Mindef to act against staff who
punished soldier
Straits Times
Feb 4, 1999
By CHONG CHEE KIN
Mindef investigated after a corporal
complained over the Internet that he was ill-treated during his training
Read the soldier's chilling report
THE Ministry of Defence is taking disciplinary action against some of its instructors after investigating complaints of ill-treatment made over the Internet by a soldier.
Corporal Benjamin Lou, 24, claimed in a posting on the Internet newsgroup soc.culture.singapore that he was ill-treated by instructors during his basic military training (BMT) three years ago.
In the posting, which first appeared on Jan 24, Cpl Lou made numerous detailed allegations. [Singapore Window's source obtained the report in October 1998.]
Among other things, he claimed that he was assaulted, made to do excessive exercise and forced to go without sleep for days on end.
It is understood that before he enlisted, he had signed a six-year contract to serve the Singapore Armed Forces as a commando.
Cpl Lou, who is still with the SAF, said that he complained about the alleged ill-treatment only late last year.
His posting on the Internet newsgroup remained there for several days.
Responding to questions from the Straits Times, a Mindef spokesman said yesterday that it had investigated Cpl Lou's allegations.
"The investigation established that there were instances of unauthorised punishment meted out to him by his instructors," the spokesman said.
But he added: "However, our investigations also showed that some of the allegations, such as the claim that he was deprived of sleep for 15 days, could not be substantiated."
Stressing that Mindef took all such complaints seriously, the spokesman said: "We do not condone the actions of the instructors who meted out the unauthorised punishment as they are clearly against our rules and regulations.
"Appropriate disciplinary actions are being taken."
He also said that the ministry first came to know about Cpl Lou's complaints in November last year and that a thorough investigation had followed.
He added: "The investigations took some time because the alleged incidents happened about three years ago and most of the witnesses had already left the SAF."