KUALA LUMPUR – A witness told the sessions court here that she saw Rumah Bonda founder Siti Bainun Ahd Razali hold Bella’s chin and force the girl with Down’s Syndrome to eat fried rice mixed with many chillies.
Suhana Zam, 40, a legal research officer at a law firm, told the court that she was sitting at a dining table in a condominium unit in Wangsa Maju owned by Siti Bainun during the incident in May 2021.
“Bella was standing facing Siti Bainun in front of the refrigerator and there was a wooden bench there. I saw Bainun put a plate of fried rice and a lot of cut chilli, much more than the fried rice.
“She (Siti Bainun) mixed the fried rice, held Bella’s chin, and forced Bella to eat it. Bella refused but was forced to eat.
“I was surprised to see Bella treated like that, I didn't say anything because at that time I didn't want to confront Bainun face to face because I was worried about her reaction if confronted,” said Suhana during the examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor, Nor Azizah Mohamad, at the trial of Siti Bainun’s case.
In previous proceedings, Rumah Bonda resident Yasmin Nahar Mahmood, 18, told the court that Bella had been fed a pot of rice poured with vinegar, turmeric, salt, soy sauce, chilli, and chilli flakes, as well as rotten fried chicken, by Siti Bainun during the fasting month.
Meanwhile, Suhana said she saw a palm-sized bruise on the right side of Bella’s face when she went to Siti Bainun's house on June 13, 2021.
“I went to Siti Bainun’s house because Siti Bainun invited me to eat king crabs in ‘shell out’ style. When I arrived at the house at 5pm I saw that Bella’s hair was cut short and she was wearing a long-sleeved shirt. Bella looked scared and there was a bruise the size of a palm on the right side of her face. That was the worst condition I had ever seen Bella in,” said the witness.
The eighth prosecution witness said that during her stay at the house, she saw that Bella’s meal times were irregular, and whenever the teenager was punished to stand for hours by Siti Bainun she did not see anyone give the girl any food or drink.
To Nor Azizah's question about Bella’s condition when the teenager was not given food and drink for hours, Suhana said that the teenager stood alone and could not speak. – Bernama, June 13, 2022
