Innocent victims of a harsh life

IN 2010, we did a survey on Mat Rempits ( pic) to study the factors that gave rise to the phenomenon where teenagers flock in groups to take part in risky activities.

Our targets were mainly teenagers who stayed out late into the night and were involved in dangerous activities without due regard to the law or their safety.

All the teenagers we interviewed came from low-cost housing areas where they lived in cramped conditions. As such, they preferred to gather outside their homes and hang out with their friends.

Eighty percent of the parents we interviewed did not know where their children were, what they were doing or who they were with. Most of the teenagers relished their freedom, riding motorcycles without safety helmets or licence. The youngest was just 13 years of age.

The study involved measuring their self-esteem. Before they joined the group, their level of self-esteem was low at 16. But it soared to a high of 25 after they joined the group. This indicates that as individuals, they could be experiencing neglect and low self-esteem but as a group they have a sense of belonging and unity, to the point that they can ride motorcycles fast and danger- ously. At the end of the race, they get a prize of RM5,000 – the other challenger’s motorcycle.

Most had difficulty coping with education. They were poor performers in schools and preferred to play truant. There was no motivation for them to do well in school and they found no link between education and their future. In fact, the teenagers found it a strain to attend school.

A few of them came from dysfunctional families where the mother or father was divorced and remarried, and their new “father” or “mother” refused to accept them as their own children.

Among those we interviewed were children of single parents who found it challenging to manage teenagers.

A number were slow learners or had learning disabilities but they were never assessed. These children innocently became involved with the wrong company.

As such, we need to address these contributing factors within our community rather than pointing fingers.

We need to take stock of the issues and work together to seek an effective solution.