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A TOTAL of 58 civil society organisations and activists have called for the establishment of an independent Royal Commission of Inquiry to restore confidence in our child protection services.
In a joint statement, the organisations said they supported the call from Dr Farah Nini Dusuki, Children's Commissioner with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) for an RCI to be set up.
“The ongoing child sexual abuse scandal has shocked the nation. It has shaken many of us working in child protection under civil society organisations.
“The duration and scale of the abuse by Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings (GISBH) is horrendous and it will take many months to uncover the full scope of the abuse and the possibly thousands of children that have been severely traumatised over decades,” read the statement.
Among the signatories to the statement are Datuk Dr Amar-Singh HSS, consultant paediatrician, child-disability activist; Sharmila Sekaran (Voice of the Children); CRIB Foundation (Child Rights Innovation & Betterment); The Talisman Project; Yayasan Chow Kit; Malaysian Association of Social Workers; Association of Women Lawyers (AWL) and Women's Centre for Change, Penang (WCC).
“Of serious concern is the lack of oversight and action by the very agencies that we hoped would be child protectors – the Welfare Department and the police.
“We now hear that such a vast business infrastructure has not even paid taxes, raising concerns about the Inland Revenue Board’s abilities.
“It is as though government agencies have had a decades-long blind spot when it came to GISBH.
“A blind spot that placed thousands of children into a deep dark hell. This may also be true for other organisations in the country,” said the organisations and activists.
They said this child sexual abuse scandal, and other incidents before this, highlight the large deficits in our child protection services.
Although this scandal involves a religious body, the issue is primarily one of child protection and this scandal has shown that they cannot be allowed to continue as is and need a complete overhaul, they added.
They said an RCI should look not just at the disaster involving our services about GISBH but at all aspects of child protection.
“Our child protection services require an independent audit, a transparent assessment of weaknesses and limitations, and suggestions for reform with a workable way forward.
“The RCI should involve civil society and be fully available to the public. Upon completion of the RCI, the findings must be tabled and debated in the next meeting of Parliament, because the care and protection of children must be depoliticised and requires an 'all-of-society' approach.
“The GISBH child sexual abuse scandal is a ‘line in the sand’ and our child protection services cannot continue as they are,” they stressed.
They also appealed to all Members of Parliament to support the RCI and be advocates for the children.
“The government has overlooked the calls for establishing an independent Children's Commission accountable to parliament.
“Creating a Children's Department under the Welfare Department does not address any existing challenges or concerns.
“Essentially, this is merely a rebranding of an inadequate and inefficient service, while children endure hardship.
“We also ask that the Government urgently relook at the Child Commission Bill,”.
They said every space a child is in must be a safe space.
“We must restore public confidence in our child protection agencies. Only an independent Royal Commission of Inquiry with comprehensive reform will do this,” they added. - September 28, 2024