Daughter Forced To Kneel In Public, Then Slapped
UPDATE: The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) has stepped in to “ensure the safety of the child”. According to The New Paper, the girl will remain with her family, with her father assuring the ministry that such an incident won’t happen again. The family will continue to work with their assigned Child Protection Specialist Centre.
Asian parents have a bad rep for hitting their children. Sometimes, it’s justified — as in the saying, “spare the rod, spoil the child”.
But sometimes they go a little too far.
A video uploaded to STOMP on Monday (5 Nov) shows a young girl kneeling before her parents in IKEA Tampines’ carpark.
Her father is seen shouting and pointing sternly at her. At one point, he even slaps her with so much force that she is almost thrown off balance.
The woman with them, likely the mother, stands and watches. According to the Stomper who filmed the incident, “she (the mother) seemed too scared to hold him (her husband) off.”
The Stomper also reported that the man shouted such things as: “I love you, but you cannot say these kinds of things to me” and “it’s no longer your mum’s place, it’s my place”. It is unclear what had set off the tirade.
A little while later, the man noticed that the commotion was attracting onlookers, and quickly walked away.
MSF investigates
Netizens were naturally furious over the incident. Some focused their criticism on the unreasonable behaviour of the father while others worried for the wellbeing of the child.
One concerned netizen, Richard, claimed to have reported the incident to MSF:
If this man can behave this way in public, there is no telling what he has done in private.
An MSF spokesperson told The New Paper that the ministry and the police are currently looking into the matter. If investigations show that the child is at risk of further abuse, MSF’s Child Protective Service will likely have to step in.
Criminal lawyer Ravinderpal Singh added that such a forceful slap could be considered child abuse.
Psychologist Dr Carol Bahlhetchet also weighed in on the incident:
If it had been a grown man or woman kneeling in public and getting slapped, it would not be acceptable. So why is it so with a child? It’s double standards.
For the sake of the child, we hope that investigations will show that that was an isolated incident.
Featured image from The New Paper.
