Chapter 1 – Report of the Policy, Law and Complaints Group (b) RTD on Care Services for Older Persons and Support for Caregivers During the RTD, the participants highlighted the following points concerning the rights of older persons: (i) It was noted that in the future, the Government will be shifting its role from that of ‘service provider’ to ‘regulator’, and as such there are no more plans to increase the number of Government care centres. Therefore, it was proposed that the Government ensure the compliance of service providers to the standards and requirements set by the Government. (ii) It was suggested that the word “Private” should not be in the name of the new Private Aged Health Care Facilities and Services Bill, as there are also centres managed by the Government. Therefore, the Bill should only introduce one standard that will be complied with by both Government and private centres. (iii) It was suggested that there should be proper cooperation and coordination among the ministries, as older persons’ issues involve several ministries such as the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (MWFCD), the MOH, etc. (iv) Concerns were also raised regarding care services for older persons at home by their family members or maids, as most of these caregivers are not properly trained. Such care work could put the caregivers at risk of depression, and may even result in cases of abuse of the older persons under their care. (v) Since Malaysia is adopting a mixed system in relation to care services for older persons, it was suggested that an extensive study on the best practices of other countries should be conducted in order to ensure that the Government adopt the best system for the country based on accessibility, affordability, and sustainability of the services. (vi) Proper laws and regulations are needed to ensure that older persons are not vulnerable to abuse but instead are legally protected. (vii) There is a proposal at international human rights fora to develop a new convention to protect the rights of older persons. It was hoped that the Government will support the idea of this new instrument. Older persons’ issues should be given serious consideration as the number of older people is increasing every year. All parties, including the Government, NGOs, care centre operators, universities, and the general public, as well as communities, have their respective responsibilities and should assist older persons so that they may live with dignity. Apart from welfare-related issues, older person’s issues should be seen from the human rights perspective, such as the right to health, the right to an adequate standard of living, the right to be included in the community, and the right to be free from any form of torture and abuse. 34 BOOK-ANR2016-01-latest.indb 34 08/04/2016 3:32 PM