WHY DID THE RIOT HAPPEN??

After the custody of Maria was awarded to the Hertoghs, Maria moved into the convent and the press was not barred from entering the convent grounds. Nor were they restricted in any way in their approach to the incident. On 5 December, the newspaper published on its front page a photograph of Maria standing holding hands with the Reverend Mother. There were more pictures on page 2 as well. The Malay press retorted. On 7 December, they also published three photographs of Maria weeping and being comforted by a nun, as well as articles about Maria's "lonely and miserable" life in the convent.
 The Muslims, who looked upon Maria as one of their own, were deeply offended by such pictures, not to mention the sensational reports, some of which explicitly labelled the case as a religious issue between Islam and Christianity.

The appeal hearing opened on 11 December. Maria stayed at the convent and did not attend. Since early morning, crowds carrying banners and flags gather outside the court. Unbelievably, the court threw out the appeal within five minutes. The brevity of the hearing convinced the gathering that the colonial legal system was biased against Muslims. The riots erupted. Rioting in Singapore lasted till noon on 13 December 1950. In total 18 people were killed and 173 injured. Many properties were also damaged