The editor of the now defunct The Real Singapore (TRS), Yang Kaiheng, has taken to Facebook to say that despite the many challenges he faced in 2016, he is glad to be back with his family. He feels that his experiences are starkly different from what other 28-year-olds may experience.
Yang also revealed that he and his wife Ai Takagi (and co-director of TRS) were slapped with over 200 copyright infringement claims by Singapore Press Holdings. He said unlike other large companies such as Yahoo! Inc which also faced similar copyright infringement claims in the past by SPH, this impacted their lives directly in a major way.
He added that serving time was painful because he had to be separated from his loved ones but said overall he gained more than he lost through his prison experience.
Yang wished his well-wishers ‘Merry Christmas’.
Just in case you are not able to read his post, this is what he said.
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Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
I’m extremely grateful that I am able to end this year on a positive note with Christmas festivities at our home with my loved ones all around me.
2016 has been an extremely tough year for me and I’ve faced many challenges that are very different from those that most other 28 year olds would have faced at this age.
My father suffered a serious stroke which left him permanently bed bound. As the only child of my family, I have been forced to mature quickly and make major changes to my lifestyle to accommodate to my family’s needs.
I also faced major business challenges including my news website being shut down and being slapped with over 200 copyright infringement claims by Singapore Press Holdings. My wife and I were the only directors of the company behind TRS and unlike other large companies such as Yahoo! Inc which also faced similar copyright infringement claims in the past by SPH, this impacted our lives directly in a major way.
Spending half of 2016 in prison for charges under the Sedition Act was an extremely painful experience for me as I was separated from my loved ones and deprived of my freedom. However, the experience also gave me plenty of time to reflect on my life and work out my priorities. I was also able to start a regular exercise routine and lost more than 20kg during my incarceration, getting back my health. Overall I feel that I have definitely gained more than I lost through my prison experience.
We have also faced many new challenges with our ramen start-up, especially in ensuring it could continue to operate while both me and Ai were in prison.
I’m really happy to be back with my family and I would like to thank everyone who has helped me care for my dad and my new ramen business while we were away. Especially to Ai Choo and Dai Wei for doing so much for us.
Take care and I hope 2017 will be a good year for all of you.