KUALA LUMPUR: The rise in the number of missing children and child sexual abuse cases is alarming, says Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye.
The Alliance for a Safe Community's founder and chairman expressed concern that this represents a grave threat to the safety and well-being of children.
"Statistics show that many missing children are at risk of falling victim to exploitation, including human trafficking and sexual abuse," he said in a statement on Monday (Dec 30).
"Parents, guardians and caregivers must be educated about the risks that children face and equipped with knowledge to identify signs of grooming or abuse.
“Community campaigns should emphasise the importance of vigilance in public spaces and online," he said.
Lee said there is also a need to strengthen legislation and enforcement.
"Laws protecting children must be robust and rigorously enforced,” he said, adding that mandatory reporting of such cases should be mandatory.
"Hotlines and digital platforms for anonymous reporting should be promoted.
"There needs to be digital safety and online monitoring as well
"Parents must be educated on how to effectively monitor their children’s online activities," he said.
Lee said it was also necessary to have comprehensive sex education in schools.
"They (schools) should implement age-appropriate sex education programmes that teach children about personal boundaries, recognising inappropriate behaviour and that they can report abuse without fear.
"There also needs to be dedicated task forces and resources to handle these cases,” he said.
He also said that the Federal Government should establish specialised units to handle missing children cases and combat child sex abuse. At the same time, adequate funding must be allocated for shelter homes, counselling services and rehabilitation programmes for victims.
Lee said it was important to foster community participation when it comes to such programmes.
"Neighborhood watch programmes, community patrols and volunteer initiatives can act as a first line of defence in safeguarding children.
"We urge all stakeholders—parents, educators, policymakers, law enforcement and civil society—to come together in creating a safer environment for our children,” he said.
