All children in conflict with the law must be accorded free legal representation from the point of detention until the completion of the criminal justice process.
The Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC) on Women and Children Affairs and Social Development said the move was to ensure that the rights of children are adequately and fully protected.
The PSSC led by Pengerang MP Azalina Othman Said (above) made the proposal in raising concerns over the reported arrest of a teenage girl who allegedly stabbed her newborn baby boy to death in Kemaman, Terengganu.
"The PSCC is concerned that in this instance, the first action of the relevant agencies seems to have been to detain the child under remand whilst the child was still in the neonatal ward, for the investigation of murder, without a comprehensive psychological assessment or social welfare report being carried out – and without her being accorded the benefit of any legal representation or psychological assistance," the committee said in a statement.
Recommendations
As part of its recommendations, the PSSC said protections accorded to children by the Child Act 2001, including the treatment of children whilst under detention, must be strictly complied with by all law enforcement authorities.
This includes for all children being investigated under sections 299 to 318 of the Penal Code to be placed under the supervision of a protector under the Child Act 2001, and given mandatory psychological/psychiatric support as a matter of course.
Citing the Terengganu case, the PSSC said it noted factors including that neonaticide or the killing of a baby by his or her mother within 24 hours of birth is infanticide - a bailable offence under Section 309A of the Penal Code instead of Section 302 for murder.
Further, it pointed to links between neonaticide, concealed pregnancy and unassisted delivery, with 1,010 cases of baby dumping recorded from 2019 to May 2019, of which 64 percent of the babies were found dead.
Other recommendations include for comprehensive education on sex, sexuality and reproduction to be introduced into school curriculums to better protect children against instances of statutory rape, unwanted pregnancies and baby dumping.
Aside from Azalina, other PSSC members include Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh, Rompin MP Hasan Arifin, Kota Samarahan MP Rubiah Wang, Kemaman MP Che Alias Hamid, Sik MP Tarmizi Sulaiman, Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh, Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil and Lanang MP Alice Lau. - Mkini
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