Loot falls into 'media entrapment'

Former prominent Chinese education activist, Loot Ting Yee, 80, who was accused of sexual harassment last December, has fallen into yet another controversy.

China Press yesterday frontpaged that a female reporter from monthly magazine Feminine was sexually harassed by Loot during an interview about the first incident.

The latest issue of Feminine was out yesterday and carried more detailed reports on the incident.

Loot’s son Loke Hwa Chong has condemned the report, saying it goes against media ethics.

He stressed that the report was “not consistent with the facts, out of context and was misleading readers”. He also claimed that the interview itself was an entrapment.

Loke claimed that the journalists lied about their identities and never told Loot that it was an interview.

Instead, one of the female reporters told Loot that she was an alumnus from a school where Loot has served, and that she came for a friendly visit.

“When they met, the reporter brought along three other people (two males and one female), claiming that they are her friends, and the two males were in the computer trade.

Family sought treatment for Loot

“They never stated their identities as reporters, and no one took notes during the interview. When they took the photos, they told him (Loot) that it was just for souvenir purposes.”

Loke said that Loot has cut himself off from formal activities as he had earlier promised and family members have sought doctor's advice and seeking proper medical treatment for him.

On Dec 21, Loot announced his resignation from all his posts following a sexual harassment allegation against him by a girl. The alleged victim had made the claim on her blog.

Meanwhile, Feminine today issued a statement on the incident.

It insisted that they went with good faith, to give Loot a chance to speak on the previous sexual harassment allegation, but Loot instead harassed its reporter.

Since the harassment of its reporter happened, the magazine insisted that it has the duty to tell the truth.

On the allegation that the group did not reveal their true identities, Feminine explained that it was a miscommunication, as people always called Loot as “Teacher Loot”.

However, only China Press carried the magazine’s statement, while other Chinese newspapers did not.

Practising sensational journalism

Chinese-base media watchdog Writer Alliance for Media Independence (Wami) and 28 NGOs today jointly condemned China Press and Feminine magazine.

These organisations see the China Press news as latent marketing promotions for Feminine, since both publications come under the parent company, Media Chinese International Ltd.

They also criticise Feminine for practising sensational journalism for economic benefits and putting its journalists at risk.

“We think the media can investigate things that happened, but it should not use illegitimate means, actively creating an incident or setting a trap, leading an interviewee into criminal acts, and widely reporting on what happened. It seriously goes against journalistic ethics,” Wami and the NGOs said.

They also questioned Feminine’s motive and decision in sending a female journalist to do the interview when they clearly know that Loot was accused of sexual harassment earlier.

The fact that the involved female reporter did not leave the scene immediately, allowed herself to be “kissed” three times, and the fact that the photographer who took the pictures did not intervene were questioned too.

These 29 organisations have demanded an apology from both China Press and Feminine for violation of journalistic ethics.

Loot was the vice-president of Jiao Zong from 1965 to May 2006. He has also focused efforts on leading the LLG Cultural Development Centre, for which he was president since 1996. He gave up the post in June this year.