Claire and her husband with ‘Little Light Bulb’ (Claire has allowed the media to use this pic from her Facebook account)
A FOUR-YEAR-OLD girl on her bicycle at a train station in Taipei was grabbed by a man on Monday. The man used a cleaver to decapitate her right in front of the eyes of the mother.
Her mother was next to her when this occurred and she struggled with the suspect, trying to stop him, according to Yang Kun-ming of Taipei City Police Department.
“But the suspect was too strong and she could not stop him. The mother screamed for help and passers-by rushed over to subdue the suspect but it was too late. The child had already died.”
Police said the suspect had previously been treated at a psychiatric hospital.
Despite the girl called “Little Light Bulb” being murdered in such a brutal way, her mother Claire Wang, in a TV interview hours after the killing, did not want to blame anyone but sounded out the ills of society and the importance of education and family values so that there will be no more people like the perpetrator in our society, and parents and children will not need to live in fear.
Her graceful composure and magnanimity touched Taiwanese and many all over the world.
Taiwan’s president-elect Tsai Ing-Wen who will take office on May 20, wrote a letter to this admirable ungrudging mother and posted it on the president’s Facebook (in Chinese):
“Last night, I saw your strength and courage on television. In a sad moment like this, you spoke your mind in clarity and reminded everyone there are still good and bright sides in this society. I believe, many have been touched.
“I am very sad. But I know, at this moment, even anyone who says he can identify with your feelings, won’t be able to comfort you. No one is able to know the hurt and sorrows of yours unless he has been through it personally.
“Today, every parent will hold tightly to their children’s hands as if the children will be in great danger if they let go of them for a second. I can’t bear to see things this way, and I feel more responsible. I have heard your call. There are problems plaguing this society and we are all hurt. I will not just be heart-broken, sad and angry and stop here. I have the answer to what we should do after the anguish.
“There are many loopholes in our society’s safety net. My responsibility is to ensure the net can catch all the people who are vulnerable so that they can receive education, find a stable job and live a normal life. I will try my best to fill up these holes and put more efforts in anti-drugs, children security, police health, mental health and psychiatric care. These are what I can do to help you and all families in Taiwan.
“I have taken the liberty to write this letter to you, hoping this will not cause any disturbances. I know you do not wish to be disturbed, so I won’t be visiting you too soon. You do not need to hasten to reply to my letter. If there is any need, we shall be by your side.
“This world is imperfect, but in the imperfections, you still hold on the beliefs of goodness and beauty which is the most beautiful part of human nature. You have done this. Let us complete the rest for you.”
Claire has decided to turn her sorrows into lessons for the greater good for the government, society as well as parents. Her loving message to her dear daughter whom the family has nicknamed “Little Light Bulb” because of her cheery and outgoing nature, offers much soul-searching thought for parents.
The message reads: “Fortunately, I had held you tightly and told you I love you everyday.”
As society at large strongly advocates mandatory death penalty for people convicted of killing children, Claire, despite her personal tragedy, seeks to calm the growing angst and anger among parents in her country with laudable equanimity: “This is not a problem that can be solved simply by passing a law. The suspects in such killings lose their minds. I hope the problem can be addressed from the perspective of family and education.”
She, indeed, has sound reasoning.
If we were to look at history or just the things happening around us in Malaysia today, we would soon see that threats, posed by groups or movements of all shapes and stripes, to the well-being of our society, usually originated from their inability – or more likely unwillingness – to keep a lid on their destructive emotional paroxysms.
We need to hold a candle to people like Claire for showing us how to remain cool and rational in the face of great adversity so that wiser heads can prevail for justification of actions and movements.
In another Facebook posting, she sent this message to the world: “Keep trusting people because the world is still beautiful. Please hug your family members which is the most comforting and caring thing to do for us.”
“Little Light Bulb” has not died in vain. The president-elect has (posthumously) given this assurance to the little girl, who was taken from her family well before her time by a mentally deranged man:
“Auntie won’t let you die in vain. The society is broken with many holes. I will try to sew them all up together.”
Recommendations have since been made by the Taiwanese authorities to provide more comprehensive social services, increase in local police visibility focusing specially on kindergartens and elementary schools.
May the ‘Little Light Bulb’ send a ray of hope to the world – truth, love, righteousness and faith to stay and bear.