NUS to hold townhall meeting on sexual misconduct on campus, following student complaint

NUS to hold townhall meeting on sexual misconduct on campus, following student complaint
The townhall comes amid the controversy involving NUS undergraduate Monica Baey who was filmed by a man while showering at student residence Eusoff Hall.
PHOTO: Instagram/MonicaBaey

SINGAPORE - The National University of Singapore (NUS) is organising a townhall meeting on Thursday (April 25) to gather feedback and concerns on sexual misconduct on campus and discuss how to improve its disciplinary and support mechanisms.

In an internal circular sent to students, faculty and staff on Monday and seen by The Straits Times, Associate Professor Peter Pang, NUS dean of students, said: "We will also share with you NUS' investigation and disciplinary procedures, and the sanctions framework for sexual misconduct."

The townhall will take place on Thursday evening from 5pm to 6pm at the University Town and will be facilitated by Professor Florence Ling, vice-provost of student life.

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This comes after members of the public and students called for harsher punishment against a man who filmed undergraduate Monica Baey in a shower at student residence Eusoff Hall last November.

Ms Baey, a third-year NUS communications and new media undergraduate, took to her Instagram account last Thursday and Friday to share that she had noticed an iPhone being held underneath the door after she finished showering at the hall on Nov 25 last year.

The 23-year-old expressed her frustration that the university had not done more against the perpetrator, who she revealed on her Instagram account to be a chemical engineering student.

According to Ms Baey, the university had asked the perpetrator to write an apology letter to her and undergo mandatory counselling. He was also banned from entering Eusoff Hall and suspended from school for a semester.

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NUS, in a statement last Saturday, confirmed that the case was investigated by the police and the man was given a 12-month conditional warning by the authorities.

The university also said that it will convene a committee to review its disciplinary and support frameworks. The committee, it added, will study the approaches taken by other international institutions, solicit views from various stakeholders, and share its findings and follow-up actions in the new academic year, which begins in August.

On Sunday, Ms Baey and close to 500 other students also signed another petition addressed to several heads of the university, calling for more clarity on the members of the committee.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.

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