Henry Cheong Scolds Sporns for...

[makapaaa]

Posted on 13 Feb 2010
You don’t have to look at a person’s nationality to treat them with dignity












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Treating someone with dignity and respect is not dependant on where they come from. STOMPer Henry Cheong said that he treats all foreigners like his friends.

“I have worked side-by-side with foreign workers before and I admired their resilience and humbleness,” he told STOMP

“I treated them like my friends and taught them to respect themselves no matter how much others look down on them.

“For example, we were having lunch in a construction canteen and they gathered in a corner on the floor to eat.

“I asked them to join me at the table but they were afraid others would think they were rude.

“Few Singaporeans won't do 'low class' jobs 'because of 'face'.

“Well, I wouldn't give them 'face' for their attitude, they'll have to earn it.

“Another example I would like to mention; I was taking a sip of water behind the counter and was immediately told to squat down to the floor to drink by an 'ang moh'.

“My immediate respond was ‘you are a guest in my country and you would treat me like a dog!?’.

“This was overheard by another 'ang moh' who told him off.

“Lesson: If you want 'face' you got to earn it. Nobody can give you dignity if you let others look down on you no matter what is your station in life.”

 

[SamuelStalin]

“Lesson: If you want 'face' you got to earn it. Nobody can give you dignity if you let others look down on you no matter what is your station in life.”

Very true. This is something most people can't grasp or live up to unfortunately.

 

[Debonerman]

“I treated them like my friends and taught them to respect themselves no matter how much others look down on them.

“For example, we were having lunch in a construction canteen and they gathered in a corner on the floor to eat.

“I asked them to join me at the table but they were afraid others would think they were rude.

“Few Singaporeans won't do 'low class' jobs 'because of 'face'.

“Well, I wouldn't give them 'face' for their attitude, they'll have to earn it.

“Another example I would like to mention; I was taking a sip of water behind the counter and was immediately told to squat down to the floor to drink by an 'ang moh'.“My immediate respond was ‘you are a guest in my country and you would treat me like a dog!?’.

“This was overheard by another 'ang moh' who told him off.

“Lesson: If you want 'face' you got to earn it. Nobody can give you dignity if you let others look down on you no matter what is your station in life.”


It this a true account, then why did the writer just let off the white guy with just an admonishment? He thought that by doing so, the guy would feel ashamed and cry himself to sleep that very night?

This is exactly the problem with this country. We just don't know when the line against our rights, our dignity are crossed. If that white guy had said that to a Singaporean graduate of the toughest School of Life, he would would have ended up in hospital. A more conventionally school graduate should at the very least give the opening of a Pandora's box a try by making a police report to make the Government answer for the reason how this travesty of insulting a citizen by a foreigner could have had happened in Singapore.