To Restore Confidence in Child Protection Services We Need a Royal Commission of Inquiry

By Dato’ Dr Amar-Singh HSS
Consultant Paediatrician, Child-Disability Activist.

The ongoing child sexual abuse scandal has shocked the nation. And, it has shaken many of us working in child protection under civil society organisations. The duration and scale of the abuse by Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings (GISBH) is horrendous. It will take many months to uncover the full scope of the abuse and the possibly 1,000s of children that have been severely traumatised over decades. We hope attempts will also be made to identify children who have previously been in their facilities and offer them the support they need.

Of serious concern is the lack of oversight and action by the very agencies that we hoped would be child protectors – the Welfare Department and the Police. We now hear that such a vast business infrastructure has not even paid taxes, raising concerns about the Inland Revenue Board’s abilities. It is as though government agencies have had a decades-long blind spot when it came to GISBH. A blind spot that placed thousands of children into a deep dark hell. This may also be true for other organisations in the country.

This child sexual abuse scandal, and other incidents before this, highlight the large deficits in our child protection services. Although this scandal involves a religious body, the issue is primarily one of child protection. As civil society organisations we have often been expressing our concerns about our weak and inadequate child protection services. This scandal has shown that they cannot be allowed to continue as is and need a complete overhaul.

We support the call from Dr Farah Nini, Children’s Commissioner, SUHAKAM for the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry. Only a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) can restore confidence in our child protection services. Such an RCI should look not just at the disaster involving our services in relation to GISBH but all aspects of child protection. Our child protection services require an independent audit, a transparent assessment of weaknesses and limitations, suggestions for reform with a workable way forward. The RCI should involve civil society and be fully available to the public. Upon completion of the RCI, the findings must be tabled and debated in the next meeting of Parliament, because the care and protection of children must be depoliticised and requires an ‘all-of-society’ approach.

The GISBH child sexual abuse scandal is a ‘line in the sand’. This is not a two-week media cycle issue. Our child protection services cannot continue as they are. The fact that the Welfare Department and the Police have yet to take any responsibility is disheartening. If there is no meaningful action and reform then we will continue to fail our children – endlessly. We appeal to our Members of Parliament to support the RCI and be advocates for our children.

The government has overlooked the calls for establishing an independent Children’s Commission accountable to parliament. Creating a Children’s Department under the Welfare Department does not address any of the existing challenges or concerns. Essentially, this is merely a rebranding of an inadequate and inefficient service, while children continue to endure hardship. We also ask that the Government urgently relook at the Child Commission Bill.

Any and every space that a child is in must be a safe space.

We must restore public confidence in our child protection agencies.

Only an independent Royal Commission of Inquiry with comprehensive reform will do this.