A photo of a mother breastfeeding on an MRT train while in full view of the public recently went viral, with some showing their support for her while others expressed criticism.

The picture, which Stomp contributor Chris alerted us to, has been circulating on WhatsApp and on local forums, sparking a heated debate.

It shows the woman seated beside her husband with one side of her top pulled down and her left breast exposed, as her young daughter feeds.

Some netizens felt that the image was provocative and said that even if her child was hungry, the mother should have at least made an attempt to cover up more.

Others, however, said that she did nothing wrong as breastfeeding is a mother’s right.

The woman in question has since responded to the incident on Facebook, explaining her stance on the matter.

In a public post accompanied by another picture of her breastfeeding her kid, she wrote:

“I know that a picture of me breastfeeding is being shared right now. I am ok with it. Thanks for the concern to all those who have pmed me. Personally, I am not too bothered about it since I don’t think it is wrong to breastfeed in public.

“I have a nursing cover, but my girl will cry and struggle when I use it. Those who suggest using a cover should try eating or drinking under a cover and see if you like it or not.

“I put my baby first so as long as she is comfortable and feeding well, I don’t really care what others think. It isn’t that hard to just look away if you don’t like to see a baby drinking milk.

“I just want to dress up and be a normal woman while still being able to take care of my kids and their needs. If people are ok with women who show cleavage, I don’t know why they would not be ok with me breastfeeding. Unless these group of people think my breast is for sex and not for feeding my baby.

“Anyway, it’s just a breast. We all have it. Be it female or male. It’s meant to be used to feed a baby, I don’t see anything wrong with using it to feed a baby and ensuring my baby is comfortable. What’s so sexual/wrong about it? Hahas! Maybe girls should stop eating bananas/popsicle in public as some might find it sexual too.”

The mother’s post has been met with positivity from netizens, many of whom said they were proud of her and would stand with her.

One user commented, “I’ve seen the picture and I actually beamed with pride when I saw it. You are as awesome as awesome can be. We should be able to feed in public without any stigma and without people staring like perverts.”

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2016-02-02 20:32:33

Photo Gallery

Woman breastfeeds baby at Raffles Place

Source: Jen Pan Photography

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He grew up seeing his father’s picture appear regularly in The Straits Times and assumed it was the same for everyone else.

“I thought it was because you purchased the paper, you got your face sometimes on the front page,” Dr Jonathan Marshall said yesterday.

His father was Mr David Marshall, Singapore’s first chief minister, from April 1955 to June 1956.

He had already grown accustomed to living with his father’s constant presence. After all, in the family house stood a large bronze bust of his father.

That bust is now on permanent loan from the family and is placed in the David Marshall Moot Court at the Singapore Management University’s (SMU) School of Law, which was officially opened by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday.

Sunday was the 109th anniversary of Mr Marshall’s birth. A top-notch criminal lawyer in his day, he served as a diplomat from 1978 to 1993. He died in 1995.

Dr Marshall said: “After he died, I would often look at the bust and think of him. And it was pleasant, it was a lovely thing to be able to reflect on my father while looking at an image of him which contained some of his fire and some of his strength and ruggedness.

“I don’t think my father was particularly into images of himself. It is a special piece and I am very glad that it is available for others to see in an environment which he would be surprised and delighted.”

The bust of the man once described by then Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong in 2008 as “undoubtedly the greatest criminal advocate that has ever graced the halls of justice in Singapore and Malaya”, was sculpted by London-based Peter Lambda after the 1956 constitutional talks there that Mr Marshall attended, said his widow Jean.

“David never spoke about it and when I married him in 1961, it was already there, being commissioned in 1956,” she added, noting that the bust was “rather big” for the private flat where they lived.

The works of Lambda, a famed Hungarian sculptor-writer, included busts of renowned thespian Laurence Olivier and founder of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud.

Mrs Marshall said that when she heard SMU’s Moot Court was named after Mr Marshall, she thought the bust should go there.

She added: “It is a very powerful piece and gives a forceful impression of David, and has a good likeness, except the chin is not quite right. We are all very happy – it is going to the right place and embodies David’s legacy cast in bronze.”

vijayan@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Mar 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

The management committee (MC) of Parc Palais in Hume Avenue has circulated a petition to get a popular restaurant to address residents’ concerns about fumes and noise from the restaurant, which is located near the estate.

The petition, which was seen by The Straits Times, follows complaints filed by three residents with the National Environment Agency (NEA) last November.

Even though NEA has verified that their concerns have been addressed by the restaurant, the condo’s MC said the issues remained.

The MC said fumes from the zi char restaurant have been blowing into the homes of those living in two blocks which are adjacent to the restaurant.

New Ubin Seafood is located on the sixth level of an industrial building at 63 Hillview Avenue. The petition also noted the residents’ complaints about the noise from diners.

The MC called for residents to sign the petition to get the restaurant to take follow-up action and said if the issues are not addressed, the value of their property may be affected.

In response to media queries, the NEA confirmed that three residents had complained to it about the smell and noise from the restaurant after it moved from Sin Ming Industrial Estate to the Lam Soon Industrial Building canteen in November.

Following the complaints, the NEA said improvement works were carried out after it conducted an inspection in December.

Ms Joline Lim, 32, a manager at New Ubin Seafood, said that on top of installing exhaust filters, it has put up deodorising UV lamps and attempted to identify and reduce the use of cooking methods that contributed to the fumes and smells.

Further inspections in late February and earlier this month found that the exhaust system was “functioning well”. NEA said the restaurant is complying with regulations for the use of the premises.

Earlier this month, Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Low Yen Ling facilitated a dialogue session that involved New Ubin’s operators as well as the condo management.

She told The Straits Times that both parties are working “amicably” towards resolving the concerns raised.

“The meeting ended on a conciliatory note as all parties agreed to allow for the (mitigating) measures to take effect and to keep communication open between all parties,” added Ms Low.

Several residents, particularly those who live on the lower floors next to the restaurant, told The Straits Times on Monday that they still faced some issues.

South Korean housewife Kim Yeon Jin, 42, said that exhaust smells still waft into her home during lunch time, and in the evenings.

“I can smell it on my clothes, and even now it is still a problem. Something needs to be done,” said Ms Kim, who signed the petition in February.

Another resident in his 60s, who declined to be named, said that noise is less of a problem now.”(The noise) no longer bothers me, but you can still smell the oil and smoke, mostly in the evenings,” he said.

Ms Lim said the restaurant will continue to work with residents to address the concerns about the fumes.

She also said that while the actions taken were not in response to any violation of legislation, it has done so as a matter of goodwill.

“We are trying to be good neighbours and have kept in close contact with the residents. We will constantly check to see if the steps we have taken are effective.”

The NEA said that it is “monitoring the situation closely” and will continue to engage New Ubin about the feedback that it has received.

yuensin@sph.com.sg and melodyz@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Mar 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Over her three decades as a conveyancing lawyer, the late Madam Kwa Geok Choo took a close interest in nurturing young lawyers, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said yesterday.

But while she had one eye on developing talent, she also recognised the importance of work-life balance, even in the early 1980s.

She paid special attention to the female lawyers in her firm.

“In the early 1980s, when a 51/2-day work week was the norm, she declared a five-day week for all married female lawyers in her firm,” he said, adding that Madam Kwa believed a happy family was a priority for all working mothers.

Mr Lee shared these anecdotes about his mother in his speech at the official opening of the Singapore Management University’s new law school building, which features a dome-shaped law library named in her memory.

Mr Lee also said Madam Kwa kept a small personal library in her office that included a “dog-eared green hardcover book brought back from her student days in Cambridge”.

The book, Law Property In Land by Henry Gibson Rivington, was her “constant companion”, and on her desk was a copy of the Estate Duty Act for advising clients in structuring trusts and wills.

To keep abreast of new legislation at a time when statutes were not yet available online, she had a complete set of all the ordinances, which she physically updated.

“She flagged the relevant pages with bookmarks that she made herself, out of old Christmas cards, because these were ancient times, even before Post-its and sticky notes existed,” Mr Lee said.

When amendments were passed, the Bills would arrive by mail and she would “literally cut and paste them into her set”, he said.

Given her dedication to her profession, Mr Lee said his mother would have been proud to have a law library named after her.

Adding that he first saw the completed law library on a walk at Fort Canning Park one night, he said: “The lighted dome glowed like a jewel in the dark – the architects have done a brilliant job.”

nghuiwen@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Mar 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Singapore’s law schools need to produce lawyers who are prepared for the demands of a new working environment marked by disruption and new technologies, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said yesterday.

Speaking at the official opening of the Singapore Management University’s (SMU) new law school building, Mr Lee said the way law is being practised will change in the future, and more cross-disciplinary learning should be encouraged.

He said the Government will be supporting the bigger law firms to venture into new areas of legal practice while helping the smaller ones raise their productivity and deliver better services to clients.

Mr Lee said the SMU School of Law, Singapore’s second law school, was set up in 2007 not just to increase the number of law graduates. “We wanted a law school that would provide a rigorous legal education, coupled with exposure to other disciplines, such as business, economics, accountancy, social sciences or information systems.”

He added: “We hoped that the graduates will be more versatile, able to apply their knowledge of the law in many different fields, and to contribute to our economy.”

He was speaking to some 800 guests at the school’s function hall, where future convocation and commencement ceremonies can now be held in-house for up to 1,400 people.

Mr Lee later toured the new 23,000 sq m School of Law building, located at the junction of Armenian Street and Stamford Road. The building was completed last December at a cost of $165 million.

Previously, law students and faculty members shared facilities across the road with SMU’s accountancy and business schools.

The building features the Kwa Geok Choo Law Library. Madam Kwa, a lawyer, was one of the founders of Lee & Lee, one of Singapore’s oldest firms. Madam Kwa, who died in 2010, is PM Lee’s mother.

SMU chairman Ho Kwon Ping, in his speech, said the 2,200 sq m Kwa Geok Choo Law Library will be “at the heart of legal education and scholarship in Singapore”.

He added: “Universities around the world are known for their iconic libraries, and this one is strategically placed at the high point of the site next to Stamford Green.”

The three-storey library, which can seat more than 500 people, will focus on developing special collections in commercial law, dispute resolution and Asean law, among other areas.

Mr Ho also said students can now better prepare for law competitions with the new David Marshall Moot Court, which simulates a courtroom or arbitration chamber.

Said third-year law student Shriram Jayakumar, 24: “Now with the proper infrastructure in place, more students will be motivated to go further, knowing that the school is behind us.”

Mr Jayakumar is part of a five-man team from SMU which will be representing Singapore at the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition in Washington next month.

In addition, a new pro bono centre in the law school will allow legal clinics conducted by volunteer lawyers and assisted by SMU law undergraduates to be held weekly.

Previously, legal clinics were held fortnightly at the school’s administration building.

SMU’s law school dean Yeo Tiong Min said that the centre “sensitises law students to social justice issues” and allows them to “appreciate and integrate academic work with real-life experience”.

WHAT’S AT SMU’S NEW LAW SCHOOL BUILDING

KEY FACTS

• Spans 23,000 sq m across five storeys and two basement levels

• Completed in December 2016 after 2 1/2 years of construction

KWA GEOK CHOO LAW LIBRARY

• SMU’s second library, after the Li Ka Shing Library

• Spans 2,200 sq m across three storeys

• Unique dome-shaped design, with a seating capacity of more than 500

• Able to hold 50,000 print volumes, including books and law journals

DAVID MARSHALL MOOT COURT

• Singapore’s first open-concept moot court

• Features flexible furniture and movable walls, and state-of-the-art technology

OTHER FACILITIES

• SMU Pro Bono Centre

• 16 tiered seminar rooms

• 40 project rooms

• 24-hour study spaces

Ng Huiwen

$165m

Cost of the SMU School of Law building.

nghuiwen@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Mar 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.