Comprehensive social security system needed

is no law that compels children to care for their ageing parents, thus potentially exposing them to abuse and neglect.

Experts believe it is high time that the government introduced a law and a comprehensive social security system to better address issues affecting the elderly, whose population is expected to increase significantly within 15 to 20 years.

Universiti Malaya Associate Professor Dr Noran Naqiah Mohd Hairi, who is leading the Prevent Elder Abuse and Neglect Initiative (Peace) research programme, says Malaysia might witness a rise in cases of abuse and neglect involving the elderly, as their population continue to increase following improvement in life expectancy.

“This is especially true for financial exploitation, which includes cases of Internet scams, theft and misuse of assets and money.

“When this happens, the elderly will have nowhere to go. They are left without any money or have insufficient funds to support themselves.”

Dr Noran, who is Julius Centre Universiti Malaya (JCUM) head, says studies conducted by her team under the Peace research programme in 2015 and 2016 reveal that one in 10 elderly in urban settings experience a form of abuse or neglect, while in rural areas, it was one in 20.

She says based on the 2016 survey, financial exploitation is found to be the most common type of abuse (10.5 per cent), followed by psychological abuse (3.4 per cent), physical abuse (1.2 per cent), sexual abuse (0.3 per cent) and ne“The