Newspaper Reade
rs’ Forum
An Appeal to Education Workers for Joint Efforts in Promoting Moral Education
20 March 1982
To the Editor: In the recent 30 years, Hong Kong has made great strides in the development of all types of infrastructure, and come to be ranked as one of the modern cities in the world. The only blemish is the problem of law and order. Lately, the crime rate has increased drastically, with robberies, thefts, rapes, homicides, etc., not uncommon. The government authorities have been vigorous in making arrests and subjecting criminals to severe punishments, yet while so much strenuous efforts have been made and the high work demands taking a toil on manpower, crimes have, however, not been wiped out. In addition, the problem of old people being abandoned is getting worse. Presently, there are one thousand elderly being left stranded in Hong Kong hospitals, bringing more problems to the government authorities. Looking ahead, the future of the elder people is inconceivable! Tracing the causes for the aforementioned problems, it can be seen that for the past few decades, culture and education have been devalued, with the majority of people ignoring our culture, tradition, and inherent ethical values, causing the young generations to perceive loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom, trust, honesty as archaic Confucian teachings, and to idolise western culture as being superior. Such unhealthy belief has become the trend; therefore famous ethical teachings have paled into insignificance. Nowadays, the general public accepts what is erroneous as right. The manners and morals of the time have degenerated, with overflowing human desires, punishments being inflicted without first educating people about rights and wrongs. Although there are rigorous measures in place to punish thieves and rapists, plenty of buildings constructed to accommodate the elderly people, but they are ineffective and temporary. It is merely like removing the kettle from the heat to stop water from boiling over. The measures do not address the root of the problems. To get to the fundamental essence of the issue, moral education ought to be promoted. Furthermore, human beings are by nature good. The inclination to be good or evil is due to environmental influences, as ‘What is dyed in blue becomes blue, what is dyed in yellow becomes yellow’, meaning that habits formed at a young age are hard to change, and can even turn into something that seems intrinsic. For primary and secondary schools of the current times, moral education and training, in addition to academic subjects should be provided with commitments, to guide children from the very young to those in their young adulthood. Let children become aware of the responsibilities human beings need to bear, capable of valuing oneself, refraining from going astray or committing crimes, and can furthermore ‘respect the aged both within and outside one’s family’. There is then hope for peace in the society.
The Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, promoted Chinese culture in Singapore. Recently, he promulgated a series of decrees, stipulating that children who did not provide for their parents would be prosecuted; those willing to live with their parents or furthermore, having three generations residing together, would be given priority in the allocation of council housing; school curriculum would be added Confucianism, directing youngsters and students towards filial piety and benevolence. The Prime Minister of Singapore has rightly said, that if people were not providing for their parents, moral traditions would no longer exist, and giving rise to social alienation.
Our Country has morality and ethics deeply rooted for thousands of years, which are unshakable. It is hoped, and with high hopes too, that our peers working in the education sector, would advocate morality, be forerunners in the teaching of Confucian orthodox beliefs, collaborating, doing one’s part, and making contribution to society.
(Translated by the School)
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