News

It was reported that fear of creating trouble for the family could have stopped stallholders from alerting the authorities to the case of a teenage girl living in a wet-market stall for close to a year ( , May 18). I believe that fear of creating trouble for ourselves is the main reason for not reporting such matters. I understand that most people would not want to invite unnecessary attention to themselves. But when we are aware of a person’s sad predicament, the only right thing to do is to inform the authorities for them to step in. Trying to avoid creating trouble should not be an excuse to not do things that should and must be done. We would also want others to help if our family members faced such issues. The safety of the teenage girl in this case is more important than our acceptance and normalisation of the family’s circumstances. Does an unfortunate incident have to happen before we are jolted into action? By then it might be too late. Indeed, it takes a village to raise a child. When we see abnormality, it is the collective responsibility of the community to act decisively and set things straight. Do not fear being labelled a “trouble-maker” or a “kaypoh”. A life could be at stake.