For yet another instance, the country is left shocked and questioning the ‘whys’ and ‘hows’ after the life of an innocent child was cruelly taken.
What is even more heart-rending is that it was done by someone who was closest and tasked with the responsibility of caring, nurturing and loving a child.
On Thursday, the nation awoke to the news that a nine-month-old baby girl was killed after being fed a deadly concoction of milk and pesticide after her repeated crying reportedly “frustrated” a close relative.
Baby Salileen, who from all accounts had not been faring well under the care of some closest to her, stood little chance of surviving such nightmarish action.
Baby Salileen’s death came just one month after seven-year-old McKenzie Hope Rechia was found murdered. An autopsy found that she was strangled to death. Her mother has since been charged in connection with her murder.
And much like little McKenzie, baby Salileen’s surroundings and circumstances appeared far less than ideal, with distant relatives and neighbours often having to intervene to render assistance.
But the burning question remains—why are so many children and their close relatives, who are clearly in need of help, being allowed to slip through the cracks of social treatment?
The population is well aware of the robust social services in the United States and how easily and quickly one report about a child or an adult displaying disturbed or questionable behaviour is investigated and the appropriate action taken.
While the laws of Trinidad and Tobago and the US are vastly different, the guiding principles of compassion and duty of care are universal and should not be shirked.
While much focus should be placed on the welfare and well-being of children, the same should also be done with their close relatives.
There must be mechanisms to ensure that once a mother gives birth to a child, the environment where the child will be housed is checked and so too the mental well-being of the caregivers.
Despite heightened efforts to raise awareness, mental health remains taboo in this country, with many still being shunned and subjected to ridicule once they are diagnosed with the condition.
For mothers, who play the most vital role in a child’s life, postpartum depression is treated with even less regard.
It is time that as a nation, we get serious about our social response and interventions, particularly where children are concerned.
Not only should there be sincerity, but there also needs to be decisive action on this issue. That is, of course, unless we have already grown accustomed to and will continue to accept the untimely deaths of our innocents as part of normal proceedings. As such, we call on the powers that be to plug the holes in social services to ensure there are no more baby Salileens.