Not just books: Yale-NUS students told to destroy DVDs before graduation, sparking outcry over loss of cultural materials

Malay Mail

4 days ago

SINGAPORE, May 29 – Singapore's Yale-NUS College student workers were reportedly instructed to deliberately destroy library DVDs with penknives shortly before the college's final cohort graduated, raising concerns among students and faculty about the handling of cultural materials.
CNA reported two student associates saying they had not been informed in advance and were surprised when directed by library staff to scratch the discs during their shifts.
'I didn't feel comfortable doing so ... But the library staff told me to help her still as they were running short of time,' one student, who used the pseudonym Janet, reportedly said.
Janet estimated she damaged between 80 and 100 DVDs, mostly international films, including titles from the prestigious Criterion Collection.
'It didn't feel right to destroy DVDs that were still in good condition,' she added.
Another student, using the name Ben, said he was told the DVDs were being destroyed 'for security reasons'. He also scratched multiple discs before they were bagged and thrown away with their cases.
The DVD disposal occurred as Yale-NUS prepared its campus for renovation and the upcoming relocation of the National University of Singapore's (NUS) law faculty and library.
NUS University Librarian Associate Professor Natalie Pang said the disposal was guided by copyright restrictions.
'Audiovisual materials are governed by licensing and copyright regulations, which restrict redistribution,' she reportedly said, adding that DVDs which could not be rehomed were destroyed.
The university did not disclose the total number of DVDs that were discarded.
The incident follows recent controversy over the disposal of 500 library books due to an 'operational lapse'.
The books were among 9,000 originally marked for disposal, though 8,500 were later recovered and offered to students.