PETALING JAYA: The rehabilitation of children rescued from entities linked to Global Ikhwan Service and Business Holdings Sdn Bhd (GISB) will take some time, activists say.
“Firstly, the children are victims of physical and sexual abuse and neglect. They need protection,” said Suriana Welfare Society consultant Dr James Nayagam.
He was commenting on the Social Welfare Department obtaining a two-month temporary custody order from the court under Section 25(2)(a) of the Child Act 2001.
Over 500 children from GISB facilities are under the department’s custody.
Agreeing with the government holding temporary custody of the children, Nayagam said rehabilitation could take more than six months.
“Additionally, they have been subject to psychological conditioning and indoctrination. The children immediately need a safehouse in either government or NGO-run homes,” he said.
Strict measures must be taken to ensure their safety and protection, he added.
Childline Foundation executive director Datin Wong Poai Hong said as the children are being legally protected under court order, it is natural for access to be limited.
“It is the usual protocol for the court to order for children to be placed in the Social Welfare Department’s safehouses.
“This gives the department‘s child protectors time to work with other agencies such as the police, the National Registration Department, Health and Education ministries to locate their parents and/ or other relatives who may be in a position to care for the children,” she said.
Wong said there would be continued monitoring by the department to ensure the children are able to integrate and are safe in their new placements.
“It also provides time to assess the children’s well-being in terms of health, nutrition, and development, which is necessary for their future placement,” she added.
The extra security in the welfare programmes was good, Wong said, adding that all efforts must take into account the best interest of every child in the department’s care.
