Prime News
Home > Prime News > Story
Oct 8, 2010
JC students in trouble over toilet-sex video
Students film girls secretly and circulate it among friends
By Jeremy Au Yong
A STEAMY sex video of two first-year female students caused an
uproar in Anglo-Chinese Junior College (ACJC) recently, leading to
the duo leaving the school.
The students were said to have had a tryst in a school toilet,
where they were filmed surreptitiously by other students.
The video was then circulated to several others in the
college.
At least nine current and former ACJC students The Straits Times
spoke to said they knew of the incident, with one having seen the
video on his friend's mobile phone.
'What I saw disgusted me,' said the second-year student, who said
he could not bring himself to continue watching the rest of the
clip.
The episode, coming hot on the heels of a tragic cyber-bullying
case in New York, has raised alarm bells among some child experts
about how cavalier young people can be about what they post
online.
In the ACJC episode, it is not clear whether or at what point the
girls knew they were being filmed. The illicit meeting in a cubicle
of the toilet near the canteen is said to have taken place last
month.
The Straits Times understands that disciplinary action has been
taken on all those involved, including stripping some of their
positions in co-curricular activity groups.
In an e-mail response to queries, ACJC principal Kelvyna Chan
declined to comment directly on the facts of the episode.
She would say only: 'We would like to assure you that no one has
been expelled from the school. From time to time, students are
involved in actions which the school does not condone.
'With all matters pertaining to discipline, we include engagement
with the parents and counselling for the students. The objective is
always to learn from our mistakes, do better and be wiser.'
When asked later if ACJC helped the students secure places in
another school, Mrs Chan declined further comment.
A message sent by The Straits Times via Facebook to one of the
girls involved was ignored. Her online profile was subsequently
deleted.
The incident has been discussed over Formspring, a social media
site that allows netizens to pose questions to a user.
The same girl had a Formspring site that was put up three weeks ago
and she received queries and messages of support and concern.
Some told her to stay strong. Others wanted to know what she would
do now.
'Where are you going next?' one asked.
She responded: 'Where the wind takes us.'
Her site has since been taken down too.
One of the girls is said to have been admitted into another junior
college and will resume her studies next year.
The incident is said to be the first such case involving the
school.
In 2008, however, ragging practices caused a stir after a video of
an ACJC student tied up and having food stuffed in her face made it
online.
For Ms Wendy Chua, a former school psychologist who now runs a life
coaching company, the latest ACJC incident shows how cavalier the
young are about the Internet.
'These days you often see kids freely expressing themselves on
sites like Facebook with no regard to their own privacy. There is
no self-censorship,' said the mother of four children aged seven to
15.
'If you don't censor what you put online about yourself, you won't
censor what you post about others.'
Child experts The Straits Times spoke to compared the episode with
the recent case of Rutgers University undergraduate Tyler Clementi
in the United States.
Two weeks ago, the 18-year-old jumped to his death after his
roommate allegedly streamed online live images of him having sex
with another man.
Those interviewed said the difference between the two cases, was
that the American teen had sex in his own room, whereas the ACJC
girls were in a public toilet.
Psychologist Daniel Koh, of Insights Mind Centre, felt several
aspects made the ACJC case especially disturbing.
First was the fact that the incident happened in a public place and
involved two girls, 'something society may not accept yet'.
Then there were the actions of those who filmed what the girls did
and then circulated it. Both were troubling acts, he said.
Agreeing, Dr Carol Balhetchet, director of Youth Services at the
Singapore Children's Society, said that filming and circulating the
incident was 'a vicious act'.
'I would almost call it aggressive intimidation,' she said.
The child experts felt that parents and counsellors need to better
educate the young on the consequences of their actions.
Mr Koh said young people need to understand the power of the
Internet.
'Because of the speed, it can reach a lot of people,' he said. 'The
young need to know what the boundaries are.
'Even taking a picture of someone sleeping on the MRT can sometimes
cross the line.'
[email protected]
PRINCIPAL SAYS:
ACJC principal Kelvyna Chan declined to comment on the facts of the
case. She said nobody had been expelled, and added: 'From time to
time, students are involved in actions which the school does not
condone.'
'With all matters pertaining to discipline, we include engagement
with the parents and counselling for the students. The objective is
always to learn from our mistakes, do better and be wiser.'
STUDENTS SAY:
At least nine current and former ACJC students The Straits Times
spoke to said they knew of the incident, with one having seen the
video on his friend's mobile phone.
'What I saw disgusted me,' said the second-year student, who said
he could not bring himself to continue watching the rest of the
clip.
COUNSELLOR SAYS:
Psychologist Daniel Koh felt several aspects of the ACJC incident
were especially disturbing.
First, the fact that the incident happened in a public place and
involved two girls, 'something society may not accept yet'.
Then, the actions of those who filmed what the girls did and
circulated it. Both were troubling actions, he said.
