Who will mind the minders?

THE case of Bella, the teenage girl with Down syndrome who is alleged to have been tortured and neglected since 2020, calls attention to the child abuse happening in Malaysia.

Based on reported cases, there are 17 children abused daily on average in the country. That is just the tip of the iceberg. Abuse cases in care facilities are more likely to go unreported, and this includes children attending unregistered and unregulated religious schools in many parts of the country.