BABY-DROP CENTRES (Establishment)

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BABY-DROP CENTRES:

(Establishment): 1.

Mr Sin Boon Ann asked the Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports whether the Government will consider adopting legislation to allow for the establishment of "baby-drop centres" to enable mothers with unwanted pregnancies a safe environment for leaving their babies for adoption.

The Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports (Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon) (for the Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports): Mr Speaker, Sir, I share the hon. Member Mr Sin Boon Ann's concern for mothers with unwanted pregnancies. We want to reach out to these mothers and help them make informed, responsible and safe choices. Our main objective is to ensure that both the baby and mother are safe.

MCYS has adopted a three-pronged approach to prevent any pregnancy from becoming a crisis. Firstly, sex education is important in preventing unintended pregnancies especially among younger women. Sex education programme is already part of the school curriculum. MCYS also works with voluntary welfare organisations to conduct talks for teens and workshops for parents on how to guide their children on sex matters.

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Secondly, when a woman has an unwanted pregnancy, we ensure there is relevant social service support to help her make informed choices. Expectant mothers who are in a dilemma or distress can call the 24-hour National Pregnancy Helpline. Last month, we also launched the Babes service, which is a collaboration of seven pregnancy help agencies - Beyond Social Services, KK Women's and Children's Hospital, Tanjong Pagar Family Service Centre, Family Life Society, aLife, Andrew and Grace Home and Rose Villa.

Thirdly, we work with voluntary welfare organisations to provide a safe environment for the expecting mother to carry the pregnancy to full-term. If the mother wants to give up her baby for adoption, social workers will help to make the arrangements. In a certain way, these shelters provide the same help to mothers as baby drops. Last year, through the shelters, 11 babies were successfully adopted and 20 babies were re-united with their natural families.

We understand the intention of calling for legislation for baby drops. However, based on overseas experience, legislation has not been effective in preventing babies from being abandoned. The better approach to take is providing sex education to prevent unwanted pregnancies and assistance to women already in a pregnancy crisis. Long-term solutions to the problem of abandoned babies require preventive efforts and good support services.

Often, what is most important to a mother in a pregnancy crisis is the understanding and support of her parents and family. Family members can really make a difference and help the mother make the right decision. The community can also offer a helping hand to any expecting women in distress, and encourage them to seek help early.

Mr Sin Boon Ann (Tampines): Sir, I thank the Minister of State for her reply. I

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just have a couple of questions. First, she said earlier that similar legislation overseas which allow for baby drops have not been effective. Will the Minister of State be able to clarify what she meant by not effective legislation?

My second question essentially relates to social services being readily available and therefore mothers with unwanted pregnancies could go for counselling. I wonder whether the Minister will agree with me that more can be done in this regard to publicise the kind of help that is available. We all remember the telephone number for the Pizza delivery service. But can we recall the number of these help agencies on the top of our head as readily as we do recall the Pizza delivery service?

Finally, although the Government may not be in a position to legislate to allow for baby-drop centres, I would like to ask the Minister whether the Government may be open to such a similar position at some point in time in the future.

Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon: Mr Speaker, Sir, the 24-hour National Pregnancy Helpline number is 1800-MUM-TO-BE. I think it is quite easy to remember than the Pizza number.

Let me thank the Member for his concern. The reason why legislation overseas has not been effective is that, based on overseas experience, legalised baby-drops have benefits and problems, but the problems outweigh the benefits. This includes the misuse of baby-drops to give up babies with sickness, disabled, handicapped and babies who are involved in child trafficking, babies with health risk and whose medical history is unknown, and also legal problems with parental rights if one parent does not know that the baby was given up at a baby-drop. So if we legalise baby-drops, we risk facing similar problems. Our current help arrangement is better as it incorporates the benefits of baby-drop and avoid the problems.

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If we make it legal to abandon a baby, even at a baby-drop centre, we are sending a wrong signal that it is acceptable for parents to abandon their responsibility towards their child. This contradicts the foundation of our child welfare system and promotion of the family as a cornerstone of our society.

Our three-pronged approach - preventive, support services, safe environment and crisis shelter - is better than baby-drops, and it looks after the welfare of both mother and baby. Baby-drops may save babies but do not care for the mother's health and welfare. The mother needs proper reproductive healthcare too. Most mothers who are interviewed have indicated that if their daughter is pregnant and has a baby, they want to know, so that they can support the child.

The spirit of the Children and Young Persons Act which makes abandonment an offence is to protect the safety of children. The law is still relevant for this reason. However, we are providing many other avenues for parents who seek help if they have an unwanted pregnancy. If parents come forward to seek help early, they can be guided to make responsible choices. They will not be prosecuted for abandoning their baby. Each case is handled as confidential and managed with compassion.

Our approach of using shelters gives us the benefit of the baby-drop and there is no dumping of babies and no prosecution as there is no issue of abandonment. At the crisis shelter, the mother is given all the help she needs. Our approach, therefore, gives priority to the safety, health and welfare of both mother and baby. This is more than what baby-drop provides.

The Member also talked about promotion and also to carry out more activities to help the VWOs to do more in this area. I totally agree. I think there is

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still room for improvement. Definitely, my Ministry, together with the many-helping-hands approach, will do more.

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan (Hong Kah): Sir, I would like to ask the Minister that with regard to promoting awareness of such crisis centres, particularly to teenagers in secondary schools and beyond, are there programmes to inform the secondary school students, especially of the availability of such centres and to counsel them.

Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon: Sir, I mentioned just now that sex education is already part of the school curriculum. Also, last year, we launched the National Pregnancy Helpline 1800-MUM-TO-BE. Last month, we also launched the Babes service with seven welfare agencies, like the Tanjong Pagar Family Service Centre, Beyond Social Services, Rose Villa and so on. I think they also get support from the SMRT for placing posters and brochures. Maybe if MPs and grassroots organisations want to help us to disseminate the information, we will also give more information to the ground. For instance, the Nominated MP, Miss Olsen, is also one of the spokeswomen for teenage pregnancy. I also welcome our MPs to give a helping hand.

Mr Sin Boon Ann: Sir, apart from sex education in schools, I would like to know whether teachers are trained to identify and keep a look out for school girls who may be pregnant, and teachers could basically provide early intervention.

Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon: Sir, maybe the hon. Member could address this question to MOE. Anyway, MCYS also works very closely with MOE and MOH. We will try our best to take Mr Sin's advice to do more on the prevention aspect and also to help teenagers who are pregnant. So the informed choices are also very important. I would like to thank Mr Sin for his

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suggestion. We will definitely work with the other Ministries on this.

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: Sir, I would like to suggest to the Minister of a more coordinated approach to increasing the awareness of the community as well as our young regarding such help as well as regarding the crisis centre and all that are available, because there have been a number of babies that have been dumped into rubbish chutes.

Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon: Mr Speaker, Sir, I said that we will definitely need to do more. But just to put the situation in a proper perspective, from the year 2000 to 2004, on the average, it was about five a year. Of course, I am not saying that the number is not big - every child's life is important. But actually in Singapore, it is quite stable and it is a controllable situation. However, we will still do our best and to take her suggestion of having an inter-Ministry approach.