EditorialHong Kong’s children must be kept from harm’s way
- Authorities need to swiftly act on promises to improve screening, training and oversight of carers, and pursue legislation and community outreach
The heartbreaking case of a baby girl severely hurt while under the care of a nanny recruited under a government-funded childcare scheme has again put a spotlight on the need for Hong Kong to do more to protect its youngest citizens. Initial investigations suggested the girl was physically abused.
Early last month, her parents had asked the NGO Yan Oi Tong for a babysitter while their domestic helper went on leave.
The father had left the nine-month-old with the carer last Thursday morning, but by the afternoon she was being rushed to Tuen Mun Hospital, unconscious and with a swollen left eye. A blood clot was found on her brain and she needed surgery.
The 33-year-old woman who was caring for the baby was arrested on Saturday. The Social Welfare Department confirmed the babysitter was recruited under the “community nanny” childcare scheme launched by the government in 2011.
More than 1,700 community nannies were recruited under the programme by June last year. Paid HK$25 (US$3.20) an hour, the nannies cared for more than 10,000 children under the age of nine in 2022-23.