Siti Bainun, a woman from Malaysia, has been sentenced to 22 years in prison for her abusive and neglectful treatment of a young girl named Bella.
A court handed down the verdict after a lengthy trial, during which evidence was presented that showed Siti had subjected Bella who has Down Syndrome child to physical and emotional abuse, as well as neglecting her basic needs.
“The accused is an activist involved in children’s welfare. She should have known better than to violate the trust put in her,” Sessions Court judge, Izralizam Sanusi, said.
The judge who presided over the case called Siti’s actions “cruel and inhumane”, noting that they had caused significant harm to Bella and had likely had a lasting impact on her mental and emotional well-being, NST reported.
In addition to the prison sentence, Siti has been ordered to pay restitution to Bella and her family for the harm she caused.
The case has drawn widespread attention in Malaysia and beyond, with many people expressing outrage at the treatment Bella endured and calling for greater protection for the country’s vulnerable children.
Some advocates have also called for more resources to be dedicated to preventing child abuse and neglect, as well as for stricter penalties for those who are found guilty of such crimes.
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Judge Izralizam listened to the mitigation submissions from both the prosecution and defense counsels before passing the sentence on the accused.
After considering the arguments from both sides, Izralizam sentenced Siti Bainun to 10 years of imprisonment for neglecting Bella and 12 years for abusing the Down Syndrome victim. He also ordered that the sentences be served concurrently starting today.
However, Siti Bainun’s defense lawyer highlighted her physical and health conditions, arguing that the current prison facility would not be suitable for someone like her who is big-sized.
Earlier, Mohammad Farhan argued that imprisoning Siti Bainun would punish her mother since she was the one who took care of her.
“Furthermore, Siti Bainun is a law-abiding citizen, where she has shown that throughout the case being tried, she could change if she is given the chance to do so and we believe a long term of imprisonment sentence would only prejudice people who are under her care, especially her mother.
“We have to also consider her social standing which is the accused’s active social involvement in charity activities and events.
“We believed that the court’s verdict showed that justice had been served. And that the imprisonment term, can be replaced with a sum of fine, as accorded under the law for both charges for the case”.
In response to Mohammah Farhan’s argument, Zahida Zakaria, the deputy public prosecutor, countered that Siti Bainun’s violation of Section 31(1) of the Child Act 2001 was a grave offense.
“Children are vulnerable and defenceless and there are laws to protect their interest which cannot be trampled upon or ignored, at the expense of a mistake or misjudgement by some adult.
“The full weight should come down on those who deliberately cause harm to the child. The sentence, therefore, must reflect the seriousness and gravity of the offence.
“The accused has a court order to provide care to Bella. However, the accused has misused the responsibility given by neglecting and abusing the victim.
“The accused, who is seen as a person who is respected by society and with active involvement in charity, has abused and neglected Bella, who actually really hopes to be loved by Siti Bainun”.
Later today, Izralizam will make a decision on whether or not to grant the defence team’s request for a stay of execution for the sentence, while they await the outcome of their appeal to the High Court. The appeal was submitted subsequent to the pronouncement of the sentence.
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