Plight of the homeless in Miri

THE sight of the homeless lingering around the city centre in Miri, sleeping rough on five-foot-ways or keeping to themselves at one corner from the public is a social issue that is hard to be overlooked.

Surviving on the street for them means begging randomly from strangers for some spare change or a simple meal.

While others may choose to look the other way, some concerned citizens will inform the Welfare Department of the plight of these people without shelter.

When the country underwent the Movement Control Order (MCO) from March 18, life became much harsher for the vulnerable group as the streets were mostly deserted and restaurants and coffee shops had less food to spare.

Welfare, Community Well-being, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah revealed in the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting early this month a total of 145 homeless people were saved and placed in various temporary shelters provided by the government during the MCO.

According to her, Miri topped the list with 42 cases followed by Bintulu (27), Kuching (23), Sibu (17), and Sri Aman (12).

Not unusual

In an interview with thesundaypost recently, Divisional Welfare officer Pengiran Mohamad Najib Pengiran Mohamad said homeless cases were not unusual in urban areas such as Miri, Kuching, Sibu, and Bintulu.

The numbers were higher around these municipalities compared to the smaller towns where there were fewer or zero cases.

“For Miri Division, we receive public tip-offs almost every week either through the government’s Talikhidmat service or social media such as Facebook.

“To us, public cooperation is very important and we take every report received very seriously,” he said.

According to Mohamad Najib, understanding the background of the rescued destitute person is vital and most cases are usually narrowed down to two underpinning factors – mental health and drug addiction.

“Looking into the questions on why they are out on the street in the first place and based on our investigations from stories the homeless shared to us, we usually see an implication of logical judgement.

“However, we have to consider this aspect very carefully as we never know whether the homeless are trying to get sympathy or simply telling the truth.

“Our job is to run through the files, contact their family members or relatives to get to the root of their circumstances and decide what to do next,” he explained.

Federal law

The jurisdiction of the Welfare Department is bound by federal law, authorising welfare officers to rescue and take the homeless persons into custody and help them according to their situation.

Under the Destitute Persons Act 1977 (DPA), anyone deemed homeless by the authorities can be taken into custody, then transferred to the relevant welfare institutions.

The Act was enacted based on the Anti-Vagrancy Ordinance dating back to the late 19th and 20th century and designed to keep vagrants from the public view by sentencing or fining the offenders. The federal law applied to Sarawak from Jan 27, 1995.

In 1977, it was re-enacted to bring more humanity to the homeless.

Mohamad Najib referred to Section 8 (1)(a) and Section 8 (1)(b) of the DPA, stating that the homeless individual will be released, “if there is found to be suitable employment for the homeless individual to maintain himself” or if the individual will be cared for by any person willing and able to provide the proper care and support.

“After going through their records, if any, we will get in touch with the immediate family members to see whether they are willing and able to take back and care for the homeless person.

“Very often, those with families will be returned to their homes but almost half of the cases, unfortunately, go back to life on the street,” he said.

“It will not be fair to blame those who go back to their old way of life on anyone and our responsibility as the relevant authority is to make sure those who need help can receive it from the right channel.”

Mental illnesses

He noted that mental illnesses could be due to persisting stress, anxiety, or depression, probably experienced earlier in life, pushing the sufferers to the edge and their current condition.

“When handling these cases, a proper diagnosis by the government healthcare institution is necessary before deciding whether to place them under a certain programme or therapy to help them psychologically.”

Mohamad Najib reiterated factors leading to mental illnesses could vary from overuse of drugs to alcohol abuse, pointing out that such deleterious indulgences would likely be classified as very challenging cases.

He also said for those who ended up on the street due to financial crisis, the Welfare Department would help them in any way possible like applying for relief or to join a related programme to give them a chance to get back on their feet.

He revealed that during MCO, the Welfare Department and its strategic partners – the Police, Miri City Council (MCC), Miri Hospital, Malaysia Civil Defence Force (APM), and the People’s Volunteer Corps (Rela) – mounted several rescue operations for dozens of homeless persons with young children.

“Half of them were from Kuching, Bintulu, Sibu, as well as the rural villages. Investigations showed their plight was caused by bad timing and all agreed to return home. The rest were extreme repeat cases, mostly from Miri Division.”

He emphasised the importance of the Welfare Department working closely with its strategic partners, especially the police, which is the only authority with the power to arrest the street people who may display risky or violent behaviour, and MCC which cleans up the places used by the homeless.

Temporary shelter

Mohamad Najib said so far, seven cases from Miri had been placed in a temporary shelter – Desa Bina Diri (DBD) – in Kuching between 2017 and 2020 for a designated programme and therapy.

Of the two inmates who had been released, one was sent back due to the same problem.

The rehabilitation period depends very much on the admission process – either through a court order under Section 3 (4) Destitute Persons Act 1977 or voluntary admission under Section 4 Destitute Persons Act 1977.

For cases under the court order, the staying period shall not exceed three years while voluntary admission cases can stay in Desa Bina Diri until the age of 59.

DBD Kuching is a rehabilitation facility providing care and protection service, education and health assessment for the residents. The programme helps to rehabilitate and train them to re-adapt and reintegrate into society.

Mohamad Najib said the current facility in Kuching was doing its best for destitute, adding that it would be of greater help if DBD could expand to the northern region.

“While a temporary shelter offers a roof for the homeless, they may be reluctant to stay at such a place for fear of public shaming.

“The social stigma against destitute people has lingered on long enough and it isn’t easy to get rid of with just a few words.

“We’ve discussed the issue with the community leaders, explaining to them the root cause with facts and what society can do to help.

“Yet most feel it’s a problem that is not easily tackled and looking the other way is much easier.”

He said the Welfare Department is trying to reach out to as many homeless people as possible and very often, the circumstances were quite arduous.

Notwithstanding how they ended up in their dire situation, it was very important to identify the causes and work from there, he added.

Mental illnesses

Miri Hospital psychiatrist Dr Ravivarma Rao Panirselvam said while it is not uncommon to identify untreated mental illnesses as the cause of homelessness, the relationship between the two was far more complex.

“Untreated severe mental illnesses might cause individuals to lose their sense of direction in life, leading them into a potentially worse situation.

“Thus, returning a homeless person to the family may not immediately resolve the issue itself and has to be done through a process called rehabilitation.

“Help could be provided through family support and understanding, treatment and employment opportunity. Above all, the destitute person will appreciate help with less critical opinions.”

Dr Ravi shared a Dahlgren-Whitehead Rainbow model, outlining the key determinants of health and explaining the interrelation between factors that surround individuals and how they affect or impact them.

The model, developed by Göran Dahlgren and Margaret Whitehead in 1991, maps out the relationship between individuals, their environment and health.

The model purportedly places individuals at a centre where they are surrounded with various layers of influences on health such as individual lifestyle factors, social and community networks and general socioeconomic, cultural, and environmental conditions.

Dr Ravi reiterated the importance of the Dahlgren-Whitehead model in providing a framework for raising questions to factors contributing to health, especially mental health and housing is one part of it.

Housing was among factors hugely relatable to lifestyle and wellness, he said, adding that working to make money to afford a home was part and parcel of life.

“When you might not be able to work or have enough money to maintain or afford a home, the worst consequence is that you become homeless.

“And once you become homeless, you may lose a lot of support from family and friends and be exposed to social ills like drugs and violence on the street.

“What comes with it are poor sanitisation and poor physical health, both of which will worsen the situation, making it harder to get home.”

Health report

‘Collective and individual responsibilities for health, both physical and mental’, a report by Dr Viv Speller, an expert in public health promotion, published on www.healthknowledge.org.uk, discusses how the determinants in life surround an individual and influence the effects on health.

According to the report, poor social and economic circumstances will impact on health throughout life. People further down the social ladder usually run at least twice the risk of serious illness as those near the top.

Having few family assets, poorer education during adolescence and employment, being stuck in a hazardous or dead-end job, living in poor housing and trying to bring up a family under difficult circumstances – these are disadvantages that tend to cause people emotional distress and the adverse effects on their health, if neglected, could accumulate throughout life.

The longer people live in stressful economic and social circumstances, the greater the physiological wear and tear, and the less likely they can enjoy good health as they age.

The report could be a reflection of why destitute people landed in their situation in the first place and it has a lot to do with their surroundings, family and the unfortunate things that had happened to them.

Dr Ravi noted that people with mental illnesses were often victims of violence.

“They are sometimes victimised by nefarious members of society who tend to push them into the negative side of society such as illegal trades.

“When homeless people are victimised, it might be harder for them to get help which could result in a continuous downward spiral.”

Given proper help, treatment and accommodation support, Dr Ravi strongly believed the homeless (with mental illnesses) had the chance to recover, manage their households, and live with dignity.

“It makes a big difference when they’re able to hold jobs and secure proper accommodation. In fact, the presence of a home is a treatment for many.”

He explained the idea of accommodation was not to institutionalise the mentally ill but help them live independently and with dignity and this, he noted, included having a job, the necessary support and having a roof over their heads.

Volunteering effort 

Nelson Wong, who formed the Voluntary Rescue Team (VRT), and his friends feel resolving the homelessness issue required much greater efforts from the agencies concerned.

They believe the issue involved a lot of other pressing matters and giving a meal or some money was just temporary relief.

“There’re many caring people and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) constantly reaching out to the homeless.

“We know a lot of concerned public members often look out for people living rough on the streets. One or two welfare agencies are not enough to help resolve the problem.

“A proper accessible system need to be established,” he said.

Wong pointed out that close cooperation between the public and government welfare agencies mattered a lot as it enabled the needy to get to the right people or agencies for proper advice and direction instead of having to run around in a circle.

Making use of social media to share information and contact could help the public understand how the authorities and system work, he opined.

“When help is needed, the ability to contact the officers in charge directly can avoid a lot of trouble and save time for volunteers who want to help.

“I’ve dealt with many government agencies to help people in need, yet I don’t really understand why getting help or to the the right person is quite difficult.

“So providing easy access to information such as through social media is strongly suggested. After all, this is a very powerful and convenient platform and when used correctly, could produce positive results,” he suggested.