Baby tragedies hint at deeper problems

Baby tragedies hint at deeper problems

Late last month, a newborn baby was abandoned in a woods in Phuket. The boy was put in a cardboard box. Ants were all over the body. Luckily, the baby was found by a stranger and he was alive.

In the same week, another newborn baby was left to die in Bangkok. He was wrapped in cloth 15 metres from a public footpath. The baby had apparently been dead for three to four days before he was found. There was a pink purse close to the baby. The police suspected that it belonged to a mother not ready for a child.

Such stories of tragic incidents have become the norm in Thailand. Almost every morning there are stories of babies intentionally left by mothers.

It raises many questions. Why do these unprepared mothers feel they have no other choice but to abandon their baby? Why do they choose not to raise the child? And what circumstances led them to become mothers in the first place?

Whatever the reason, this is tragic for all of us because these mothers should have had access to services and counselling to help them cope with parenthood.

Thailand has become an active participant in several United Nations' conventions that guarantee women's reproductive rights and their rights to reproductive services.

Thai laws also allow for medical doctors to terminate pregnancies under certain conditions. These include when a woman has been sexually assaulted or when a pregnant woman is mentally or physically unfit to be a mother.

Evidence has shown that an unready mother giving birth can affect the well-being of both the mother and child.

But pressure from society has forced many pregnant women to believe it's wrong to terminate a pregnancy regardless of the cause or circumstances. This puts pressure on them to seek an unsafe or illegal abortion and avoid counselling.

The main issue is that Thai society does not have enough awareness about sexual rights. Almost every day, there is news about girls and boys being sexually molested by adults, reflecting that many adults also lack an understanding of the rights of others.

While adults who commit such crimes should receive adequate punishment, the government and related agencies can prevent such unfortunate incidents by improving sex education from an early age.

First of all, they should be taught about sex and relationships, so they are more informed about how and when to have a baby or how to prevent having a baby. This makes them plan their life choices more carefully.

Though the law requires schools to include sex education in the classroom, the content comes down to the decision of the teachers, who are generally conservative. Most sex education classes seem more like a study in anatomy than a discussion on relationships and life choices.

Worse, the conservative teachers even preach sexual abstinence to students, without considering the changing hormones of young people. Statistics show there is a disproportionately high rate of teen pregnancy in Thailand.

The law allows students to go back to school after delivering the baby, yet very few of them actually do due to the judgemental attitude of their peers and even teachers.

Second, many unready mothers should have easy access to consultancy services from trained doctors or qualified professionals.

Women are often told that they should be ready for pregnancy and motherhood, regardless of whether they were raped or are physically or mentally unready for a baby.

Local non-governmental groups that provide services to unprepared mothers could share similar stories.

Even if an expecting mother has access to one of the four lines of defence -- prevention, education, pregnancy termination and support -- local non-profit organisations say the most difficult part for young mothers in Thailand to bear is dealing with the baby when it arrives.

This is because most unprepared mothers are confronted with social exclusion or some sort of stigma for being a single mum.

And most women end up struggling with their lives alone after they have decided to keep the baby because many men don't want to raise someone else's child. But either way, they face judgemental stares from the community.

It is this abuse and rejection that single mothers are subjected to that led to the tragic stories we hear of babies being rejected or left to die. Until society changes its attitude and we give young women hope that there is a way of dealing with whichever path they choose, sadly, stories like the one of the baby left in the woods is unlikely to be the last.

Editorial

Bangkok Post editorial column

These editorials represent Bangkok Post thoughts about current issues and situations.

Email : anchaleek@bangkokpost.co.th

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