http://www.facebook.com/notes/baey-...born-in-the-year-of-the-dog/10150598456754601
By the way, I am born in the year of the dog
by Baey Yam Keng on Wednesday, February 22, 2012 at 7:13pm ·
A PRC scholar Sun Xu recently wrote online about some ‘uncles’ in Singapore who stared at him and complained endlessly when he accidentally brushed against them. He made the now-infamous remark, “There are more dogs than people in Singapore.”
I was interviewed by The New Paper on my views. Following is a transcript of the phone interview, which TNP has kindly provided:
BYK: "I can understand why they reacted that way, it's not a pleasant thing to hear, belittling of Singaporeans. I think there's a bit of patriotism at play, which is a good thing. Although he didn't specifically mention Singaporeans, he just said "in Singapore". He didn't mention Singaporeans per se; it could have been an unpleasant experience which he had. I can imagine why people are unhappy, and it could be a result of the way young people write. They could be expressive in how they describe things, which someone who's older might not appreciate. And of course, the slang and the things he used is very Shanghainese. I think it's quite colloquial, likewise I think there are some young-speak which I don't understand. Even his comment about the dogs - it might not literally mean that, it might mean something else, even though it is definitely not something positive. He is a scholar, on Singapore govt's money, but I think we also need not jump to the conclusion to say that all foreign students on scholarship are like that, it could be minority who have the habit of posting things online. On the other hand, we have seen Singaporean scholars taken to task for having done things that are not appropriate. We have to accept that within every community, there will be some people who will ruin the reputation of their peers."
TNP reporter: 'My question - do you think there are lessons we can take from this?'
BYK: "I think first of all, these are behaviours that this gentleman has picked up. We need to reflect upon ourselves, are we the way they described? We should take this opportunity to reflect upon ourselves, but we should (also) be confident of ourselves. Even though some of us are like that, majority of Singaporeans are gracious, there are good people in Singapore."
- end of transcript -
The quote eventually appeared on TNP today, as follows:
Member of Parliament for Tampines GRC Baey Yam Keng said he could understand the furore following Mr Sun’s comment, adding: “I think there’s a bit of patriotism at play, which is a good thing.” But he also warned against “jumping to the conclusion that all foreign students are like that,” as he pointed out that Singaporean scholars have similarly been upbraided for inappropriate behaviour in the past. Said Mr Baey: “We have to accept that, within every community, there will be some who will tarnish the reputation of their peers.” But he added: “We (also) need to reflect, are we the way that they described?”
I also responded to an interview by Lianhe Wanbao on the same topic and they quoted me on 20 Feb as follows:
而马炎 庆也说，该奖学金得主的言论太过极端，并认为本地人多数讲理，也不应该一 竹竿打翻整张船。 “既然是名受教育者，这名学生在言论上应该谨慎，不应该有这么偏激的观点。”
(Baey Yam Keng said that the scholarship holder’s comments are too skewed, and felt that since he is an educated person, he should have been more careful and not take such extremist views. However, he believed most Singaporeans are reasonable and rational, and would not stereotype that all foreign scholarship holders are like that. Lianhe Wanbao 20 Feb 2012)
My point is I do feel that Sun Xu’s comments are unnecessary, rude, degrading and do not reflect well on himself too. However, I hope we do not just label all foreign students as such. I read he is now been investigated by his university’s board of discipline and I trust that the appropriate action will be taken against him. He needs to learn from his action.
Just as Sun Xu is a black sheep among the foreign scholars,
we also have black sheep among Singaporeans, or for that matter, in any community. I would admit that I too, have some bad habits myself that I am not proud of.
There are really some Singaporeans who would stare and complain endlessly when someone accidentally brushed against them, as in Sun Xu’s experience. This is the type of behaviour I was referring to that we should reflect whether we ourselves are guilty of.
We should take criticisms openly and learn from what others say about us.
I appreciate all your comments and interest in this matter. Thank you.
