Should ex-offenders be allowed to represent Singapore in beauty pageants? [Oct Debate of the month]
So we have a new feature – a “debate poll of the month” in which we ask fellow debaters for their opinion on a range of topics – from the ultra-serious issues facing humanity to the more silly things that tickle us in the news. We’ll start a new poll every month (accompanied by a post like this for you to make your short case)
Right now, the hot topic seems to be the question of whether somebody with a criminal background should be allowed to represent Singapore in international pageants. The Ris Low saga has been going on for a while now – if you strip away the noise about her command of English and other personal attacks, the more important philosophical question remains, which is the topic of this debate. On one hand, we are trying to push for a forgiving society with the Yellow Ribbon Project… on the other hand, we need to ensure that the person who represents our country is a role model in every way.
What are your views on this topic, debaters? Cast your vote on the right, and drop a comment below to explain your viewpoint.
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Debate of the Month
- No (60%, 9 Votes)
- Yes (40%, 6 Votes)
Total Voters: 15 | Debate This Topic
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People are voting on the poll so clearly there are some views on this topic – but I need some brave souls to share their opinions here. Come on fellow debaters, who is bold enough to start the discussion?
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Comment byGaurav Keerthi — October 20, 2009 @ 12:19 am
Let me take a stab at it (and I hope it inspires you to provide some good counter-arguments). I voted “No” because:
Beauty pageant winners are seen today as role models, not bimbos. The competitions emphasise that they are looking out for personality, character, charm, intelligence, and a host of other factors in addition to looks. The winner of competitions like Miss Universe go around the world promoting important social causes, and she is touted by the competition as being a “role model” to the young (the contracts require them to travel the world to spread the message of peace, disease control and prevention, education, etc). Role models should be exemplary in every aspect of their character, and respect for the law is one important facet of this. Somebody who has broken the law should not be held up as a role model for young children, even if they have already served their time and been released from prison.
The winner of such competitions tends to be scrutinised harshly by the international audience for even the slightest “problems” (e.g. the Miss California “scandal” with her anti-gay views) or defects. While these “flaws” would be perfectly acceptable in a normal person, the contestants in international pageants are held to much higher standards due to the publicity surrounding the event. As such, any past criminal record would be an embarrassment to the contestant, and thus a negative reflection on Singapore. We should always strive to send the best possible candidate – free of any such potential embarrassments – to international pageants.
This view is clearly in the minority in the poll, so I’m curious – why do some people think it’s fine to have an ex-offender represent Singapore?
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Comment byGaurav Keerthi — October 23, 2009 @ 4:24 pm
Here’s why I would have liked Ris Low to keep her title. The basis for taking away her title seemed to be based in some assumption that Miss Singapore should fully represent Singapore by all aspects of her behavior, character, beauty, etc. I question this assumption.
First, there is no perfect human being. Someone with a cleaner reputation (emphasis on “reputation”) may be a more exemplary person. Or she may be just be better at hiding the skeletons in her closet. It doesn’t seem fair to strip Miss Singapore of her title because her behavior resulted in mistakes of a public nature and are on public record (e.g., breaking the law (public offense) as opposed to, for example, cheating on a boyfriend or verbally abusing a friend (private offense)). I would be shocked if you could find a person who is so “perfect” in character that she could qualify as a role model for all of Singapore.
Also, assuming that a beauty pageant winner is supposed to be a role model, why not have a person who admits wrong and strives to continually improve herself? I would love a role model who can admit her error and improve herself.
If the argument is to take away her title because she has lost credibility to advocate certain social causes, then the counter argument is, again, who else is so perfect that they have the moral authority to advocate for a social cause?
Separately, I note the uproar surrounding the lovely Acehnese woman who was recently named Miss Indonesia. The allegation against her is that she entered the pageant as Miss Aceh, but her appearance (not covering her hair) does not represent Aceh and the conservative Muslim traditions of that region, and therefore, her candidacy brings shame to the Acehnese for her “misrepresentation”. Which brings me back to my original point – are beauty pageants supposed to represent all aspects (culture, traditions, standards of morality, religious beliefs) of their region/country/etc.? What do you do when you’re Miss Universe then?
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Comment byGrace Hsieh Murphy — October 27, 2009 @ 6:04 am
I think this decision should be made on a case by case basis.
However, I think that in this case, Ris Low should not be allowed to. The issue here is not whether she is an ex-offender, but whether she is honest. People {like myself} or not angered because she is an ex-offender, but because she decided to keep it a secret.
She is representing Singapore. She is a role model. What is expected of a role model? A basic value that role models should possess is honesty. Is she honest? No. How so? Because even thought she knew that she was convicted before the pageant, she didn’t declare them. She claims ignorance, but it is a basic awareness that she should declare all offenses before participation. Fine, even if she doesn’t know she was supposed to, didn’t she read the ‘terms and conditions’? I believe so. So, can a person who isn’t honest or doesn’t even bother to make sure that she is aware of what she is supposed to do be allowed to represent Singapore? No, because she has already failed as being a role model.
Although I don’t mean that to be a role model, you have to be perfect, because that is impossible, but I think that a role model should still possess basic values like honesty, courtesy and responsibility, of which most of the other citizens possess. Even though we shouldn’t expect perfection, we should have a certain standard that should be fulfilled and we should expect no less that this standard, because if we do lower our standards and be more accommodating, any one can become then next Miss Singapore. Only the best should deserve this.
You might say that we should treat her like a normal citizen, but answer this: how many citizens actually commit credit card fraud or any other offenses? Out of these offenders, how many actually try to cover up their mistakes? She is not even up to the standard of a ‘normal’ citizen and if we do let her represent us, it would not be a truthful reflection of what Singaporeans really are, and it would not be fair for the ‘normal’ citizens. Yes, Miss Singapore doesn’t have to represent Singapore in all aspects, and we are not requesting her to, but we hope that Singaporeans can be depicted as honest people who admit their mistakes and repent, not dishonest people who try to cover up their mistakes whenever they make one. This would be unjust to all Singaporeans.
Our role model should be one of honesty, regardless of their criminal background.
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Comment by Jia Qi — October 30, 2009 @ 12:06 am
Hey everybody,
Thanks for the comments and opinions expressed thus far. It’s a new month, so we’ll be launching a new Debate of the Month poll and discussion thread.
To encourage more people to leave their comments, the DA(S) will give a prize (we’re still deciding what to put in the goodie bag) to the best comment of the month. More details in next month’s poll…
Oh, and if you want to see any particular topic being debated, just let us know!
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Comment byGaurav Keerthi — November 1, 2009 @ 5:27 pm