Castration solution to abandoned babies: Malaysian Senator

Kuala Lumpur, Apr 30 (ANI): Malaysian Senator Ahmad Husin has said that men who do not want to take responsibility after having made girls pregnant after marriage, should be castrated.

Expressing anger and frustration over the rising number of abandoned babies, Senator Husin said only this could teach men to be more responsible about their actions.

"In cases like these, those involved always disappear without a trace. We should just castrate them," he said after asking a supplementary question to Women, Family and Community Development Minister, Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, on cases of abandoned babies yesterday, reports NST.

Shahrizat said although the suggestion was radical yet creative and innovative, studies had to be done first as not all men were irresponsible.

"Besides, we are not living in the past. We need to tackle the problem the 21st-century way, beginning from a strong family institution and awareness programmes," she told the House.

Shahrizat said most cases of abandoned babies were due to weak family institution and where the responsibility of bringing up a child was left to other parties.

"Parents are all too busy to pay attention to their children. The family institution has become individualistic where parents 'franchise' their kids for other quarters to bring them up," she said.

Earlier, to a question by Senator Empiang Jabu, Shahrizat said four strategies: advocacy, prevention, support and research would be used to tackle related issues.

She said the ministry provided counselling and interactive workshops to give the public, especially young girls, deeper understanding on intimate relationships and its consequences.

"It is not only the responsibility of this ministry to tackle this issue. We need the support and cooperation of other stakeholders, including the public," she said, adding cases of abandoned babies stood at 407 over the past five years.

Shahrizat urged the public to report such cases immediately by calling 15999.

Over the last five years, a total of 10,758 cases of child abuse were reported nationwide, with around 3234 cases registered in Selangor, the highest and the lowest in Sabah with 34 cases. (ANI)