Huang Yi’s quote about being a single mum sparks debate online

It was shocking to discover that Chinese actress Huang Yi alleged that her ex-husband was abusive. The ex-husband, businessman Huang Yiqing, denied the allegations, but the 43-year-old actress said he not only hit her but also installed CCTV cameras all over their house to keep an eye on her when they were still married.

The actress has full custody of their eight-year-old daughter and has been doing well after the divorce. Her company is successful. She shared in an interview that she makes S$20 million a year from selling cakes. Huang Yi is also the boss of her own entertainment agency.

Despite her post-divorce success, there are some netizens who think that the actress should “settle down quickly” as “she needs a man as the head of the family”.

Huang Yi propelled to stardom in 2003 when she starred as Xiaoyanzi (the role was originally played by Vicki Zhao) in My Fair Princess III.

Huang Yi opened about her life in a recent episode of the talk show Working Mom, reported 8days.sg.

“It would be great if you can have a husband at home, but I’ve never been sad because of the lack of a male figure in our lives. I can take on the role of both parents, and there’s nobody to disagree with my parenting methods, so being a single mum feels really good,” she said.

Her words sparked an online debate and some netizens disagreed with her.

One self-professed single mother wrote: “I can’t say that she’s entirely wrong, but as someone who struggles to put food on the table, it would definitely be better if my child’s father was here to share the financial burden of bringing a kid up.”

However, the vast majority of netizens applauded Huang Yi for her determination to bring her daughter up on her own.

One said: “Raising a child with both parents around can be a struggle in itself, but I also can’t imagine doing it on my own. Rather than criticise her for going against traditional beliefs, I think we should give her credit for proving that women can be strong and independent on their own.”/TISG