At least two women were seen openly jeering at children at the conclusion of the National Chinese Creative Reading Competition on 6 September, held at Woodlands Regional Library. The event, organised by Popular Bookstore and the National Library Board, saw the women making disrespectful gestures towards the young participants during the award ceremony.
Background
The women were seated among the audience with other parents, accompanying a child who had participated in the competition. The child they accompanied was one of the five winners invited on stage. The competition divided participants into three groups: pre-school, Primary 1 to 3, and Primary 4 to 6. Approximately 200 parents and 80 children attended the event.
Women with a child competitor
The two women were seen raising their hands to show thumbs-down and cross signs to boo at the children who went on stage to receive awards for the upper primary category. This incident was captured on video by other parents recording their children’s achievements. The women booed the first four students who came on stage and even shooed the children away during group photo-taking.
A parent who attended the event tipped off Shin Min Daily News about the incident. She said, “My children and other parents also said the two women showed their middle fingers to those on stage. My child told me that he felt angry and confused by the women’s actions. Some children were about to cry and had to be comforted by their parents.” The parent added that the women could have raised issues with the organisers if they were unhappy instead of being disrespectful and setting a bad example for their children.
Organisers response
Staff at the scene were apparently unable to react in time. A spokesperson for Popular Bookstore Singapore confirmed with Shin Min that it had received a complaint from a group of parents and was investigating. The spokesperson stated that a comprehensive investigation has been launched to ensure fairness for the students and highlighted that Popular Bookstore did not have any prior partnership arrangement with any of the parties involved in the competition, such as schools.
Impact on the community
The incident has sparked outrage among parents and the community, raising concerns about the behaviour of adults at children’s events. Many believe that such actions set a poor example for young minds and undermine the spirit of healthy competition. The organisers are now under pressure to implement stricter guidelines and ensure such incidents do not recur in future events.
