Kuala Lumpur (The Star/ANN) - The
stories are heart-wrenching and dramatic.
Two children, aged two and six,
are shackled in the bathroom while their father goes off to work. A starving
six-year-old girl, with bruises on her back, cries in anguish for six hours
before neighbours come to her rescue.
These two recent cases in
Penang may bring tears to our eyes and forment anger in our hearts but we must
not be quick to condemn or rush to judgment.
Are these clear-cut cases of
child abuse or do they reflect the bigger issue of how some segments of our
society may have grown desperate in their struggle to work and care for their
children?
The typical Malaysian family
has changed through the years.
Gone are the days when we had
huge families which resulted in an extended family support system that was
simply priceless.
The family support system is
not so readily available because relatives and friends are not always able to
help out, especially if they do not live nearby or if they are in the workforce
themselves.
One just has to look at the
demographics in the Klang Valley and the annual exodus home during the festive
occasions to conclude that the children who grow up in Kuala Lumpur see more of
the domestic helper than their grandparents, uncles and aunts.
Studies have shown that
economic development, modernisation, and rural-urban migration together have
altered family ties and contributed to a more fragmented family structure.
This is further compounded by
the corresponding steady and noticeable decline in the average size of the
family in Malaysia over the same period.
Malaysia, like many developing
and even the developed countries, is not alone in having to deal with the issue
of childcare.
Today, with both parents at
work, non-parental childcare options have not only become a necessity, but have
resulted in a booming business.
Whether we have domestic
helpers at home, or we send our children to daycare centres, the costs involved
can take up a large chunk of the family budget.
It is not easy to find good
care with persons other than relatives, and the cost can be too high,
especially for families with low incomes.
Under such circumstances,
children left home alone may be more prevalent than we care to admit.
With the growing cost of
living, the option to exit from the workforce and being the caregiver is simply
not an option.
Some have lobbied for crches in
the workplace while some have asked for more flexibility in working hours.
But the reality is that in our
relentless pursuit for growth and development, the "soft" issues will
always be given lower priority.
Perhaps the time has come for
us to compassionately provide for increased assistance to parents with
childcare needs. Both the Government and private sector have to play their
roles to target poor, single parents in the workforce.
While there are many active
groups fighting for single mothers, we must also not forget single fathers.
The case in Penang of the two
children shackled in the bathroom may not have happened if the father had had
such assistance.
We are heading towards being a
fully developed, high-income nation but our journey must not only result in us
being materially well-off but emotionally impoverished.
And the care and nurturing of
our children must rank high if what we work so hard for is to have any meaning
for them and the future generations.
Editorial Desk in Kuala
Lumpur/The Star | ANN
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