CHIJ takes on the Singapore Press Holdings

On Sunday, I blogged about a CHIJ student who was angry with the Sunday Times because of a story it did on CHIJ students. Now, all eleven convent schools in Singapore are threatening to take legal action against Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) for its damaging article. From TODAYonline:

Today has learnt that a lawyer's letter has been sent to the media company on Monday, demanding an apology and costs and damages to be paid for a "defamatory" article that was published in last week's Sunday Times, which described convent girls as being "easy" with members of the opposite sex...

The story upset many alumni and parents and the board members were believed to have received more than 50 phone calls and email messages of complaint between them.

Yesterday, The Straits Times letters pages published a letter written by Donne Marie Aeria — the board's chairperson — rebutting the story.

Ms Aeria called the article "an ill-conceived idea and done in bad taste".

"Was there a need to tarnish the image of thousands of students, past, present and future, including girls as young as six years old in Primary 1, with an image that they are 'allegedly easy when it comes to the opposite sex'?" Ms Aeria wrote.

"It has caused much distress, pain and embarrassment to ladies of all ages, that hail from our CHIJ schools."

CHIJ got balls (erm, guts) to take on SPH. I say, go for it mate! Sue the bloody paper. This should be a lesson for the punks in the Straits/Sunday Times. If they want to tell everyone that IJ students are easy with the opposite sex, they should do a serious article (interviewing students, teachers and those who made the allegations) instead of a piece done in tongue-in-cheek. It ain't funny anymore when you start offending schools, students and parents.

Previously: CHIJ student angry with Straits Times