Take child safety on the road seriously, like in US

Here's a posting by a concerned mummy on SMH forum. I'm sure she would like me to pass on the message. See her last 3 paragraphs on what she observed in Singapore. Things here haven't changed much since she wrote to Straits Time in Feb 2007...

=================================
Posted on Tuesday, February 06, 2007 - 1:44 pm:

Dear mommies and daddies out there...just want to share the following with you. ...a letter I wrote to the Straits Times last sat on child safety, and watch the Video below on how a healthy, happy 3 year old died because he wasn't in a right carseat.

I hope that all of us will take the safety of our children seriously, and get good safety seats for them!
--------------

Feb 3, 2007
Take child safety on the road seriously, like in US

ON DEC 1, 2001, the United States required that all children under the age of eight be secured in child safety seats in the rear of the car. Children below the age of one and 9kg must be seated rear facing and, thereafter, they can be seated front facing.

On Oct 1, 2002, Singapore imposed similar requirements, with slight differences in age requirements.

Having delivered my child in the US while on overseas deployment, I am all too familiar with US laws, which are drummed into parents through parenting shows, birth classes, magazines, etc.

The importance of using a child safety seat is also reinforced by hospitals, where parents are allowed to take their baby home only if they present an infant car seat that has been installed properly in the vehicle. Parents who are clueless as to how to install the safety seat can seek assistance at fire stations.

In Arizona where I had my child, motorists who do not use child safety seats are subjected to a civil penalty of US$50 (S$77) plus court-imposed surcharges, which come up to about US$300. The penalty varies by state, but all 50 states have laws on children buckling up.

The safety of children is held in high regard in the US, where it is almost impossible to find a child roaming freely in the rear seat or unrestrained in safety seats.

However, it is a different story in Singapore. In the two months since my return, I have seen countless cases where infants are carried in the arms of grandparents and parents while riding in the back and even the front of the car.

Children younger than eight years old can be seen seated in the front seat of cars, secured only by the seat belt, without a booster seat. Children can also often be seen playing in the back of the car, without booster seats or seatbelts. These incidents are accidents waiting to happen. It has been shown that infants and children not secured in safety seats can be injured seriously or killed in a crash, even at low speed. Parents' arms are not strong enough to hold and protect the baby in the event of an accident.

With the number of accidents increasing over the years, it is time that parents do more to protect their children while riding in a vehicle.

(FULL NAME REMOVED)

Please also watch this video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azgBhZfcqaQ