Daily Lessons from Life 15 April 2010 - Abused child dies, stepdad, mum held

"Thu, Apr 15, 2010 The Daily Chilli - Abused child dies, stepdad, mum held

MALAYSIA - A three-year-old girl who is believed to have been brutally abused over a month by her stepfather (27), died early Wednesday morning.

A doctor who examined the child found more than 30 bruises on the body and head of the dead child! One neighbour said he heard child's cries and screams for several weeks!

The mother, 24-year old, was also taken by the police for questioning."

A sad case to learn about. I hope that step-father is mentally disturbed and insane when he committed this brutal and atrocious act against the child. Otherwise, he is just a beast and does not really deserved to be treated like a fellow human being!

Lessons for me are:

1. young children are to be protected by adults as they could not fend for themselves due to their young age and developmental stage. It does not matter if they are your child or not!!;

2. some adults are mentally twisted. If they know they are, they should seek medical and psychological and psychiatrist help. Unfortunately most do not know that they need help!;

3. in such a situation, those around them must be alert enough to spot the potential issue. I am sure the neighbour who heard the child's cries and screams for several weeks must have wished he had taken some actions to find out; much as it is un-asian to intrude into a neighbour's family life! In other countries where reports of abused child gone fatal, many witnesses all expressed the same regret that they should have at least check in on why the child was crying and screaming all the time. Maybe some education on how to approach a 'suspicious child abuse situation' guideline can be made public.

May the child rest in peace and that the culprit(s) be brought to justice for killing an innocent and young life.

May the dilemma of 'to ask or not to ask' or 'to poke your nose into a suspicious child abuse situation' be resolve with some education and practical tips on how to intervene preliminary be made available.