Ibn Hazm (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
If you give advice, then gave advice in private, not in public, and by hinting, not by speaking bluntly, unless the person to whom advice is given will not understand hints, in which case there is no option but to speak bluntly.… If you go beyond these guidelines, then you are wronging him and are not being sincere in your advice.
End quote from al-Akhlaaq wa’s-Siyar (p. 45).
