2007 03: Where is the compassion for a traumatised teen?

The Star online. News. Central. Saturday March 3, 2007

Comment by K.W. MAK

THE policewoman was apparently harsh and abusive in the way she investigated the case of a 13-year-old student who claimed that a coach had molested her at a swimming pool.

“Do you know where the person lives?” the officer is said to have asked.

When the reply was a simple “no’’, the officer apparently shot back angrily: “How am I supposed to arrest the person if you don’t know where he lives?”

The victim’s older sister told me that she had a tough time protecting the young girl from more trauma. The older girl was at a loss as to what to do.

She said the officer did not brief them on the investigations procedure, but that after a few more questions, the latter called the school and gave instructions for the coach to report to the police station.

Upon hearing this, the victim apparently shrank back in fear and cried while the older sister protested the move, asking for the “confrontation’’ to be called off.

Because this was denied the siblings sought my advice.

I went to the police station and saw that the older sister looked frustrated, and the younger one, bewildered.

Not knowing the proper procedures myself, I decided to remain calm and quiet, urging the older sister to do the same – advice I received from my friends.

We tried to negotiate for a one-way mirror identification, but instead got scolded by the officer for suggesting it.

“Don’t you know we have nothing against this man?’’ the officer told the younger sister.

“You have no marks on you, no traces of semen and all that. If he doesn’t admit to the crime, we cannot detain him.

“We need him to see you so he will know you are the victim and not some other victim that he could have molested.

“And if you don’t identify him, he could turn around and sue you and sue me!”

As I continued advising the older sister, we heard the officer complaining loudly to her colleagues that “the case would not hold in court because the girl was uncooperative.’’

Then we heard her say: “How? This is the son of Datuk (followed by a name that we could not catch) and he has filed a report saying this is all slander.”

I told the older sister to ask the officer to call the coach and set a time for the meeting.

We waited for about two hours and the younger sister was getting tired and restless.

Meanwhile, the officer then handed a report that she had written to the sisters, suggesting that they both read and sign it.

This done, we left the room and decided to wait outside. I took the opportunity to seek legal advice from my friends.

We were told to wait a little longer as the coach was on his way to the station.

However, half an hour later we were told to go home as the coach might not come at all.

He was apparently making conflicting statements about his whereabouts.

The ordeal lasted some three hours for me, but for the sisters, it was much longer.

The siblings had first lodged a police report at 1pm at the Bandar Sunway police station before they were instructed to see an investigating officer at the Subang Jaya district police headquarters at 3.30pm.

What angers me is the way the police officer conducted the entire investigation.

The 13-year-old’s feelings were not taken into account.

I am not trying to determine whether a crime has been committed, but child protection laws state that a child’s interests must come first.

And yet, here’s a case where I witnessed that even the people concerned with supporting her do not seem to be aware of this.

..................................................

Victim-protection a must in child abuse cases
The Star online. News. Opinion. Sunday March 4, 2007

I must say that I was depressed after reading the report in yesterday's Star Metro headlined “Where is the compassion for a traumatised teen?” of the ordeal of a 13-year-old child victim of abuse.

To think that our country has come a long way in terms of progress and development and that economically the country is doing well.

Yet our handling of victims is so backward and pathetic.

After all these years and millions spent on The Victim Support programme, we can't even get past reporting the matter. Then what's the use of having all the good-sounding programmes when it is utterly useless in our present day system.

It plainly shows how much our authorities are lacking in the knowledge where it concerns the handling of a victim of abuse professionally

According to the report it concerns a girl of 13 years of age. She immediately comes under the provision and protection as provided for in the Child Act 2001.

Section 18 of the Act says that “The Protector,” in this case the police officer, is duty-bound to provide such protection to the victim. Therefore the first reaction is to protect rather then cast doubt or make statements.

The Act makes it compulsory for the mandatory investigation of the alleged abuse.
I am drawn to conclude that persons concerned are not aware of the requirement or simply cannot be bothered. Now why is this?

Why then have such a wonderfully drawn up Child Act when we can't even apply the requirements? Are we not in breach of the provision for which legal action must be taken to address the issue?

Time and again we have been told that when it comes to a victim of child abuse the best interest of the child is paramount.

This means being sensitive to the trauma the child is experiencing and not just being interested in merely disposing of the case.

The present case is just the tip of the iceberg.

How long more are we going to have this form of unprofessional handling of victims who cry for help?

James Nayagam,
Executive Director,
Shelter Home.

...........................................

When the police ignore due process
The Star online. News. Central. Monday March 5, 2007

By K.W. MAK

THE Child Act 2001 was legislated to protect the rights of a child; that no one should violate it. Yet, due process was not followed in the case of a 13-year-old girl who tried to make a police report after alleging that her swimming instructor molested her at a swimming pool.

The policewoman who handled the girl’s report (reported in StarMetro on March 3) was apparently harsh and did not brief the girl, and her older sister who accompanied her, on the investigation procedures.

”When a child is molested, there is already initial trauma and shock. Hence, the interview process must be sensitively carried out,” said Shelter Home for Children executive director James Nayagam.

The child will then have to identify the person responsible for the alleged abuse, relate everything that has happened and undergo physical and psychological medical examination.
The Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect (SCAN) team at the hospital should have a psychiatrist, a paediatrician and a social worker to prepare a report on the child while a police officer prepares a police report to be presented to the director of public prosecution (DPP).

“The team comes around and forms a protective wall around the child so that the child’s testimony may be preserved.

“Evidence should be recorded by a video interview in a separate room to ensure the child’s confidentiality and that her testimony is taken down without prejudice.

“If not properly done, the way an investigation is handled, may further traumatise an already traumatised child,” said Nayagam, a trained counsellor who has been handling child abuse and neglect cases for the past 25 years.

“It is not for anyone but the courts to decide whether the testimony of a child is admissible as evidence and for trial to take place, even for cases where there are no witnesses.

“The officer is duty-bound to investigate and present the findings to the DPP and let them decide on the case,” he said. However, the steps mentioned were not practised.

Nayagam said he had witnessed countless times untrained police officers interviewing child victims in an environment that did not shield the child from further trauma.

Eventually, these investigations went no further because of the belief that no charges could be brought about without any physical evidence or witnesses, he said.

“Our country has spent millions setting up a witness support scheme for children, but they are useless if I cannot get a police officer to get an investigation going,” said Nayagam.

Former assistant director of the Social Welfare Department, Vijayakumari Pillai, who is still actively involved in child protection work in the Petaling District welfare committee, said the older sister did the right thing by filing a report with the police.

“The public often don’t want to voice out such cases because they are afraid of a backlash and criticism, but at least the alleged perpetrator would have been called up and knows the police are investigating,” said Pillai.

“Even if there is a lack of evidence, it is not up to the police officer to decide if the case should be investigated.”

Pillai said the Social Welfare Department had been conducting training for the past 20 years and had always included the police because they were part of the system a child had to go through in such cases.

“We give the police training, but they still make the same mistakes and forget their training. The relevant agency should take stock and rectify this,” he added.

..................................................

There are still laws to abide by for now
The Star online. News. Central. Tuesday March 6, 2007

By K.W. MAK

PARLIAMENT has passed a bill to amend the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) where a child’s statement has to be recorded by video camera and that the recording can be used as evidence in court.

Despite the amendment, the requirement is not enforced because it has not been gazetted, a process that may take some time.

Women, Family and Community Development Ministry parliamentary secretary Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun said this did not mean that there were insufficient laws at present when handling juvenile cases by the police.

“Under the CPC, when a child files a report of sexual abuse, the officer must take the child to the hospital for examination and then conduct the investigation in a separate room,” said Chew.

“When the officer carries out the investigation, she has to take into consideration the feelings of the child. Thus, it is important for the officer to be trained in handling such cases.”

Chew said the ministry was conducting courses for various government departments handling women and children cases to ensure officers were sensitive to the emotional state of the victims, but added that more training was needed.

In the meantime, children and their guardians can call the Social Welfare Department (JKM) for help if they encounter any difficulty in filing police reports. “It is the right of the child, or anyone else for that matter, to file a report,” said Chew.

“You need to make a report not only for your own benefit but to safeguard others too - if anything was to happen to someone else, action could be taken against the culprit because the police would have previous reports to refer to.

“If the victim thinks she is not being treated according to procedure, she can call Teledera at 1800 88 3040 and our officers will provide assistance.

“We have set up a separate unit to handle children’s cases,” she said.

.........................................................

Police to probe reports
The Star online. News. Central. Friday March 9, 2007

WE refer to the two articles published in The Star entitled “Where is the compassion for a traumatised teen?” (March 3) and “When the police ignore due process” (March 5) respectively.

The Subang Jaya Police headquarters will investigate the matter and if the allegations are true, we will not hesitate to take action on the officer concerned.

We will not compromise on any wrongdoing by any officer.

ACP MUHAMMMAD FUAD TALIB
Subang Jaya Chief Police Officer

........................................

Vital to report sexual abuse
The Star online. News. Central. Wednesday March 28, 2007

THE recent reporting of a traumatised teen in the newspaper has shown that there is an increased awareness of the importance of reporting sexual abuse.

The action taken by the older sibling to report a suspected case of molest demonstrates the support a family member can provide to a child who has been through such trauma.

This leads to the importance of looking at the child’s psychological well being after reporting the abuse. Children who have reported an abuse, in general, sometimes feel that they are guilty of putting someone they know into a difficult position.

They may also feel that they have caused a lot of hassle to their own family.

As they go through the whole series of investigation and questioning, they might sometimes even doubt their own feelings.

Family members can help support by reassuring the child that the abuser is at fault and the investigations are necessary to facilitate upcoming trials in court.

And all along, family members have to be sensitive to the child’s feelings of sadness, anger and disappointment.

Let the child take his or her own pace in talking about the abuse and give the child time to sort out his or her feelings and to slowly heal and move on.

Talk about the child’s courage in disclosing the abuse and affirm the act. It will also be worth monitoring the child’s behaviour and feelings - if traumatic experiences are not managed or resolved, it can lead to serious conditions such as depression, anxiety disorders, and personality disorders.

Be aware of the warning signs of these conditions and do seek professional help such as counselling and therapy to support the child in healing.

Lee Kuan Shin
Clinical psychologist