Child abuse: Police caution schools

DUBAI, 18 January 2011 - Residents and authorities expressed shock and revulsion at the alleged sexual assault on a four-year-old girl, with senior police officials calling for 'nannies', or women conductors on board school buses. School authorities, however, said the transport company had complied with RTA regulations.
Major General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Deputy Commander-in-chief of the Dubai Police, said, ''The school and bus company were partly responsible for what happened. They must appoint women on buses to take care of children.''

The deputy police chief also wanted the Ministry of Education to intervene and post women supervisors on buses.

He termed the suspects responsible for the alleged crime as heartless creatures. ''A small child was left with three heartless creatures who had no morals.''

Police stations were open to the public 24 hours and he said the parents of the child should have reported

the incident immediately. ''Parents should not be scared and it is their right to report crime to police stations which are open at all hours to receive complaints.''

The school in question, which is run by GEMS Education, in a statement attributed to a spokesperson, said, "GEMS has not received any communication from the police since we were approached by the parents of the alleged victim and encouraged them to contact the police - we are unsure therefore as to whether they have or have not distributed a statement.''

The school management said it was the ''first alleged incident of this type''. The spokesperson, said: ''We can confirm that the bus company that transports GEMS students has always complied with RTA regulations. The bus company is subject to regular inspections by the RTA and has always passed those inspections. The bus company transports 44,000 students every day and this is the first alleged incident of this type."

But, the CEO of the Public Transport Agency of the RTA, Abu-Rehman Al Dosari, said though the agency was deeply concerned about safety of children, "we are only responsible for passing regulations on safe driving and ensuring the vehicles and drivers are fit to transport the kids."

"Our job is to provide road safety and to ensure this we have formulated regulations like speed limits, special training to drivers and attendants, and making sure that all school buses are equipped with safety gadgets like GPS, stop signs, seat belts etc."

On the alleged sexual misconduct by the suspects, he said: "Their behaviour should be monitored on a regular basis and one of the ways of doing it is to fit surveillance cameras on the buses. We are encouraging school managements and transport operators to equip their buses with cameras, but we can't make it compulsory by law."

Dr Abdulla Murrad, Director of the decision making centre of the Dubai Police, said schools should check the background of bus supervisors prior to recruitment. Women must be appointed in such roles, he said. ''Luckily the child is still alive. Strict action must be taken against the suspects. Schools must appoint suitable staff after a background check. They should ensure they do not have a criminal record.''

Meanwhile, hundreds of residents joined forces to post their comments online to condemn the alleged incident.

- KhaleejTimes

By: Amira Agarib, Shafaat Ahmed and Muaz Shabandri (news@khaleejtimes.com)