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Lack of civility at Aware EGM not acceptable
THE shouting, jeering and raucous conduct witnessed at the recent extraordinary general meeting of the advocacy group Aware is not how a gracious society should behave, an MP said yesterday.
Mr Lim Biow Chuan (Marine Parade GRC) chided those at the meeting of the Association of Women for Action and Research for their clear lack of civility.
'If the reports are accurate, then civility and gracious behaviour during the Aware extraordinary general meeting was clearly missing,' he told the House.
'While I accept that emotions were highly charged and many people wish to have their views heard, I would submit that this cannot be the level of behaviour which we should promote as acceptable.'
Mr Lim, who said that he did not pick sides, was also dismayed by the way Netizens discussed the leadership tussle.
He felt that the vitriol used online was even worse. 'I simply cannot understand why there is so much hatred and lack of respect for one another in the exchanges over the Internet. Some of these writers on the Internet have nothing good to say about everything.'
Mr Lim, who was speaking about making Singapore a more pleasant society and the need to raise standards of behaviour, urged Singaporeans to be more civil even when dealing with divisive issues like sexual orientation.
'Can we not accept that there are some things that we cannot agree upon and then agree that we will disagree on these issues?' he asked.
And if Singapore was serious about promoting a more gracious society, then the annual courtesy campaigns were not enough to do the job.
The message had to be inculcated in children with parents playing a critical role. 'We must drive home the message that graciousness must start from home and that every parent has an important role to play if they want Singapore to be a more pleasant place to live in...
'We have to emphasise to the parents that their children's behaviour and character is their business; they cannot sub-contract it to their domestic help or rely solely on teachers. Parents have to accept that they reap what they sow.'
THE shouting, jeering and raucous conduct witnessed at the recent extraordinary general meeting of the advocacy group Aware is not how a gracious society should behave, an MP said yesterday.
Mr Lim Biow Chuan (Marine Parade GRC) chided those at the meeting of the Association of Women for Action and Research for their clear lack of civility.
'If the reports are accurate, then civility and gracious behaviour during the Aware extraordinary general meeting was clearly missing,' he told the House.
'While I accept that emotions were highly charged and many people wish to have their views heard, I would submit that this cannot be the level of behaviour which we should promote as acceptable.'
Mr Lim, who said that he did not pick sides, was also dismayed by the way Netizens discussed the leadership tussle.
He felt that the vitriol used online was even worse. 'I simply cannot understand why there is so much hatred and lack of respect for one another in the exchanges over the Internet. Some of these writers on the Internet have nothing good to say about everything.'
Mr Lim, who was speaking about making Singapore a more pleasant society and the need to raise standards of behaviour, urged Singaporeans to be more civil even when dealing with divisive issues like sexual orientation.
'Can we not accept that there are some things that we cannot agree upon and then agree that we will disagree on these issues?' he asked.
And if Singapore was serious about promoting a more gracious society, then the annual courtesy campaigns were not enough to do the job.
The message had to be inculcated in children with parents playing a critical role. 'We must drive home the message that graciousness must start from home and that every parent has an important role to play if they want Singapore to be a more pleasant place to live in...
'We have to emphasise to the parents that their children's behaviour and character is their business; they cannot sub-contract it to their domestic help or rely solely on teachers. Parents have to accept that they reap what they sow.'
