Owner's ex-wife criticises rush to make statements

The ex-wife of disgraced BooksActually owner Kenny Leck has spoken out for the first time since a viral expose on his alleged misconduct upended Singapore's literary scene.

In a Facebook post yesterday, Ms Renee Ting said she feels that "people are talking around us, but no one is really talking to us".

In the article published by Rice Media last Saturday, Ms Ting and other former employees of the bookstore alleged that Mr Leck had made romantic advances towards young female staff, including while he was married to Ms Ting.

They also described working long hours without breaks and being paid little and, sometimes, late.

Ms Ting, who started working at the shop when she was 19 in 2011 and was in a relationship with Mr Leck for six years, said she drew no salary while they were dating, lived in the shop and had hardly any days off.

Mr Leck has denied the allegations and said he will transfer the shop's ownership and its publishing arm, Math Paper Press, to his five current employees.

Ms Ting wrote in her post: "It has been only six days, and that's hardly enough time for anyone to process something as large, difficult, overwhelming, emotional and heavy as this. Much less me, Slowpoke Antonio."

Slowpoke Antonio is a character from the cartoon Tom And Jerry Kids.

Ms Ting, who has declined to speak to the media, wrote that in the past few days, it seemed that "everyone's first impulse was to rush in, fix, explain, resolve and restore". She criticised the rush to make statements without pausing to ask the women who spoke up how they were doing, what they needed and what would be helpful for them.

She said: "It feels like we finally worked up the courage to tell a friend about something traumatic that happened to us so many years ago, and the friend's first reaction is, 'Oh, s***. How does this affect me?'

"'Where do I stand in all of this? This person and place is so important and has helped me and so many other people. This person is my friend too. How can we help him? How can we help him be better?

"Okay, yes I know you're hurting, but let's not focus on that. How do we move forward? How do we move forward? How do we move forward?'"

She added that many have contacted her to share similar experiences which they are afraid to speak of even privately.

She said: "It has taken a lot for us to trust you with our stories. We ask that you hold them kindly, gently. Be there. Be present. Hold space. Where you fit in all this is important too, yes.

"But if you know someone who is a survivor, someone who has been harmed, please prioritise them. They have carried enough."

Several writers and literary groups have put out statements in the wake of the Rice article, including a joint statement by 38 Math Paper Press authors on Monday and a statement by Singapore Writers Festival director Pooja Nansi on Wednesday.

Ms Nansi, whose latest poetry collection, We Make Spaces Divine, was published by Math Paper Press earlier this year, said on Facebook of Mr Leck: "I do not believe that anyone is transformed through being shunned or through shame. I believe people grow when provided resources and space for help and healing."

She added: "In our hurry to resolve our own discomfort as a community, however, I do not believe that we can afford to resort to boycotts and disavowals. We cannot penalise other writers or the current employees of BooksActually."

In response to queries from The Straits Times, the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (Tafep) said it has not received any complaints against BooksActually, except for one instance of anonymous feedback on Sunday that highlighted the recent online articles with no further information provided.

A Tafep spokesman said it is in touch with the new management team at BooksActually to guide it on workplace fairness policies and practices.

The team said in a Facebook post on Tuesday that it would be taking a break for the rest of the week for the sake of its members' mental well-being.