Teacher abuses child after he vomits in class

The kindergarten-going child was beaten four times and not allowed to sit for three hours for coughing and vomiting in class.

KUALA LUMPUR: A four-year-old child has allegedly been abused in a private kindergarten for coughing and vomiting in class.

The victim’s mother, Wong Mee Yan, said she found out that her son, Lee Yu Hong, was abused after discovering bruises on his calf when he returned home from kindergarten last Thursday.

Furious over the incident, she marched into the kindergarten to get confirmation before filing a police report the same day.

“After picking up my son at the kindergarten in Taman Bukit Indah, I noticed there were bruises on his legs.

“I asked my son who hit him and he told me that his teacher had hit him using a plastic balloon holder.

“The same day, I met the headmaster of the school and saw the CCTV camera footage which showed the teacher hitting my son four times, in addition to not allowing my son to sit for three hours, just because my son coughed and vomited in class,” she said.

Mee Yan was speaking at a press conference in the presence of MCA leaders at the party headquarters today.

Following the incident, the mother decided to stop sending Lee Yu to the kindergarten.

Meanwhile, MCA Bureau of Public Services and Complaints Chairman Michael Chong said cases of abuse involving children in kindergartens were increasingly alarming.

“Last year alone, there were three cases (of teachers abusing students) and this month there have been another two reported cases.

“Many parents have come to complain to me that their children have been abused. What is more depressing is that all these cases occur in kindergartens.

“I hope that parents are always careful about what happens in the kindergartens they send their children to,” he said.

When asked if the case would be brought to the attention of the Ministry of Education, Chong said for the moment it would be settled between the family and the kindergarten.

“For now, it will be settled between the family and school, but if the same case occurs again, I will not hesitate to report it to the ministry.”