‘Famous for the wrong reasons’:  Man who assaulted uncle at East Coast hawker centre makes the news worldwide

SINGAPORE: One of the biggest stories over the weekend was that of a confrontation between a man and a 73-year-old uncle at a coffee shop on East Coast Road, where the younger man forcibly pushed the older one to the ground. 

After the incident occurred, the uncle’s family posted a video on Facebook on Aug 15 asking for help with identifying the man.

While it’s unsurprising that the incident was widely reported on in Singapore, the story broke boundaries and made the news in other areas, including the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, and Malaysia.

The uncle, who has been identified as Yeo Song Khoon, has received an outpouring of support from Singaporeans, especially after his family said that he had previous leg and hip injuries and that he experienced “severe back pain” after the assault occurred.

Mr Yeo went for a check-up on Monday and his family’s stall, Bei-Ing Wanton Noodle, is temporarily closed and will re-open on Aug 20 (Thursday), his son, Ray Yeo, said in a social media post.

The Singapore Police Force, meanwhile, wrote in a social media post on Aug 16 saying that the 40-year-old man who had pushed Mr Yeo had been identified and that investigations are ongoing.

“Members of the public are advised not to speculate on the incident or its circumstances, and to allow the Police to conduct investigations and establish the facts of the case,” SPF added.

Worldwide coverage

Part of the reason why the incident made the news outside of Singapore is that the man who assaulted Mr Yeo reportedly identified himself as Australian to the uncle.

“He said he was from Australia, because I said my noodles are from the UK, US, and Australia,” Mr Yeo told the media.

While stories in the BBC, Australia’s Nine network, and the Saudi Gazette presented the facts of the incident, the South China Morning Post reported that the assault had sparked a debate along generational lines. 

Though commenters agreed that the younger man had overreacted when Mr Yeo patted the man’s young daughter’s head as he passed by the table where she and her mother sat, many netizens from younger generations said that boundaries when it comes to children are important, and touching them without consent, especially when strangers do it, is not welcome.

Many older Singaporeans have said, however, that head pats from uncles and aunties are not uncommon, and are harmless displays of affection.

What Singaporeans are saying

On Reddit, some commenters were shaking their heads at the widespread reporting of the incident, expressing surprise that local “dirty laundry” spread beyond Singapore.

“This guy will be very famous for the wrong reasons,” wrote one.

Others claimed that media outlets in the Philippines, China, and even Russia had also carried reports on the incident.

“You can check out Google News. It’s not just the BBC. We are going worldwide, baby,” a Redditor noted. 

Another put it this way: “Honestly, I feel it’s also because Uncle Yeo is a familiar face to many Singaporeans, especially the Easties who grew up eating his wanton mee. They know his character and personality. To many of us, it felt like our own grandad was assaulted. To others, they will think of their own granddads regardless.”

A Reddit user called the hawker a “really nice elderly chap,” and added, “Hope he recovers well.” /TISG

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