SHE is 17 years old and too young to buy restricted VCDs.

Just to make it clear to the employees at the shops we visited that she was underaged, we asked her to wear what was clearly a secondary school uniform.

Despite this, out of seven video distributors, only one told her she was too young to buy M18, or Mature 18, VCDs.

These can only be sold to those who are 18 years and older.

We carried out the experiment after we received several reports about how easy it is for underaged teens to buy M18 VCDs.

We conducted our checks in central Singapore on 7 Apr.

Our undercover schoolgirl would choose VCDs with a yellow M18 sticker shown clearly on the cover. She would then take it to the counter to see if she is allowed to purchase the item.

To our surprise, only one of the seven distributors disallowed the purchase. The rest went right ahead and processed the item, despite the prominent yellow triangular sticker on the VCD cover, proclaiming the film's mature content.

When our schoolgirl told them she did not have enough money to pay, two staff members offered to wait for her to withdraw money from an ATM nearby.

One staff member almost tore the plastic wrapping off after scanning the VCD, and another even recommended the M18 horror musical Sweeney Todd. He had hinted that it was selling out fast, and that she had better hurry before they were all sold out.

None of them asked for proof of the buyer's age.

None of them even seemed to notice the uniform she was wearing.

None, except a Blue Max salesperson.

After the student placed two M18 VCDs on the counter, the salesperson paused and studied her uniform.

He then pointed to the stickers on the cover, and told her apologetically that she could not purchase the videos.

When the student questioned his judgement, he firmly told her she was not allowed to buy them because she was underaged.

ON-JOB TRAINING

The manager of Blue Max, Ms Pauline Teng, explained: 'Blue Max gives on-job training, where the new staff are placed under the mentorship of more senior staff. This way, they are shown the ropes early on, so they know to check a customer's NRIC if they seem to be underaged.'

The 17-year-old who volunteered to go undercover for The New Paper is a JC1 student now, but she was wearing her secondary school uniform when she visited the shops.

She said: 'I found it a bit disappointing that they were all so willing to let me buy the VCDs. And I was happy that I was stopped at Blue Max.'

When the Media Development Authority (MDA) introduced the M18 rating in 2004, the rule received strong public support. A total of 65 per cent had indicated their support in a 2002 censorship survey by MDA.

Since then, young adults have been offered more viewing options. Video distributors also have the opportunity to expand their audience base and reach out to moreviewers.

But the role of regulator falls mainly on the shoulders of video retailers.

A greater onus has been placed on enterprising retailers to maintain self-regulation by applying stricter standards for the sale of M18 videos.

Yet, there still seems to be a problem with enforcement.

The manager of Poh Kim Video, Mr Lim Chee Yong, gave this assurance: 'The new staff may not be aware of this, so they will definitely be informed.'

Times Bookstores attributed what happened to an oversight on the part of their salesperson. To serve as a reminder, Times will display notices to advise the public that the sale of certain materials will be restricted according to MDA guidelines, a spokesman for the retailer said.

Sembawang Music Centre and Carrefour could not be reached for comment. And Borders could not provide a comment by press time.

Parents and teachers contacted by The New Paper expressed disapproval at what appeared to be the stores' failure to follow regulations.

Housewife May Ng, 46, a mother of two boys, said: 'The M18 rating exists because the content of such movies is unsuitable for those under 18. There's no point for such a rating if video stores sell the VCDs to these teenagers.'

Accountant David Tan, 37, a father of three boys, said: 'If the shops sell these VCDs to those under-18, it would only encourage these teenagers to continue watching unsuitable shows. I think more should be done to enforce the ratings.'

Ms Lee Yuan Shan, 27, a teacher, also felt it was not right.

She said: 'Movies are rated M18 because they either have too much violence or sex and are deemed bad influences on young teenagers.

'The stores should say no to these customers if they are in secondary school.'

According to MDA's Senior Assistant Director (Customer & Licensing Services), Mr Tan Chiu Kee, a distributor who breaches any licence conditions may have its licence suspended or revoked and its security deposit forfeited.

Mr Tan stated that MDA conducts periodic checks to ensure that age restrictions are adhered to.

MDA also advocates parental guidance and public education efforts to complement enforcement.

Members of the public are welcome to alert MDA if they encounter instances of the sale of age-restricted videos to under-aged buyers.

Chermaine Goh, newsroom intern with additional reporting by Crystal Chan

This article was first published in The New Paper on Apr 14, 2008.