A BABYSITTER at a childcare centre in Bandar Permaisuri, Cheras has been arrested for allegedly abusing a two-year-old girl in her care.
This was reported in the Majoriti news portal which shared two short video clips, one from Facebook, that allegedly show the 28-year-old woman abusing the child, including shoving the child’s face onto the floor.
The victim’s mother had apparently posted the videos on her Facebook (now deleted) after she noticed bruises on her child’s body. The childcare centre had claimed that it was the result of an accidental fall and the girl’s parents sought CCTV footage to confirm this story.
After several delays, they managed to get their hands on the video clips that showed the alleged instances of abuse, where their child was pinched and had her head slammed into the floor.
“I’m upset because the other staff just look at it as if it is a common occurrence,” the mother was quoted as saying by news portal New Straits Times.
Cheras district police chief Assistant Commissioner Zam Halim Jamaluddin said the woman was arrested by a team from Bukit Aman’s Sexual, Women, and Child Investigation Division (D11). She is being investigated under Section 31(1)(a) Child Act 2001, after the victim’s father lodged a police report on Monday (Sept 4)
Child abuse cases always cause uproar among netizens, understandably so as they touch a raw nerve. As a society, we should always be sensitive to the plight of those who cannot defend themselves, as is the case here.
This case again highlighted a worry among many working parents who have to rely on such childcare centres to allow them to earn a living. Isn’t it high time that the authorities put in place stricter requirements for these types of businesses as well as greater scrutiny on carers?
It is certainly not too much to ask that a higher benchmark be set for those operating childcare centres. They have been entrusted with a very important job that requires the highest levels of care and responsibility.
There have been enough incidences of abuse, and while it is acknowledged that it is a tremendously tough job, there is no excuse for Malaysian society to allow such cases to continue appearing in our news feeds. – Sept 7, 2023
