very disturbed about the way the incident had been handled.

I want to now mention that I drive a Land Rover and have owned this quaint little vehicle since 1998. Some of you may have seen it. I know it doesn't take a recovery vehicle to rescue someone pinned underneath. Questions needed to be asked because I felt people needed to know and parents needed reassurance. Was this wrong?

Till today, MINDEF PAFF has held back replying to the points raised and, in my opinion, seen it fit to take punitive measures to shoot the messenger. The passive aggressive act of barring me from the AOH preview being a case in point.

At other occasions and for other issues, more than a handful of outspoken Singaporeans seem to have borne the wrath of reprisals from officialdom. Someone please add my name to the score sheet.

My view is that being economical with the truth is an artform. Singaporean bureaucracy has honed it with such finesse and precision that its drawer plan, when executed, is a sight to behold. One cannot argue with their excuses, because most sound logical seen in isolation. One cannot quibble with their train of thoughts, because they make dissenting voices sound out of whack with reality, prone to histrionics.

Then comes the character assasination.

Do take notes, watch and learn.

The drawer plans are distinctly similar, whatever the issue, wherever the ministry, whenever the time, and are rolled out with alacrity whenever the system is challenged.

But such miserable tactics scream of desperation. They are a blunt instrument and the punitive measures are risible because they reflect small-minded, almost childish attempts at inconveniencing dissenting voices.

I am of the view that the unseen damage such tactics cause lies with the erosion of public confidence. News of such reprisals chips away at people's confidence in the system's ability to take criticisms, comments or questions raised on matters of public concern.

It is a blunt instrument because the tactics do not distinguish friend from foe and can end up in Blue on Blue incidents. MINDEF and the SAF must rise above such petty tactics.

What I find disappointing about PAFF's behaviour is the lack of moral courage: I would have much preferred PAFF to have had the guts to tell me why I wasn't welcome, rather than being economical with the truth and coming up the flimsy excuse. Or perhaps PAFF only recently discovered I am no longer a full-time scribe with the 90 cents newspaper and, ergo, had no place at media events? In which case their house-keeping is way overdue?

I believe my decision to turn down an offer to write a book on OBO had something to do with the incident. I will address this in due course.

PAFF's act of skirting around the issue has made me wonder: Do they behave similarly with less informed Singaporeans? Do they take liberties with the heartlander's trust (or ignorance, call it what you will) and sell them red herrings when it suits them? Do they?

I ask because in the wake of the AOH incident, I am nursing some serious doubts.

If you think about it, a system that chops down dissenting voices is the very same kind of environment where brown-nosing thrives. They are two sides of the same coin. Especially in the uber competitive SAF system, one would not be surprised to see ambitious officers whisper into their bosses ears things they want to hear so long as it suits their career trajectory.

As a former journalist, I had ringside seats to such theatrics. One of my scoops, a Prime News story that revealed how the SAF Commandos had been banned from a Best Unit Competition for cheating, came from a tipoff from SAF Guardsmen. Ouch.

Moral courage aside, PAFF's apparent unhappiness over my comments on training safety makes me wonder if the organisation needs a more robust mindset and people who have the right temperament for information management and defence media relations.

I am so glad SAF Civil Military Relations battalions do not come under PAFF's opcon. The way PAFF rides roughshod over journalists feelings would reverse any positive effect the CMR battalions might have in winning the hearts and minds of the Rakyat in occupied territory.

I am reminded of a previous Director Public Affairs at MINDEF, who helped ensure I got the background briefings needed for my commentaries to pack more boomz. One officer, a former Director Policy, even entertained me in his home one weekend and briefed me on defence relations with an Asian country. The write-up that ensued was well-received. I thank the BG for his openness and for allowing me into his family home.

So here I am: standing alone, feeling like I've been blacklisted by MINDEF PAFF, unwelcome at SAF events despite the many positive things I had written in pre-ST Forum Letter days.

So be it.

I am not entirely sure how other Singaporeans who have had brushes with officialdom have reacted. There may be some who crumbled.

But my attitude will not change. If anything, my brush with boorish behaviour has convinced me that I must hold my ground.

I will continue to speak up when I feel the occasion demands.

A recent Total Defence campaign asked Singaporeans:"What will you defend?".

I will defend the right of all Singaporeans to grow up in a society, free from oppression.

I will defend myself when someone hits out at me.

And I am doing just that, right now.

Managing defence media relations is like being in a marriage: You have to know how to manage it well or, it will fail.

Acknowledgement: I thank my brother-in-law for his legal advice.

Blue on Blue: Part 1

I have no confidence in the leadership of Darius Lim, Director Public Affairs (DPA) at the Singapore Ministry of Defence (MINDEF).

I write this having seen the working styles of previous DPAs at MINDEF, Colonel Kwan Yue Yeong, COL Ramachandran Menon, COL Lee Seng Kong, COL Chong Kim Chye, COL Goh Chee Kong, COL Bernard Toh and COL Benedict Lim.

That's all I need say, for now.

Sea sights

Spotted some concrete structures west of Sentosa island this morning during a site recce.

They reminded me of the concrete Mulberry Harbour caissons seen off the D-Day invasion beaches.

Have no idea what they're used for. Have asked the engineers on site to keep an eye on the strange structures.

9/21 earthquake remembered

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the "9/21" earthquake in Taiwan and we remember the victims of that disaster.

Will update this post with pictures of Operation Lion Heart'99 in Taichung Country after I get them scanned. These pictures have never been publicised before.

The entire 39-member Operation Lion Heart rescue team, plus three rescue dogs, from the Singapore Civil Defence Force assembles for a photocall on 23 September 1999. This picture was taken soon after the morning muster parade, which was done every morning to take stock of the team's operational status and taskings for the day.

Despite their high operational tempo, the SCDF officers placed a heavy emphasis on team discipline and morale. They had no problems with either.

People may wonder why this picture was taken in an ops area. It was done for the benefit of the Lin family (seen here), to leave them with a photograph recording their contributions to the Ops Lion Heart team. The family owned several units in the row of shophouses and allowed the Lion Heart team to use their premises as an advance staging area as it was close to a collapsed condominium development.

My first night in Taichung County was spent sleeping on the floor with the Lion Heart team in the shophouse here. Due to frequent aftershocks, several SCDF officers slept outside under an open sky. They explained that this would save them time in the event of serious aftershocks.

My roomates included SCDF medics, a doctor and members of the SCDF's crack Disaster Assistance Rescue Team. Their presence was reassuring and I knew I was in good company.

A view of the Golden Paris condominium where the SCDF team was deployed.

The shock of the temblor tore apart several condomonium blocks. Just out of frame to the left of the image is part of the condo tower which was left standing, while the block tilted at a crazy angle to the right is the portion that collapsed with residents still inside. When this picture was taken, SCDF officers and Taiwanese rescuers were tunnelling into the rubble.

Another view of a collapsed condominium tower. SCDF officers from the Lion Heart rescue team have just begun entering the collapsed structure. Aftershocks shook the neighbourhood often. Note how the building rubble hanging precariously above the team posed a risk to rescuers. The SCDF team did a thorough recce and risk analysis before any deployment on site.

The SCDF Lion Heart team assembles for a commander's briefing under the constant gaze of the Taiwanese and foreign media. SCDF rescuers, regardless of rank, knew they were "ambassadors" for Singapore and conducted themselves with impeccable discipline throughout the operation. As the Lion Heart team dug further into the rubble, they carried the hopes of scores of survivors who watched from outside the security cordon.

A Taiwanese television crew and myself representing the 90 cents newspaper get a closer view of the rescue operation. The condo tower had collapsed during the night while residents slept inside.

The media were hungry for any scrap of news of the Lion Heart rescue operation. Seen here is a media scrum that developed whenever an SCDF officer updated journalists. The Lion Heart team was self sufficient in terms of transport, as they arrived in-theatre with a Land Rover Defender and one Heavy Rescue Tender, plus rescue trailer.

This is how the 90 cents media team and the Lianhe Zaobao team slept during our two weeks in Taiwan. Furniture, the electric fan and some bedding was donated by Taiwanese residents. By this time, the Lion Heart team had relocated elsewhere.

We chose to continue using the shophouse as a base area and thanked the Lin family for their hospitality. They cooked a hearty dinner for us everynight, despite our many protestations that we didn't want to inconvenience them.

We'd seen the damage sustained by high-rise structures and decided that a stay in (largely vacant) hotels in the vicinity just wasn't worth the risk.

We kept the shophouse unlocked whenever we ventured out to do chase stories. From time to time, curious residents would come in to watch us at work, reading over our shoulders and gawking at the images as the photojournalists processed them.

Their resilience was comforting.

Seen in the image is Enrique Soriano (90 cents paper photographer), and Lim Soon Hua (LHZB). The corpse-like creature is Dennis Thong, the LHZB photographer.

Many journalists aspire to cover exciting stories in disaster zones, but few realise the difficulties scribes face in such areas.

I was totally unprepared for my first embed during an operation. I'd packed the way most people pack for an overseas vacation and didn't even bring a bath towel. The SCDF logistics specialist provided one.

I promised myself that I'd be better equipped for future missions.

I did not have to wait long. In October 1999, the 90 cents paper sent me to East Timor to write about security operations by INTERFET. My first experience reporting on military operations other than war brought yet another round of lessons.

I won a Newscom (newspaper committee) monthly award for Excellence from SPH for the coverage of Operation Lion Heart.

Check next month's update: 10th anniversary of Operation Blue Heron.

Commitment to defence: How not to score own goals

If you want to be treated like a social pariah by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), bring a camera to its next open house and snap away like there’s no tomorrow.

Some people I know did just that at the recent Army Open House (3 to 7 September 2009, Pasir Laba Camp), and earned dirty looks and snide comments from some of the duty personnel.

The Singapore Army personnel who behaved in this fashion may not realize it, but they should show more racial sensitivity before unleashing their cutting remarks.

One visitor who bore the brunt of the dirty looks was a Malay.

Bowled over by the display of army war machines, he snapped away with glee.

Some army personnel did not share his enthusiasm. A Warrant Officer eyed him suspiciously and ordered his men to snap a photo of the over-zealous photographer in retaliation.

I felt disturbed when he related this story to me because I know the great lengths the Singapore Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) takes in building commitment to defence issues by showing it is race blind.

Had he felt discriminated and spread his story among his friends, and his friends related it thereon, one can only imagine how the Malay community would feel.

Had a Singaporean Malay in the crowd witnessed the incident and jumped to conclusions, this incident could also unravel MINDEF’s outreach efforts.

The longevity of the negative impression that brusque behaviour stamped into the consciousness of those at the receiving end of the unkind barbs shows that the SAF sometimes scores own goals. It is instructive to note that among the comments netizens made about the open house are postings on the hostility of certain show ambassadors.

I was present when several members of the internet discussion group, militarynuts.com, revisited the Army Open House on its last day. We were a multi-racial bunch and if we were more handsome, could be poster boys for a community relations campaign.

The militarynuts noted that the behaviour of the personnel on duty that morning was a stark contrast to the mindset they displayed days earlier.

They seemed to have ditched their aversion to cameras, were obliging, all smiles and courtesy. We had a great time.

One would hope that MINDEF Public Affairs (PAFF) would show stronger leadership in cultivating defence enthusiasts in Singapore.

While there are cynics who can’t wait to serve and forget, PAFF should regard the passion and keenness shown by defence enthusiasts as a strength and not a bugbear. Whether through cyberspace chatter or stories they share among family and friends, MINDEF can leverage on positive impressions from defence enthusiasts to tell its side of the story.

Lack of foresight or resources aside, part of PAFF’s hesitancy may stem from the tendency by Singaporean bureaucracy to treat everyone with a notebook and camera with suspicion.

Among my pile of media clippings is a full-page feature story on an Englishman who flew to Singapore just to look at merchant ships.

His hobby, shipspotting, is a close cousin to planespotting and the wartime fad made famous by the movie, Trainspotting. This is a hobby that outsiders would not undertand.

An extract from the article reads:

Military ships are the only vessels that do not make it into his notebook."People might become suspicious about your interest in them, especially after the 9-11 attacks."


A month after the New York terrorist bombing in 2001, he was shipspotting in Kusu with his friend when two policemen in plainclothes approached them. They had been alerted by coastal guards (sic) patrolling the waters.


“They asked us politely what we were doing. We showed them our passports and World Ship Society membership cards." The society, a global body dedicated to maritime and naval history, has more than 5,000 members.

Just as suspicious minds can poison community relations, confident and open-minded officers are the SAF’s best goodwill ambassadors.

In November 2008, the Republic of Singapore Air Force's Air Power Generation Command invited the militarynuts to witness the rehearsal for its Emergency Runway Exercise.

Present at the event was the RSAF’s Chief of Air Force, Major-General Ng Chee Khern.

Midway during the exercise, he walked across to the group of photographers to say “hi”. Everyone present at the VIP tent would have seen this. CAF continued the dialogue with the militarynuts after the exercise.

Here was an MG touching base with a defence-savvy group of Singaporeans – all of whom were Operationally-Ready National Servicemen, plus one officer cadet and one pre-enlistee.

All of us walked away with a feel good feeling and a positive impression of the RSAF, having seen what it could do to generate and sustain its airpower.

After the group debussed outside Tengah Air Base, we decided to snap one last group shot by the “F-16 tail” outside the base.

By then, our liaison officer had left and we were left on our own.

Lo and behold, it did not take long for this group to attract the attention of base personnel.

One of them, a Captain Jeremy, drove up to the group and eyed us from his car.

He barked a challenge after the group shot had been taken and ordered the photographer to delete the picture. His mannerism and tone of voice implied we all owed him money. We complied.

MINDEF and the SAF are certainly spot on in concluding that touch points with Singaporeans – which are defined as every instance when a Singaporean has contact with the SAF, be it in person or in cyberspace – are opportunities for changing mindsets.

What they also need to learn is that these touch points swing both ways

Good morning Vietnam: A word of thanks

I would like to extend my gratitude to the former South Vietnamese Air Force pilots who helped recount and piece together the air intrusion that took place at Paya Lebar Airport in the 1970s. Thank you for the valuable pictures and flight information.

Many thanks to the militarynut who brought this to my attention.

Viper52: Thanks for the rebro service. This tail number is for you: HCF 460.

Hari Angkatan Tentera Malaysia yang ke-76

Today, 16 September 2009, the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) marks Hari Angkatan Tentera Malaysia - the Malaysian Armed Forces Day.

As the MAF commemorates its 76th year, I wish all my friends in the MAF a meaningful and safe year ahead.

Taat Setia.