KUALA
LUMPUR: Since OrphanCare set up a baby hatch in May last year, it has placed 50
children with adoptive parents.
Going by these encouraging results, the
non-governmental organisation will be opening up three more baby hatches in
Johor Baru, Kota Baru and Penang.
The 50 adoptions involved 42 infants and eight
children.
OrphanCare president Tan Sri Faizah Mohd Tahir
said, however, most of the babies and children left at its premises were not
placed in the hatch, but handed over with the proper documents by their
biological mothers. Only two babies were placed inside the baby hatch.
"Unwed mothers have been knocking on our
doors to give up their babies instead of simply leaving them in the hatch and
walking away.
"What is surprising is that they even
come in to talk to us and provide us with the relevant documents such as their
children's birth certificate, doctor's letters, and photocopies of their
identity cards. This makes it so much easier for us with the adoption process.
"We have had cases of mothers who come
back after having given up their babies to check on the welfare of their
offspring and once they are satisfied that the children are in good hands, they
walk away for good, leaving their past behind," said Faizah.
OrphanCare guarantees those who leave their
newborn at the hatch absolute confidentiality.
The NGO launched the country's first baby
hatch with the support of the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry
last year.
The hatch, at Kampung Tunku, Petaling Jaya, is
the branchild of its founding president, the late Datuk Adnan Mohd Tahir.
Mothers or fathers who drop off their babies
at the hatch can walk away without having to answer any questions.
OrphanCare works with the Women, Family and
Community Development Ministry to help match and place abandoned babies with
suitable parents. Currently, there are some 1,000 parents on OrphanCare's
waiting list.
"We have interviewed between 200 and 300
parents so far. The interviews are conducted every Saturday and each weekend we
are only able to speak to five or six couples."
The organisation is planning to open two more
hatches -- in Johor Baru and Kota Baru -- by next year and have begun to look
for suitable sites and get the paperwork going. A third is being planned for
2013 in Penang.
Faizah said they chose to open hatches in
Johor Baru and Kota Baru because many babies were abandoned in the southern
state, and there was a request for one in the east coast.
"Johor has an alarming rate of abandoned
babies and that is why we decided it would be a good place to open a hatch. We
also have many unwed mothers from the east coast who have been turning up at
our doorstep, seeking help and advice from us."
The ministry has given OrphanCare about
RM120,000 for its awareness programmes with national investment arm Khazanah
Nasional Berhad providing another RM50,000 for the baby hatch.
"The awareness programmes are important.
It is because of increased awareness that unwed mothers now know where to go to
if they want to put up their children for adoption. What worries us is the fact
that for every baby that is dropped off at OrphanCare, there are many more that
are being abandoned.
"If all these unwanted babies are dropped
off with us instead, they can be given to couples who will love them
unconditionally."
Malaysia is the first Asean country to set up
a baby hatch.
Countries like Germany, Japan, the United
States, Pakistan and Japan have adopted the baby hatch system as a way to
support mothers who are unable to care for their children.
By Shanti Gunaratnam
shanti@nst.com.my
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