Since starting this blog, a few years ago, I realize that Elder Absue is a global problem. I believe, the cause of many of the cases reported thus far, can be traced to having no respect for the elderly, pressure of living and pure greed.
It is surprising to hear of countries in Asia, where respecting of the elderly is part of the culture, having to enact laws to stop people from abandoning elderly parents; or, to ensure that children pay 'parents maintenance'. India, Singapore and Tawan now has such laws; penalty to the children of abandoned elderly, can be fined or even put in jail.
These laws are brought in because there were enough cases of adult children abandoning or refused to help their elderly parents.
Will these laws be successful in getting rid of elder abuse?
It can only be a temporary measure.
The erosion of traditional cultural values may explain some instances of elder abuse in countries like Japan, Singapore and India. In any case, modern societies place a different kind of pressures on the younger generation; so much so that it seem unfair to expect them to take good and complete care of their elderly parents without the help of government. This is only my own opinion. I believe more study should be done on this subject.
For some countries in Asia, the social services for elderly can be considered as minimal compared to western countries like USA, UK and Australia. These government relied heavily on the traditional cultural values of "filial piety"; where the younger generation is expected to care for their parents.
It is therefore, not surprising that in recent years, Singapore and India have to enact laws to ensure that adult children continue to look after their parents. What is the alternative? It is an ongoing debate amongst the younger generation in these countries.
May be, visitors to this blog can come up with some suggestions.
In the next few weeks, I will be posting cases of elder abuse from Asia.
.................... Andrew
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