The New Straits Times
by Badrolhisham Bidin and G. Shanti
Several hundred teenagers are living in abandoned buildings in Kuala Lumpur. They roam the streets, robbing and prostituting themselves to survive. One couple even made a sex tape for sale. Shockingly, the parents of some of these kids know what they are doing.
THEY are unwanted, neglected and shunned by their parents and society.
These teenagers, aged between 14 and 18 and numbering several hundred, live on the streets, exposing themselves to the underground activities thriving in the hidden parts of this city.
Many of them get addicted to drugs, mainly "ice", and "survive" by robbing illegal immigrants and prostituting themselves, the boys included.
The New Sunday Times team, who staked out several areas over a few days, found the youngsters sleeping in abandoned buildings in several parts of the city.
"When we are sleepy, we don't care about the surroundings," said one of them.
Most of the time, they can be found wandering around in specific parts of the city centre.
Some become jaga kereta boys, and would not hesitate to scratch cars if their owners refuse to pay them a ringgit or two.
The bolder ones peddle drugs, earning enough to buy them lunch or dinner, sometimes at fast food outlets.
At least one teenage couple had their sexual act recorded and sold in DVD format. They did it willingly, to survive.
The sight of the authorities would send them scurrying to their hideouts.
They would use the toilets in cybercafes and fast food outlets to clean themselves. The adults among the homeless would keep an eye on these kids.
A Scottish woman chanced upon them while searching for a dining outlet with her husband.
Jill McWilliams, who has two children of her own, took pity on them and over two years has discovered hundreds of them.
Some of them were relocated to several safehouses but the numbers keep increasing, some apparently dropped off by the roadside by parents who cannot cope with them.
"The authorities are not helping. Instead, they asked why am I doing all this," she said.
The girls are drawn into prostitution when they cannot survive in the concrete jungle.
One of them is pregnant with her third child and she is only 17. Her boyfriend has been in and out of prison but would look for her whenever he is released. Her mother, a clinic assistant, knows what she is doing in the city. The girl is now staying in a budget hotel, courtesy of the McWilliams.
Another girl, who was an international school student, ended up on the street after being physically abused by her drug addict father.
The 17-year-old is being taken care of by her boyfriend, who also acts as her pimp.
She admits that she has never gone for a medical check-up and, therefore, does not know whether she has sexually-transmitted diseases. She would charge her customers, mostly foreigners, between RM150 and RM300 per session.
The couple is currently staying in one of the abandoned buildings in the heart of the city. Checks at these abandoned buildings revealed several cans of glue lying around. This is a tell-tale sign that the building is "occupied".
These kids don't normally hang out together in a big group as this would attract the attention of the authorities. Instead they scatter and blend into the crowd. Despite their condition, they are well clothed, courtesy of donors.
"Sometimes, new clothes would result in fights and many times, mine were stolen but life goes on. If my shirt is stolen, I would steal someone else's," said a 15-year-old boy.
by Badrolhisham Bidin and G. Shanti
Several hundred teenagers are living in abandoned buildings in Kuala Lumpur. They roam the streets, robbing and prostituting themselves to survive. One couple even made a sex tape for sale. Shockingly, the parents of some of these kids know what they are doing.
THEY are unwanted, neglected and shunned by their parents and society.
These teenagers, aged between 14 and 18 and numbering several hundred, live on the streets, exposing themselves to the underground activities thriving in the hidden parts of this city.
Many of them get addicted to drugs, mainly "ice", and "survive" by robbing illegal immigrants and prostituting themselves, the boys included.
The New Sunday Times team, who staked out several areas over a few days, found the youngsters sleeping in abandoned buildings in several parts of the city.
"When we are sleepy, we don't care about the surroundings," said one of them.
Most of the time, they can be found wandering around in specific parts of the city centre.
Some become jaga kereta boys, and would not hesitate to scratch cars if their owners refuse to pay them a ringgit or two.
The bolder ones peddle drugs, earning enough to buy them lunch or dinner, sometimes at fast food outlets.
At least one teenage couple had their sexual act recorded and sold in DVD format. They did it willingly, to survive.
The sight of the authorities would send them scurrying to their hideouts.
They would use the toilets in cybercafes and fast food outlets to clean themselves. The adults among the homeless would keep an eye on these kids.
A Scottish woman chanced upon them while searching for a dining outlet with her husband.
Jill McWilliams, who has two children of her own, took pity on them and over two years has discovered hundreds of them.
Some of them were relocated to several safehouses but the numbers keep increasing, some apparently dropped off by the roadside by parents who cannot cope with them.
"The authorities are not helping. Instead, they asked why am I doing all this," she said.
The girls are drawn into prostitution when they cannot survive in the concrete jungle.
One of them is pregnant with her third child and she is only 17. Her boyfriend has been in and out of prison but would look for her whenever he is released. Her mother, a clinic assistant, knows what she is doing in the city. The girl is now staying in a budget hotel, courtesy of the McWilliams.
Another girl, who was an international school student, ended up on the street after being physically abused by her drug addict father.
The 17-year-old is being taken care of by her boyfriend, who also acts as her pimp.
She admits that she has never gone for a medical check-up and, therefore, does not know whether she has sexually-transmitted diseases. She would charge her customers, mostly foreigners, between RM150 and RM300 per session.
The couple is currently staying in one of the abandoned buildings in the heart of the city. Checks at these abandoned buildings revealed several cans of glue lying around. This is a tell-tale sign that the building is "occupied".
These kids don't normally hang out together in a big group as this would attract the attention of the authorities. Instead they scatter and blend into the crowd. Despite their condition, they are well clothed, courtesy of donors.
"Sometimes, new clothes would result in fights and many times, mine were stolen but life goes on. If my shirt is stolen, I would steal someone else's," said a 15-year-old boy.
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