Missing the point...again and again

We have had several threatening and foul-mouthed comments since publicity about Intelligentsiya mushroomed. At first we refused to allow such rubbish on our blogs, but in the interest of fairness and to illustrate the mentality of some coup-supporters, we reproduce the comment below (from someone posting under the name Moape Tivili), complete with Fijian swearwords, the mildest of which calls us "block heads" for expressing a different opinion to those who have seized power:

"Isa you makubuni polo bona's and maga bona's. You only choose to publish comments that favours SDL. Continue hiding and barking from behind that fence. It is a well known fact that dogs who bark so aggressively from behind their fenced compounds will never ever hurt you.

Isa my makubuni ulukau's, thanks for creating http://www.intelligentsiya.blog.com for dogs who bark behind fenced compounds. All your aggressive barking won't bring the corrupt Qarase regime back. Isa ulukau's, we apologize for that. We certainly enjoy listening to all your barks. No one ever pays attention since it will never bring about any change in Fiji's government. We do have the pills that will soothe your sore throats as a result from all the barking. Isa, ni sa moce dau yavu ulukau's."

There has also been some persistent comments that we are people who have an axe to grind over the ousting of Laisenia Qarase's government. We can state for a fact that not every Intelligentsiya blogger voted for SDL or even mildly liked the party. We reiterate again that what we object to is the violent removal of our freedoms in the name of a national clean-up campaign. Why can't the clean-up happen without the military-perpetrated violence, without the intimidation, without detaining people who do not share the military's view?

Before we move on to clarifying the other issues, here's another comment from anonymous:

"Its quite surprising that this website was not created after the 2000 coup. So much talk about democracy now but where were all this talk during the 2000 coup? Its quite evident that the creators of this website are staunch supporters hurting from the rightful removal of the corrupt Qarase regime. Democracy has never changed its meaning over the centuries so I don't see why some dogs are barking now and not in 1987 or 2000.

Also, to say you're silently expressing your oppostion to this long overdue most welcomed regime change speaks a lot about your true characters. Christ, Mandella or Mahatma Ghandi spoke bravely without hiding their faces. Actions from such brave revered men certainly brought about massive changes thats still lingers today.

In no way did they ever attempted to conceal their identities. Unlike the cowardly creators of intelligentsiya who conceal their identities, all the big talk relating to the 2006 coup only won't bring any changes. You dogs can continue barking behind your fences. You would only gain respect if you were barking from 1987 till now. Unfortunately thats not the case with you SDL supporters. What would hurt you guys more is a snap referendum today would clearly reveal that 82% of the population support the removal of the corrupt Qarase regime. By the way I'm a full blooded Fijian.

Have a great time maintaining this blog site and continue barking."

A similar anti-Intelligentsiya question has been why such a blog was not put up in 1987 and in 2000. In 1987, most of us were still in primary and high school and blogs were probably not even imagined then. In 2000, the concept of blogs was still in its infancy globally. Back then you could probably have counted those in Fiji who knew what a blog was on your fingers. By 2006, the blogging phenomenon was pretty much widespread and offered the best platform to express uncensored opinion on the coup. So we hope that puts such comments into perspectives.

By the way, another (or perhaps the same) commenter warned: "Lol ur Dayz Are Numbered!!"

We must point out, again in the interest of fairness, that some pro-Intelligentsiya commenters have also used swearwords, but directed at the military and interim regime.

There have been other comments in less colourful language, such as one suggesting Intelligentsiya is now a "voice in the wilderness" and others that suggest the "majority" of Fiji's population actually think this ongoing madness is good. Thanks for that, but you only need to look at the growing number of blogs calling for the army to give up the government, and you'll realize that a good number of people want true "normalcy" to return. (Remember how that word was so common after the 2000 coup, yet we hardly hear it now?) And to the anonymous commenter who suggested asking people what they thought of the interim government: Who would want to give a less-than-glowing review if they fear being taken by soldiers for expressing such a thought?

Meanwhile, not to be too distracted, as a follow-up to our previous post about the growing community of "Freedom Bloggers", we welcome aboard "Resist Franks Coup". The blog has some interesting behind-the-scenes claims regarding the Commodore and his junta. We're not expecting Leweni to make an announcement on national television that the military is searching for the author of Resist Franks Coup, though.

Let's also welcome Fiji Free Speech (complete with its own domain name), put up by a media professional anonymously. This clamour for freedom just got louder!

Freedom lives, even if it's only in cyberspace.