Dr Lee Wei Ling (LWL) has posted yet another update on her Facebook (FB) page revealing which part of her "hero worship" commentary editors from The Straits Times (ST) had wanted to take out.

The commentary, which was not published by ST, was likely the spark that ignited LWL's declaration that she would "no longer write for ST".

This FB update comes a day after ST published a letter from its editor explaining their side of the story regarding what went down between them and the daughter of the late Lee Kuan Yew.

ST explained that LWL's allegation that three successive ST editors who worked on her past columns were all "commanded to edit certain issues out" were unfounded.

ST explained that as a matter of "upholding standards", an editor "gives a range of inputs on grammar, language, taste, relevance, coherence, judgment and the law".

LWL's latest updates

She made two updates today (Apr 6). The first was a short cryptic sentence which said, "honour the spirit of what my father stood for".

The second update would seem like a complete copy of her 'hero worship' commentary, but on closer reading three-quarters of the way through this post, she inserted the following line:

"[Below is what my SPH editor considered irrelevant. I felt this information puts Papa's one year commemoration in the context of what other countries do.]"

Here is the portion of the commentary which LWL claimed that her SPH editor considered irrelevant:

Allow me to compare how two other world leaders who were adored or apparently adored were commemorated by their government and/or people. Firstly when Chairman Mao died on 9 September 1976, the country was in shock. This was partly the result of the keenly felt loss of a semi-divine leader, but also caused by the enormous uncertainty about what the future held in stock for China and its people. The power struggle between Jiang Qing and the Gang of Four on the one hand, and Mao's designated successor Hua Guofeng on the other, which had been smoldering for some time caused grave anxiety for many people in China. However, on 6 October 1976, within a month after Mao's death, Hua had the Gang of Four arrested. Two days after the arrest of the Gang, the highest organs of the party and the state decided that a Memorial Hall would be built as a permanent tribute to the founder of the People's Republic. On 24 November 1976, the foundation stone for the gigantic building, located to the south of the Monument to the People's Heroes on Tiananmen Square was put in place. The construction went on day and night, and the building was finished on 29 August 1977. On that same day, Mao's body, which had been embalmed and placed in a crystal sarcophagus, was moved to the Hall. On 9 September 1977, a ceremony was held to commemorate the anniversary of Mao's death and the completion of the Hall.

The anniversary of the funeral of Winston Churchill took place 50 years after the actual funeral on 30 January 1965, which brought the capital to a standstill and took place a week after his death aged 90 on 24 January, is being marked by scores of events, including a service and wreath laying at the Houses of Parliament, a memorial service at Westminster Abbey, and the rebroadcast by BBC Parliament of the original live coverage. In a tribute to his most famous predecessor, the prime minister, David Cameron, said: “Half a century after his death, Winston Churchill’s legacy continues to inspire not only the nation whose liberty he saved, but the entire world. His words and his actions reverberate through our national life today.”

Compare the actual time from death to the first commemoration, and the different activities involved in the commemoration for the two leaders above. Which one would Papa wish his commemoration to resemble. Also bear in mind, that unlike almost all leaders, Papa was dead set against a personality cult and any hint of cronyism. If he was forced to choose one form of commemoration, Papa would have objected the less if the commemoration resembled that held for Winston Churchill. Do note that Churchill unlike Papa cherished glory and a place in the history of his county. Compare what Churchill’s commemoration which was conducted 50 years after his death with the activities that have been taking place in Singapore that will continue for an entire week. I think Papa would have objected if he were able to convey his view.

Here's LWL's full post:

Top image composed from images from Wikipedia.

If you like what you read, follow us on Facebook and Twitter to get the latest updates.