In the past week, two young children drowned – in buckets of water while in their own bathrooms. In fact, according to newspaper reports, more than 30 people have drowned since January, and most were toddlers or teens.
CHILDREN are drowning. The numbers are alarming. Yet, we’ve done nothing.
No signs. No lifeguards. No warning flags. No safety equipment. No education about never leaving young children without adult supervision in the presence of water.
Every year, it’s estimated that some 700 Malaysians drown, according to the Life Saving Society Malaysia. And almost half of the victims are children.
Society president Lim Chien Cheng says the staggering numbers are scary – yet no one seems to be bothered.
“When you text while driving, you’ll get into an accident. It’s common sense. Similarly, if you don’t give a child your full attention, accidents happen,” he says.
He fears that apathy will lead to more lives lost. And that’s a great pity, he says, because every drowning is preventable.
“We call drowning an accident but it’s actually avoidable.
“Negligence. Putting profits ahead of safety in the case of water theme parks. Failing to take preventive measures. These are just some of the reasons why drownings happen so often.
“More children will die if we go on like this,” he warns.
For the last five years, the Life Saving Society and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have been pushing hard for the Government to set up a National Water Safety Council (NWSC).
Now, finally, there is a little light at the end of the tunnel.
Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan says the proposal for the water safety council is “definitely moving” and will be raised at the next post-Cabinet meeting.
Drownings are on the rise and he is concerned, he says at a recent interview.
“That’s why I’ve initiated high-level meetings between my ministry and the NGOs. Let me pick it up from there.
“We can head the secretariat but it can’t be handled by my ministry alone as there are jurisdictional issues,” he says, explaining that his ministry only covers certain areas, while other ministries and state governments would be responsible for different areas – “What if the victim drowns at a waterfall, a tourist spot, for example?
“But I will help. The plan for a NWSC is moving,” he assures.
Abdul Rahman met with Lim and NIOSH chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye last year to discuss the proposal.
“The eight boys who drowned in Sungai Muar (Johor) last February should have been the last straw,” says Lee, sounding upset.
“That river was used for sand mining yet there was no signage. Nobody knew how dangerous it was to swim there.”
The call for a water safety council was triggered by the drowning of seven dragon boat rowers in Penang in 2010, Lim recalls.
Since then, the Life Saving Society – which was formed in 1964 to train young Malaysians in aquatic lifesaving activities – has campaigned hard for the council’s formation.
Individual volunteer organisations are limited in what they can do, says Lim, explaining why a national-level council is needed.
When formed, the council will gather nationwide statistics, establish a network for collaboration between the Government and NGOs, formulate national water safety standards, advise state government agencies on how to make water activities safer, and ensure efficient and effective emergency response and rescue operations.
“Currently, we have different bodies like the police, fire and rescue departments, and the Health Ministry collecting different data. So the figures vary. To produce effective policies, we must have reliable data on where and why people drown, and who the victims are,” says Lim.
The council should comprise representatives from the various ministries, including Youth and Sports, Education, Health, Tourism, Works, and Women, Family and Community Development;the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, Civil Defence Department, and relevant NGOs; this is because without a coordinated framework, even something as basic as putting up water safety signage is tough.
Whether you are in the United States or Australia, whether you are driving on the left or right side of the road, you know the speed limit – “Similarly, we need to put up standardised, internationally-recognised water safety signage, and teach everybody what the signs mean.
“But to put them up in public places like the beach, we need local council permission. To teach the meanings of the signs in schools, we need the Education Ministry,” Lim points out.
Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations senior vice-president K. Koris Atan says the council must have “bite”. Enforcement, he says, is crucial.
“Without the force of the law, Malaysians just aren’t bothered. But with a national water safety council in place, we will have to change our ‘tidak apa’ attitude or pay the price,” he says.
He is hoping that the council will be ready in time for the World Conference on Drowning Prevention. This year, Malaysia is hosting the international conference in Penang from Nov 4 to 6.
Lim, who is the event’s local organising chairman, says over 500 drowning prevention experts from more than 50 countries will be on the island to raise awareness and develop solutions to the global problem of drowning.
The conference is convened by the International Life Saving Federation and its partners, including the World Health Organisation (WHO), once every two years. This will be the global drowning prevention community’s first gathering since the WHO published its inaugural drowning report in November last year (see extracts from the report in the graphic above).
With a population of 28 million, Malaysia has been recording about 700 drowning deaths yearly in the last decade, as Lim mentioned above.
In contrast, Australia, with the same population and a much longer coastline, recorded only 200 deaths by drowning a year, he says.
There are valuable lessons we can learn from Australia, Dhaka, and Japan, he feels:
> In Dhaka, Bangladesh, there were 18,000 drownings in 2005; intervention by the international community, which provided expert views and assistance, has substantially reduced that figure since.
> In Japan, kids learn to swim fully clothed because the chances of someone drowning in their swimwear is slim.
And, insists Lim, saving lives costs little: In Kenya, for example, empty plastic bottles are used to make flotation devices that are left near the water to help save lives – and no one will steal them.
“We can get the private sector to sponsor signage. We can use recycled materials to make life-saving equipment. It doesn’t cost a lot to get things going.”
Certainly, not doing anything will cost so much more, in precious lives.
Tragic roll call
These are the drownings reported in The Star since January this year – the actual number is probably higher, say NGOs.
Related stories:
Already a subscriber? Log in
Get 20% OFF The Star Digital Access
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Unlimited access with perks.
