KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 14 — It is mandatory for children who reach six years old to be provided with primary education, from Standard One to Six, and parents who fail to adhere to this will be subjected to action under Section 29A of the Education Act 1996.
The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia's (Suhakam) Office of the Children's Commissioner (OCC) principal assistant secretary Izyan Hazwani Ahmad said parents who send their children to charity homes at a young age can not only be prosecuted under the Act, and can also be punished under the Child Act 2001.
"Section 31 of the Child Act 2001 provides that neglect involving failure to send children to school may result in heavier penalties.
“However, it is difficult to bring these cases to court because of the poverty dilemma, but if there is clearly an element of neglect, the parents can be convicted,” she told Bernama.
On Wednesday (September 11), the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department raided 20 charity homes in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, rescuing 402 individuals, aged one to 17, who were believed to have been exploited by a company under the guise of children and religion.
According to the investigation, the residents of the charity home, who are third and fourth-generation residents, did not receive a formal education, but instead only studied at the charity home, which is an offence.
Yayasan Chow Kit co-founder Datuk Hartini Zainudin said some parents are unaware of the importance of mainstream education and view charity homes as a sufficient alternative.
“The results of a study found 80 per cent of children sent to charity homes are not orphans, but come from families experiencing economic, social, and security problems,” she said.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Council for Child Welfare president Datuk Raj Karim said the action of parents who send their children to charity homes without the supervision of relatives or parents for a long period is irresponsible.
In the meantime, trader Rohaizan Ismail, 45, said he was not willing to send his children to a charity home as they were still young and needed parental love.
Food deliveryman Abdul Muiz Abdullah also voiced the opinion that parents needed to bond with their young children in the early years.
Meanwhile, in the latest investigation, police found 59 children, including 10 persons with disabilities and autism, who have been handed over to the Social Welfare Department to be temporarily housed in shelters in Bukit Beruntung, Cheras, and Seremban.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said several victims had been separated from their parents since they were two years old and had not met their parents, who were abroad, including in Saudi Arabia and Turkiye, for years at the company's behest.
— Bernama
