Family of child who suffered heatstroke meets Suhakam

The family of a boy who suffered heatstroke, after he was allegedly punished by his teacher, has met with officials from Suhakam.

“We met Suhakam last Friday and from what I understand, the children’s commissioner is looking into the matter,” said S Dayalan, an NGO leader working with the family.

The government appointed a children’s commissioner under Suhakam last year to tackle child abuse and other social problems affecting children.

On May 29, the Year 5 student was reportedly assessed as a person with disabilities by the Ampang Hospital after a punishment required him to stand outdoors for over two hours.

Later, the 11-year-old boy’s parents were informed that he could not return to school due to a “nerve condition” resulting from the heatstroke he suffered.

Speaking to Malaysiakini, Dayalan, who heads the NGO Mia Force, said Suhakam asked the family to provide additional information concerning the matter, which they would comply with soon.

Apart from Suhakam, he mentioned that his team had also submitted memoranda to the police and Education Ministry to seek a resolution to the matter.

‘Authorities not forthcoming’

Whether the authorities have been forthcoming on the investigations, he replied in the negative.

“The investigating officer has not been picking up our calls, even those from the lawyer and complainant,” Dayalan claimed.

He also alleged that there were attempts to divert the attention of the probe by trying to make it look like the boy had been disabled from the beginning and not because of the heatstroke.

“The police even asked for his past school books for investigations.

“From my understanding, the boy is well-disciplined but he had problems with Bahasa Malaysia, which was why the school had been persuading his parents to send him to a Tamil school instead for some time,” Dayalan claimed.

On the boy’s medical condition, he said the parents plan to get a second opinion.

“I took the boy to Assunta Hospital last Thursday and they referred us to a child psychiatrist at Universiti Malaya Medical Centre.

“And I’m planning to take him maybe sometime this week.”

Cops dismiss claims

Ampang Jaya district police chief Azam Ismail dismissed Dayalan’s claims that the investigation officer had snubbed their calls.

“Allegations that the investigating officer has not updated the complainant are untrue. The complainant is aware of it.

“We have completed the probe and sent the investigation papers to the Attorney-General’s Chambers but there is no decision yet,” he told Malaysiakini.

LETTER | Prosecute teachers who commit criminal acts on pupils

COMMENT | Are schools safe for children?

'No compromise' - Fadhlina on probe of student made to stand under sun

Health Ministry records 14 heatstroke cases as of yesterday